Aliens in Church
I am an alien.
Never realized it before.
But sitting here in church watching
A performance cheesier than anything this side of Green Bay,
Rolling my eyes,
While others watch in awe and reverence,
I realize I must be from some other planet.
I do not belong here.
I used to feel that this was my place,
Having cut my teeth on the back
Of an ancient oak pew.
Now it all seems foreign.
It has changed,
But I have changed more.
And I have read enough to know
I am not the only one.
14 thoughts on "Aliens in Church"
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I’ve had this same feeling many times, Wayne. Thanks for naming it.
Thank you!
I agree with what Kevin said–you’ve named a hard thing here and it’s something I can identify with too
“A hard thing,” Interesting idea. I’ll ponder that for a while.
A great poem. You’ve identified of a universal feeling among critical thinkers and free spirits.
It seems that the churches that most speak to critical thinkers and free spirits are the “high church” ones, and unfortunately I have a negative response to that as well!
Are you a member of the Church of Curmudgeons?
Yep, I’m grateful I gave up on church a long time ago. Haven’t ever regretted it. I liked some of the rituals and the beautiful stained-glass windows, some of the songs.
At first, I thought there were going to be literal aliens inside a church. And that gave me a good laugh.
Ah – an idea for another poem!
Yes, universal.
This is what poetry does.
You have named the angst and made it whole.
Me too.
“made it whole.” I’ll be pondering that one for a while.
The phrase “cheesier than anything this side of Green Bay” is hilarious to me. And I agree with the others… I also have felt this feeling from churches (but not from God).
Thanks – my attempts at humor are rarely successful!