Second Observation - Tates Creek Presbyterian Church

Tates Creek Presbyterian Church

3900 Rapid Run Drive

Lexington, KY 40515

A recent study has examined the correlation between closeness to God and psychological well-being (Bradshaw, Ellison, & Marcum, 2010). They note that, in many cultures, God is seen as a parental attachment figure, and proximity-seeking behavior (namely prayer) is a haven of safety. They surveyed 1,041 members of the Presbyterian Church, and placed them into two samples, active elders and other active members. They used a mean index to determine psychological distress and also to determine attachment to God. They found that both secure attachment and anxious attachment (described as types of spiritual struggles) to God were both independently associated with feelings of distress. These results seem to confirm that one’s relationship with God is linked to mental health over other conventional practices such as frequency of church attendance and prayer.

In this section, we examine a service at Tates Creek Presbyterian Church in Lexington, KY, in which its’ members portrayed a varying proximity to God. Lexington is Kentucky’s second largest city. It’s known as the “Horse Capital of the World,” and is home to Kentucky’s oldest university, Transylvania. It is ranked as one of the nation’s most stable economies, and of its’ approximate 300,000 population, 85.8% of people over the age of 25 have completed high school, 35.6% hold a bachelors degree, and 11.4% hold a masters. Of the Lexington population, 47.3% have religious affiliation, and 3.8% of that is Presbyterian affiliation. However, 6.1% of the churches in Lexington are Presbyterian churches.

Tates Creek Presbyterian is a very large campus. It houses a large new church -built only three years ago - and Trinity Christian Academy, a full-sized private school that facilitates 400 students grades K through 12. They enforce a very rigorous academic program, and are leading the city in athletics. Every high school student spends their last two years working on a thesis that they must present to graduate, much like you would in a graduate program.

Parking for service is difficult to find - the first sign that a large crowd is in attendance. The church is certainly large enough to seat everyone comfortably. Inside, a basin of stones with markings are laying near the wall. Examining them closer, one can see names of families written on the rocks. When asked about later, a minister explained that these are the names of families that are prayed over by members of the church.

The foyer is large, but noisy. Some people are bustling inside to be seated and others are greeting guests and having discussions about their weeks. When service is about to being, you can hear clearly what is going on inside because the foyer has speakers for the late comers and parents with upset children who still want to partake in the service. After being seated, the doors separating the foyer and the church are shut so that no disruptions occur, and the service beings with the ringing of the handbell choir.

The church is very large, housing three columns of approximately fifty rows of new, wooden pews - all of which are occupied. Golden chandeliers hang from the white ceiling, and, aside from the stained glass windows, there is a modern feel to the structure of this church. The floors are carpeted, and the all white walls are plain. No organ pipes consume the north-facing wall, but instead a modest pulpit with plenty of room for the choir to stand, though this area isn’t designated for explicitly the choir.

The handbell choir is composed of approximately forty members - each carrying two bells of different notes and lined along the back walls of the church, behind all of the pews. Singularly, these bells would have little significance, but when played together, the beautiful melodies of Wagner’s Shall We Gather at the River can be heard. This is the prelude, and it is a signal to the church to prepare for worship.

One can take this time to observe the members of the church. There is a wide variety of members in the pews of Tates Creek Presbyterian. Tates Creek, even upon first impression, seems to be a very individualistic culture. Members range from uninterested teenagers to devoted elderly, from designer dresses to Walmart brand jeans, and from the warm and welcoming to the proud and bothered. One adult member never looked up from his notebook as he sat alone and sketched. Another listened intently and appeared genuinely upset when another member reached behind him to grab a hymnal that his arm was obscuring. Yet another member was dressed in her business attire, and seemed eager to participate in the service.

Next the minister welcomes the church and asks everyone to fill out blue cards that read “Welcome! We’re so glad you’re here!” at the top. Members and visitors alike take the card and write down names, addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses while they check the appropriate boxes for visitor, members, age group, and interests. The back of the card leaves space to write prayer requests.

The minister begins the call to worship in “Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth.” The church responds, and one can observe the routine as members respond. Everything seems very rushed. Minister and members read quickly and the organ struggles to sound harmonious as it hurriedly leads the church to the next portion of service.

An example of this rushed feeling can be found in the Hymn of Praise. A majority already have their pages ready in the hymnal and quickly stand. The same members who were part of the handbell choir being to sing, and can be seen forming two lines. As they sing, they make their way to the front the the church and behind the pulpit, where they come to a stop and continue lead the congregation in We Praise You, O God. Our Redeemer, Creator. At this time, the doors separating the foyer and the church are opened and late comers take their seats.

The members remain standing for the Invocation, a prayer read in unison. This isn’t The Lord’s Prayer, but a prayer that has been created and typed into the program for people to read from.

Still standing, the Gloria begins. The Gloria Patri by Meineke has been selected for this service, and this sort hymn of praise is sang by every member and visitor alike. One can hear a few ambitious voices trying for harmonies, while other voices are monotone and repetitious.

The congregation is seated and the Anthem begins. Now Let All the Heavens Adore Thee by Johann Sebastian Bach is sung by the choir alone. The music sung here is beautiful, but complex, and it isn’t expected that the congregation would be able to follow along, even if the situation deemed it appropriate. The choir is well-practiced, and they do not require hymnals or music sheets in front of them to read.

Next is the psalter reading. The program designates to read from Psalm 1, but surprisingly, most members are reading from their hymnals instead of Bibles, though both are located in the shelves behind every pew.

Next is another anthem, this one by Young - From All That Dwell below the Skies. Again, the voices of the choir are beautiful. Observers can see that some take everything in, and really appreciate the beauty, while others are so accustomed they almost ignore it.

The reading of the scripture is next. This foreshadows what the topic in the sermon will be. The minister reads from Ephesians 4:25-32, and the people respond, “Thanks be to God!” The minister now leads the the congregation in the Prayer of Confession. This is said in unison, and, at Tates Creek Presbyterian, it is the same every week. A short passage from this reads, “Father teach us not to sin with such abandon. We do it all so easily....then expect an easy forgiveness for the asking. God, forgive us for our negligence of Your holy character. Let us not misinterpret Your patience with out sin as though it were permissiveness.”

After the Prayer of Confession comes the Assurance of Pardon. Here, the minister seems hardened as he reads Isaiah 1:18 “...though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool.”

The congregation stands, there hymnals already opened to the page, and being singing the hymn. They sing, in its’ entirety, God, Be Merciful to Me. They remain standing for the Confession of Faith. According to the pamphlet in the lobby titled “A Child’s Guide to Worship at Tates Creek Presbyterian Church,” this is the Apostles Creed and serves to “boldly witness to the world that we believe our faith.”

Next is a brief (only 16 measures) praise, the Doxology. This is usually joyful. After the people are seated, the minister announces the collection of Tithes and Offerings, and as ushers walk down the aisles to collect these, he continues with the Offertory Reading, and the people respond. The minister then beings his Offertory Prayer, and for the most part, this does not seem rehearsed, but genuine and ad libbed.

Next is the Offertory. This is a euphonium, essentially a solo concerto, performed on the french horn with an accompanying piano. Aaron Meacham, the french horn player, is in his late teens or early twenties, and is confident as he stands in front of the congregation and plays his beautiful, peaceful piece of music. For once, nearly every member of the congregation has their attention focused on the pulpit. This is the only part of the service that does not feel hurried and rushed.

Next, the Senior Minister of Tates Creek Presbyterian, The Reverend John P. Sartell, Sr., begins his Sermon. The program says that the title of this sermon is “Does the Transcendent God of the Universe Really Care How I Live?” The theme of the sermon was God’s displeasure of our sins, and especially, young people’s attitudes about casual sexual relationships and homosexuality. Rev. Sartell begins the sermon by asking, “Does God really care how I live?” The sermon, like most of the service, is very rushed. One example of this is that he stumbles over a word or two and makes a joke about a faulty microphone. By the time people begin to laugh, he is serious again and is back into the sermon.

Even being rushed, the sermon seemed to last forever. One could see that the service had been rushed for this purpose, and that service still wouldn’t be over within the hour mark. Rev. Sartell explains that the most mentioned attribute in the Bible is “his holiness,” and that God is separate from all the rest of creation. “God rebukes specific sins and commends specific righteousness,” he said. He is very lively, urgent as he scolds the church and tells them that have little or no regard about sins, they have become a way of life. He says, “It’s like we’ve become agnostic. We don’t know about a Holy God.”

About casual sexual relationships, he says as a culture we have developed the attitude that it’s “no harm, no foul.” In other words, as long as there are two consenting adults, there is no problem with sex before marriage. Rev. Sartell explains that this is not the case.
He varies in tone and volume as he begs for the audience to take in his message. He says that they “care little for God’s majestic holiness,” and “come to God as casual as we go to a ball game.” Everyone’s head is down as though they are ashamed. No one looks outraged or astonished when the minister says, “human extract times one hundred does not come close to how foul we are.”

When talking about churches who ordain and except homosexuals, Rev. Sartell says “Something must be said about the disregard for the Holiness of God.” He leads into his next point, that our sins, even if only internal, damage others. Every sin affects another person in some way. He references William James, author of Principles in Psychology, who says that youth are malleable, molds, and walking bundles of habits. Every actions is molding them into who they will become.

The message in this sermon is clearly directed towards mainly the youth of the church. He continues to come back to the point of youth’s casual sexual attitude. He pauses for a moment to say that other churches will not let you talk about sin in the way that he does. He tells a story about a minister who visited Australia to give a sermon about sins. The minister there said he could not do this because it was bad for the youth. The visiting minister took a bottle of poison with him to meet the minister and said he would place a label on top of it that read “Essence of Peppermint,” and the minister told him he could not do this. The visiting minister explained that sins are far more poisonous that the bottle of poison would be.

Rev. Sartell concludes the sermon by calling for the youth’s attention and explaining that their parents grieve over their sins in the way that a mother or father would grieve over a dead son or daughter. Not only the parents, he says, but the “Holy Spirit grieves over the damages of our sins.”

Heads are still lowered and everyone looks ashamed as the minister announces the conclusion of his sermon. There is a short moment of silence while the message sinks in before the Hymn of Response begins. Have Thine Own Way, Lord! is sang in unison, but everyone is less enthused now. Still bowing their heads as they stand to sing.

Next is the Benediction. By this time, tensions are easing, and some people raise their heads as the minister gives his blessing. He concludes service and invites visitors to come to meet him in the foyer as they exit. The Postlude, Sing to the Lord, by Eliot, begins.

Exiting the church is difficult, even for those who were seated near the back, since so many people are present. Parents rush to the check-in/check-out table to show identification to check-out their children from one of the several nurseries or children’s worship. Some members leave without speaking to anyone, while others meet and group in the foyer to talk. The crowd is mixed. Ages, socioeconomic status, group size, and behavior all widely vary. As one exit’s the building, they can find a table holding a wide array of pamphlets about the different ministries at Tates Creek Presbyterian.

Given all the variation of people within Tates Creek Presbyterian Church, it is clear that the culture here is very individualistic. There are no messages of “for the good of the group,” rather, everything seems to be very welcoming to options for everyone and the understanding that many people will come and go. It is expected that everyone is their own, independent, person, and have their own self-concept.

However, there is an expectation of conformity to the rules. There is a tightness at Tates Creek that portrays that there will be no exceptions when it comes to obeying God’s written word and the rules of the church. There is not, however, a written dress code or enforcement on the type of person who can enter the church, so the power distance is very spread out. The clothing people wore varied from hand-me-downs to designer labels.

The message of the sermon, while geared toward the youth as a whole, was meant to be a message to every member individually, so individualized learning is practiced here. Though no members spoke out of turn during service, during the sermon especially, the emotion type of its’ members where very clear. The people were ashamed and felt guilt.

While the culture here is very individualistic, the motivation is relational. One of the messages of the sermon was that every sin has a consequence, and one’s sins are harmful to those around us. The people are obedient to the reverend’s sermon, taking the message in, and both vertical and horizontal relationships can be found.

Tates Creek Presbyterian in Lexington is really the church for everyone. It is varying on so many levels that, while everyone may not feel welcomed to the scornful messages of the minister, everyone will be accepted to experience the service. It is clear that everyone here has a different, individual relationship with God, and that Rev. Sartell is just an instructor in how to obey God’s word, thereby becoming closer to him.