Calling all Baptists

This post is bound to offend.  It is not intended to offend but I am certain that it will.  Baptists tend to be very easy to offend, at least in this part of the country.  Saturday afternoon,  several members of a local Baptist church came by the trailer park.  It’s a BIG BOX Baptist church and I call it the Christian factory as rude and intolerant as that may sound.  Given some of their methods I can see it as nothing else.  The point of this post is to elaborate on what I perceive as an extreme attempt at increasing their congregation at the cost of dignity and respect for their own faith.  I am very interested in knowing if these are techniques are commonly used at other Baptist churches around the country. 

 This particular church frequents our trailer park.  They walk the blacktop dressed in their Sunday best and witness to all the poor, lost souls that they meet along the way.  On Saturday, they spoke to my son about faith and heaven and being *saved*.  My son,  being allgnostic and open to all religions, was willing to listen.  He listened and even agreed to possibly attend a service in the future.  During the course of the conversation,  the young Baptist asked my son if he would be willing to say a short prayer with him to ensure his entry into heaven.  My son being the polite, non-offensive young man that he is, complied and now is assured a place beyond the pearly gates.  All because he repeated a short prayer recited by this young man.  This is where I start to have a problem understanding.  This is also where I begin to wonder if this young Baptist has any real understanding of his own faith. 

According to what he told my son, just saying the words of this short prayer was evidence of salvation.  He did mention (as a bit of an afterthought) that my son should *mean what he said* in order for it to work.  My understanding of the Christian concept of salvation is that it is supposed to change your life from that moment.  You should in essence be reborn as a better person.  I have experienced my own pagan salvation and it did change my life and my entire way of thinking.  Prayer without good intent is no more than words.  *Repeat after me* is not enough. 

This church is known to use other strange means to cultivate attendance, particularly among younger generations.  They gave away a skateboard one summer.  Each kid filled out a card and a random name was drawn following Sunday morning services.  An expensive Zero pro-board.  My son rode the bus that Sunday and actually won the board.  He was ecstatic but it didn’t make him go back. 

 Yet another tactic the neighborhood kids told me about (all of my kids have attended services at this particular church - with my blessing – as I truly believe that they must make their own decisions without my input.  Our beliefs are as unique as our DNA and fingerprints) is even more extreme.  The youth director that rode the bus on Sundays told the kids that if they got enough people to fill up the bus, he would swallow a live goldfish.  They kids pulled it off and the director did as promised.  We refer to  it as *Jackass for Jesus*.   Yet another rude analogy but with this kind of behavior what else should it be called.  Money and mountains of candy have also been used as rewards for bringing more friends to Sunday services.  Once the money, the candy, the skateboards and the goldfish were no longer an option, many of the kids opted not to attend.

The most disturbing part of all, is that since most of these kids don’t have *Sunday best* (mostly due to financial issues) and since their parents choose not to attend, they are bussed to a church where they are ignored.  All the effort seems to be a numbers game of some kind.  Do churches get money from the state like schools?  Based on the number of people who attend? I’m asking because I don’t know, not to be sarcastic.  If so,  then I can see a possible ulterior motive.  If not, then what’s the point? Why lead a child to Christ only to ignore them when they get there.  I clearly remember the cliques and the social segregation I observed at the Methodist church I attended as a child. It contributed greatly to my decision not to go any more, a decision I made at the age of nine…on my own…with no influence from my mother and father.  The entire congregation washed their hands of us after that.  My mother and father were referred to as heathens for not forcing me to go.  We’ve been proud heathens ever since. 

 Maybe some gracious Baptist out there with more knowledge than I possess can explain exactly how this is supposed to work.  Bear in mind, that I’m not here to argue.  I am here to understand.  Baptists of the world, will you please help me out.