a while back, and this goes into the newest trend. exurban evangeical churches that cover all the bases, krispy kreme to x box to aerobics classes (firm believers, har har), financial planning etc etc etc. so they have a million ways to suck you in, and then keep you involved.
it seems something like this can go over like gangbusters in the new exurbs because they have no front porches, parks, town center or anything else that gives you a sense of community. and apparently the exurbs are overwhelming red.
god, did i feel weird on train ride thinking to myself: bouncy would like this article! you better pm me your real name before i start saying shit like that out loud. LOL.
The Soul of the New Exurb
By JONATHAN MAHLER
Published: March 27, 2005
NYT Magazine
"In the spring of 1996, Lee McFarland quit his high-paying job at Microsoft, sold his house and drove his Jeep Cherokee from Redmond, Wash., to Surprise, Ariz. He had come to build a church. McFarland, who was 36 at the time, knew little about leading churches and less about building them: he wasn't even halfway through the correspondence classes he was taking to become an evangelical pastor. .....snip..........
For decades, Surprise, which is about 45 minutes northwest of downtown Phoenix, was mostly scrubby cotton, rose and citrus fields, with a small grid of streets where migrant workers lived. In the early 90's, developers discovered the town. By the time McFarland and his family arrived, its population had climbed past 15,000, and more, many more, were on their way. Most of Surprise's new residents were young white families drawn to affordable homes and jobs within commuting distance. Many of them hadn't gone to college but no doubt hoped that their children would.
These were the people McFarland was seeking when he started knocking on the doors of one light brown stucco tract home .....snip...... he expected to begin long, probing conversations about their lives -- what was missing, what their kids liked to do in their free time and so on. But the mothers and fathers who greeted him were barely civil.........snip ( ............
After a few days of trekking through identical streets and cul-de-sacs under the hot Arizona sun, McFarland figured he had better try a different approach. He traded in his business-casual attire for a T-shirt and blue jeans, bought a clipboard and posed as the representative of a secular organization. He limited himself to two questions: ''What's your favorite radio station?'' and ''Why do you think people don't go to church?'' The conversations grew longer, and McFarland's mission became clear. People in Surprise listened to rock music. And they didn't go to church because they didn't have any fancy clothes....."
more:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/27/magazine/327MEGACHURCH.htmland i guess they wanted X boxes and aerobics, i dunno, you tell me.
and you're welcome.b, of course......
sex sex sex sex sex.
hey, if i keep saying that, it might just happen.