I went to church yesterday...

by mrsjones5 23 Replies latest jw friends

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  mrsjones5

  Omg I love going to church, the music, the people, the sermon, the pastors, the childcare (sunday school )...I love it all. I got there a little late and sat in the second row to the front just in front of the band. One of my friends ran up to me, Janice - such a sweet woman , gave me a big hug, asked me how I was and told me that if I couldn't make it to church because of my job she would be happy to pick up my kids and take them to church. After the sermon, which was very good, another one of the ladies asked if I was going to the women's retreat again this year and boy don't we women need a getaway. And get this, this Saturday the church is having a financial seminar to help the church members with estate planning, retirement planning and all that other good stuff. I told my husband about it and he said that jws would never have something like that. Such a smart man!

  Josie
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  LittleToe

  I went yesterday, too.

  I heard a lovely sermon about "love", and how it should be extended to everyone without restriction. The Minister really got into it. It's great to hear and see passionate preaching
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  drew sagan

  I'm glad you have found a group you are happy with. Personally, I will most likely never join another church just because of my views of organized religion in general. I hear what your saying though. A loving spirit can be found in more places than just the KH.
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  LittleToe

  Why make a connection between attending and joining?

  It's perfectly ok to slip in at the back and slip out at the end without speaking to another soul, if you wish, or any other variation of behaviour (barring disturbance).

  I highly recommend that every exJW go to a few religious services, if for no other reason than to exorcise the psychological demons the WTS placed in their heads.
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  prophecor

  The few times that I have gone was a wonderful experience, for the most part Mrs. Jones. The music is rich, and it is filled with emotionally charged energy. Something that we were warned against in the Kingdom Hall. Our music was not to draw so much attention to ourselves, or to share the same importance with or be able to cloud the message that was being delivered from the platform.

  Its truly sad because the music that we got in the KH, was tinkly, it was severly subdued and in no way promoted the spirit of joy, gladness and exhuberation that gospel music does. There were those in the temple in the days of old Isreal, who practiced and performed and professionally sang, doing not much else as reported in scripture. The incident where the burnt offering would not be consumed by fire until it was that the musicians and singers actually rocked Jehovah's House, literally.

  With a Joyful Noise!!!!
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  fullofdoubtnow

  I think you have a valid point lt. Whilst I am not considering joining another religion, the last one was more than enough, I have thought of visiting a local church at some point, not particularly because I have a yearning for spiritual things, but just to do it. I like the idea of being able to take or leave religion, and not being browbeaten for missing a couple of meetings, or threatened for talking to someone who is no longer a regular member, does have a certain appeal.

  I was discussing this idea with dedpoet the other day, and he said he might consider it as well, so maybe we will both go sometime, there is a church just around the corner from here, so perhaps we'll go there, just to see what it's like.
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  whyamihere

  I went to my Father's Church twice!

  I absolutely loved it. There was a part I just sat there and cried. I needed to hear God loved me. I needed to feel the acceptance, because I was raised to think and feel otherwise.

  Brooke
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  LittleToe

  My sister has been perhaps three or four times in her entire life. I'll never forget the first time she went (I wasn't there, didn't know she was going, and had never discussed the subject with her), as she came back positively excited by the difference from her expectations - she couldn't phone me quick enough. It was completely different from the Hall, and completely different from what she had been taught that church was all about.

  THAT, in my humble opinion, is an experience worth it's weight in gold. Regardless of whether or not there's any spiritual connect associated with it, I think we all owe it to ourselves to remove the last vestiges of WTS control from our minds and lives! It's one thing intellectually acknowledging these facts, but entirely another to experience them firsthand.
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  prophecor

  There exist such a different level of energy that comes from sitting and being fed the word in church. The appeal, again, to the emotions of individuals, whether thru music, the excitement of the sermon, especially as it exist in the Baptist Churches. It a thing to behold. There is a spiritual contact, a connection that does without doubt occur.

  The fact that we've been conditioned to the belief that absolutely no one had the truth about God's word but Jehovah's Witnesses is a crippling crutch that can no longer be used as a support for maintaining this position.

  There is much information, scripturally that I could never have received in the KH, that I've gathered from the church. Thier entire concept on bringing a message to people who are wrestling with issues in thier life is a thing of beauty. Marriage retreats and couples couselling, biblical training as well as real life issues that are of importance to, not only those who attend the church, but to outsiders as well.

  I no longer hold myself to black and white thinking in this regard. Churches perform a much needed service to the community, and to those who are its members. They're inclusive, not ex-clusive.
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  mrsjones5

  Churches perform a much needed service to the community, and to those who are its members. They're inclusive, not ex-clusive.

  One of the pastors of my church did a few semons that touched on the church being inclusive and not exclusive. I didn't know that people outside of the society felt this way. I kept hearing about the "Body of Christ" and it took me a while to understand that the body of Christ is the church - all churches, all denominations (not so sure if that includes the jws though ).

  Josie