Some people go to church 'faithfully' every Sunday, (or other specified day) as regular as clockwork. Some may go sporadically - as the mood strikes. Others may never go - they're not in the habit. My comments apply equally to church, temple, synagog, mosque, or place of worship.
My advice, my admonishment to you, is: if you go to church every Sunday, then stop. If you don't, then start. Going to church is supposed to be an act of faith, a sign of one's spiritual self, not a ritual. If, for you, going to church is no more than a ritual - something one is supposed to do on Sundays, then it is meaningless. God would rather you stay at home and do something useful. Make a change.
If, on the other hand, going to church is for you an opportunity to become spiritually refreshed, to get in touch with your inner self, to renew that bond with the Almighty, to spend a little time with family and loved ones, and to renew old friendships, then going to church is of the utmost benefit. Don't let ritual, ceremony, dogma, and symbolism replace meaning in your life.
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Comments: 33
But when I listen to Bach it comes to me. When I listen to Mahalia Jackson I'm a Baptist. When I listen to a Vivaldi Mass I'm -
okay you get the idea.
(I hate Christmas but I have a SUPER version of The Messiah I'm looking forward to listening to again)
But that wasn't your question. Never mind. ha ha
You raise some excellent points. Many people go to church every Sunday because they think they're "supposed to". Others go to church because they think God will be mad at them if they don't. Still others go to church simply to "see and be seen". There are also those who treat church like a gas station, and have to go get a "fill up" once a week. However, there are those exceptions----people who go to church every Sunday because they truly enjoy it and actually get something deeply spiritual out of it. There may not be many of these exceptions, perhaps, but they do exist.
Thank you for your article it was very thought provoking.
I also went to that church's next door Bible school from kindergarten to 8th grade. Yikes! I've had enough of that religion for this lifetime.
For now, we take time to pray, read the Bible and have our quiet times. Sometimes I listen to a church service via the internet.
I totally understand what you are trying to get across! Thanks and God Bless :)
Everything I've ever read indicated that the census that Joseph and Mary were in Bethlehem for would never have been enacted in the middle of the winter. It probably occurred in spring some time. The people wanted a day to commemorate Christ's birthday and there was a pagan holiday celebrated on December 25, so the church chose that date to celebrate the birthday of Christ, thereby "baptizing" the pagan holiday into a valid church feast! The Church never claimed that was actually the day on which Christ was born.
As to the year, I've heard it could be up to six years earlier or a couple of years later. There are no real records by which to make a determination. I can't think of anything to make it matter at this point in time, can you?
THEY don't mean that at all, Tom. I made the sign at an internet site and it means exactly what it says. It's called "irony"... ever heard of it?