Drinking coffee during church service?

[MaxPC]

Minnesota pastor's viral post about people drinking coffee in church ignites fiery debate
What is your perspective?

[Grace]

Minnesota pastor's viral post about people drinking coffee in church ignites fiery debate
What is your perspective?

Drink your coffee BEFORE church.

[Soloist]

I don’t think it matters.

[QuietlyListening]

To me it doesn't matter. I don't think a church should sell coffee but otherwise I see no problem with it.

[Neto]

Take your narcotics (stimulants) in the privacy of your own home, before going to church services. And please brush your teeth afterwards if it is something you drink. The smell of it on people's breath is nasty.

(They used to have a sign in our church house "No food or beverages in the sanctuary". Now it's just "Whatever".)

[mike]

One of my old preachers used to tell a story about a guy who went to visit one of these megachurches. Not only was there coffee to drink during the service, a food cart literally came up the aisle at one point. He says to himself, he says, "This ain't no church." And he bought himself a hot dog.

[Soloist]

It really asks the question, what is a church? A building? A group of people? Is there an actual sanctuary?
Does it matter what we do in a building? Is eating unacceptable in one part of the building but not the other part?

[QuietlyListening]

I bring iced tea- my throat gets dry and I then start coughing so the tea helps keep me from coughing as much. Others have reasons too. I don't see how having a drink of tea/coffee/water affects our worship.
I grew up where the sanctuary was thought of as this holy place- but I think we tend to elevate the building to a status of almost holy and forget the church is the people gathered to worship- wherever it is.
When we had home church at our house- I had a pot of coffee for anyone who wished to get it. It did not affect our time of worship.

[mike]

It really asks the question, what is a church? A building? A group of people? Is there an actual sanctuary?
Does it matter what we do in a building? Is eating unacceptable in one part of the building but not the other part?

The church is a group of people. I don't believe in the "sanctuary," or that there's anything special about an "altar" or pulpit or anything else. There are Mennonite churches with two pulpits, where the one is reserved for ordained persons. I've heard stories where people cleaning the church won't let children clean the pulpit because of it being a "sacred desk." Conservative Wesleyan holiness churches in my area don't allow eating in the same building where worship occurs, so they have separate fellowship halls. I don't agree with any of these things.

That doesn't mean there isn't behavior that is socially inappropriate or distracting from worship. Let all things be done decently and in order.

My parents were Amish until I was 9 years old. The Amish have church in houses, the upper floors of cow stables, or in makeshift buildings set up for the purpose. Preachers stand in doorways or corners of rooms or whatever other spot where they can be best heard. The building means little to nothing to them; the church is the gathering of the people. I agree with this idea.

[MaxPC]

That doesn't mean there isn't behavior that is socially inappropriate or distracting from worship. Let all things be done decently and in order.

Well said, Mike. Which leads to the next question:
Would consuming refreshments be acceptable or unacceptable during a wedding ceremony or funeral service? If not, then where do you think the line is to be drawn between these ceremonies and the Sunday ceremonies?