Jeff was still in bed when I told him that Kenny and I were leaving for a service at the Baptist church by the Mall.

"So, that's an all-day thing?" he grumbled sarcastically.

"Oh, you know, a couple of hours, tops," I promised. Yes, I would get the laundry done when I returned. He has yet to go to work naked on Monday morning.

We arrived too early because the 10 AM Bible study, held in the sanctuary, wasn't finished. They were starting Hebrews, on chapter 1. That's tempting since I don't have a good grasp of that book. I heard the pastor say, "the Church Age."

Someone directed us downstairs for refreshments and Kenny stuffed his face with powdered munchkins, wiping his fingers on his shirt. Later when the pastor greeted us, he pointed to the smudges and said he could see that Kenny had got something to eat.

I could go blow-by-blow through the service because I took extensive notes. The Baptist Hymnal went untouched as we sang praise music from projected overheads. Kenny liked the hand-clapping. And the pew Bible went untouched as the bulletin contained the four verses of Scripture on which pastor's sermon¹ was based.

The first time that the minister raised his voice to a shout, Kenny whispered to me, "Why is he yelling?" That's just the style of preaching, I told him. Don't worry, he's not angry.

He raised his voice a couple more times, when recounting the central acts of Christian salvation: Christ's passion, death and resurrection². I set my face to his words and felt the heat of them from the back row. I thought, this is an exorcism. He wasn't speaking to my intellect any longer, but to my soul ... and the demons lurking there. Let's hope it bears fruit.

And, for all my many visits to Reformation churches, this was "communion Sunday," so I observed how communion is conducted in a Protestant church.

As a visitor, I was free to take a gift book. They had available copies of Warren's book, even in Spanish. I also saw a couple books by Fr. Girzone which I read, like, 20 years ago and one by Elizabeth Elliot which I would have been interested in, since I've read nothing by her but used to listen to her radio program.

There was no mad dash in the parking lot. In fact, Kenny and I were the only ones leaving. And I asked Kenny where he'd like to go next Sunday. He picked the Baptist church again but then he qualified it, "if only they had a choir loft like our church." Despite all the differences that I perceived, he said he thought the services were exactly the same!

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¹ The preaching was "biographical" as the example of Abram was discussed and "evangelistic" as we were called to a deeper commitment to Jesus, but it was not "expository" as very little Scripture was cited or discussed. Wiki.

² He said God's wrath was upon Jesus. cf. Catholic Answers Forum.