the homeboy is holy

Today I decided to stray from my usual Sunday morning of going to Bethel Church (local Protestant church in Kingston), and instead went with two of my Catholic friends to Mass. Prior to today, I had never been, but had always been interested in knowing more about how our fellow brothers and sisters worship on Sunday mornings. Not only have I encountered Catholic history more than enough times in class, but I came to realize that growing up in a Protestant church, I am fairly ignorant about the Catholic faith. In short, I felt like it was time for me to stop living within my sheltering bubble and, at the very least, check out what was going on on the outside.

This morning at mass, I experienced a sense of refreshment that I had not experienced at a church service for quite some time. I'll admit, throughout the service I was at times quite confused and felt kind of dumb. Everyone knew when to stand, sit, kneel, sing the chorus, say the Lord's prayer, etc...while I attempted to keep up (with the help of my friend). Obviously, it was more traditional and ceremonial than I was used to (and for those that know me, they would know that my definition of church is the furthest thing from any sort of ceremony). Nonetheless, all these things did not seem to really matter to me as I sat in those pews, as God was speaking to me; or at the very least reminding me of a lesson he taught me long ago. It was the simple message that God was great. The service prided itself in the fact that God is great and it was simply an honour to be in His prescence. Obviously the building is not our focus of worship, but the gradeur and magnificantness of the cathedral gave me the image of God filling His temple. The lyrics of the songs had little to no room for words like "I" and "me" because they were too occupied by the splendor of who God is. Many times we would kneel and be completely submissive as the magnifance of God was proclaimed. God reminded me how great He was.

I am not saying that the worship service at Bethel, SCBC, or any other Protestant church for that matter, is bad. I think they are great. But this refreshing experience (hopefully one of many) taught me a few things.

As people, we like to know that in the end, things are relevant to us. If the weather is bad, it is mostly bad because we know that we will have to wear a coat outside or spend the whole day staring at a dark, cloudy sky. If we spill something on the floor, we usually get mad because we are the ones that have to clean it up. A mark on a test or exam indicates more than what we did, but is a indication of our value. Things, in many cases, are right to us when we somehow fit into the picture. What about Christians? Does the same idea apply? We sing songs that primarily focus on OUR relationship with God. A message in church is not complete without the points on how it affects or is relevant to OUR lives. As hard as we may or may not try, our prayers are often consumed by OUR own personal agendas. To me it seems God only works for us within the context of ourselves.

Now dont get me wrong, I do not think these things are bad. Some of those very songs have led me towards great encounters and revelations about God. The "take it home" part of messages are usually what I remember the most when I go back home on a Sunday afternoon. When I pray, I feel a sense of joy and thankfulness that I have a God that cares about my day; that God doesnt mind listening to me rant about how much my assignments suck. These things are great; they not only remind us that God loves us, but they also give us tangible ways for us to actively take part in our relationship with Him. However, the point I am trying to suggest is that maybe as we were swept in the whirlwind of our relationship with Him, we lost sight of how awesome God is. We have created an image of God that has been so humanized that He is now just as down to earth as Joe who sits next to you in economics class. Jesus is just like you and I. But the last time I checked, I dont really feel like worshiping someone like me. I suggest that maybe we have forgotten that yes God is our best friend, yes God is relevant in our lives, but there is something so great about God that makes us stand in awe of Him. He exceeds our mere reason and surpasses our largest conceptions. His mere name caused angels to cry "Holy, Holy, Holy". With or without our ability to define Him, He remains perfectly unchanging. He exist in the most real way possible regardless of our existance. Its funny how we can sometimes think that God really only works for us, and when we do not give Him his validity, He just sits on His throne and twiddles His thumbs all day. I'm not trying to bash anything about our faith, but I am encouraging us to expand our perceptions and perspectives of God, allowing adequate room for the spendor of the King.

I have never really had an opinion on those shirts that say "Jesus is my Homeboy". Its true, I guess He's my homeboy too...we're pretty tight and eventually I know we will have the sickest handshake in the world. My friend sort of has a problem with these t-shirts, and I used to just think that he was just being theologically anal. However, the more I think about it, the more it makes sense: "Jesus is my Homeboy...but the Homeboy is Holy".