Since the first time I read Blue Like Jazz, I have been wanting to attend a church service at Imago Dei Community in Portland and listen to one of Pastor Rick’s Sunday morning talks. Today it was my joy to do just that. Rick was amazing. But of course I had to run into the same problem that I ran into at Cornerstone Community Church in Simi Valley: Christians. Specifically Christians who are judgmental and blind to the plank in their own eye that is labeled, “PRIDE”. Perhaps I am being a little judgmental, but I am acknowledging that. I was fine until we attended the new comer’s session and the old folks learned that my colleagues and I were working at Reed College. Maybe it wasn’t just their initial reaction that pissed me off. It was also how the group leader said with a smirk on his face that “We pray for Reed often”. I doubt any of these adults have ever had an intellectual conversation with a Reedie. I don’t even know if they would ever bother to make time to get their facts straight before they react so harshly, which saddens me. I was hoping to find community here this day. Most of the church body was totally my scene: hipster-emo-hotties. Perhaps there is hope.I will hit up the church again because I can see God working through the lives of people and I am happy that many of those people that he is working through are hipster-emo-hotties. I just want to be authentic wherever I am and with whom ever I am associating with. These old folks may have caught me off guard today and they did in fact piss me off. But I am OK now. I carried on with my day by going to a gay bar with my gay friend where we consumed alcohol, I said many positive things about Obama, I sent some facebook flair, and listened to music with cursing.
