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AnonymousThank you for writing this, @the-shaeman. I really enjoy reading what you write. You have a way with words.
I am also enjoying this space where I can just listen to people’s hearts. I don’t know if I’ve ever been in a place where so many people are in different and often undefined spots and all are welcomed. Really neat.
I always struggled a tiny bit with TLS. So many of the people here have had difficult or traumatic times with a church or churches. But I haven’t.
From where I’m standing, my church’s greatest sin is merely one of insularity. It doesn’t have bigoted, narcissistic leadership. It doesn’t have a hypocritcal fundamentalist bent. At worst, many of the attendees are merely sheltered in their fairly well-off, predominantly white little corner of Sydney.
My problem with Christianity as whole, the Church as an institution and that church in particular is that I can no longer believe what centuries of theological teaching currently teaches. My frustration is that the Bible is automatically regarded as the source of truth. A lot of time is spent looking at it from the inside (so to speak) and very little is spent looking at it from the outside. This is why I have drifted away.
I am still a spiritual person. Unlike you, Shae, I haven’t lost my belief in the existence of Yahweh, but I have lost my belief that the Church has a monopoly on all things spiritual. Because it bloody well does not.
And that’s why I like the TLS. There is room for people for people to say “fuck the church” in all different ways and for all manner of reasons.
Wade.
@Wade – That’s pretty much my situation too. I sometimes feel like I don’t have a place to speak about my grievances with the church and religion simply because I have had the traumatic experiences that other people here have had. Hell, my experience with Christianity is a mere three and a half years! Though I haven’t experienced the pain like others, strangely enough, I understand it to a great degree, mainly because I have been subjected to most of the theology that causes the problems. Luckily, with the help of my partner, I got away from it quickly, I recognised it as harmful which I have to be grateful of really.
I think my anger over the church comes from the premise that they will preach this theology as if its the divine truth, and hold themselves in high moral authority especially in comparison to the rest of humanity, all the while remaining completely ignorant to sheer damage it does to people. That they will preach Christ (or actually, they don’t) and then demonstrate attitudes contrary to Christ. They will make friends with people in church and as soon as they show signs of wavering faith, they condemn them. When a person approaches them with depression caused by the theology they are engaged with, they will tell them its their fault. I hate the church for its incredible hypocrisy, for its horrendous ignorance, and for the sheer trauma that it causes within people’s minds, one of those people being my partner… And also resentment plays a part in that anger, because I actually sympathized and preached such theology for a long period before realising how bad it was. Its a brainwashing factory and it has absolutely nothing to do with spiritual truth or Jesus.
That being said, I am grateful for the TLS in that it has brought people together or similar circumstances, so that we can have a place to openly express ourselves, and get out the frustration that we have. There are precious few communities that allow that. I love reading everyone’s replies to topics too, and the different perspective that people like @Richard and @servantgirl bring to the table. You are all awesome people!
AnonymousWow!! This is a great thread too. Thanks Richard for sharing that moment in your life. I second Rick’s closing statement, this is an awesome group, a safe place.
To @the-shaeman, halfway is Nashville or Memphis. And regarding the swearing, I was pokin fun and being a hypocrite. I worked in a factory, then I was a street pastor. Mashing words inside words is an art form on the street. It’s a means of expanding a limited vocabulary. I find searing a release as well. I remember an interview that David did with Escobar and someone else (whose name escapes me) and one or other of them talked about their swearing. I’m so there. The one thing I appreciate about my strict upbringing is the ability to switch vernaculars.
AnonymousI’ve also heard “Word!” a lot as a secular version of “Amen!”
Generally I don’t mind being in a Bible discussion with other Christians (unless there is too much “baa-baa-baaaaing” going on). But I realized a while back that I can’t stand worship services. I am so glad I’m no longer at the Christian university where we had to go to chapel at least 65 times a semester (I skipped the rest because they weren’t required). The singing and preaching irritates me. Everyone parroting the same words whether they believe them or not, whether they really feel those emotions or not. Everyone sitting passively listening to whatever the preacher spoon-feeds them. No questions or challenges allowed. People mostly come and go without talking to each other, like they’re at a movie theater. I realize there are times and places for lectures, but Sunday morning is just too damn passive. The only “church” I would go to is a small group or something where the majority of what we did was talk about the Bible and it’s okay to say “heretical” things, with maybe a little of the other religious activities thrown in. When I went to church the last couple of years, it was almost all out of the desire for socializing, guilt, and peer pressure. I no longer need to go for the socializing or volunteer opportunities, because I can easily find those things elsewhere.
I think one of the main reasons most of my generation (and others) isn’t going to church on Sunday morning is because it is so damn passive, “Check your brain at the door,” and FAKE. The homophobia, subtle misogyny and the ignorance about science and psychology also drive me nuts.
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