bad etiquette?

In article , spampot
wrote:

Allaya Diep wrote:
Hi everyone

I always thought it would be considered "bad etiquette" to knit in church.
Not that I know much about these things, but it was just something I dared
not do. But a couple of weeks ago, I saw somebody else doing it...knitting
in church! For those of you more experienced, is it okay to do this, or is
it sorta rude? It was around Christmas, so maybe she had to finish
something up. *shrug*

Allaya



My feeling is that once you start rationalizing knitting in church, next
thing you know you're answering your cell phone in church! (I'm not
"more experienced" but just have a gut reaction...)

I would think that there is a great difference between knitting and
answering a cell phone, Knitting can be done with a good listening ear.
I also think that people who go to church today really want to be there,
and that they would respect the spoken word enough to not be so rude to
bring a cell phone.....but who knows I may be wrong with that assumption,
not being a church goer my self.

However, I can tell a textile story about a cope, my best weaving friend
and I finished for a friend who was weaving it for a priest in the
Angligan church he attended. Karl, died before he could finish it, and we
did it for him. It was a very very fine silk, set at about 72 ends per
inch. We did have a hard time with it with so many broken warp ends. In
the end we did get it done before Easter, and a professional seamstress
made to cope. The whole weaving group that Karl had belonged to came to
the Easter service to be there when the cope was blessed. It was a
wonderful event, and we all clapped and laughed and shared during the
service. No not the same as knitting during the service, but a textile
event in church all the same. Reading through this thread, there are some
interesting textiles used in church services all throughout the church
history.

Els

--
hate spam not welcome

In article ,
ojunk (GSHEPDOG) wrote:

I would also feel weird bringing my knitting to church with me. It'd
be like I was saying that I'm not interested in the sermon or the
minister was boring or something. But that's just me.



Hi:

If I am not mistaken, this thread was covered about a year ago and several
people said knitting was perfectly acceptable at their church. Actually I
worked on a crocheted Christmas stocking two weeks ago during my child's
Christmas pageant. I also let him color during the services when he is in the
santuary with us. (Protestant church in case any one is curious.) If they
would let me crochet while I was there, I would be there a lot more. If I
simply sit there and listen to the sermon, I can guarantee my mind will
wander.
I haven't asked our minister his opinion. Starting this spring, I am
planning
on joining the prayer shawl ministry at our church.
I will make inquiries at that time and see how people feel about it.

Just my two cents' worth.

Lee

A good two cents worth Lee

Els

--
hate spam not welcome

In article , spampot
wrote:

Johanna Koski wrote:
I always thought it would be considered "bad etiquette" to knit in church.
Not that I know much about these things, but it was just something I dared
not do. But a couple of weeks ago, I saw somebody else doing it...knitting
in church! For those of you more experienced, is it okay to do this, or is
it sorta rude? It was around Christmas, so maybe she had to finish
something up. *shrug*


I'm not a churchperson my self, I go to church maybe once-twice in a
year. I think that church is a place where you go to have quiet time and
"relaxing" (hard to find proper words, I hope I'm not misunderstood),
not to *do* something.

But that's just my point of view. There are persons who keep their
cellphones open in churches, movies, concerts etc...

Johanna


I agree with you, Johanna. I need that time to focus on the reason I'm
in church -- like meditation. It's good mental discipline as well!

The times I have been to church (that is not all that often), the sermons
were so boring and given in such a droning voice, that it was very hard to
concentrate on what the contents was and get the meaning of it all. Not
all priest have good diction, or what they have to say, just does not make
sense, at least not to me.

During the war I was evacuated, to a small village in Central Holland. I
had to go every Sunday to Sunday school, a total new thing for me, a child
who was raised with out the church teachings. However I found the stories
facinating, and very interesting, I did not talk and took it all in, to
the point that I can still remember it today. So far I have only been to
one or two adult services that could match that. I would think that when
the sermons given were full of meaning and the deliverer was a good
messenger, you could sit and knit, while fully being attentive, if you
were familiar with your pattern. I bet that in earlier times that was
done, just as it was done when you went to concerts hundreds of years
ago. Today we are much more organized and serious about way to many
things.....I think. Is it possible that if things in church were lightend
up a bit, that more people would come to be there....just a thought.

Els

--
hate spam not welcome

In article ,
(Beinchat) wrote:

My sister was sitting next to a woman in church when the womans cell phone
started ringing. Unbelievably, she actually answered it and started having a
long conversation with the caller!!!!
Marie and the cats

I hope someon showed her the door or snatched her phone, dumb things cell
phones.....

Els

--
hate spam not welcome

In article , spampot
wrote:

Laura wrote:
I don't, and wouldn't. But it wouldn't bother me if somebody else
did...

And most in a previous church consider it perfectly acceptable to have
crayons and coloring pad for children (I don't, I'd rather have the
children in the nursery) but I have allowed it for my own children -
even though I don't agree...

Just way too much work to keep them satisfied without something to
occupy them, and far more distracting to have two wiggly children than
some knitting needles!

Laura M

I know I'll be flamed for this, but church is for prayer and meditation,
and I feel that if children can't sit still during it, they should be
left with a babysitter or taken to whatever facility is available (our
church has a nursery or "children's chapel") -- it's VERY distracting to
have children talking out loud or arguing over crayons when one's trying
to concentrate on the service.

Let me add very unfair to the children as well,

Els

--
hate spam not welcome

In article , Jenn W.
wrote:

I tend to fall into agreement with you, Betty. I told my dh about
this discussion and asked him what he thought and he said that he felt
it was very disrespectful and irreverent...but he doesn't knit. lol
I can see how it could be considered offensive and how it could be
somewhat distracting to someone sitting next to you. I will continue
to leave me knitting at home on Sunday mornings, even though,
personally, I wouldn't have a problem with it if someone else chose to
knit during service.

And, as far as kids coloring, etc. during church, I did that sort of
thing with my kids when they were little and so did many other
mothers. The key is training your kids to color *quietly* while
church is going on. (Yelling and fighting over crayons is completely
out of the question!) Mine would sit and color quietly and only
whisper when they wanted to show me something. It's so frustrating to
*hear* parents telling their children to please be quiet and then
begin to enter into a long drawn out discussion as to *why*! All I
ever had to do was raise my fingers to my lips in the "shhhh" manner
and my kids would even quit whispering. Children can learn to be
respectful and quiet during church and can even be *expected* to be
quiet...maybe not very *still*, but at least quiet. ;o) They just
need to be trained. And, if they can't learn to be silent (or at
least reasonably quiet), they need to be taken out of the service.
(I've had to do that a few times too! lol)

Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox now! lol That was just my own two
cents. )

Jenn

Jenn, not all kids are the same though, we have a grand daughter and she
is a sweetheart but also a life wire, and if she had to go to church it
would be fairer to have her in some childcare, it would be a drain on
parent and child, to have the child try to sit still that long. Would
kids not become happier church goers with happy memories of going to
church when small. Just a thought.

Els

--
hate spam not welcome

In article , "Katherine"
wrote:



I wouldn't dare! I am brave, but not that brave!

Katherine

Well, dare I say, that not everyone is created equal. Not all mothers get
there kids to behave, even when they try very hard, they have a hard time
getting it right, and I know one young mother who really does her best,
the best she can do. but it is not an easy job for her. Maybe we have to
take that into account. Mothers are not born mothers, or parents are not
born parents, and we are all learning on the job. Kids as well as
parents. Maybe we have to have tolerance for that and I would think that
the church is the best place to show that, and start that.

No tolerance for cell phones though, they should be dropped in a big box
outside the church....LOL

Els

--
hate spam not welcome

In article , "cher"
wrote:

I would think that as a believer one would believe then that God gave you
this talent, and therefore you are bringing your craft to his house to share
with him. I guess so long as it isn't a long complicated pattern that needs
your undivided attention, and you don't stand up in the middle of a sermon
and shout out....For goodness sake shut up a minute....or similar, nothing
would be made of of...

Cheers.....cher x



Thanks for that smile....I needed that, things were getting a little bit
to serious here, reading more than 58 entries on this topic in a row..
wow.....Gwen and Katherine thank you as well, for that bit on a woman
being to tired"...LOL....."" I don't think she rested - I think she was
exhausted! " ........

(don't believe it though....In my thoughts we carry all a bit of godly
light as part of one god...each and everyone of us exhausted or not,
knitting laughing, arguing, and talking, men women, child, behaved or
other wise, it does not matter at all, in the end we are all one, good or
bad, it can' be any other way, since we all live together on this earth as
we are. We better make the best of it, knitting or not, in or out of
church. OK all with out the #$%^ cel phones.....I hate those
things....LOL

Els

--
hate spam not welcome

On Thu, 06 Jan 2005 00:20:02 -0800, (Els
van Dam) wrote:

In article , Jenn W.
wrote:

I tend to fall into agreement with you, Betty. I told my dh about
this discussion and asked him what he thought and he said that he felt
it was very disrespectful and irreverent...but he doesn't knit. lol
I can see how it could be considered offensive and how it could be
somewhat distracting to someone sitting next to you. I will continue
to leave me knitting at home on Sunday mornings, even though,
personally, I wouldn't have a problem with it if someone else chose to
knit during service.

And, as far as kids coloring, etc. during church, I did that sort of
thing with my kids when they were little and so did many other
mothers. The key is training your kids to color *quietly* while
church is going on. (Yelling and fighting over crayons is completely
out of the question!) Mine would sit and color quietly and only
whisper when they wanted to show me something. It's so frustrating to
*hear* parents telling their children to please be quiet and then
begin to enter into a long drawn out discussion as to *why*! All I
ever had to do was raise my fingers to my lips in the "shhhh" manner
and my kids would even quit whispering. Children can learn to be
respectful and quiet during church and can even be *expected* to be
quiet...maybe not very *still*, but at least quiet. ;o) They just
need to be trained. And, if they can't learn to be silent (or at
least reasonably quiet), they need to be taken out of the service.
(I've had to do that a few times too! lol)

Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox now! lol That was just my own two
cents. )

Jenn

Jenn, not all kids are the same though, we have a grand daughter and she
is a sweetheart but also a life wire, and if she had to go to church it
would be fairer to have her in some childcare, it would be a drain on
parent and child, to have the child try to sit still that long. Would
kids not become happier church goers with happy memories of going to
church when small. Just a thought.

Els

Els,

I agree with you. I think they *would* be happy church-goers when
they got older, but do you think they would be happy too knowing that
they had learned how to be still in church when they were younger?
Just a thought... I think part of the problem is not that parents
don't train them to sit still in church, but that parents aren't
traing them to sit still *at all*. Granted, some children are real
"live wires" as you said! lol I've babysat a few of those! lol
But, if we train our kids to have some time everyday to just sit and
be silent, it would be such a benefit to them in the long run...when
they are adults and having to sit in meetings and all that other
"grownup stuff". I know some adults who don't know how to sit still
during church...having to get up to use the men's/women's room,
etc....repeatedly.

Basically, this is a kind of redundant discussion anyway since we
can't change how people are raising their kids. lol

Jenn

Els van Dam wrote:
In article , spampot
wrote:


Johanna Koski wrote:

I always thought it would be considered "bad etiquette" to knit in church.
Not that I know much about these things, but it was just something I dared
not do. But a couple of weeks ago, I saw somebody else doing it...knitting
in church! For those of you more experienced, is it okay to do this, or is
it sorta rude? It was around Christmas, so maybe she had to finish
something up. *shrug*


I'm not a churchperson my self, I go to church maybe once-twice in a
year. I think that church is a place where you go to have quiet time and
"relaxing" (hard to find proper words, I hope I'm not misunderstood),
not to *do* something.

But that's just my point of view. There are persons who keep their
cellphones open in churches, movies, concerts etc...

Johanna


I agree with you, Johanna. I need that time to focus on the reason I'm
in church -- like meditation. It's good mental discipline as well!


The times I have been to church (that is not all that often), the sermons
were so boring and given in such a droning voice, that it was very hard to
concentrate on what the contents was and get the meaning of it all. Not
all priest have good diction, or what they have to say, just does not make
sense, at least not to me.

During the war I was evacuated, to a small village in Central Holland. I
had to go every Sunday to Sunday school, a total new thing for me, a child
who was raised with out the church teachings. However I found the stories
facinating, and very interesting, I did not talk and took it all in, to
the point that I can still remember it today. So far I have only been to
one or two adult services that could match that. I would think that when
the sermons given were full of meaning and the deliverer was a good
messenger, you could sit and knit, while fully being attentive, if you
were familiar with your pattern. I bet that in earlier times that was
done, just as it was done when you went to concerts hundreds of years
ago. Today we are much more organized and serious about way to many
things.....I think. Is it possible that if things in church were lightend
up a bit, that more people would come to be there....just a thought.

Els


You have a point, Els, and Mark Twain said that was the reason for
horse-racing and missionaries. But I side with Ranee about a liturgical
service, which I attend for the very reason that it is NOT "lightened
up" -- to me nothing is more spiritually satisfying, uplifting and
soothing than being completely involved in the service. I multitask too
much in my daily life, and the opportunity to be led through a Mass and
give up my distractions is too precious to want it disturbed by the
distractions of others. It is true that some preachers are just not
good preachers; when I find that happening, I turn inward and say
prayers for those I am concerned about, or turn to the psalms in my
prayerbook and repeat them mentally. It's rather like yoga -- knitting
during that would defeat the purpose. So, it's a good thing there are
different kinds of churches for all of us, isn't it?