Although Wikipedia identifies ‘running the aisles‘ as a Pentecostal or Holiness tradition it does show up in certain fundamentalist circles as well. To be fair, this sort of thing is usually reserved for Sammy Allen-style ‘camp meeting’ gatherings of the whoopin’ hollerin’ and tree-climbin’ variety. Still, for pure entertainment value it’s hard to beat. Be sure to keep an eye on the baptistry…
(thanks to Kitty for the link)
Wow this does look like LOTS of fun! BIG thanks to Kitty!
there is such a thing as “wild fire”..but when its real ..there “ain’t” nothin’ like it when God manifests himself to you, in a such away..i would be very careful here in your mocking..however this vid did make me LOL..
I’m confused.
Can you say choreographed, or at least staged. The man on the stage pacing back and forth is the trigger man. When he goes everyone else is turned loose. Notice how he stops pacing, holds his place and waits on the chorus to take off.
After the guy takes off his jacket and throws it on the singer, I about half expected him to take up an offering by passing down each pew and letting folks tuck money in his belt.
It must be a do-it-yourself baptism church as well.
Here you see the difference between the charismatics and the IFB, the IFB don’t allow their wimmen to participate in the exercise.
I’ll take Catholic Aerobics any day of the week. (Clap on beats 2 & 4:) Stand up, sit down, kneel down, eat something, and burn in hell.
Trex, I think the contradiction here is not necessarily that what they’re doing would be inappropriate at all times (David danced in the streets, after all). Rather, it seems that this behavior would usually be considered out of place in a fundie worship service. It looks kind of like a fundie-approved version of a mosh pit to me. 🙂
I’m taking bets on whether or not the guy actually knew that there was water in there before he jumped. O, never mind. I forgot that betting is sinful.
It’s the hypocrisy of fundies criticizing charismatics for “speaking gibberish” and emphasizing the Holy Spirit, yet themselves running laps around the auditorium that gets me.
I particularly love the guy that ran down the pew hopping over people, and the womon in the front row who picked up whatever it was that fell out of the offering plate (am presuming that’s what fell & was picked up). But immediately heads back to her seat. This kind of activity is clearly not appropriate for the women-folk to participate in. Self baptizing guy was HILAR. I hope he knew water was in there, looked dangerous WITH the water, and possiblye deadly w/o.
There was a well-known church here in Greenville that had an elderly member who was known for grabbing a flowerpot off the altar and taking a lap in front of the pulpit when he got riled up. Whatever floats your boat, I guess. I was in a church where there was a (tongue-in-cheek, I think) “Amen Corner.” Two dozen metal folding chairs, with a sign designating the corner as such, all facing 90-degrees to the congregation/audience. The goal was to holler and shout so much that no one else could hear what was going on. Mission: accomplished. So loud…
*looks through old posts*
You mean Tabernacle? If so, I’ve been there for this! My first Sunday at BJU and a church away from home. Talk about traumatic. Afterwards, the pastor got up after he did it and calmly said, “…and if you need your plants aired out, call Bro. So-and-so.”
*head explodes*
Occasionally at the IFB church I attended (and a few others I visited), had a cheer-leading section with women doing the cheering for the guest preachers and lots of pom-pom action. I felt like I was at a pep rally.
That just transcends beyond funny into pathetic for me.
I want to believe this is some kind of joke. But it bothers me that, given the context, it’s just weird enough to be real.
I agree with Jordan. Words fail me.
Rob,
I think that woman might have been a special needs person.
Wow, just wow! It was a really edifying display, was it not? I don’t think we need to worry about mocking God or getting in trouble with him. It is at best only people’s reaction to God’s presence and NOT God Himself doing this. It is a worst a self-centered display by people who want to be seen as spiritual.
I kept the sound turned off as I am at my desk at work, but I gave myself away by laughing out loud until I cried when the guy went head first into the baptistry. I plan to share this on FB
I like watching the lady with the short blonde hair in the lower left (throughout most of the video). The only time she moved was when Mr Swinging Jacket Man almost nailed her in the head.
@Phil I thought one of the runner guys might’ve been special needs. Didn’t get that vibe from her. Whether she was or not, I still think they thought it was inappopriate to let women be included in this. Not sure if it’s a “let the women be silent” deals, or some other reason. I just thought it was pretty striking that the excluded all the women.
How utterly absurd.
Let me assure you this is very real (i.e., it really happened, not that it was a genuine manifestation of the Holy Spirit). I know the preacher that was singing personally from my childhood and I’ve been in services very similar to this, though the plunge into the baptistery was a new and unexpected twist.
I really wonder if they have any idea how it looks and sounds to to an “outsider” to have an old man singing about foolish virgins with empty vessels (which most of us consider part and parcel of the whole virgin gig) while men run up and down the aisle stripping off their jackets and swinging them over their heads.
Steve,
Do also believe that the practice of speaking in unknown tongues as a manifestation of the Spirit ?
It would seem to me that would at least have a basis in a biblical mandate. I see no record where “running around” is given as a sign of anything.
Darrell,
Read my comment again. I was responding to those who wondered if this really happened. And I clarified that by my parenthetical comment. I don’t believe this is a legitimate work of the Holy Spirit (though some may have been sincere in their enthusiasm).
This is retarded. I would run away from this as quickly as I could.
That is very, very odd to say the least. I cringe to think that a visitor may have been there. On the other hand, it probably was a good thing if one was. That way they’d know to run far, far away from this bunch!
Ah! I read in haste and will now withdraw my previous question.
The irony of this video is that these types of activities might immediately be followed by a sermon on how horrible Pentecostals are because they emphasized speaking in tongues and baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Apparently, the only gifts of the Holy Spirit that survived the New Testament were wind sprints and cannonballs.
And short-track racing *nods to Nascar fans*.
I think this is the first post on this site where the topic is something that most fundies do NOT like. Nevertheless, even if only a small small percentage of fundies like running the aisles, it was still certainly worth a post. There are no words for what I just watched.
I haven’t laughed this much in quite awhile. Certainly looks like a great place to visit (with video camera securely in place.)
david did dance and he was mocked by his own wife…i believe the Lord is in such displays…was he in the above vid…don’t know…maybe not …you can laugh at such things and not have a spirit of critque and critcisim..
Trex, you can’t poke fun at fundies (or any other group) if you insist that no one can poke fun at your particular group (I’m assuming Pentecostal/Charismatic leanings in your case?). Fundies would say that people who poke fun at them are “mocking God”, and it isn’t any better for Pentecostals/Charismatics to say that people who poke fun at them are “mocking the Holy Spirit.”
While there is certainly room for enthusiastic worshipers in church, and I’m all for having fun and being silly at appropriate times, I don’t believe its a good idea to refer to people goofing off and acting silly in a worship service as “being filled with the Holy Spirit.” Don’t blame God for their antics.
trex,
is God in displays such as holy laughter? holy barking?
as far as critiquing and criticizing outlandish, insane behavior, why should we not? the people in that video are at best deluded.
The women weren’t excluded… they were just smarter than the men and didn’t want to make fools of themselves.
I doubt that this was the Holy Spirit, but I admit that I have little exposure to such manifestations. Lots of enthusiasm, self frenzy, childish chaos, trying to be part of the crowd. I think they were responding to the song content, but I could not figure out what the singer was singing. I wonder what was happening prior to this event.
Actually, I was wondering what the men where smoking before the service, or was the preachers singing that bad! 😉
As long as it’s all done decently and in order then I don’t see what the problem is.
http://www.stufffundieslike.com/2010/01/criticizing/
i think the above is wild fire. however leaping, shouting, dancing like found in 2 Sam 6 is scriptual..
jordan..do you think sitting back and critcizing someone: preaching, singing, worshipping is pleasing to the Lord?
It is funny how many fuss about the fundies critical attutude. However they are just as bad…such a double standard.
Sadly, the “singing” was improved when he started laughing. There was no where to go but up…
I’m not entirely sure how to read this question, but I think the colon could be replaced with “who is”? In that case, I think the content, quality, and “biblical-ness”–to throw out a buzzword–of worship is important for determining whether something is respectable, questionable, or so harmful as to be worthy only of laughter. What this video depicts is a farce.
Once again, http://www.stufffundieslike.com/2010/01/criticizing/
The “t” stands for “troll.” Move along, folks.
@trex: Jesus favorite tactic in combating the hypocrisy of the Pharisees was to mock them. That’s why I love this site because it shows the fundies just how silly they are…it will hopefully open the eyes of a few but its greater purpose is to deter any would-be “converts” to fundamentalism…on a side note it also makes me laugh a whole lot.
first of all..i didn’t know i was getting graded for my quick notes on a funny site..2nd i think much of fundamentalism is silly, as do i think much of new calvinism is. however i think many of us will be held accountable to God for our self righteous attitudes and mockery of people in thier attempt to serve the Lord…what i have noticed is many who post on this site and others have stopped being self righteous, judgmental fundies and are now just self right…judgmental calvinists or liberals..troll? no i come to this site to enjoy it…i find much of it very amusing..
Jordan,
Not to take the silliness to serious, but I don’t think your referencing the post on criticizing is very helpful. It doesn’t appear that Trex is criticizing criticism as much as the spirit with which it is handed out. It seems as if he is merely pointing out that in all of the hilarity that many of us enjoy on this site, we also ought to be careful in our comments. I personally visit regularly, but comment little because many of the comments I see do not encourage anyone to love and good works. And lest I be labeled a troll for siding with sobriety, I believe there is room for a good laugh and even Scriptural criticism. But I suppose I’m barking up the wrong tree . . . Trex has made some valid points in a venue that does not handle criticism well – interesting.
I agree and sympathize with both of you. I just couldn’t tell what his game was. 😀 As Brandon pointed out, SFL gets its share of trolls.
exactly michael…i have no game…i am not a typical independent baptist, but that is what i am..i enjoy the site..even some of the things that may hit a little close to home. i guess i just need to stop reading the comments, cuz it is here where i detect a bad spirit from some and see double standards..
uhm…
what the?
Careful about pointing out double standards as an Independent Baptist, there, Trex. They wrote the modern edition of the book on double standards.
The best comment so far was, “This is retarded. I would run away from this as quickly as I could”. Come on people! That behavior is unjustifiable and an embarrassment to the name of Christ!