I missed last week’s VFIT support group’s curry night, going instead a High School Musical Evening. That is, an evening of music at the High School which oldest VKIT attends, as opposed to an evening of Disney’s High School Musical. Thankfully. And it was great; shame about the curry though.
Anyway, this week I shall, as often happens, be away for the Wednesday evening support group get together. Which is something of a relief, since it’s a communion service. Now, this seems to me like something of a busman’s holiday. Our spouses are training to be vicars, some of us go to unfamiliar placement churches at weekends, (and even get used as props in sermons) and for relaxation, one option is more of the same.
I find my reaction to this somewhat concerning. If my wife is training to be a vicar, shouldn’t I like going to church? Wouldn’t it help? Well, aside from the fact that my Myers-Briggs type is apparently pathologically opposed to going to church, the more serious response to this is to ask why?
In Chester P Michael and Marie C. Norrisey, Prayer and Temperament (Charlottesville, VA: 
Open Door, 1991) these two look at Myers Briggs types and attitudes to church. One sentence grabbed me when it said that those with “S” and “F” combinations were characterized as being free, unconfined, compulsive, not tied down by rules, loving action and crisis-oriented. It goes on to say this combination “combines an active view of God speaking in creation through the senses with a need for other-centered action and acts of service.” Gosh – maybe this is why I have frequently felt much closer to God when on a mountain top (or washing up) than in church, and maybe it goes some way to explaining why sitting in a pew on a Wednesday night does not hugely appeal. With that in mind there are a couple of photos in this post, each of which is clickable to get to a larger version of the same.
Ah well, back to comforting VIT who is suffering from a surfeit of Christmas Carol Services (including the college one tonight) when she’d much rather be contemplating ADVENT, which of course, it still is.
Ah yes, the perils of being an SF! Although about 25% of the population have this type, only 2% of CofE vicars do… Add to that the extreme P… I then fell to musing about the kind of church that would fit this personality type… Let’s start with the meeting announcement: “Dude, we’re going to meet some time today, we’ll text you when and where after we’ve worked out who’s feeling inspired”. OK I think I need to think this through more carefully…
PS – enjoyed the sausage post!
I just stumbled on your site – and thought I recognised the header photo! I am the Vicar of Swaledale and Arkengarthdale. With all good wishes for your training and for Christmas
Caroline
Hi Adrian
enjoying your blog and new personal insights that goes along with being a VFIT! Of course, God invented Myers-Briggs types to show us that He isn’t confined to a box on Sunday mornings (judging by some of the churches I’ve been to it seems that’s the last place to find God!)
As for losing Advent, one of the advantages of not being a VIT or VFIT is that I can virtually ignore Christmas until, well….Christmas!
Advent … One of the most helpful and yet most ignored seasons. I love it, just as I love Lent and Holy Week. Something to do with being an EXXJ (I blew the Myers-Briggs fuse).