Unity in Faith and Religion
Today I want to write about a topic that has been important throughout my life. I posed this question on facebook last week, "how important or unimportant is religion to your faith". The response was overwhelming. I would like to share my thoughts as openly and honestly as I can without trying to be politically correct. There was a time not too long ago that I would be very careful with my words so as not to step on the doctrine of church teaching. Now I realize that God is in the heart and soul of each of us more so than in the institutions we attend.
While spending a lifetime searching for meaning as well as identifying God within me, I would go from church to church, religion to religion in quest of the holy grail of spirituality. Each place held a promise of a brighter tomorrow if you followed the impossible course they charted. I felt warmth in most of the institutions I would visit for a short period of time however I noticed that there was no sustaining effort to keep my faith hot. Granted, I do realize that I get out of something the equivalent of what I put into it, but for me to put into I must understand the core of what I am attempting to gain. In this case I simply wanted to love life and have life love me back.
I was all aware of the humanity in church, which I loved, because we all carry heavy burdens of sin that need to be cleansed on a daily if not hourly basis. That humanity that I proclaim to love is also the same humanity that I felt extreme disappoint in. We live, we learn, we fall, we fail, we share, we grow, but when the chips are way down you do in fact find yourself alone in the pits of hades instead of surrounded by the community of faithful. Life is a series of events that culminate in a story that eventually is written in the record book by the opinions of others. In those opinions will be a series of actions that the writers themselves have partaken yet in their words they gladly condemn you instead of themselves. Think about that last statement for a moment before you cast judgment. Remember what I always say, when it comes to our sins we want forgiveness but when it comes to the sins of others we want JUSTICE.
Several people wrote to me this week expressing how religion should enhance your faith more so than be your faith. I agree with that, but what does it mean. I personally believe that God lives in each of us and that our love and faith is inherent in our humanity. Religion, however, is an important aspect that keeps the fellowship of believers united and supportive of one another. This religion however can never cross the threshold of being higher than our natural faith. When we are taught that dogma and doctrine exceeds the love of God's word then the beginning of cults start to form. Religion in the hands of people with more hate in their hearts than love can damage what little faith some people have.
I love reading the Gospels in the New Testament. I love reading the forgiving nature of Jesus and how he constantly crossed cultural barriers to prove that love is a greater force than religion. Hence the Samaritan woman. Jesus taught a simple message that over years has been made complex by institutions that thrive on power and money. I must ask at this point in my venture this question, would Jesus be proud of the way his mission is being proclaimed in churches today?
I must disclaim that I am not opposed to churches, I love going to church. I feel great remorse, however, when churches act in such inclusive ways that exclude the people that need it the most. If you need a litmus test for churches just consider how they share building campaigns that benefit the few yet need the masses for completion. I have seen over the years many such campaigns discourage people from attending church because the people are told to prayerfully consider how much they can sacrifice in their personal life so as to give the church MORE MONEY. I will admit I have heard some charismatic pleas that sound great but at the core they leave out what the true mission of church is about. Do churches need to grow? Yes of course and I have no opposition to that growth but I am opposed to a few people at the top imposing their dreams on the rest of the congregation in such a way that you feel guilty not participating. Or worse they come across as though The Holy Spirit directed the growth and you are in sin if you can't participate.
Obviously this is a hot topic that can have extremes during our lives. We have expectations of our church community in times of need as we do in our faith community in those same times. The faith community for some reason usually seems stronger than the church community, but the greatest strength is when the two are in alignment. We never know the heart and soul of a person or a church until their is a personal need. Up to that point we simply have an opinion as to how others should or should not feel. When that pendulum swings your way and you find yourself in the midst of a life crisis then you will find out whether your church or the community of faithful represents healing to the sinners of the world or it represents inclusion in such a way that removes it's welcome mat to the world in need.
My life has been lived in such a way that love, acceptance, and forgiveness is always the answer to the problems we face. Even when our sins are placed in public display we should still stand by the core tenets of our faith which are love and forgiveness. That does not mean that crimes should go unpunished, it simply means that our hearts should be warm to the possibility that everyone has inherent good in them. Christ taught us to love above all else. We were not taught that we must join churches like we join Country Clubs and we were not taught by Christ that each of those churches that profess to teach by his model should compete for the members and their dues. That is not the model the Gospels give us yet it is exactly the model of which we find our religions today.
In summation to this please let me say again that I love my church, I love the community of the faithful. This was not written to denounce church it was written to expose to some that our faith should always be bigger than our religion. When we find ourselves dividing people based on religion we become a mockery of what Christ stood for. Love is the religion that unifies and love is the religion that will heal. I think it is time we love people for who they are more than who we think they should be. Every person of whom we come in contact has something to teach us yet we listen based on who or what we think they are. Let love be your healer and let forgiveness guide your heart in such a way that life is worth living again. There truly is more good in the world than bad it is just up to us too see it.
peace to you
Dale
While spending a lifetime searching for meaning as well as identifying God within me, I would go from church to church, religion to religion in quest of the holy grail of spirituality. Each place held a promise of a brighter tomorrow if you followed the impossible course they charted. I felt warmth in most of the institutions I would visit for a short period of time however I noticed that there was no sustaining effort to keep my faith hot. Granted, I do realize that I get out of something the equivalent of what I put into it, but for me to put into I must understand the core of what I am attempting to gain. In this case I simply wanted to love life and have life love me back.
I was all aware of the humanity in church, which I loved, because we all carry heavy burdens of sin that need to be cleansed on a daily if not hourly basis. That humanity that I proclaim to love is also the same humanity that I felt extreme disappoint in. We live, we learn, we fall, we fail, we share, we grow, but when the chips are way down you do in fact find yourself alone in the pits of hades instead of surrounded by the community of faithful. Life is a series of events that culminate in a story that eventually is written in the record book by the opinions of others. In those opinions will be a series of actions that the writers themselves have partaken yet in their words they gladly condemn you instead of themselves. Think about that last statement for a moment before you cast judgment. Remember what I always say, when it comes to our sins we want forgiveness but when it comes to the sins of others we want JUSTICE.
Several people wrote to me this week expressing how religion should enhance your faith more so than be your faith. I agree with that, but what does it mean. I personally believe that God lives in each of us and that our love and faith is inherent in our humanity. Religion, however, is an important aspect that keeps the fellowship of believers united and supportive of one another. This religion however can never cross the threshold of being higher than our natural faith. When we are taught that dogma and doctrine exceeds the love of God's word then the beginning of cults start to form. Religion in the hands of people with more hate in their hearts than love can damage what little faith some people have.
I love reading the Gospels in the New Testament. I love reading the forgiving nature of Jesus and how he constantly crossed cultural barriers to prove that love is a greater force than religion. Hence the Samaritan woman. Jesus taught a simple message that over years has been made complex by institutions that thrive on power and money. I must ask at this point in my venture this question, would Jesus be proud of the way his mission is being proclaimed in churches today?
I must disclaim that I am not opposed to churches, I love going to church. I feel great remorse, however, when churches act in such inclusive ways that exclude the people that need it the most. If you need a litmus test for churches just consider how they share building campaigns that benefit the few yet need the masses for completion. I have seen over the years many such campaigns discourage people from attending church because the people are told to prayerfully consider how much they can sacrifice in their personal life so as to give the church MORE MONEY. I will admit I have heard some charismatic pleas that sound great but at the core they leave out what the true mission of church is about. Do churches need to grow? Yes of course and I have no opposition to that growth but I am opposed to a few people at the top imposing their dreams on the rest of the congregation in such a way that you feel guilty not participating. Or worse they come across as though The Holy Spirit directed the growth and you are in sin if you can't participate.
Obviously this is a hot topic that can have extremes during our lives. We have expectations of our church community in times of need as we do in our faith community in those same times. The faith community for some reason usually seems stronger than the church community, but the greatest strength is when the two are in alignment. We never know the heart and soul of a person or a church until their is a personal need. Up to that point we simply have an opinion as to how others should or should not feel. When that pendulum swings your way and you find yourself in the midst of a life crisis then you will find out whether your church or the community of faithful represents healing to the sinners of the world or it represents inclusion in such a way that removes it's welcome mat to the world in need.
My life has been lived in such a way that love, acceptance, and forgiveness is always the answer to the problems we face. Even when our sins are placed in public display we should still stand by the core tenets of our faith which are love and forgiveness. That does not mean that crimes should go unpunished, it simply means that our hearts should be warm to the possibility that everyone has inherent good in them. Christ taught us to love above all else. We were not taught that we must join churches like we join Country Clubs and we were not taught by Christ that each of those churches that profess to teach by his model should compete for the members and their dues. That is not the model the Gospels give us yet it is exactly the model of which we find our religions today.
In summation to this please let me say again that I love my church, I love the community of the faithful. This was not written to denounce church it was written to expose to some that our faith should always be bigger than our religion. When we find ourselves dividing people based on religion we become a mockery of what Christ stood for. Love is the religion that unifies and love is the religion that will heal. I think it is time we love people for who they are more than who we think they should be. Every person of whom we come in contact has something to teach us yet we listen based on who or what we think they are. Let love be your healer and let forgiveness guide your heart in such a way that life is worth living again. There truly is more good in the world than bad it is just up to us too see it.
peace to you
Dale
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