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dana316
member
Anyone here Methodist?
dana316
member
I REALLY do not want to get into the whole 'do you believe in God' discussion...that's not what this post is about.
I was raised in the Baptist church...but we are looking for a new church home, and since Caroline is starting at the Methodist day school, we are thinking of visiting the Methodist church, with thoughts towards joining if we decide we are happy there.
I'd love some details/your take on the Methodist church...I'm doing research, but nothing compares to hearing the views of a church member.
Thanks!
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Re: Anyone here Methodist?
I was raised Methodist, but joined the Presbyterian Church before DH and I married.
They are very similar in beliefs. Presb is slightly more conservative and traditional. But Methodist up here is slightly different than Southern Meth. Southern Meth would be closer to baptist than up here.
We chose presby vs meth here because I wanted a more traditional church setting.
I'm mostly curious about how the service is different. I can research the doctrine, but I'm wondering about the practical aspects. I've been told that the service is much more ritualistic (for lack of a better word) than Baptist churches, whatever that means.
I'm up for any and all information.
Communion is usually done 1 Sunday a month. "Ritual" is what I meant by Traditional. But a typical service would be 1 hr, old test and a new test reading, 3 hymns or so, typically a Children's Sermon of some sort, Choir sometimes. An Opening Prayer, A pastoral prayer (longer) and then a Sermon.
I'm Methodist. Raised, married and we're raising E in our church too.
I've found churches within the denomination can vary a lot. Some are much more liberal, others are more conservative. It depends a lot on the membership, the area and the pastors currently serving the church.
But the United Methodist Church's vision statement is "Open Hearts. Open Minds. Open Doors." That rings very true to me.
ETA: Saw your question on service differences. My church offers both traditional and contemporary services on Sundays and also has a very contemporary service on Saturday nights. I think you'll find that services will also vary widely depending on the size of the church and the make-up.
The Methodist service is definitely more "high church" than any Baptist service, although the extent to which that's true depends on the church. I've been to some pretty casual Methodist services, but our church has a very formal service...lots of recitation and Wesley hymns, clergy in robes, etc...no contemporary music at all, etc. We chose this church specifically for that reason, as my husband was raised in a very traditional church setting (he was raised Methodist) and just wasn't comfortable in a more informal church service.
ETA: It's also true that the level of conservative vs. liberal on social issues in the local church depends heavily on the leadership and the congregation. There are some Methodist congregations aruond the country going through some really divisive times on the subject of social issues, but I'm guessing that probably won't be the case in your geographic area.
Ha, your DH sounds like me! I am a very liberal person, but I prefer a more traditional church service. I like hymns, I like clergy in robes. We go to the early service at our church and are by far the youngest there!
Many of the young families at our church go to the contemporary service -- jeans, no robes, a lot of audio-visual, contemporary music from a band with electric guitar, drums, etc. Absolutely nothing wrong with it, it's just not for me
Here the Methodist Churches were trying to be too contemporary where the Presby are afraid of change and rocking the boats
We have gone to both baptist and Methodist churches. The Methodist church we went to recently (2 years ago) was definitely more liturgical. There was an order to the service that could be expected every week quipped with readings and certain hymns etc. Whereas the baptist church we went to was much more contemporary and readings were done casually.
Of course each church varies, but that's what I saw in the services.
Thanks for all the info. I'm excited to visit the UMC, for sure. They seem to have two services, an early service that is more contemporary, and a later, traditional service. I'm sure we will attend the traditional service...that is much more my cup of tea.
Some Baptist churches in our area are doing the more contemporary services too, and I just don't care for it. I was raised in a conservative Baptist church, and I like hymns. We visited a church on Sunday (Baptist) that had no choir, just a music director playing the guitar, singing songs I'd never heard. I didn't care for it at all. They had an interim preacher (an old school guy that I like), and had he not started The Old Rugged Cross during the benediction, I wouldn't have be able to sing at all during the service, and that makes me sad.
There is so much hellfire and brimstone in the Baptist church these days, and as much as I believe it, I'd like to hear sermons on other topics every now and again
I'm working towards ordination in the methodist church and honestly each and every UMC is so different. I'm liberal and have found congregations that are very justice oriented and do a lot of justice work.
Others have a totally different focus. As far as worship goes again you'll find a lot of divergence depending on the church.
I love the methodist church (obviously since that's what i do for a living). If you have any more specific questions I would be happy to answer them. It's hard since each congregation in the UMC is so different.
***Twin fraternal girls born at 35w6d in 12/2008***
I am Methodist. My mother is Methodist and my father is Jewish (I know, what a combo!). I actually grew up learning about both. We celebrated Christmas and Hanukkah, Easter and Passover. When I was a teenager my parents let my brother and I decide what we wanted to be. We both chose Methodist...and then I married a Catholic man! We still celebrate all the Jewish traditions with my father's side of the family and respect their beliefs, as do they respect ours. It's neat to me that my DS will grow up learning about several religions too.
It's hard to compare because I obviously don't want to offend someone's religion! I have found Methodist religion not much different than the views of other Christian faiths. To me, I feel most relaxed when attending a Methodist service. Not uptight or judgmental in any way. The pastor cracks jokes, any one can participate in communion, etc. But it might vary in different parts of the county and/or specific churches.
But based on my diverse background, I say go to service a few times and see if it feels right to you. That's what choosing a religion should really be about in my opinion. GOOD LUCK!