interviewing Mr Commitment-Phobe

If you’ve followed this column for the past three years, you’ll remember that it started with me as an atheist, seeking God through visiting churches. And here I am now, an enthusiastic churchgoing Christian. You might also remember that I dragged my husband along on this church hunt. He had married an atheist, so some of you have asked what he makes of all this. My answer was that I didn’t know. He is a private man of few words on the subject of faith. So I decided an official interview was the way to find out.

Commitment-Phobe: So… umm… this is odd.
Husband: I want final approval of the text!

CP: What did you think when I first decided to try out church?
H: I thought you wouldn’t go through with it. I thought you’d be daunted and not want to go again.

CP: I did take over an hour to choose the right clothes and missed the first service. What did you think would be so daunting?
H: I thought you would find church people odd, perhaps prying, and church would feel unwelcoming.

CP: Why? What’s your experience of church?
H: [Silence]

CP: You can be honest.
N: As a young churchgoer I felt that church people often behaved in the opposite way to how a Christian should, particularly as far as being welcoming and open. This jarred with me…

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This is an extract from the July/August 2016 edition of Reform.

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