SubscribeBringing church into the home
My mother has not been able to attend church regularly for nearly two years and it has been a tough adjustment in her spiritual life.
Her expression of faith is quiet but it has been solid and visible in how she has lived and helped guide our family. She and my father grew up in small rural churches and sought that same kind of intimacy and fellowship when they became parents and moved to the city.
They became rooted in a Methodist church where most members were part of a dozen or so family groups and where they could serve actively in church ministries. That meant, of course, that we four daughters attended Sunday school and participated in various youth programs. I still remember fondly the years when Miss Baker, one of the three Baker sisters who were church members, worked tirelessly as the youth leader, organizing all sorts of interesting events. 
I hadn’t focused much on my mother’s access to spiritual nourishment through her church community until I recently moved back to North Carolina. It’s a sensitive issue for religious seniors who have long-term health problems and one that churches and other religious institutions deal with in different ways. The minister at my mother’s church visits her regularly and church members routinely call or stop by.
Then something happened a few weeks ago and I realized that the way the church had been interacting with the sick and shut-ins just wasn’t enough. They had figured it out too. One Sunday afternoon the minister, who usually came alone, brought five church members by to see my Mom. She told me she was puzzled at first by this crowd pulling up in front of her house. By the time they left, she said, “We had had church.”
They sang songs, read scripture and prayed, bringing with them the joy that comes from worshiping in a group. My Mom had missed this kind of fellowship and said she is looking forward to next visit. Are your aging parents being spiritually nourished?
To read more about faith and religion, read Yvonne Lamb’s blog Soul Rhythms.
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I am a member of the Sandwich Generation, a Baby Boomer raising a teenage daughter and dealing with the needs of an aging mother. I am a veteran journalist, having worked for more than three decades as a reporter and editor. Mostly recently, I was an editor with the Metro section of The Washington Post.
