GREER, S.C. — I love the story told by the Methodist minister about his first Sunday at a new church he was serving. 

When it came time for the congregation to stand and recite the Apostle’s Creed, they all stood and turned 90 degrees, facing the rear of the church, and in unison began the recitation. 

After a couple of Sundays of this unusual practice, the pastor finally asked an older church member why everyone did this. 

The church member chuckled and told the pastor that, for years, the Apostle’s Creed was posted on a placard on the back wall of the sanctuary and folks just routinely turned at that point in the service to read the Creed together. 

Later, the church was renovated and the placard was removed, but the habit continued. Now the Methodists, as a body, were addressing a blank wall. Ah! Tradition!

Admittedly, traditions seem to linger in every area of human life, but none linger longer than church traditions. For instance, people questioned for years why God only seemed to show up at 11:00 on the Sabbath morning. 

Now services are held at different times, but for decades the 11:00 hour was the sacred hour in just about every church, whether Baptist, Methodist or Presbyterian. 

Was it because the Bible told us there was something special about that hour? 

No. Turns out, the decision to worship at 11:00 was created for the convenience of farmers, who could do their routine morning chores and still make it to church by then. So, the time stuck and everyone was happy. Even city folk!

Many of our church traditions are important and time-honored. And unfortunately, most are disappearing by the day. 

There was a tradition here in the mountains that was dear to the hearts of many for generations. It was called Decoration Day, and it usually happened around this time of year in most of our country churches.  

Long before Perpetual Care existed in church graveyards, families would gather once or twice a year to clean the graves in their family plots.

It was a community effort that usually required most of the day to get everything back in shape after a long winter or a hot, dry summer. 

It was also an important time for community and family fellowship. There was always a meal involved, usually at midday, and there was plenty of fun for the kids, as cousins and neighbors reunited for these hours’ long events. 

By the end of the day, grass would be gone (This was an era when grass was undesirable in graveyards) and floral bouquets would adorn the gravesites of the beloved departed.

I remember my grandparents making preparation for Decoration Day at Stone Mountain Baptist Church, where my grandfather’s family was buried, and Mountain View Baptist Church in Leicester, N.C., where my grandmother’s people were.

To them and their generation, Decoration Day was a solemn obligation, and one that was always looked forward to.

So, while some traditions in our churches deserve to die, some do not. And maybe even others need to be revived. The wisdom comes in knowing which is which!