Introduction
In the scope of the Sociology field experience, I have visited the Ridge Community Church. As I hold no specific faith or denomination, I chose this particular institution for the activity. It was a fulfilling experience that let me understand the perspectives of a social group other than mine. I aimed to observe the symbols and identify the specific cultural features of this religious community. The worship service was conducted online to keep attendants safe in pandemics. In this report, I describe my experience in a detailed way, highlighting the points in which I have noticed cultural peculiarities and stratification.
Main text
I felt my ethnocentrism at first as I tried to evaluate the meaning of the worship events and procedures from the point of my beliefs and experience. Although I respected their backgrounds and religions, I initially did not understand the reason behind the faith of people who regularly attend this kind of event. Given the diversity of people participating in those activities, I concluded that the key factor for their unity was their loyalty to the common idea. My judgment can be biased because it is heavily based on my convictions.
Moreover, I have not noticed the labor division across gender attributed to traditional sex roles. Even though I had limited involvement in the activity due to online participation, which is different from physically meeting with people, there are no signs of gender inequality. Both genders, as well as children, can contribute to the development of the church and the accomplishment of its missions. Generally, I found that most people were supportive of each other and were eager to share their stories.
Before this experience, I was convinced that the church attendants persistently try to turn people into their faith. This thought was the reason for me to treat the assignment skeptically. However, despite my stereotypes and fears, the participants of the event were leading conversations on the common topics with some moments of acknowledging their God. The video materials showing the architecture of their buildings proved that the Ridge Community Church has symbols inherent to Christianity, which depicts the central object of their worship.
I felt that the community there was welcoming and inclusive, especially when the church leaders put forward the idea of helping the families suffering from systematic racism. I was especially touched by one of the organization’s claimed values, which states ‘be close to the far’ (The Ridge Community Church). As far as I am concerned, the church is opened not only for the believers but also for people in need of mental and physical support. This institution’s feature is something I learned from them, and the general society should acquire it for the common good.
Conclusion
The named institution helps people to find Jesus, which means that the traditional identity of the Baptistic church remained the same, even though the vision somehow has changed. Assimilation has granted people with various racial, ethnic, and gender backgrounds equally to attend the worships which satisfy their religious needs. The church that I have visited is a nondenominational establishment, which is less bureaucratic than similar organizations in the past (Norton 78). The leaders of it highlight their openness to a different kind of expression without any limits. They foster the ability to sustain the integrity and inclusiveness that is crucial in today’s world to eradicate past mistakes.
Works Cited
Herbst, Norton. A History of Nondenominational Churches in Denver and Beyond, 1945–2000. 2018. U of Denver, Ph.D. Dissertation.
“Who we are.” The Ridge Community Church, 2020. Web.