coemgen, do you think that you could get that same community feeling outside of a church context? Obviously aside from group worship, heh.
For example, my parents socialize extensively with members of their ethnic group of immigrants. All the benefits that you've described, they also get, but without religious subtext or overtones. They've had their friends re-roof their house for free, or put in new tiles, or help out when my grandmother died, and so on. I don't think that they could have had a better support system through any religious affiliation, to be honest. The people are equally as welcoming, equally as devoted to each other and so on.
I stopped going to Church a long time ago, and frankly, I don't think I'm missing anything. I wasn't benefiting in any way and I sat there thinking that the people are terribly out of touch and have nothing to say to me that I find interesting in any way. Like Lies, I don't feel a need to have a religious affiliation, and I think sometimes for religious people it's very difficult to understand and accept that we're truly not lacking for anything in our lives or not missing anything either. As somebody who has done it both ways (religious and agnostic), I can tell you with absolute certainty that there is no desire in me to ever return to any kind of organized religion.
For example, my parents socialize extensively with members of their ethnic group of immigrants. All the benefits that you've described, they also get, but without religious subtext or overtones. They've had their friends re-roof their house for free, or put in new tiles, or help out when my grandmother died, and so on. I don't think that they could have had a better support system through any religious affiliation, to be honest. The people are equally as welcoming, equally as devoted to each other and so on.
I stopped going to Church a long time ago, and frankly, I don't think I'm missing anything. I wasn't benefiting in any way and I sat there thinking that the people are terribly out of touch and have nothing to say to me that I find interesting in any way. Like Lies, I don't feel a need to have a religious affiliation, and I think sometimes for religious people it's very difficult to understand and accept that we're truly not lacking for anything in our lives or not missing anything either. As somebody who has done it both ways (religious and agnostic), I can tell you with absolute certainty that there is no desire in me to ever return to any kind of organized religion.