The first part of this post will be about my experience with The Crossing, which Susan also captured very well. I approach things a little differently sometimes I think, I tend to let my feelings lead me in religious experiences that are not academic in nature. So to go to a church as an assignment confused my inner self a bit, I but I think I made it work.
To start with, I am used to a certain kind of service. I am Roman Catholic, and still very active in my home parish. That being said, I also still feel uncomfortable attending a mass by myself in my church, and it is mainly due to the feelings I have associated with my home parish. My home church has been around since sometime in the early 1900's, to say it is full of old school Yankees is underplaying the situation a bit. The feeling you get unfortunately, when you come in, is not a welcoming one. They are not a friendly group, aside from the greeters, and therefore make it difficult for outsiders to feel welcome. Father Jim will always seek out a newcomer after mass and welcome them, but for the most part, people believe saying the words and not using actions is best. And honestly, if they can avoid the unknown altogether, that would be best.
Compare this experience with The Crossing, where walking in feels like a warm hug. People are friendly without being overbearing, and there is just such a strong undercurrent of joy running through the group, it is contagious. It is an Episcopalian service, so there are a few things done differently than what I am used to, but before the service even begins, you know, God is present here.
One of the most powerful forces in the service is Rev. Steph, even though as Susan mentioned, it is very much a community based church. I attended one service where Rev. Steph was absent, and there was a slight difference, which worried me a bit. The main group associated with The Crossing were just as exuberant and happy to be there as always.
The crucial thing to me about The Crossing, was really the welcome sense you get from everyone. Saying that, I also feel as though this is a church designed for those who are in a transient stage in their life. I don't necessarily feel as though this a church where people will be dedicated for years and years. It seems as though it is a safe place for those who might have none in their lives, and a place where it is clear God loves you, no matter who are. The people are so diverse and are so passionate about The Crossing, but I don't know, I just didn't feel a strong sense of permanence. I have been wrestling that since I started tuning into this feeling, but I do not have a clearer way of articulating it yet.
Now, the Rhythms of Grace training and mass I attended did have that permanent sense, as the way the service is developed, people of all ages in the autism spectrum can belong. Backing up real quick, Rhythms of Grace is a movement to "do church" for those who may have become unchurched simply because their child falls in the autism spectrum and traditional ways of church have ceased being a joy, and instead become a majorly stressful occasion. Their website is: http://www.aspecialgrace.com, and gives a pretty concise overview of what they do, I strongly recomend visiting the site.
One of the strengths of their service, is while it is developed around the needs of the children with Autism, it also meets the needs of their parents, providing a space for them to relax for an hour, and attend a service. Some parents have been unable to attend church in years, since a child with autism can be unpredictable and you may never know how one will react during the course of a mass. The instructor at our training, who is also one the developers had a very interesting story to share with us. You need to remember, some children with Autism take things very literally, so the eucharist can be a major issue. Telling them they are about to eat someone's body and blood, and swallow it, can be incredibly revolting to them. Our instructor shared the story of one little girl solving the problem for her autistic brother by telling him, "you are about to eat love, so it is okay, and not yucky at all". From then on, when our instructor leads these services, that is the language she uses before eucharist.
For me (and this is the last paragraph I swear) the most powerful theme in both the Rhythms of Grace and The Crossing services is how they reach people who before then, may have seemed unreachable in the traditional church's sense. The Crossing unites all types of people, and Rhythms of Grace manages to bring back into the fold a population that is not only quite large in the disabled community, but growing rapidly. To me, these two examples are some of the most powerful of what the Church is capable of doing, and how well they could possibly succeed in doing it.
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