Have you attended religious services for religions other than your own?

[Glaurung]

I had a look inside a Buddhist temple when I went to Singapore, it was an interesting experience. My highschool was affiliated with the Uniting Church, so every month we would have a 'service' which mainly consisted of a band playing various (and usually awful) praise and worship songs followed by the school pastor giving some sermon on whatever topic.

 

[metis]

Since my wife and our youngest daughter and her family are Catholic, I attend services with them regularly. Most of my extended family is of the Protestant tradition, so I've attended many weddings and funerals with them, along with occasional regular services. I've also been in various mosques here in the States and in Israel, also one Hindu service near Detroit.

Even though I do not participate in these services, I have no problem with going to them.

 

[Rival]

No, I've not had the chance.

 

[Jayhawker Soule]

Have you attended religious services or functions outside of your own religious affiliation? As a Jew, have you been to a Christian church?

Of course - Muslim prayer and iftars, various Christian services, a Sikh wedding, a Shinto dojo blessing, ...

If you've had these experiences, what was it like? Did you learn something new and surprising?

Sometimes.

Was it a little bit scary and intimidating?

I was more than a little nervous the first time I entered a mosque. It proved to be unfounded.

 

[Jumi]

Oh I forgot, I've attended a Hare Krishna ceremony once in the 90s, was on a date with a girl then and we got invited by one of them on the street. The food they served was really good and free.

 

[metis]

Oh I forgot, I've attended a Hare Krishna ceremony once in the 90s, was on a date with a girl then and we got invited by one of them on the street. The food they served was really good and free.

There was a Hare Krishna place in Detroit, and we used to go there for dinner at times. I agree that it was quite good.

 

[Akivah]

I was more than a little nervous the first time I entered a mosque. It proved to be unfounded.

You're braver than me. I believe that if enter our local mosque while wearing a kippah that I won't emerge alive.

 

[Akivah]

I've been to a Christian service twice. The first time I was just a kid and all I remember is the long bench attached to the back of all the pews. I asked if it was a footstool, but was informed that they used it to kneel.

The second time, I was attending a relative's wedding which was part of a church service. Fortunately, they didn't have their god hanging in this building, but the crosses and frequent jesus invocations kept me on edge.

I find the differences of worship in different denominations of Judaism to be much more fascinating. I've been to Orthodox where the sexes are separate and the service is 100% in Hebrew. I've been to Reform where the cantor was female, played the guitar as an accompaniment, and not a single word of the service was in Hebrew. And several in-between.

 

[Flankerl]

Churches a few times. Mostly due to school activities like graduation.
Though I opted out for the graduation ceremony of the Abitur which wasn't really seen as warranted.

A mosque once due to the idea of multiculturalism where I kept a low profile.


Personally I want to visit a Shinto Temple or Gudwara.

 

[Aupmanyav]

I have read quite in detail about them, know them, and I am an atheist Hindu. I see no reason that I should attend their sermons.

 

[IdiNaPut]

I've been to a mosque, mandir, gurdwara and various churches.


The mosque was an Ahmadhi (spelling?) one and the people there were really cool, putting up with my million questions for ages. Plus it was an impressive sight to see such unity in the prayers.

The mandir was a weird experience, mostly because it was very much NOT what I was expecting. Ditto the gurdwara. In both cases though, people were really open, friendly, answered my questions.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Weird? How (if I may ask)? Do you mean very different?

The mosque was an Ahmadhi (spelling?) one and the people there were really cool, putting up with my million questions for ages. Plus it was an impressive sight to see such unity in the prayers.

Very nearly so, it is Ahmadi; and the followers are known as Ahmadiyas.

Personally I want to visit a Shinto Temple or Gudwara.

What stops you? Go ahead and do it.

 

[Levite]

When learning about the world's religions, one of the best ways to do so is to attend their religious services. It provides an inside, immersive look at what that religion is about. As much as I love academic treatises about various topics, they are no substitute for first-hand experience. Words only convey so much, after all, and they can never hope to capture the quirks and charms of each individual grouping of religious people within a demographic.

Have you attended religious services or functions outside of your own religious affiliation? As a Jew, have you been to a Christian church? As a Christian, have you been to a Hindu temple? As a Hindu, have you been to an Islamic mosque? If you've had these experiences, what was it like? Did you learn something new and surprising? Was it a little bit scary and intimidating? If you've never visited another religion's sacred spaces to experience a religious service, would you like to? Let's share some stories!

I have, though because of the ways Jewish Law limits interaction with non-Jewish religion, I had to be very careful to be clear I was there as a respectful observer, not as a participant. But I felt it was important to go for the sake of my own education, and for the sake of being able to properly facilitate and maintain good interfaith relations.

I have so far been to Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran, Baptist, AME, and UCC Christian services; I have been to two masjids for Muslim services; I have been to one Vaishnavic Hindu service, and two Buddhist meditation services, one Tibetan and one Zen; I have been to one seasonal ritual gathering of the Ojibwe nation; and to one Pagan celebration of Samhain and one of Beltaine. I found them all very educational, and each possessed of aspects of interest and aesthetic value.

 

[Rick O'Shez]

From what I understand, Spiritualists would basically identify as mediums or channels for the spirits of dead people. From that, they have (or seem to have, or claim) to have special knowledge emerging from those connections with the dead. It's not something I know a lot about, but it is certainly an interesting practice!

With the medium I saw I felt he was doing telepathy more than contacting spirits, somehow picking up on the memories of people in the audience. He had some sort of ability, but I found it very difficult to pin it down. Most of the people in the audience were obviously regular attenders and well known to the medium. It seemed like they needed a regular ongoing "connection" with their dead loved one(s), though whether that just extended the grieving process I'm not sure.

 

[metis]

I have been to one seasonal ritual gathering of the Ojibwe nation...

Do you mind me asking where? I'm in the heart of Ojibwe country right now here in da U.P. near Marquette where our place is for 4+ months each year, and I was just on the Baraga reservation this last weekend and the Bay Mills reservation a month ago.

 

[Quintessence]

As a Protestant I attended a Catholic church and went to several Buddhist and Taoist Temples and attended some of their "services".

Could you tell us a bit more about what those were like? I know "services" might not be the right word in some cases; it's hard to pick a catch-all word for religious functions.

 

[Quintessence]

I've been to a couple of Catholic masses, a non-denominational Christian service, a Pentacostal service and a Unitarian Universalist service. I have a Muslim friend, and I've told her I'd like to attend Mosque with her sometime. We just haven't gotten together to do so yet. The only bad experience was at the non-denominational Christian service which was here in Salt Lake City. Throughout the sermon, there were sarcastic and rude remarks made about "the dominant religion in the area." Nobody used the word "Mormon," but it was clear who they were talking about. There was a lot of snickering going on every time a derogatory comment was made. The Catholic masses were my favorite.

That's too bad about the non-denominational group. I sat in on a non-denominational Christian group once many years ago, and there was an absence of such rudery. Perhaps that goes to show that group dynamics are often a function of the people composing that group, and don't necessarily speak for a whole category of people?

That's part of what I find fascinating about visiting different religious services. I bet that every individual congregation - even those that claim to be of the same denomination - each has its own unique flavor. That's certainly been my experience with Unitarian Universalist fellowships - been to four different ones, and they were all different.

 

[Quintessence]

I have only attended services in a variety of Christian churches. I have never felt any reason to attend other religions services. Though if I were invited I most probably would do so.

What are some of the distinctions you noticed between the different churches? Some of the commonalities?

 

[Quintessence]

I went to a UU service twice and a JW meeting. The UU service, I like because of the diversity. However, since I have feelings with the Catholic Church and the Church is right down the street from the UU Church, I heard a lot of harsh things about Catholics and organized beliefs. A lot of the time, it was more of a sermon of how "free" they are from their faith and congrad each other rather than a sermon that stood on its own.

Yeah, sometimes there is that vibe from certain UU fellowships, though in my experience it's typically subtle and not intended to be a dig against various other religions. A number of UUers are Christian, so... yeah. The fellowships really vary in character. It's been a long time since I've been, but I really ought to start making a point of attending.

I visited a couple of Buddhist temples. One theravada the other veitnamese zen. The former temple was a small home behind the public temple where the owners meditate. They invited me; but, I was so far from my area and dont drive. The latter, anyone can come and pray to the Buddha. My friend took me and we prayed together.

What was the architecture of the space like? I know that good rooms for meditation and contemplation tend to be designed a certain way, and it'd be interesting to hear if their site had any of those considerations in mind. Maybe the energy of the space just felt relaxing, or something?

The JW meeting was a wonderful experience. Of course they dont have similar views as catholics and some prodestant denominations, the study was very extensive. Its a two or three our meeting and "worship" was bible study. We talked among each other socially as well. One JW couple invited me. They also invited me to a yearly meeting they have thats all day.

Wow... how do they keep people active and engaged during that whole time?! I remember the most painful thing about hour-long mass on Sundays being the sheer boredom of it as a child having to sit through that. I can't imagine two or three hours, even as an adult.

 

[Wu Wei]

Could you tell us a bit more about what those were like? I know "services" might not be the right word in some cases; it's hard to pick a catch-all word for religious functions.

For lack of a better word I used "Service" basically they are more what you might call rituals when talking Taoism and Buddhism. As for the Catholic bit, it would be called a mass... I think