A mA nly exhortAtion

Take the Rough Rider’s advice and go to church this year

If you aren’t already a regular churchgoer, my New Year’s resolution for you is to become one. To strengthen my appeal, I enlist the old Rough Rider, President Theodore Roosevelt. I’ll splice in my own comments to spice up his “Ten Reasons to Go to Church,” which appeared in a 1917 edition of The Ladies Home Journal. (As always, substitute your own religious tradition for church; this is not the place to proselytize. Likewise, know that when Teddy says “men” he also means “women,” although they don’t seem to need as much convincing.)

1. In this actual world a churchless community, a community where men have abandoned and scoffed at or ignored their religious needs, is a community on the rapid downgrade. Human beings are made to relate upwards (spiritually), sideways (socially), and downwards (naturally), so to speak. We stand most erect when we attend well to all these relationships.

2. Church work and church attendance mean the cultivation of the habit of feeling some responsibility for others and the sense of braced moral strength which prevents a relaxation of one’s own moral fiber. We are what we do. If we want to be better, we have to act our way to it through practice.

3. There are enough holidays devoted to pure holiday making. Sundays differ from other holidays, among other ways, in the fact that there are fifty-two of them every year. On Sunday, go to church. Amen.

4. Yes, I know all the excuses. I know that one can worship the Creator ... in a grove of trees, or by a running brook, or in one’s own house, just as well as in church. But I also know as a matter of cold fact the average man does not thus worship or thus dedicate himself. If he stays away from church he does not spend his time in good works or in lofty meditation. He looks over the colored supplement of the newspaper. Today we might watch color TV instead, but this excuse is usually a copout.

5. He may not hear a good sermon at church. But unless he is very unfortunate he will hear a sermon by a good man who, with his good wife, is engaged all the week long in a series of wearing and humdrum and important tasks for making hard lives a little easier. I can’t speak for the preacher being a good man, since I only know one well, and he’s a stout blend of good and bad. Going to church helps me move the mix toward the good. It may for you, too.

6. He will listen to and take part in reading some beautiful passages from the Bible. And if he is not familiar with the Bible, he has suffered a loss. Verily.

7. He will probably take part in singing some good hymns. OK, they’re not all good. And some are just choruses. But when the valley of the shadow of death looms, humming Lady Gaga won’t get you through.

8. He will meet and nod to, or speak to, good, quiet neighbors. … He will come away feeling a little more charitably toward all the world, even towards those excessively foolish young men who regard church-going as rather a soft performance. Many non-attending men seem to fear losing manliness in church, as if it’s really a woman’s world. Jesus was a real man, but he did love his mother. Just saying.

9. I advocate a man’s joining in church works for the sake of showing his faith by his works. Here, here. Real community is come-and-stay commitment, not comeand-go consumerism.

10. The man who does not ... connect himself with some active, working church misses many opportunities for helping his neighbors, and therefore, incidentally, for helping himself. Good church is good for you. Look for a good church that you can find, not a perfect one that you never will.

Though many of these may seem quaint and old fashioned, the point is still the same today: God is worthy of worship, neighbors need caring for, and our souls require spiritual exercise.

A church near you waits to welcome you.

Baptist

LAKESIDE BAPTIST / 9150 Garland Rd / 214.324.1425

Pastor Jeff Donnell / Worship 10:30 am & 10:31 am www.lbc-dallas.org

WILShIrE BAPTIST / 4316 Abrams / 214.452.3100

Pastor George A. Mason Ph.D. / Worship 8:30 & 11:00am

Bible Study 9:40 am / www.wilshirebc.org

DIS c IPLES of c hrIST

E AST DALLAS chrISTIAn church / 629 N. Peak Street / 214.824.8185

Sunday School 9:30 am / THE TABLE Worship Gathering 9:30 am

Worship 8:30 & 10:50 am / Rev. Deborah Morgan / www.edcc.org

E PIScoPAL

ThE c AThEDrAL church of ST. MATThEW / 5100 Ross Ave.

Sunday Traditional: 8:00 & 10:30 am / Christian Education 9:30 am

Hispanic Service 12:30 / 214.823.8134 / www.episcopalcathedral.org

ThE EPIScoPAL church of ThE AScEnSIon / 8787 Greenville Ave.

Sunday School 9:00 am / Worship 8:00 & 10:15 am 214.340.4196 / more at www.ascensiondallas.org

Lu ThErAn

cEnTrAL LuThErAn church, ELcA / 1000 Easton Road

Sunday School for all ages 9:00 am / Worship Service 10:30 am

Pastor Rich Pounds / CentralLutheran.org / 214.327.2222 fIrST unITED LuThErAn church / 6202 E Mockingbird Ln.

Sunday Worship Service 10:30 am / Call for class schedule.

214.821.5929 / www.dallaslutheran.org

ZIon LuThErAn church & SchooL / 6121 E Lovers Ln.

Sunday: Sunday School 9:15 am, Worship 8:00 am, 10:30 am, & 6:00 pm / 214.363.1639 / www.ziondallas.org

MET hoDIST

WhITE rocK unITED METhoDIST / www.wrumc.org

1450 Oldgate Lane / 214.324.3661

Sunday Worship 10:50 am / Rev. George Fisk

non -DE noMIn ATIon AL

ShorELInE DALLAS church / 5321 E. Mockingbird Lane

ShorelineDallas.com / 469.227.0471 / Pastor Earl McClellan

Everyone’s Welcome at 9:15am / Children’s & Youth Ministry

PrESB y TE r IA n

norThPArK PrESBy TErIAn church / 214.363.5457

9555 N. Central Expwy. / www.northparkpres.org

Pastor: Rev. Brent Barry / 8:30 & 11:00 am Sunday Services norThrIDGE PrESBy TErIAn church / 6920 Bob-O-Link Dr.

214.827.5521 / www.northridgepc.org / Welcomes you to Worship

8:30 & 11:00 am / Church School 9:30 am / Childcare provided.

ST. AnDrEW ’S PrESBy TErIAn / Skillman & Monticello

Rev. Rob Leischner. / www.standrewsdallas.org

214.821.9989 / Sunday School 9:30 am, Worship 10:45 am

unIT y

unIT y of DALLAS / A Positive Path For Spiritual Living

6525 Forest Lane, Dallas, TX 75230 / 972-233-7106 / UnityDallas.org

Sunday services: 9:00 am & 11:00 am

Community

The Ferguson Road Initiative to restore the White Rock Hills community ended its Weed and Seed program and has launched Community Connection, a campaign that enlists monetary support and involvement from local businesses and individuals. The initiative tackles issues related to crime, safety, urban blight and failing schools. For more information, visit fergusonroad.org.

Neighborhood residents Daniel and Delores Wolfe, attorneys working pro bono, sent a formal petition to the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission in November to prevent Far West nightclub from renewing its liquor license. The complaint was filed on behalf of 15 neighborhood organizations, including the Lakewood Hills Neighborhood Association, the Hollywood Santa Monica Neighborhood Association and the Ferguson Road Initiative. Neighbors believe the nightclub at Gaston and Garland is responsible for increased crime and disturbance to the community.

The Exchange Club of East Dallas and Comerica Bank collected 2,400 coats for children ages 4 and older through their annual Coats for Kids drive. The drive brought in 400 more coats this year than in 2010, and 12 neighborhood elementary schools received free coats.

Education

Woodrow Wilson High School Community Foundation has distributed grants to students enrolled in IB Psychology through the Ann Jacobus Folz Fund for International Baccalaureate Financial Assistance. The grant will help cover costs for about 15 needy students. The foundation also has funded three pilot technologies at Woodrow: Questia, an online library; Turnitin.com, a virtual tool to prevent plagiarism; and P.E.T. Vital Knowledge, which assesses learning styles.

DISD announced plans to close 11 schools to save $11.5 million, including James B. Bohnam Elementary School and James W. Fannin Elementary School Neighbors have begun a petition to save Bohnam, which is rated “exemplary” by the Texas Education Agency and received a Blue Ribbon Award from the U.S. Department of Education. To learn more, visit savebonham.org.

Lipscomb Elementary PTA netted more than $10,000 at its Roaring Twenties auction and fundraiser Nov. 3 at Times Ten Cellars. More than 100 people attended.

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Far east fun

Stonewall Jackson Elementary recently held a special Japan-themed event, featuring a craft market and other activities. Pictured: First-graders Zoe Munroe and Charley Garrett with their teacher, Barbra Uskovich.

Rain, rain, go away

Jerry and Julie Reddy fill cups with water and Gatorade at the White Rock Marathon Dec. 3. They were among volunteers who braved the cold and rainy weather. Photo by Pete Puckett.

Long time coming

The J.L. Long Middle School cross-country team finished its first season with 27 students participating in five meets. Pictured: Jake Bell, Cole Martinez and Alison