Do you go to church?
I’m not asking if you go on Christmas and Easter, but do you go regularly?
If so, then why? If not, then why not?
Leave comments and let me know. Be honest. Don’t hold back. I really want to hear what you have to say.
Do you go to church?
I’m not asking if you go on Christmas and Easter, but do you go regularly?
If so, then why? If not, then why not?
Leave comments and let me know. Be honest. Don’t hold back. I really want to hear what you have to say.
September 9th, 2009 at 11:55 am
Hey! Ok, I love my church. And I love THE church. When I got saved last year, I started to CRAVE it. I had gone sporadically before, but it was just to make me feel good. God makes me hungry for it now. Not just to get fed once a week, because it’s important to do that everyday alone–but to interact and meet and mingle and get close to other believers. It’s so important. And I even feel led to take it a step further and get involved in a smaller cell group once a week to have a closer relationship with my buds. Church is good for us. It makes me sad to look around on Sundays and wonder if the person next to me is hungry for it yet, or if they are only there for a temporary ‘feel good’ because they brought their kids or hear something gooey. Like I used to be. But God’s all about people and he wants us around other people of like mind a lot. It takes us deeper with him. Fo sho. Sorry for the novel! And to elaborate about what I said up there–I DO totally get fed at church. I have an amazing pastor who really hears from God, no doubt. But that is a corporate message meant for a whole group. One on one time every day is always personal. I could never live happy without that. Hey, here’s my church!!—–http://bay-community.com/resources.html
September 10th, 2009 at 9:04 am
I don’t go to church, because I don’t believe religion is good for me.
I was raised by Christian parents and went to church regularly for the first 25 years of my life. As I grew up, I knew something about it just wasn’t right, but couldn’t put my finger on it. It wasn’t until I was older that I realized what bothered me — it was the knowledge that I’d grown past this.
We know why religion was created. The belief in a higher power is a helpful tool to explain the nature of man to those who have no other understanding — and a handy way of teaching the masses a moral code (and a reason to believe it). But religion is no longer necessary for to have a moral code. I know Jews and Muslims and Atheists and Agnostics all of whom are supremely fair, moral, loving and kindhearted people. Jesus-like, if you will. And religion is surely no longer necessary to understand the reason we’re here. Science has taught us how we came to be.
One reason many people I respect choose to be religious is because it gives their life a sense of purpose. I fully understand the attractiveness of living with faith. It’s a comforting feeling to believe that one can pray for guidance, understanding, or simply for “His” will to be done, and to help one understand the mystery of “His” ways. While I understand the temptation of using faith in this way, I don’t think it’s ultimately very productive. My life is loads happier knowing that I must rely on the brain in my head (the one you believe God gave you) to figure out my purpose, and how to deal with the hard times. I am incredibly grateful to be a human being, and to have the ability to use my ability to reason to understand the path that’s right for my life. It was incredibly liberating to understand that I have the power to overcome life’s adversities and so do you — you’re doing it every single day, but you’re giving the credit to a higher power. In reality you’re using your own brain’s logic and reason to the best of your understanding. Shedding one’s reliance on a higher power only helps refine your ability to do so.
But I’m not here to proselytize the benefits of Atheism. It’s what works for me. I’m a happy, energetic, charitable Atheist, full of love for his friends, family, and all the creatures of the earth. In short, why don’t I go to church? Because I view going to church as dedicating our time on this earth — which can be in such short supply for far too many of us — to a cause that is unnecessary for happiness in this life, and actually hinders peoples’ lives by causing them to fail to appreciate the one real life they have, to keep waiting for this “afterlife” that will take all their troubles away. It’s not fair to human beings to build up their hopes when they should concern themselves with living happy, loving lives and sharing that happiness and love with others while here on earth. What happens to us after we die? It’s the one great mystery of life that none of us among the living will ever know the answer to.
September 10th, 2009 at 11:00 am
Thanks for your thoughts Jim.
While it is clear that we have very different views on the fundamentals of life, I think we share some common ground. I agree, and even hope, that most of us grow out of religion. I don’t think religion is good for any of us (other than what is described in James 1:27 ~ The Bible). As you mentioned there are people from all sorts of beliefs and backgrounds that adhere to a common moral order, so obviously a particular religion (or lack thereof) is not necessary for morality. I believe religion came from well intentioned people trying to teach the ways of God, without introducing people to God.
I also agree that it is a shame when people use religion as an excuse to waste their lives waiting for the “afterlife”. Don’t get me wrong – I am pretty stoked about what will be waiting for me after I die, but Jesus said that he came so that we could have an abundant life. He wasn’t talking about a life that starts when our body quits working; he was talking about life right here and right now. Jesus was all about loving people and living life to the fullest, but his perspective and understanding of life is much larger than the 33 years he lived in the Middle East.
The irony of religion is that it often does exactly what you have described by boxing an infinite God into a small box in our minds, and leaving us with the feeling that we are missing something. That “thing” that is often missing is the relationship Jesus offers to all of us. Without it everything else is just rules and regulations that are meant to make us good boys and girls.
Again, thank you for sharing Jim. You brought up some really good points.
~Chris
September 14th, 2009 at 5:34 pm
Nicely said Chris. I concur. Also, nicely said Jim–I used to concur. Is that how you spell ‘concur’? I hope so. Hope your wife’s foot is doing good!