From Rev. Jeremy Smith
I was recently at a conference where each day the Bible study was led by a performance artist/theologian who acted out the biblical story and gave some exegetical/theological insight to the Scriptures. The content was terrific: substantial and challenging. But on the second day, a baby began to jibber-jabber loudly in the audience.
After a few minutes of this, the performer stopped the show, looked in frustration at the baby and parent, and said, “I love children, but I’m getting really distracted.” The parent and child got up and left the room … followed by several other parents who went out in solidarity and in protest.
I talked later with the parent and made this claim: A crying baby is a test as to whether someone is preaching or performing. More Here
The Rev. Jeremy Smith is an ordained Elder in the United Methodist Church and currently serves as Minister of Discipleship at First United Methodist Church in Portland, Oregon. He blogs about faith, technology, and geeky topics at http://HackingChristianity.net