The two services on Sunday
By suspenseful
@suspenseful (40193)
Canada
June 15, 2011 5:37pm CST
My second grandson's first birthday is on July 4, and my younger son and daughter-in-law decided to have the celebration on Sunday afternoon. Now I hardly see him, and even though I will have to miss the afternoon service, seeing that well becuase of my former bad knee, I could not go up the stairs until recently, I figured that I would go or rather my other son would bring me there.
This led to a discussion of what is allowed - like I know about christenings and funerals and important things, and then mh friend who could not understand about my daughter-in-law knowing that we have church in the morning and afternoon. I told her that being Roman Catholics, my daughter-in-law has mass in the early am, so she figured that most church services were like hers.
That led to my friend telling that back in the Netherlands, they did not have afternoon service, but evening services. Well I knew that was because so many people, like household servants worked in the day and were only off in the evening. So I thougth perhaps it would be better to have our afternoon service in the evening, since one could reflect on God more before retiring.
So do you have your second service in the afternoon or evening?
2 people like this
6 responses
@rocketj1 (6955)
• United States
15 Jun 11
Growing up in the Christian Reformed Church, we had an evening service on Sunday night.
Currently, the church I attend (United Brethren denomination) does not have a second service on Sundays. Several people are involved in small groups that either meet on Sunday afternoon, evening or even a different time and day of the week.
Since our family is not involved in one of the small groups, I really miss not having a second service on Sundays..... :(
3 people like this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
15 Jun 11
I find in the evening, because we do not have an evening service, that most of the members change into their Saturday clothes. I find it rather strange to do so. I feel rather uncomfortable and I would rather have an evening service on Sunday. I also realize that it maybe to keep people from shopping on Sunday or going on picnics, but I feel that with evening services starting at seven or eight, and with dinners before that, it would be a great rush to go to the park and then get back in time for supper.
I hope someone discusses it. I grew up with an evening service and it helped me a lot.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (160624)
• United States
16 Jun 11
@rocketj, I find that I am in the same boat. I do not participate in small group. On Wednesday nights there is an adult class, and choir practice and children's classes. Sunday evenings some small community groups meet. Sometimes we will come together for a special service on Sunday evening.
2 people like this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
16 Jun 11
I am no longer in choir, as I want to concentrate on my solo singing, but we do have Tuesday morning ladies meeting, and Saturda night meetings for the adults, once a month. And there are young peoples, children's meetngs, etc. so it is rather filled up. As for our afternoon services, there are a few who do not attend, and I suppose if there were evenng meetings, even early evenng like seven, there would be more attending.
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (160624)
• United States
16 Jun 11
Sad to say, my local congregation no longer has a second service on Sunday. They have not for many years. For a while they had two services on Sunday mornings. Now my brother is a pastor for the same denomination, in another state. He has a Sunday evening service, but it is an early service. He also frequently cooks a meal for anyone who wants to come at about 5:30 on Sunday evening. It is a really small congregation. He says he cannot afford to take them all out to eat, but he can afford to fix a simple meal for them all.
2 people like this
@GardenGerty (160624)
• United States
16 Jun 11
Once or twice a month there is a dinner prepared by the teens as a fund raiser. My son does not go to church but he lives with us. We often fix breakfast type foods for Sunday at noon and we eat leftovers from early in the week.
2 people like this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
16 Jun 11
We have a big dinner in fall to encourage the neighbors, and also we have vacation bible school and here is an evangelical society who get people to come. And of course there are the rummage sales.
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
16 Jun 11
I find that having a service in the afternoon, if one has not frozen a meal the day before, and when you have a service from three to four thirty, there is not enough time to prepare supper and also to go out in the evening. Sometimes we have a special service on Sunday evennngs like a Mission Evening, and there is a big rush to get things done. There is a companion church who have afternoon services, but they are late afternoon, and they have volunteers who prepare a meal so no one has to rush home.
But sitll evenings would be better.
2 people like this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
16 Jun 11
I do not why ours have afternoons. Maybe it is to make sure that no one goes to the park or to a restaurant on Sunday afternoon. My opinion is since the parks are usually not close, it would be too much bother to drive to a park or to a restaurent since they are usually on skeleton staff on Sundays, and have to go back and change for Church.
My point is that the second service should not be dependant on preventing people from doing other things, but on encouraging them to get closer to God. It is sort of like the old rules of you could not play cards on Sunday.
@danishcanadian (28953)
• Canada
16 Jun 11
I'm Presbyterian, and we have two morning services, but in shifts. That is to say, it's like when a movie plays twice, not two separate services that everyone attends. We can either go at 9:30 AM, or at 10:30 AM. We tend to go to the later one. The children stay for about the first quarter of the service, then go to Sunday School, while the adults stay for the entire service.
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
16 Jun 11
We used to be like that before we had the new church built in the east part of our part of Winnipeg. It was very confusing. WE do have another church in ecclestical fellowship who has services in the afternoon later, and I was thinking if I missed the pm services of ours, I could go to theirs. I did a few times when there was a mission evening and one where there was a wedding shower for my first daughter-in-law. I will have to ask if there is someone who can take me there after my grandson's first birthday. Still I miss the evening services.
@barehugs (8973)
• Canada
18 Jun 11
As a Spiritualist my Church is God's Creation and I worship there on a continuous basis. This morning, (for example) One of my boys, and myself went to a nearby bee yard to care for the bees. We suited up, lit up the smokers, and went right inside the beehives to examine the conditions of the bee colonies. We found the bees thriving, so we added honey boxes, and we are hopeful that the honey harvest will sweet and abundant! We had our Church Service with the bees this morning, and when we work with God's creatures, we know God is there because we can feel Her presence.
1 person likes this
@suspenseful (40193)
• Canada
19 Jun 11
Do you speak bee language? I would think it would be better to have a church service in a church building or in your house, and have people over and pray for God's guidance. Oh and God being a male, well would not your goddess be rather like the Earth mother and those that were worshipped long ago?
