After being a Catholic and a JW I am really gun shy about organized religions. I identify myself simply as a Christian. I am looking for a church to go to for fellowship. I am so new at being totally free that I am afraid to even call up a church and ask questions about their doctrine for fear they will hunt me down or I should say "try to guide me to the correct path". Mostly I look online and try to research them that way but it is difficult for find information on specific churches. Has anyone gone looking for a church, not to join, but to go to sometimes? So far I am not finding anything that fits my needs.
Any help or shared experiences would be appreciated.
Thank you
Andrea
Does anyone know of a good church I could go to?
by Andrea Wideman 38 Replies latest jw experiences
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Andrea Wideman
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Billygoat
You might consider Unitarian. It's always an "easy" place to start for those that are gunshy. I went to a bible church, which I loved and where I got "re" baptized. I'm attending a Baptist church now, but it doesn't act like a Baptist church if that makes any sense. They are very liberal there. The key for me is how the people treat each other. The reason we love our church is because it truly is like family...people everywhere are concerned about your well-being and are interested in your life.
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Ingenuous
I've enjoyed meeting with the Bible Students, though the majority meet in private homes. I'm wondering about visiting a church of the Disciples of Christ.
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Andrea Wideman
I did research the local Unitarian churches in the area and they didn't seem to focus on God or Jesus at all. Thank you for the input and I am so glad that you found a church that you really like.
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jgnat
I have three ideas for you:
Look for any church with an www.alpha.org sign. The Alpha program, lasting six weeks, is designed for the "unchurched". They show a short video and then have a discussion period, with food, afterwards. It is a great way to meet others with a desire to have religion in their life. Alpha helpers are taught not to challenge opinons shared in the group.
If you hate being pushed more than anything else, non-evangelical protestant may be up your alley. Look for Anglican or Epicopalian. Each church is different as to warmth, so you may have to visit a few before you find one that "fits". If you want, you can check out "Mystery Worshippers" who rate the relative quality of services world-wide. http://ship-of-fools.com/Mystery/ You may even want to be a Mystery Worshipper yourself and record your experience for Ship of Fools.
Nearly all will teach the trinity, however. If non-trinitarian is an important doctrine to you, find a local body of the Bible Students.
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AlmostAtheist
Do you have a "Vineyard" church in your area? They seem great. I heard a sermon by one of their guys and he said something to the effect of, "If you come in here and you feel like you belong, then you're welcome to stay. We're happy you're here. But if you feel like you need something else and you go down the road to [some other church in the area], that's great, too. We're happy about that, too. Go where you need to go to serve Jesus in YOUR way."Wow, I was impressed. I found it interesting that he was only happy as long you were "serving Jesus", but at least he didn't consider it his job to tell me how to do that. [edited to add: In line with jgnat's comment, I believe Vineyard does the Alpha thing]
Dave
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Joel Wideman
Why do you feel you need to belong to a church? I do not feel this way. I am perfectly happy having a personal relationship with Jesus, and I don't need any man-made organisation telling me how to do that.
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Andrea Wideman
It isn't that I feel a need to belong to a church but once in a while it might be nice to go as a family there. I would like to have a church to go to on Christmas this year. The first Christmas I am celebrating in 11 yrs and our kids first one that they will remember. I want them to feel the happiness that comes from a beautiful service and also the joy of singing praise to God. I love to sing especially in a large group of people. I suspect that part of why I want to find a church is so when I get the urge to praise God in song I don't seem like a crazy person. I hope this answers your question Joel.
Andrea -
Periodic Bedlam
When I left the organization, I decided to just visit different churches each week. I found out the service hours and showed up. No one tried to force me to join anything. It was a learning experience for me.......to see how different churches conducted their services. In each place I found things I liked and things I didn't like. I considered myself a Christian and wanted a church home. I ended up being "saved" and baptized at one church that I started attending regulary twice a week and once a week for bible study in the homes of members. It was a very large congregation (hundreds) and was mildly Pentacostal in nature. One time they had a special weekend with a visiting healer and the place was packed. The healings were pretty phoney and those who were really sick didn't get well. I quit going there.
Then I found a small non-denominational church that I liked a lot. The pastor's parents were JW's ironically. I started attending their weekly new believer classes and was involved with the women's and single's ministries. (OMG how funny...right now the phone is ringing and it is JW's on the caller ID, must be doing telephone territory!!!!!) The people were great and very caring.
Anyway, after a while I realized that it was kind of the same thing with a different name. Just like the JW's believed you had to be a part of the organization, the churches taught you had to accept Jesus as your savior and be saved. I wondered about all of the other people on the planet who weren't Christian. And then I got to sersiously thinking about the whole salvation teaching and I realized how crazy it was. Supposedly I am a sinner by inheritance and I have no control over that. If I want eternal life in a place other than hell, I must become a Christian and get saved. It's not my fault Adama & Eve screwed up but I pay the price and if I don't get saved I am damned???? Kind of like a parent having a child, raising them to be an independent adult and then saying you have to do this or that my way, and if you don't, I am going to punish you (or kill you). And what kind of a crazy idea is it that Jesus dying would wipe away sin to begin with and only ultimately for those accepting him and getting saved? After those (and may other) realizations hit me, I quit attending and embraced a higher level of spirituality not based on fear or organized religion....and not necessarily dependent on an individual called "God". The part I miss most about attending church is the great praise and worship services, so opposite from the JW boring 3 minute singing to taped piano. Those churches can really rock!
That is just my experience. Each person will have his or her own. You will have yours and it will most likely be a process, not a one time event.
Wishing you the best in your journey.
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Billygoat
Joel,
Many churches don't tell you HOW to do it. That might be what the JWs would like you to think, but it's not always true. I'm glad you feel comfortable without it, but many people get a big sense of satisfaction with studying, learning, and worshiping corporately. The biggest (and neatest) thing for me is how much I enjoy my church today! It's not drudgery, it's not something I do to make anyone happy. It's my desire to go there and learn and sing and pray with other people about a God I love and that loves me. It's a very healing thing for me. A great way to start my week!
Andi