Membership or the lack thereof

Groucho Marx said, "I’d never join a club that would have me as a member."

These days I might say I’d never join a church that would have me as a member. It’s probably because I suffer from generational post-traumatic legalistic church syndrome. You know the symptoms: heightened suspicion of religious authority figures, anxiety when visiting churches that have kicked you out, unwillingness to sign covenant or commitment pledges.

I come by my diagnosis honestly. My dad was just a young man when an officious Sunday School Superintendent chastised him for sitting down on the job while he was manning the sanctuary door during a worship service.

My dad spent most church service mornings after that eating bacon and eggs at his favorite restaurant and refusing to attend a church that was overseen by a sanctimonious elite. When the church elders visited and requested that he surrender his membership following his divorce from my mother he willingly agreed to part ways.

My divorced mom was a regular in the church choir when the preacher directed a sermon about the unrighteousness of divorced persons being up-front in church services. Even at the age of thirteen this seemed overly passive-agressive.

It is no wonder that I was mightily irritated when the denominational church that I was attending requested my membership resignation when I divorced and remarried. Of course, this was in the unenlightened 1970s. These days the same church has a well-defined policy concerning divorced persons and their role in church life.

An emphasis on right behavior was a cornerstone of the foundation of the legalistic denomination I was raised in. I am appreciative of the bible study and memorization they emphasized. However, now many years later, I realize that much of their key text doctrinal explanations were out of context and slanted. Ah, well, to each his own.

Being kicked out of the church did give me the opportunity to explore other churches and that was an enlightening journey.