I went to the Christmas Eve service at the church I used to attend when I was a kid. I got there early and picked a seat in a pew about five rows back, to leave room for other people to sit in front of me so I could copy what they did. I was worried I wouldn't know when to stand, sit, kneel, etc. and especially when to go up for communion. I kept waiting for someone else to sit in a row ahead of me, but the church just filled up behind me, so finally, just before the service, I moved back a few rows so there was one person ahead of me. I felt mildly like an imposter, but I also really enjoyed the service, being in the familiar warm church I remember from my childhood, and listening to hymns that are poetry, if not invested with deeper meaning for me. Look how beautiful these lyrics are, for instance:
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
the silent stars go by.
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
the everlasting light;
the hopes and fears of all the years
are met in thee tonight.
It's good stuff.
After the service, lots of people who remembered me from when I was younger came up and hugged me. I wish I could find a secular community that was as friendly and had as many opportunities for involvement, but I don't think such a thing exists.
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