After reading this article a few days ago, I have been trying to find the courage and words to write a post about it. In the article, I read that over eight million people in their twenties have left the church and everyone is trying to find out why. The author gives her 15 reasons she left the church. Her reasons almost gave me a sense of peace because I realized that there were other people out there that shared some of my thoughts. I left my church my senior year of high school. There was one deciding factor on why I left but thinking back on it, it was just a matter of time before I moved on. I decided that I would give my five reasons that I left my church.
1. I left my church because the judgment I felt when I walked through the doors far outweighed the love and support I felt.
2. I left my church because I could not simply help someone without trying to save them.
3. I too left my church because I knew I would never see a woman behind the pulpit.
4. I left my church because I believe in evolution and was told that was un-Christian. (I mean do you really think that Adam and Eve looked like us??)
5. I left my church because I was told by a youth leader that if I did not support and/or vote for George W. Bush that I was not a Christian.
I don’t want people to think that I went to a horrible church. It was just a very conservative church with a lot of conservative members. I formed some of my best friendships with the people I went to church with and went on some amazing mission trips that changed my life. I don’t regret any of the time I spent at the church or doing church activities.
When I moved to Knoxville to start college I decided that I wanted to find a church to attend. I tried a couple a Methodist churches with some friends (I needed a break from the Baptists!) and finally started attending a non-denominational church that I enjoyed. They had a praise band, very contemporary services, and I saw a lot of familiar faces from campus in the congregation. I continued to go to this church for a couple of years and enjoyed it. It wasn’t anything that was amazing and changed my life, but I felt good when I left. One Sunday though clearly identified “the reason I left the church.” The preacher was talking about a new community/support group they had formed for the family and friends of homosexuals. The idea was that by attending this group, you would learn how to help your homosexual friend or family member overcome being gay. I left the church that morning and never went back.
After I stopped attending this particular church, I still felt like I wanted to find a church. I started going to church with David at St. John’s Episcopal. I had never gone to an Episcopal church before but had gone to a Lutheran church where there are a lot of similarities. Even though we’ve been going there for a couple of years now, I still “follow his lead!” I really love the church I go to now. I don’t know any of the members except for the few people that I know from outside of, but that’s okay. Making friends is not at the top of my church priority list but I’m not against it. I don’t feel like I’m judged when I walk through the door except the old lady that sits in front of us that is decked out in Prada every Sunday has probably judged some of my Target dresses. : ) The sermons are never too deep and get into things such as politics – they are simply about being a good person.
Sorry this post was so long - I guess I had a lot to say on the topic! My faith is something that I have struggled with for a while and I feel like I am at a pretty good place with it right now.
I tried to find a back in the day church picture but I guess we didn’t have digital cameras then so those pictures are probably in a shoebox in Duluth! So here is a picture of Me, Shanna, Jenn and Steph before going to a Corey Smith concert in Athens. I gave you 5 reasons I left the church earlier, but those girls are 3 reasons I stayed for as long as I did!
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