Church?

[KnottedYet]

Grog-

There's a UU Fellowship in Bellingham, which is pretty active. A bit of a hike from Vancouver, though.

There are also UU churches in Nanaimo, West Vancouver, and Victoria (ok, that one is too far away)

[roguedog]

One of my faves:

SOME KEEP SUNDAY GOING TO CHURCH
by Emily ****inson
American poet (December 10, 1830 - May 15, 1886)

Some keep Sunday going to church
I keep it staying at home,
With a bobolink for a chorister,
And an orchard for a throne.

Some keep Sabbath in surplice,
I just wear my wings
And instead of tolling the bell for church,
Our little sexton sings.

God preaches, a noted clergyman,
And the sermon is never long,
So instead of going to heaven at last
I'm going all along.

[roguedog]

Oh.. jeez.. it filtered out her last name.. ha. somehow i think it'd make her laugh.

[Grog]

Grog-

There's a UU Fellowship in Bellingham, which is pretty active. A bit of a hike from Vancouver, though.

There are also UU churches in Nanaimo, West Vancouver, and Victoria (ok, that one is too far away)

I've seen that on the web site!

Even the West Vancouver one is pretty far. About 10 k in direct line, more than an hour's drive (it's across the water from me!). I'm surprised they don't have a group in Vancouver...

[crazycanuck]

My religion is biking...I beg/plead/pray to the bike gods to help me go faster..they must not be listening..

Anywho, i've never been religious & find church rather boring...

c

[tattiefritter]

Think I'm with Grog and Mimitabby - don't object to Church for other people but a Catholic education put me off for life. Particularly the Catholic church stance on birth control and its opinion of women in general. My grandparents were Irish Catholics and I used to hate the power that the priest was able to exert over their lives. I'll stop there...

[SR500]

Belief is personal, but attending church and study can help strengthen your. Churches are not perfect. It's like everything else the more you put into it the more you can get out of belonging to a church. We attend regularly, and it has had a very positive impact for us and especially our children. I would suggest you "church shop" if you are not happy, there are many great people impacting lives everyday.

[bcipam]

Not pushing anything here... but I can see many who have had a Catholic upbringing have been put off Church for life.

If your belief in God is still strong, may I suggest you try an non-dominational evangelical Church? I would say service and worship is 100% the opposite as what is offered by the Catholic Church. A typical service at my Church is usually started with some great, current Christian music, then of course the accouncements, and then the "discussion". Not ritual, traditional prayer. My pastor generally provides a lecture, much like a college class, on current day issues and how the Bible supports dealing with those issues one way or the other. After comes the collection (and it's necessary to keep a Church running) and then we close with worship. After I always feel so renewed and refreshed. I feel I leave having learned some new, life altering information.
My Church, as does most, offers small study groups if someone wants to learn more, become more involved.

There is something about surrounding one's self with a Christian community; with like minded folks. And I am the first to say, yes there are hypocritical Christians, just like there are hypocritical people in every aspect of life but at least I have the tools to discern Christian hypocracy when I hear it.

Churches are formed by and made by people. We are only human and make many mistakes. Those mistakes should never be attributed to God. His Word is perfect. Problem is, we all sometimes have trouble listening.

I have to admit I have been bad lately about going and I do miss the comfort and joy services provide me. Need to get my gear in order and get back!

[alpinerabbit]

I am pagan, so being out in nature on a sunny morning (any day of the week) is beneficial to my spirituality, I am not missing out on anything

[mcoleman]

For me it is a matter of priorities. I was raised in a very religious family and attended a christian school half of my life. We always knew that church attendance was expected on Sunday morning (just like school or work on Monday morning) and activities were adjusted accordingly.
I still try to make church a priority and we are very active in the Presbyterian church. We do miss occaisionally for important events-our local sprint triathlon series is on Sundays-but we try to attend Sunday night instead.
In the summer, we ride on Saturday mornings and run before church on Sundays and this schedule works with our riding buddies. We attend a larger church that offers 3 services on Sunday morning and 1 on Sunday night, so there are more options (although 8:15 AM is perfect for us!).

[limewave]

I enjoy going to church because it helps me to keeps things in persepective--remembering what is truly important, God, and not the little details that I usually get hung up on. And I like singing and meeting new people.

Anyways, in the summer or church attendance is sporadic. I'm hoping next summer we'll be able to bike to church more. We have a 1-year old daughter who was too little this summer to ride in a burley--but next summer she'll be just right. Our church is 20 miles each way. We will be able to get in a nice Sunday morning ride every week.

[sbctwin]

I wasn't raised in a religious home. I was raised in a very dysfunctional home (watching my mom get beat by my dad on a regular basis if things didn't satisfy him or we kids made too much noise, it didn't matter...we were raised in fear). I couldn't wait to get out of the house. I held that baggage for a long time that I was to blame. I got married and my husband left me for his "first love". At that point in my life, I needed something to hold onto, to give me a reason to continue living. My sister was my best friend and helped me a lot, but she was several thousand miles away. Someone invited me to go to church with them...I went...I felt, for once "at home". I went to a Lutheran church at the time. I then attended a Catholic retreat for divorced, widowed and separated individuals. I again, felt someplace where I belonged. I soon met my DH and he was a craddle Catholic. After we were married and moved to SLC, I became a Catholic, too. We go to mass every Saturday night. I have been very lucky with the pastors & priests. Every priest or pastor I have had, has been keen on social justice and "practice" what they preach. I know there are problems with all religions. But, for me, I needed something to hold onto in my life....

[Bad JuJu]

I'm with Mimi and Grog and Tattiefritter, though I was raised in a church other than the Catholic. I was put off by the hypocrisy of a group of people who preached and espoused a philosophy of love but often didn't exercise it, and who sanctioned the inequality of women. Though I wasn't always able to articulate these dissatisfactions with the church, I think I had an inkling of them from an early age. Still, I loved my grandmother, and she loved the church, so I went, and for a while I really got into the spirit of it--I was baptized at the age of 12, being dunked by the pastor into cold, murky water and coming up feeling like everything after that would be all right. I was so trusting and took everything about church teachings so literally.

But when I got older, at some point I realized that my "close personal relationship" with the church, that I grew up learning to cultivate, was pretty much one-sided. I won't go into details--but now I ride my bike on Sunday mornings and find better things to do with my Sunday evenings and Wednesday evenings. I find joy in the world and the people around me.

Sorry if I've shared too much, but this topic hits a nerve.

[mtbdarby]

Not pushing anything here... but I can see many who have had a Catholic upbringing have been put off Church for life.

If your belief in God is still strong, may I suggest you try an non-dominational evangelical Church? I would say service and worship is 100% the opposite as what is offered by the Catholic Church. A typical service at my Church is usually started with some great, current Christian music, then of course the accouncements, and then the "discussion". Not ritual, traditional prayer. My pastor generally provides a lecture, much like a college class, on current day issues and how the Bible supports dealing with those issues one way or the other. After comes the collection (and it's necessary to keep a Church running) and then we close with worship. After I always feel so renewed and refreshed. I feel I leave having learned some new, life altering information.
My Church, as does most, offers small study groups if someone wants to learn more, become more involved.

There is something about surrounding one's self with a Christian community; with like minded folks. And I am the first to say, yes there are hypocritical Christians, just like there are hypocritical people in every aspect of life but at least I have the tools to discern Christian hypocracy when I hear it.

Churches are formed by and made by people. We are only human and make many mistakes. Those mistakes should never be attributed to God. His Word is perfect. Problem is, we all sometimes have trouble listening.

I have to admit I have been bad lately about going and I do miss the comfort and joy services provide me. Need to get my gear in order and get back!

Well said Pam. While I try and figure things out on my own too much and end up fighting my "autopilot", I notice a tremendous change in the outcomes in my life, the miracles, if you will, when I embrace my church, spirituality and fellow Christians. That's what going to church is about - the fellowship. Churchs are run by sinners, so no one is perfect. The best we can do is find one that we feel comfortable in and become a part of that family - like a cycling family. I do attend regularly, and will switch services to get some biking in. My church has even been known to have 2 bike rides a year (I think I'll see if they want to do more Of course, it's to the ice cream shop and back, but hey, that definitely goes with cycling!

[mimitabby]

I'm with Mimi and Grog and Tattiefritter, though I was raised in a church other than the Catholic.
-I was baptized at the age of 12, being dunked by the pastor into cold, murky water and coming up feeling like everything after that would be all right. I was so trusting and took everything about church teachings so literally.

But when I got older, at some point I realized that my "close personal relationship" with the church, that I grew up learning to cultivate, was pretty much one-sided. I won't go into details--but now I ride my bike on Sunday mornings and find better things to do with my Sunday evenings and Wednesday evenings. I find joy in the world and the people around me.

Sorry if I've shared too much, but this topic hits a nerve.

BadJuJu
I am with you. God's creation is outdoors, and inside the church mankind's poor window on the goodness of our planet just never cut it with me. I have been to other churches besides the one i was raised in (BCIPAM gets points for figuring out which one it is!)
and so far, all they ever do is make me angry and rebellious. DH and I are in awe of what we were given, the opportunity to share this planet with the birds and the bees. Being on a bike ride in an early morning sunrise, or watching an eagle soar over head, or seeing the salmon thick in the river far surpasses the inspiration that i have ever gotten from any man's interpretation of one old book.
You are right BCIPAM, I would love to find a community as can be found in some churches. But i can't stand the party line! Please forgive me, I do not mean to be offensive. But if the shoe doesn't fit, it hurts your foot.
I guess I'm a heathen too.