Churches

Inqvisitor said:
No, that is the very essence of the Sacrament. All of the Mass is derived from the Passion and Death of Jesus Christ (the alter Christus factor). The other stuff is extra compared to receiving the very Body and Blood of Christ truly present in the Eucharist.
So would you advocate Church being nothing other than receiving communion?
 
aussieboy said:
That is the point. It is transubstantiated into the very body and blood of Our Lord.
Ahh, though unfortunately I cannot recive Communion since I have not had First Communion, Confirmation, nor First Confession (I am still living in a state of mortal sin and thus cannot recive Communion). Even if Inqvisitor says that Christ tells us to do so, I myself cannot partake in Communion for the reasons I stated early in this post :(.
 
Then hie ye hence! Get your Initiation done!
 
CivGeneral said:
Ahh, though unfortunately I cannot recive Communion since I have not had First Communion, Confirmation, nor First Confession (I am still living in a state of mortal sin and thus cannot recive Communion). Even if Inqvisitor says that Christ tells us to do so, I myself cannot partake in Communion for the reasons I stated early in this post :(.


May I ask why you are slacking on you sacraments? ;)
 
aussieboy said:
Then hie ye hence! Get your Initiation done!
I am still in a search for a local Catholic Church that has a good RCIA program that would be convenient for me as a College student and a Karate Student (I take Karate in the evening) :).
 
skadistic said:
May I ask why you are slacking on you sacraments? ;)
I take it you have not heard my story. I was baptized Catholic in a Catholic Church probhibly a few weeks after I was born. I vaguely remember taking CCD classes since I fell out of the church at the age of six when my parents moved to another town and my parents (especialy my lazy father) did not bothered to look into a church in the area. So that is why I did not gotten my sacraments when I was younger :(.
 
Perfection said:
So would you advocate Church being nothing other than receiving communion?
No, because the rest of the Mass helps achieve the Sacrament more fully in the minds of the congregation by allowing them to truly experince Christ's most Holy Sacrifice at Calvary...
 
To the OP:

1)I am not religious, but as a spiritual person I believe that a church is not necessary for matters of faith. A true believer would not need such a thing.

2)Last time I went to church was approximately 8 years ago, when my family made me. I dislike church because it is boring primarily, and to me it seems rather awkward. I remember the last time I went there everyone seemed rather shifty and nervous. I also don't like some dude forcing his religious conviction down my windpipe.

3)Suggestions? Well, get the perv priests out, and then stop the corruption within the church, make it more appealing, and then finally make it far more relaxed.

Regardless, I hope to never set foot in a church again. My ideas about Spirituality and God and such are very personal, and to discuss them in person is exceedingly awkward for me.
 
CivGeneral said:
I take it you have not heard my story. I was baptized Catholic in a Catholic Church probhibly a few weeks after I was born. I vaguely remember taking CCD classes since I fell out of the church at the age of six when my parents moved to another town and my parents (especialy my lazy father) did not bothered to look into a church in the area. So that is why I did not gotten my sacraments when I was younger :(.

well, most churches have an RCIA program for lapsed Catholics and adult converts.
 
puglover said:
Church-going is quite a controversial activity, and people have radically different opinions on it. Great discussion material! :)
I honestly did not realize that attending church was a controversial activity.
1) What are your personal opinions/convictions about attending church?
Healthy activity; spiritually, mentally, and emotionally.
2) Do you attend church? If you do, what is your motivation for doing so? If not, is there anything you especially dislike about churches in general?
I try to go every Sunday. I sometimes miss for one reason or another, but it's not a common occurance. The fellowship is a big reason to go, and I don't mean Frodo and co. :D
3) What suggestions would you make to churches in your country? What would make church appealing to you personally?
There is such a wide selection, I don't really think this particular question is relevant to me. If one doesn't fit your tastes, go to another.
 
1. I believe attending church to be intrinsically useless, any value one derives there comes from one's self. Having time set aside to ponder your life and organize your thoughts is useful and church can provide a nice opportunity to do this, though it could be done anywhere.

2. I attend church semi-regularly because it makes my mother happy. I do not begrudge her the time as an hour's meditation is a very small price for her happiness and the music can be very peaceful, especially around Christmas time when they use the good songs.

3. It could be made much more appealing to me if they would use more instrumentals and choral songs and far fewer hymns. Also preaching from a logical POV on occasion would make me happy. "Because the Bible says so." gets rather redundant nevermind the logical fallacy.
 
I can tolerate it, if it is of the non-charismatic, speaking in tongues kind of church. I find such behaviour disturbing, and its participants maddening and many organised Christianity, somewhat of a fraud.
 
1) What are your personal opinions/convictions about attending church?
Meeting in large groups of Christians is always encouraging. I personally think it's more important to meet as smaller groups (e.g. 12) to read and discuss the bible, pray and eat good food.

2) Do you attend church? If you do, what is your motivation for doing so? If not, is there anything you especially dislike about churches in general?
I attend Sunday services every week and my small group on Tuesdays. I go because I rock the kit in the band, enjoy the singing (worship, but I don't like to say that because people think it's some sort of payment I owe my God), and find some sermons helpful (though after 21 years of them they have to be very new and funny to keep my interest). I also have lots of friends there now, and there are a LOT of cute girls at my church.

3) What suggestions would you make to churches in your country? What would make church appealing to you personally?
Each church shoud do what they want. Trying to dictate what every church does leads to problems. To my church they should move out of the building they're in (yeah I know it's really old and pretty but what's the point if half the people can't see what's going on becasue they're stuck behind a huge pillar!), buy a huge new sound system, new drum kit and a screen so I can't hit the things as hard as I want without offending people.
 
Markus6 said:
I also have lots of friends there now, and there are a LOT of cute girls at my church.

I must admit that this is one of the (more minor) reasons I go to church, especially as there are LDS congregations specifically for young unmarried people.
 
Eran of Arcadia said:
I must admit that this is one of the (more minor) reasons I go to church, especially as there are LDS congregations specifically for young unmarried people.
It's not always a great thing. The place can seem like a singles club. Attractive christian guys few and far between in my church (apparently I rank as 4th most eligible batchelor!!)
 
Markus6 said:
It's not always a great thing. The place can seem like a singles club. Attractive christian guys few and far between in my church (apparently I rank as 4th most eligible batchelor!!)

Well, we manage to find the balance. I am moving to the Washington DC area in a few days and the congregation will be a great way to meet people. But at the same time (and partially because of the way our services are set up) the social aspect never becomes more important than the spiritual aspect.
 
Markus6 said:
It's not always a great thing. The place can seem like a singles club. Attractive christian guys few and far between in my church (apparently I rank as 4th most eligible batchelor!!)

I'm just wondering - do you guys look at these girls as potential wives, or do you ignore what the church has to say about abstinence and engage in pre-marital sex with them?

I'm asking because meeting girls in church seems a bit odd to me - unless 1) you just want to be friends, 2) you are looking for a wife, or 3) you don't really follow church teachings anyway.
 
warpus said:
I'm just wondering - do you guys look at these girls as potential wives, or do you ignore what the church has to say about abstinence and engage in pre-marital sex with them?

I'm asking because meeting girls in church seems a bit odd to me - unless 1) you just want to be friends, 2) you are looking for a wife, or 3) you don't really follow church teachings anyway.
I don't 'engage in pre-marital sex' with them but there's nothing wrong with some 'creation appreciation'. I don't look at them as potential wives (although I wouldn't go out with one I knew I didn't want to marry) because I'm 21! Christian guys aren't just looking for the girl who can make the nicest quiche.

If I'm a Christian why would meeting girls in church be odd?
 
1) What are your personal opinions/convictions about attending church?

I think church is a waste of time.

2) Do you attend church? If you do, what is your motivation for doing so? If not, is there anything you especially dislike about churches in general?

Since i go to a Lutheran School, 4 days a week the whole school spends
approx. 15 mins at chapel, which to my knowledge is the same as church. I hate the religious crap that they feed us, and expect (at least) some of us to believe.

3) What suggestions would you make to churches in your country? What would make church appealing to you personally?

You would have to pay me to go to church willingly.
 
warpus said:
I'm just wondering - do you guys look at these girls as potential wives, or do you ignore what the church has to say about abstinence and engage in pre-marital sex with them?

I'm asking because meeting girls in church seems a bit odd to me - unless 1) you just want to be friends, 2) you are looking for a wife, or 3) you don't really follow church teachings anyway.

In the LDS case, we are looking at members of the opposite sex as a) potential dates or b) potential spouses. It is pretty likely that if I ever get married, it will be to a woman I met at church. (Especially since I want to marry within my religion.) But in the meantime there is nothing wrong with just hanging out or dating. It is pretty rare for it to lead to premarital sex (although it happens) since the majority of the active, churchgoing members of my religion follow church teachings in that regard. But we see dating as more than just a way to have sex - it is also a way to have fun and make friends, and to find out what sort of traits you want in a potential spouse. It is worth noting that LDS dating is a little different from most dating.
 
Back
Top Bottom