--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am very, very uneasy with churches that…" description: "\"I am very, very uneasy with churches that have basically said, \"Well, since that's what people want and that's what sells, then were going to do our wo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/parker-j-palmer-2983_bells_i-am-very-very-uneasy-with-churches-that_2536384.png" --- # I am very, very uneasy with churches that have basically… ![“I am very, very uneasy with churches that have basically said, "Well, since that's what people want and that's what sells, then were going to do our worship services like Hollywood productions. We're going to have a lot of bells and whistles. We're going to have high entertainment value, and it is…” quote by Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/parker-j-palmer-2983_bells_i-am-very-very-uneasy-with-churches-that_2536384.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/parker-j-palmer-2983_bells_i-am-very-very-uneasy-with-churches-that_2536384.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/parker-j-palmer-2983_bells_i-am-very-very-uneasy-with-churches-that_2536384.png) > “I am very, very uneasy with churches that have basically said, "Well, since that's what people want and that's what sells, then were going to do our worship services like Hollywood productions. We're going to have a lot of bells and whistles. We're going to have high entertainment value, and it is going to have a lot of gloss and glitter."” [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote warns that churches risk losing spiritual depth when they prioritize entertainment and market appeal over authentic worship. **In simple terms:** Churches should focus on substance, not spectacle. Key Takeaway Prioritize genuine worship over flashy production. Themes faith authenticity culture commercialism Mood concerned reflective Type critical observational When to use this quote - church services - religious events - faith gatherings - media planning - leadership decisions Key Concepts spiritual depth community integrity Questions to Reflect On - How can a congregation balance relevance with reverence? - What values should guide worship design? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on spectacle can alienate believers seeking deeper meaning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bells/) [Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Entertainment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/entertainment/) [Glitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/glitter/) [Hollywood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hollywood/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) [Worship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worship/) [Worship service](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worship-service/) ## Related quotes > [Let us make sure that the worship services we plan and conduct present that Truth in all its clarity and beauty and goodness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marva-dawn/let-us-make-sure-that-the-worship-services-we-plan-and-conduct/) [Marva Dawn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marva-dawn/) > [ We must have something of substance to say in our worship \[services\] that reminds us why Christ's story is so unique and so utterly… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-getty/we-must-have-something-of-substance-to-say-in-our-worship-services/) [Keith Getty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-getty/) > [In part because they had no choice, right? If you were a slave, you did what the master said. And they said to worship:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/in-part-because-they-had-no-choice-right-if-you-were-a-slave-you-did/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [If we are going to worship in Spirit, we must develop a spirit of worship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-catt/if-we-are-going-to-worship-in-spirit-we-must-develop-a-spirit-of/) [Michael Catt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-catt/) > [People have been asking me since I did 'Carried Me, The Worship Project,' 'When are you going to do another worship project?' And that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-camp/people-have-been-asking-me-since-i-did-carried-me-the-worship-project/) [Jeremy Camp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-camp/) > [We're going out there whether it's Satan's personal party or not. We're going to sing our hearts out, and we're going to worship God,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonny-sandoval/we-re-going-out-there-whether-it-s-satan-s-personal-party-or-not-we/) [Sonny Sandoval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonny-sandoval/) > [“I'm going to worship you every day for the rest of my life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-ellen-malpas/i-m-going-to-worship-you-every-day-for-the-rest-of-my-life/) [Jodi Ellen Malpas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-ellen-malpas/) > [We're going to worship in eternity. So what does God want me to do while we're here on earth? Practice. Practice worshipping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/we-re-going-to-worship-in-eternity-so-what-does-god-want-me-to-do/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [If you are going to worship a guy who was crucified, don't expect life to be pop and Skittles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-p-shea/if-you-are-going-to-worship-a-guy-who-was-crucified-don-t-expect-life/) Mark P. Shea > [Those who would send out thousands of questionnaires asking the unconverted what they would desire most in a worship service should realize that ten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-washer/those-who-would-send-out-thousands-of-questionnaires-asking-the/) [Paul Washer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-washer/) > [In many cases, everything that once constituted a traditional worship service disappeared altogether, giving way to rock-concert formats and everything else the church could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/in-many-cases-everything-that-once-constituted-a-traditional-worship/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) > [Phrases like Worship Service or Service of Worship are tautologies. To worship God means to serve him. Basically there are two ways to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/phrases-like-worship-service-or-service-of-worship-are-tautologies-to/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [“LEAD PEOPLE TO COMMITMENT We have seen that nonbelievers in worship actually “close with Christ” in two basic ways: some may come to Christ…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/lead-people-to-commitment-we-have-seen-that-nonbelievers-in-worship/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“However, as he began his prayer, she couldn’t think about anything but the warm pressure of his hands against hers. His fingers were strong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jody-hedlund/however-as-he-began-his-prayer-she-couldn-t-think-about-anything-but/) [Jody Hedlund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jody-hedlund/) > [“every church can treat each discipleship class and each worship service as an opportunity for continual rehearsal of what the words, stories, symbols, rituals,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-arthur/every-church-can-treat-each-discipleship-class-and-each-worship/) [Sarah Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-arthur/) ## More by Parker J. Palmer > [“The God I know is the source of reality, rather than morality; the source of 'what is' rather than the source of 'what ought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/the-god-i-know-is-the-source-of-reality-rather-than-morality-the/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [One of the hardest things we must do sometimes is to be present to another person's pain without trying to "fix" it, to simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/one-of-the-hardest-things-we-must-do-sometimes-is-to-be-present-to/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [Opposing what's wrong is a halfway measure at best. A rebel must also have a vision for something better, a strategy for moving toward…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/opposing-what-s-wrong-is-a-halfway-measure-at-best-a-rebel-must-also/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [Teaching, like any truly human activity, emerges from one's inwardness, for better or worse. As I teach I project the condition of my soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/teaching-like-any-truly-human-activity-emerges-from-one-s-inwardness/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [If my life is any example, the work that youth workers are doing is very, very important. It tends to get marginalized in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/if-my-life-is-any-example-the-work-that-youth-workers-are-doing-is/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [Self-care is never a selfish act - it is only good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/self-care-is-never-a-selfish-act-it-is-only-good-stewardship-of-the/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [The spiritual life is about becoming more at home in your own skin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/the-spiritual-life-is-about-becoming-more-at-home-in-your-own-skin/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [“Formation may be the best name for what happens in a circle of trust, because the word refers, historically, to soul work done in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/formation-may-be-the-best-name-for-what-happens-in-a-circle-of-trust/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [Don't let anyone or anything rob you of the beauty and meaning at the heart of life. It's your birthright gift.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/don-t-let-anyone-or-anything-rob-you-of-the-beauty-and-meaning-at-the/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [“Citizenship is a way of being in the world rooted in the knowledge that I am a member of a vast community of human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/citizenship-is-a-way-of-being-in-the-world-rooted-in-the-knowledge/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [I think the church needs to be much more countercultural than that and invite people into slowing down, into a "Be-still-and-know-that-I-am-God" mindset.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/i-think-the-church-needs-to-be-much-more-countercultural-than-that/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [My high school, like most high schools, had a pretty rigid stratification system. Kids were clustered into groups - the studious ones, the athletes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/my-high-school-like-most-high-schools-had-a-pretty-rigid/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [Death in various forms is sometimes comforting, while resurrection and new life can be demanding and threatening. If I lived as if resurrection were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/death-in-various-forms-is-sometimes-comforting-while-resurrection-and/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [Discovering vocation does not mean scrambling toward some prize just beyond my reach but accepting the treasure of true self I already posses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/discovering-vocation-does-not-mean-scrambling-toward-some-prize-just-2/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) > [It is because as we are, our hearts are closed, and we cannot place the holy words in our hearts. So we place them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/parker-j-palmer/it-is-because-as-we-are-our-hearts-are-closed-and-we-cannot-place-the/) [Parker J. Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) [Explore all 143 Parker J. Palmer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/parker-j-palmer/) ## More Bells quotes > [You’re crazy,” said her best friend, Angela, as the bell rang to signal five minutes before the first class on the first day back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-rees-brennan/you-re-crazy-said-her-best-friend-angela-as-the-bell-rang-to-signal/) [Sarah Rees Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-rees-brennan/) > [Your name is a golden bell hung in my heart. I would break my body to pieces to call you once by your name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-s-beagle/your-name-is-a-golden-bell-hung-in-my-heart-i-would-break-my-body-to/) [Peter S. Beagle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-s-beagle/) > [“Suddenly the air was full of that deep clangor of bells which periodically covers Rome with a roof of silver.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edith-wharton/suddenly-the-air-was-full-of-that-deep-clangor-of-bells-which/) [Edith Wharton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edith-wharton/) > [Hercules used noise! Brass bells! He scared them away with the most horrible sound he could-" said Percy "Percy... Chiron's collection!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/hercules-used-noise-brass-bells-he-scared-them-away-with-the-most/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [Above the clouds I lift my wing To hear the bells of Heaven ring; Some of their music, though my fights be wild, To…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-clarence-stedman/above-the-clouds-i-lift-my-wing-to-hear-the-bells-of-heaven-ring-some/) [Edmund Clarence Stedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-clarence-stedman/) > [“But it’s bells at twenty-seven thousand feet as the plane breaks into the clear again, as its motion steadies again; it is bells; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/but-it-s-bells-at-twenty-seven-thousand-feet-as-the-plane-breaks-into/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [You run the football for toughness. You run the ball to tell your opponent that you're as tough as they are. But you throw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-glanville/you-run-the-football-for-toughness-you-run-the-ball-to-tell-your/) Jerry Glanville > [In cloths cheap handsomeness, doth bear the bell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-herbert/in-cloths-cheap-handsomeness-doth-bear-the-bell/) [George Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-herbert/) > [Man preys on man; and you mourn for the idle tapestry that decorated a gothic pillar, and the dronish bell that summoned the fat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft/man-preys-on-man-and-you-mourn-for-the-idle-tapestry-that-decorated-a/) [Mary Wollstonecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft/) > [The Bell curve is a fact of life. The blacks on average score 85 per cent on IQ and it is accurate, nothing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-kuan-yew/the-bell-curve-is-a-fact-of-life-the-blacks-on-average-score-85-per/) [Lee Kuan Yew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-kuan-yew/) > [There is nothing better for me than to bring the bells in, in Scotland.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharleen-spiteri/there-is-nothing-better-for-me-than-to-bring-the-bells-in-in-scotland/) [Sharleen Spiteri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharleen-spiteri/) > [Now see that noble and most sovereign reason, Like sweet bells jangled, out of tune and harsh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/now-see-that-noble-and-most-sovereign-reason-like-sweet-bells-jangled/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [ I became an instant fan of the show \[Underground\] seconds into the opening frames of the pilot. When that drone shot carried us through… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aisha-hinds/i-became-an-instant-fan-of-the-show-underground-seconds-into-the/) [Aisha Hinds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aisha-hinds/) > [This world o' God's is brighter Than we ever dream or know; Its burdens growin' lighter- An' it's Love that makes 'em so! An'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-lebby-stanton/this-world-o-god-s-is-brighter-than-we-ever-dream-or-know-its-burdens/) [Frank Lebby Stanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-lebby-stanton/) > [Believe it or not, Mexican cooking, for those of you who have not gone farther south than Taco Bell, uses a lot of vegetables.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-cisneros/believe-it-or-not-mexican-cooking-for-those-of-you-who-have-not-gone/) [Sandra Cisneros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-cisneros/) [Browse all 790 Bells quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bells/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I am very, very uneasy with churches that have basically said, \"Well, since that's what people want and that's what sells, then were going to do our worship services like Hollywood productions. We're going to have a lot of bells and whistles. 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