This has to be a joke, I first thought, but it wasn’t. The e-mail forwarded to me, from someone dubbing himself an “ex-pagan,” was titled “and you thought your liturgy was bad.” An additional note read: “No wonder the Anglican and Episcopal Church are on their way out.” The email contained a link to a video of the Clown Eucharist service at Trinity Church at Wall Street that took place on May 22. Come see the clowns, come dressed as a clown, and take communion. Ha, ha, ha.

Trinity is the beautiful landmark church that stood in the shadow of the Twin Towers and survived their collapse on September 11. This is the church with the historic cemetery containing the graves of Alexander Hamilton, the first treasury secretary and author of much of the Constitution, and Robert Fulton, inventor of the steamboat. George Washington worshiped regularly at Trinity and was inaugurated as our first president just steps away, on the balcony of Federal Hall.

This is also the church that was featured in the climactic scene of last year’s movie “National Treasure,” and perhaps this proximity with the fumes of Hollywood magic is what drove the rector bonkers enough to imagine that a service of this type was appropriate for the distinguished and historic Trinity Church.

“It will likely be a surprise to see clowns inside Trinity Church, but think about it this way: How we perceive the world in light of our relationship with Jesus could rightly be called foolish,” Trinity’s rector, the Reverend James H. Cooper, wrote in an April 27 introductory letter. “Clowns represent the underdog, the lowly, the remnant people. Their foolishness is a call to unpretentiousness.”

Oh, really? Well, I know a lot of people who are underdogs, lowly, and neglected who absolutely loathe clowns. There’s even a Web site devoted to them: www.ihateclowns.com. Far from dredging up happy emotions to praise the Lord, the clown image has many times been used to conjure up evil personages.

Stephen King’s Pennywise in the classic horror miniseries “It” inspired nightmares in my own children when it first aired. “Killer Klowns from Outer Space” is a cult classic, but truth is indeed stranger than fiction. The serial killer John Wayne Gacy, who confessed to killing at least 30 victims and burying them under his house, used to perform as Pogo the Clown at street fairs and hospitals. In 2003, Troy Taylor wrote an article about him called “The Clown that Killed.”

“Under the smiling mask of the clown was a depraved fiend,” Mr. Taylor wrote, and the article included a Chicago Tribune photo of Gacy in full clown gear with the caption: “perhaps the most chilling image of Gacy.”

I’m going to give Rev. Cooper the benefit of the doubt that he had nothing to do with the end result of the Clown Eucharist service, but anyone watching the video on the church’s Web site, www.trinitywallstreet.org, might confuse it with the traditional Halloween parade in Greenwich Village. Besides the traditional clown costumes, there were several worshippers in Goth makeup, and most disturbing of all was to see congregants on the altar wearing Viking helmets with horns. Somehow, the image of horns on an altar is more sinister and pagan than it is evocative of a happy-go-lucky Christian celebration.

I’m all for variety in church rituals, as long as they don’t denigrate or obscure the spiritual meaning of the service. Since my own parish has quite a large number of African immigrants, I would dearly like to see a special Mass that would honor their culture but still revere the solemnity of the rite. The Missa Luba is a classic rendition of the Latin Mass sung by a choir from the Congo. The music is awe-inspiring, and the Gloria from this recording was used in Pier Paolo Pasolini’s acclaimed film “The Gospel According to St. Matthew.”

Somehow Rector Cooper’s idea of “Send in the Clowns” reminds me of a routine on religion by the English drag comedian Eddie Izzard. In his HBO special, “Dressed to Kill,” he said:

“Nowadays, Church of England is much more ‘Hello, how are you?’ Much more a hobby-type. … Do come in, you’re the only one today! Now, the sermon today is taken from a magazine that I found in a hedge.”

Describing a typical Anglican confession, Eddie Izzard jokes:

“Vicar, I have done many bad things.”

“Well, so have I.”

“What shall I do?”

“Well, drink five Bloody Marys and you won’t remember.”

If Trinity Church wants to be as entertaining as Comedy Central, then I suppose that explains the motive for a Clown Eucharist service, but as a way to express respect for one’s faith, it’s just a sick joke.