Years ago, I read a great poem in The Best Loved Poems of the American People. The narrator was talking about a conversation he had with a friend and the friend was bellyaching about the different churches he’d attended, saying why he left each one due to some problem with each of the churches. Finally, the narrator said to the friend, “Maybe it’s not the church”.
Anyone know the title of this poem and also if it’s online. I’m having zero luck in finding it.
Thanks in advance!
Was it this?
That’s not the one I remember, but I like it!
Sorry, I’ve got nothing so far.
Can you remember anything else about it? Form? Style? Rough guess as to the period it was written? Long? Short?
Here’s a link to the book online, with previews of the pages…could be a lot to wade through, but maybe you’ll find the poem you’re looking for?
I’ll give that a go. Perhaps my memory’s faulty and it really was the poem TOWP linked.
Hmmm.
Besides Misnomer’s link, there’s a copy online at archive.org.
It has Edwin Markham’s “The Right Kind of People” beginning on p. 66, which isn’t specifically about churches but has the same “the problem is you” basic theme.
It also has R.W. Glover’s “It Isn’t the Town, It’s You” beginning on p. 103. and the anonymously (and heavily) plagiarized variant “It Isn’t the Church, It’s You” beginning on p. 103, which is the same that TOWP found.
I haven’t read every poem in the book, but I don’t think there’s any other that explicitly mentions churches and/or has that “the problem is you” theme.
Thanks everyone! Yes, it’s my memory which was at fault. Using Misnomer’s link, looking through the entire table of contents, and entering the poem titles in a search, it’s definitely the poem which TOWP found.
I’m grateful for the table of contents. My mother had that book when I was in middle school and I loved going through the book with her. I think I’m ruined for getting anything done this weekend as I’m going to be reading every one of the poems in the TOC.
Thanks again!
Sounds like a great weekend to me!
And here’s a link to the lyrics about a left wing version of the same problem, in the spirit of the Judean Peoples Front, Bill Bailey, The Ultimate Sectarian, song lyrics
Woah, I actually helped! 
I had ChatGPT write one for you:
He tried the Catholic church one day
But found the mass too long and dull
He said he couldn’t stand to pray
With all those candles and that skull
He tried the Baptist church next week
But found the sermon too loud and harsh
He said he didn’t like to speak
With all those sinners dunked in a marsh
He tried the Lutheran church in town
But found the music too old and slow
He said he didn’t like the sound
Of all those organs and that cello
He tried the Pentecostal church nearby
But found the service too wild and weird
He said he didn’t want to cry
With all those tongues and that beard
He tried the Unitarian church last night
But found the doctrine too vague and thin
He said he didn’t see the light
With all those questions and that grin
He met a friend who knew his plight
And offered him some sage advice
He said you need to get it right
The churches aren’t the problem, it’s you who’s not nice
You see, you’re always looking for a flaw
In every place you go and see
You’re always judging what you saw
And never looking at yourself honestly
You need to find some peace within
And stop your restless search for more
You need to let God’s grace begin
And open up your heart’s door
Then you’ll see that every church is fine
And has something good to offer you
Then you’ll feel God’s love divine
And join a church that’s true