Church provides an acceptable arena for socializing
Church served as more as conduit for social activities than as an engine for proselytization. Holt demonstrates the sharing that occurred within her local community. Embedded in her discussion of the church is the fragility and importance of pride. Holt blames the need to preserve one's pride on the limited social contact between families.
Citing this Excerpt
Oral History Interview with Nancy Holt, October 27, 1985. Interview K-0010. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007) in the Southern Oral History Program Collection, Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Full Text of the Excerpt
- NANCY HOLT:
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...And I remember lots of the activities and a lot of
the news, anything that went on, was exchanged at church on Sunday. And
we went to Cane Creek Church over here. And it was, it was more a social
experience than a religious experience. In fact the first time I got
kissed it was at church, I mean, where else did I see people? And I
think I was about nine, which was wonderful and it sent me in ecstasy
for years, I think, just thinking about it
[Laughter] .
- FRANCES E. WEBB:
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What kinds of other social things did they have at the church?
- NANCY HOLT:
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You would have an ice cream supper, occasionally. Always a Christmas
pageant. And of course the other religious holidays, the Easter types of
things. Bible school during the summer, maybe a fall festival. It, there
was - there were something generally year around. If there was somebody
in the neighborhood having a, a bad time we would give 'em a
pounding.
- FRANCES E. WEBB:
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I don't know what that is.
- NANCY HOLT:
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A pounding is - I don't know where it comes from - but
it's, it's like you sharing a pound of flour, a
pound of cornmeal, a pound of sugar. Everybody contributing some kind of
staple or, and foodstuff. So it - that was generally
carried out through the church too.
- FRANCES E. WEBB:
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So the church sort of was an outlet for people to help other people?
- NANCY HOLT:
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Um-uhm, um-uhm. And it was, I think it was acceptable through the church.
Whereas it may not have been totally acceptable if the neighbors got
together and went to help poor old so-and-so that was having problems,
because there was a lot of pride here. And I think one of the reasons
that there was not a lot of social contact between families is to
preserve this kind of innate dignity and privacy, that you still see in
some of the families here that - now they may be the biggest brawlers in
the world, but they close ranks if, if something has been, somebody has
been threatened, and you know, the family as a whole feels threatened.
They most definitely will close ranks. So, I think it was probably like
a lot of the other very, very rural areas. And the thing that I think is
unique is being so close to Chapel Hill. And Chapel Hill was always
viewed with a jaundiced eye out here because it had those strange people
that weren't from here, did not have generally the same
values, generally did not understand.