Do you have to go to Church to be religious?

[Liquid Blue]

I was talking to someone about this the other day.

When I was young, I had to do the whole "dress up and go to church" sunday deal. I always hated getting in those stuffy clothes and sitting inside some building when I could be out in the dirt with my friends. Church bored me to no end.

Over the years I haven't had to go to church nearly as much and have only gone maybe twice in the past 2 years. It's not as boring (well, yes it is), but I'm at least used to the clothes (doesn't it seem like every sunday you go to church it's sunny as shit outside? No? fuck you guys :fear: ). I don't go to church anymore but I still believe in God, and although I'm not vocal about Jesus or anything I still believe in living like a good christian and helping others.

Now the person I was talking to said that church is more about the fellowship and being around other christians, not so much religious lessons- but I know and have heard people say stuff along the lines that if you don't go to church "you don't like jesus" or that you aren't religious.

Do you think you have to go to church to be religious? Any faith can fit in here, not just christianity. Excuse my ignorance of the muslim /jewish faith though, I don't know if church/mosques are as big a deal/bigger. I have a few muslim friends though and I think mosques are a much bigger part of their worship and daily life though, but I'm not positive.

Anyway, disucss~

[Jonesy]

Do you think you have to go to church to be religious?

This answer varies for every person. Religion is what you make it. I don't think that it matters as long as your heart is in the right place.

If someone believes that he will go to hell if he doesn't go to church, then good for him. But that person shouldn't condemn others because they don't go to church.

This answer comes from a non-denominational Christian

[Emaho]

Religion is a flaud.

[Superted]

To be 'religious', yes. However, if you're in the christian faith a church is defined as a gathering of people who believe in Christ, not the bricks of the church building. It's important to go to these meetings, which happen to be held in a church building on a Sunday morning, in order to continue to learn about Christ and to be with others who believe.

As far as dressing up goes, I've never dressed up for church; it's always jeans and t-shirt.

[Bilbo]

Religion is a flaud.

flied lice?

[404 Not Found]

Even in the Christian religion, Sunday is not alwyas the day of church...look at the 7th Day Adventist...Saturdays are there day in church!

There is no hell in the Jewish religion, so the saying of "your'e going to hell" does not apply. In fact, hell itself, was created by the church in a means of having one committed to the faith/church, using a set guide of how one should follow and lead their life. Dante's Inferno was such a good read..best thing the Pope and Inquisition had. They should actually make that into a new movie with the special effects that can be done on film. Frankly I think the ten commandments cover most of everything.

I have mentioned it before, but once again. Faith should be within yourself and how you live your life. Religion should not be an exclusive club for those that pay the fee to attend services or mass on high holidays. The whole pay to belong is such a sham on what religion is about.

Organized religion to me = big business under the cover of a tax exempt status. This goes for all religion.

On a side note...the surviving Waco or Wacko Branch Dividians are getting out of jail soon. Perhaps they can have a David Koresh Music Festival to raise monies for the next compound and weapons that they need. How many people feel that they where a legitimate religious group?

[Da1andonly]

Religion is a flaud.

flawed or fraud ? :P

stupid newbie swede

[genocidal]

You don't have to gather to express belief. True there are passages in the Bible referring to collective prayer but no where does it say you have to do that to be religious. Anyone who tells me otherwise is a moron.

I haven't been to church in years and for a while I wasn't sure what I believed in (if I even do now). I read the Bible sometimes and probably am more learned than 80% of "religious" people that go to worship groups or whatever. I have nothing against organized religion (well yeah I do, but I think all else equal it's a good thing - and I've thought long and hard about it) and probably will start going to church again at some point in my life. It all depends on the minister for me - some are very insightful and some are just regs, as in telling the occasional story about their own life relating to a particular passage.

I'm not evangelical though and rarely do I speak about matters of religion with other people. I find too much hypocrisy in the people who actively advertise their religion and their actual lives to want to be grouped like that.

But there is one thing that I do firmly believe in, karma.

[PH]

My late grandmother was a devout Christian, but she did not believe in going to church at all. Until her last days, she would sit in her room, read the Bible, and interpret it for herself. The way she saw it, she didn't need a pastor to explain to her, with false and/or ridiculous enthusiasm, what anything in the Bible meant.f

[PaulOakenfold]

I always thought the pastor's job was to relate the gospel to every day life in their homilys, not make you believe in a certain interpretation.

[PH]

I'm about as anti-religious as it gets so I was making an assumption. Regardless, she felt like she didn't need the pastor's (or anyone else's) intervention to understand and live by the words of the Bible.

[PaulOakenfold]

Uhhh, where did the other 9/10s of my post go?

[eehh]

flied lice?

same same, just a little bit diffelent

[Sarien]

Religion can be a valuable destressing tool. It can give comfort in times of crisis, and can help a person feel better about their life if there is some sort of afterlife. That being said, as soon as whatever religion goes beyond being comfort to those who need and want it, and gets into our religion is the only way, and intending to enforce their religious conventions on other people, then you get into the area of holy wars and terrible things happen and it loses function from what it should be.

Am I talking about muslims? Only partly. Same for Christians.

People could get the same destressing from playing with toy trains, or perhaps playing a 2d spaceship game.

As with most everything you'll find in your life, it's not what other people think, it's what you do with it that'll determine if it's good or bad for you.

Involve yourself to a level that's good for you, and tell pretty much everyone that doesn't like it, to kiss your ass.

[Facetious]

i find there is a direct relationship between the amount of church a person attends and the amount i dislike them. obviously i dont know whether or not people attend a lot of church before i decide whether or not i dislike them, its just the way it works out.

people who attend a lot of church pretty much just completely baffle me, and i feel as if they are basically insane, and i cant really trust them. however i know a lot of people that believe in god, but dont go to weekly brainwashing sessions that are pretty damn cool.