I've been tagged for memes before but have ducked participating. This time, Songbird tagged me. I don't dare duck; she's a minister, and You Know Who is on her side!
Here are 8 random facts about me: - I had straight, thin hair most of my life. When it had gone mostly gray, though, it changed texture and became wavy! (You can't really be sure by looking at my photo in the sidebar at the right, but I used to have brown hair.)
- As a child, I could never get enough of The Secret Garden. I started reading it in elementary school. By the time I left junior high school (what's now called middle school), I must have checked out the school library's copy hundreds of times. I wanted Mary Lennox's life.
- I have telephonophobia. This means I hate talking on the telephone. If you want to gab with me, e-mail me.
- That's due to my being an introvert. Oh yeah, I'll yak forever by e-mail or on this blog, but going to parties and hanging out with friends, though enjoyable in small doses, wear me out mentally and emotionally. I need plenty of quiet time to be centered.
- I am an alto. I have a good voice, but I'd need voice lessons to loosen up enough to do folk music well, which is one of my fantasies. I do best with liturgical pieces. Of course, now that I'm in this period of not attending church, I'm not getting much singing practice in.
- I took piano lessons for years, from about third grade through my senior year in high school. I loved it, playing classical music, contemporary soft rock, and church hymns. I occasionally filled in for the church pianist, who was my piano teacher. While I was in college, I'd go to a local nursing home and play a few hymns on the ancient piano for residents who gathered there. I'll always remember the delight on their faces every time I walked into the room. It was like having lots of grandparents.
- I am a secret fan of trashy bodice-rippers. I haven't had time to read any in a few years, so I'm overdue for a binge.
- I've taken quite a trip through the various flavors of Christianity, becoming more liberal with each change: I grew up a Southern Baptist in Texas, which took me years and lots of therapy to recover from. (My childhood itself took years and lots of therapy to recover from.) I did a brief stint as a Roman Catholic during my first marriage, which neither First Husband nor I sought to have annulled by the Catholic church, so technically, we're living in sin because we've long since been married to new partners. I've been part of the Presbyterian Church USA since 1995; I'm an ordained church elder. I stopped attending church about 18 months ago, after the very liberal pastor (who got me all excited about actively living my faith) left my church for another church. Her absence revealed to me just how liberal that particular church was not, and I realized I could not be who I am supposed to be in that place. I tell myself I'm probably a good candidate for membership in the United Church of Christ, which is pretty much the most liberal Christian denomination around, but I'm rather leery of diving into another church wholeheartedly again.
And now, I tag the Peaceable Imperatrix, Karoli, Katie Allison Granju, Erin, and Redneck Mother. If I haven't named you and you'd like to play along, please provide your 8 facts as a comment on this post.
meme random facts EditorMom
9 comments:
Just a word about the UCC: At the national level, they are very liberal. At the local church level, most churches are not as liberal as you might think (for example, only 10% are "open and affirming" to gays). Every UCC church is different so you might have to try a few out to find the right fit.
We were members of a UCC congregation in Chapel Hill, and it made me chuckle when, before an audience response section, the minister stopped to remind us that "when it says 'God' in the responses, you can envision that as whatever positive force you feel comfortable affirming today."
Thanks for tagging me. Today's been topsy-turvy but I'll get to it (probably tomorrow).
Now, that sounds liberal! Though actually, it sounds more Unitarian Universalist (UU) than UCC. But hey, they're both U's. ;-)
I count myself as tagged. Tomorrow is Sticks' graduation, so probably won't get to this one till Saturday, but I definitely will!
It's certainly true that local churches are not as liberal as pastors or the national church, but there is in our churches from the Congregational tradition a rather delightful devotion to independent thought that appeals to me, having grown up Southern Baptist in a time when the right of private judgment still meant something. If you have any UCC churches in the neighborhood and want to "talk" about them, shoot me an e-mail!
P.S. That independent streak also means that some non-ONA churches are fine with GLBT people but don't want to do a process that isn't over until a national representative approves the church's ONA statement.
I'm lucky that in the next town over (not far away at all), the UCC church is ONA. I didn't even know the church was there until a couple of years ago when I was looking for a preschool for my youngest. My mother-in-law found the preschool ... in the basement of that very UCC church.
I love reading these things and discovering how much I have in common with other bloggers!
Take a look at the Quakers. George Fox, the founder of the Religious Society of Friends, wrote journals and stuff that bear little resemblance to the non-dogmatic, open-hearted Meeting in which I grew up. Always had females in leadership positions. No minister or church boss. Everyone has her/his own direct line to God, whatever that is. In recent decades, service and pacifism have dominated their work outside local Meetings. Look up American Friends' Service Committee.
Etcetera.
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