WORSHIPFUL CONTRASTS, OCEAN GROVE
9 a.m. Sunday—
Contemporary worship. Boardwalk
Pavilion, Ocean Grove
This is where we worship with snare
drums and guitars
funky drama and spontaneous praise
dance on the boards
facing sand and spray and rising sun
This is where we lift our hands and
shout "Hallelujah!"
louder than the rousing rhythmic
praise
of the waves crashing in our midst
This is where families come in tees
and tank tops
cut-off denim, wrinkly cotton shorts
bare feet, sneakers, flip-flops
It's where we fan ourselves with
song-sheets
chug from Poland Spring bottles
and flip through the pages of our
Bibles
It's where we greet strangers,
unabashedly
with "Praise the Lord!"
and hugs and exit
faces shining with Moses-glow
10:30 a.m. Sunday—
Classic worship. Great Auditorium,
Ocean Grove
I walk briskly from the Boardwalk
Pavilion
(with my Moses-glow) to the old
Methodist edifice
with its prominent Cross facing the
Atlantic
This is where thousands gather
facing a purpose spelled out in
lights:
Holiness
to the Lord—So be ye holy
This is where worshipers arrive in
crisp pressed cotton
and wrinkle-free polyester, strap
sandals, pumps and pearls
where we rise and sing on key, hymns
by Wesley and Crosby
where we utter printed responses by
rote and in unison
Here, to the accompaniment of a
historic pipe organ
we hear a traditional choir sing
traditional hymns
and accomplished tenors and sopranos
and some of the greatest preachers
on earth
do magnificently what they have been
magnificently trained to do
This is where we pray quietly,
reverently, solemnly
hands folded in our laps, as 100
silver-haired ushers
process prominently with collection
baskets
wearing white slacks, dark jackets
and red ties
with white carnations pinned to
their lapels
This is where Gordon Turk, the
organist
presents a resounding recessional
as we nod at one other warmly
and walk out edified into a balmy
afternoon
Maude Carolan Pych
Photo credit: foursquare.com
Books by Maude...
"Wonderhoods"
www.maudecarolanpych.net
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