If you read my previous post, you should have seen a story about one of my first experiences with our contra dance group here in Nashville. This group became a significant part of our lives — easily as important sometimes as the church.
While it’s too late to draw lengthy comparisons between the church and the dance group, I find it interesting that the dance group was basically a public and/or social space rather than personal or intimate. What’s so interesting is that even though I wasn’t involved closely in the lives of others in the dance group, they were important to me and affected my life significantly.
Joe’s Myers book “The Search to Belong” is helpful in thinking about this. Part of what Joe suggests is that the church has confused significance with intimacy. Thus, churches are often trying to call persons into initimate relationships, when in fact intimacy may not be required for significance.
Only Wonder Understands 