INTENSITY²
Start here => Free For ALL => Topic started by: Untermensch on September 30, 2009, 08:10:37 AM
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I've started going to this conservative Presbyterian Church, which is a 15-20 minute walk from where I live. My opinions of the church group so far, they are pretty nice good people and I feel I could get along well with. Also I don’t need to make many adjustments on my part to order to fit in nicely. As long as they don’t know about my activities on here that is. :zoinks:
There are reasons I am giving going to church a try. Firstly, to meet new people (importantly young adults, which the church attracts a number) and getting into some social networks, which will help me a job, once I graduate with my Accounting degree. Already a couple of people I have met around the university go to this church, one is one of the ministers, another is a social work student.
Secondly, I get along surprisingly well with religious types. They are often among the few people who actually like me as a person; lots of people IRL are neutral to hostile towards me.
Thirdly, my IRL image is somebody who would be of somebody they would assume is an evangelical protestant.
Fourthly, I don’t socialize very well IRL and often make social blunders, which make people, know me in my classes form negative opinions of me. I really need an avenue to improve my social skills, because I don’t socialize very much on campus. My time socializing in the disabled persons groups did not work out well, mainly because of the huge intellectual gap between them and me.
The downside of becoming a member of this church for me is that while I am not hostile towards Christianity, in fact I have defended Christianity and Christians on many occasions. I have never considered myself a Christian or religious or even spiritual. Being involved in this church and proclaiming in public I am a christian, I feel would be dishonest of me (even if it does not harm anybody).
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I don't see any reason why you shouldn't go to church if you want. If that is where you fit in then keep going.
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Church ain't for me. But that's just my opinion. It's a good chance for community and fellowship. I just hope these folks are as described.
My wife's father founded a church in Orange County. He and his wife used to have loud arguments. One night, their neighbor (also a member of said church) tape-recorded one of their to-do's and took it to the deacons. My father-in-law was subsequently fired, without even being given a chance to defend himself. Kicked out of the church he founded and built.
I have my own issues with churches. They tend to foster groupthink. There can also be gossip, despite the inherent hypocrisy of such behavior.
Not trying to talk you out of it. Just saying be careful. "A word from the wise guy..."
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I haven't been to church in years.
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Whatever works for you. I got myself unbaptized, theres too many things I really don't agree with and get all hung up on.
But for some people it fills a hole I guess *shrug*
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I like gothic architecture so I like a lot of old churches here, such as my local church. I sometimes wish I could go in, but don't feel like I'd belong in there.
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The cathedral in Uppsala is BRAVE! 8)
(http://www.500utflykter.se/img/bilder/uppsaladomkyrka1.jpg)
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Whatever works for you. I got myself unbaptized, theres too many things I really don't agree with and get all hung up on.
But for some people it fills a hole I guess *shrug*
You mean people do that? Why?
Shit, I was baptised but seeing as I'm atheist these days, it doesn't bother me because it doesn't mean anything.
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Whatever works for you. I got myself unbaptized, theres too many things I really don't agree with and get all hung up on.
But for some people it fills a hole I guess *shrug*
You mean people do that? Why?
Shit, I was baptised but seeing as I'm atheist these days, it doesn't bother me because it doesn't mean anything.
I thought it was funny to get unbaptized. They used alcohol instead of water. *shrug*
We all have our rituals and ceremonies.
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I've got a love-hate relation with the church I guess. Have loved going to church in one place. Very openminded and quirky. Filled with weirdos and no attempts to harvest souls. And I've stopped going to church in another place, because it was clique like, people acting 'normal' and evangelising, refusing to think. I could not last there. I've seen people being humiliated and liberated by a church. Just depends on what church.
Christianity is the religious language I am raised in. As such, it colours my life. It was my special interest for a long time too. I needed to understand as much as I could from it, could not just let it go. Had to understand what made it so good for so many people.
Sometimes I think it would be good reading a book written by an atheist vicar, with christian congregation. Can't bring myself to it tough.
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If it works for you that's great
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Religious folk don't like my kind. They just take one look at me and gawk. The ladies i work with some of them are Christian. Their just a bunch of prim and proper smile and nodders. One at work looked at me and said "Your jeans have seen better days" I just went "uh yeah...im getting new ones soon"
but I was really thinking
"It must be so nice to be so god damn perfect and throw away your clothes over a mere rip and continue your white collar receptionist jobs so you can keep consuming boring ass clothes from department stores and acting all fake."
Church ladies are like that. Their strange creatures. Their kind of swan-like. They look all prim and proper and everything an expected woman in society should be when
really their nasty towards others who are unlike themselves.
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Need to find one with a congregation full of spectrumites. :green:
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Went to Sunday school as a kid, didn't much like it. My parents tried to get me to go to church, but I told them I wasn't into all that shit. Some of their Christian friends told me I'd be going to hell if I didn't believe and all that crap, I jsut said ' :finger:' and couldn't be bothered with it. To really stuff mum and dad up I told them I was pagan, and showed them a couple of Wiccan books. They just about shat themselves, but didn't force the issue after that.
The only thing is, they might try to get you to convert and if you don't, you'll be pretty much given shit treatment. All depends.
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this thread kind of reminds me of this song
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZKApT6vC0g
:lol:
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Religious folk don't like my kind. They just take one look at me and gawk. The ladies i work with some of them are Christian. Their just a bunch of prim and proper smile and nodders. One at work looked at me and said "Your jeans have seen better days" I just went "uh yeah...im getting new ones soon"
but I was really thinking
"It must be so nice to be so god damn perfect and throw away your clothes over a mere rip and continue your white collar receptionist jobs so you can keep consuming boring ass clothes from department stores and acting all fake."
Church ladies are like that. Their strange creatures. Their kind of swan-like. They look all prim and proper and everything an expected woman in society should be when
really their nasty towards others who are unlike themselves.
At least they look good under their hubbies arms, I guess. Asides that, all I can say about them is :puke:
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That's probably why I wouldn't go out of my way to integrate into such groups for socializing. The nature of the people and environment would drive me nuts to be honest.
But that's just my opinion. However it's a good way to establish yourself in the community at large though, if that's your goal.
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Some of their Christian friends told me I'd be going to hell if I didn't believe and all that crap, I jsut said ' :finger:' and couldn't be bothered with it.
:lol: That was a rather succint response.
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Church ladies are like that. Their strange creatures. Their kind of swan-like. They look all prim and proper and everything an expected woman in society should be when
really their nasty towards others who are unlike themselves.
That's been my experience too, I've seen both sexes practice this though. Christianity is, more often than not, worn as a mask to hide the true persons faults.
The last shop I worked for, the boss and his wife were "devout christians". They were the cheapest, stingiest people I've ever seen. Most of their employees were either Mexican or Vietnamese, they complained about me being a white guy who was "used to getting paid Aerospace wages".
They showed up to work in matching Porsche Cayannes, The boss had about $500,000 of "toys" (race cars and dune buggies) in the shop, and his wife had a $6,000 boob job and a $20,000 diamond studded cross around her neck to show how much Jesus loved her.
Fucking hypocrites! :grrr:
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Church ladies are like that. Their strange creatures. Their kind of swan-like. They look all prim and proper and everything an expected woman in society should be when
really their nasty towards others who are unlike themselves.
That's been my experience too, I've seen both sexes practice this though. Christianity is, more often than not, worn as a mask to hide the true persons faults.
The last shop I worked for, the boss and his wife were "devout christians". They were the cheapest, stingiest people I've ever seen. Most of their employees were either Mexican or Vietnamese, they complained about me being a white guy who was "used to getting paid Aerospace wages".
They showed up to work in matching Porsche Cayannes, The boss had about $500,000 of "toys" (race cars and dune buggies) in the shop, and his wife had a $6,000 boob job and a $20,000 diamond studded cross around her neck to show how much Jesus loved her.
Fucking hypocrites! :grrr:
I'd have to so agree with that. I once working in a factory owned by my step dads brother who was a born again something or other christian and a pastor, and they were stingy as fuck, paid the absolute minimum they could and never went over in anything. Had all the toys and investment properties etc.
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Keep in mind that not all churches are christian oriented. I've been occasionally going to a Unitarian Universalist church. The UU is a secular church that preaches humanism. The pastor at the church I go to is an atheist, never once throughout the whole service is any form of higher deity ever mentioned, instead the pastor talks about helping your fellow man. It's every good thing about church without the religion.
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I've always been curious about goin to a universalist church. I presently go to a super libreal church that marries gays and lets us kep books about new age /occult, buddihsm there. A lot of gay and trans people go there and feel safe. Its not look like a church from the outside, its hidden in a warehouse. They do work for charity about Palestine.