If so, I sincerely wish this wasn't the case.
Inevitably, I am going to disagree with a lot of things I see when I visit different churches. And I'm going to write about those things. I don't mean to imply that I'm necessarily right (although, of course, like anyone, I will probably think that I am.) There are a million and one views on every hot button topic. And religion is a scalding hot button. So I understand that when I express my opinion about worship, messages, warmth of greeting, etc ... it could be misconstrued as haughty or condescending or judgmental or any number of negative adjectives you can slap on my intentions. After all, I'm making a snap, yes, judgment, of these churches.
I'm going once. And I'm saying: here's how I saw it.
And perhaps that's unfair in some ways. Because really, what do I know? I'm not some worship guru who has all the answers and wants to dole out those answers in huge sweeping gestures of false good will while secretly poo-pooing. (Although that does give me a funny visual of myself.)
I just want to be honest about my perspective, whether or not it gets me in trouble.
And when it comes right down to it, I want to find the truth.
So while I'll certainly be remarking on things I dislike about my various experiences, the point is to find the things I LOVE. I'm in this for a positive outcome. I want to settle down into something I can be fully passionate about. I want all the things I enjoy so far (the intensity of emotion during worship time at some churches, the devotion to tradition at others, the genuine care and concern for members of the congregation at still others) to come together in a way and in a place that makes me say, "Yeah, this is not only what I want to be a part of ... it's something I suddenly realize I need to be a part of."
And in the meantime I want to stir up positive conversations among my readers.
So...
Are you passionate about your religion/spirituality/relationship with god?
Yes, I'm very passionate about my faith. But my faith also tells me to live my life as anyone else would.
ReplyDeleteI'm passionate enough about my faith that my friends know that I follow Jesus and believe him to be God. But I hope that the guys I watch football with or hang out at the local bar with don't feel like I'm forcing my beliefs on them.
If there's one thing that the branch of Christianity I grew up in can be accused of, it's this: they have a very strong "us vs them" mentality.
Ironically, the religious people of his day accused Jesus of being a "glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners."
I wonder if today's true Jesus-followers are being accused of the same things by today's religious people.