so there's these lists...

I know I've written at least a semi-religious post before, but today I discovered these lists posted on my roommates Facebook wall:

15 Reasons I Left Church
15 Reasons I Returned to the Church

They're interesting, if you're into that sort of thing - which I am, so I'm going to play with them! Yay!

Tonight's Topic: 15 Reasons I Left Church according to RHE



1. I left the church because I’m better at planning Bible studies than baby showers...but they only wanted me to plan baby showers.

At least at Bible studies I feel better about saying how I really feel. Going to a baby shower and discussing my dislike of babies is generally frowned upon.

2. I left the church because when we talked about sin, we mostly talked about sex.


We didn't. In "my" church, sin was mostly a vague concept.

3. I left the church because my questions were seen as liabilities.

I don't recall ever really asking a question that wasn't "why?"
By the time I was 13 I was too angry at the church to ask questions.


4. I left the church because sometimes it felt like a cult, or a country club, and I wasn’t sure which was worse. 

*Giggle* I really like this one.

5. I left the church because I believe the earth is 4.5 billion years old and that humans share a common ancestor with apes, which I was told was incompatible with my faith.

I like this one, too.

6. I left the church because sometimes I doubt, and church can be the worst place to doubt.

 I think doubt is one of the reasons I stuck around for so long. I like to poke and prod at other people, and I especially like to try and get Biblically-minded people out of the Bible zone and thinking about certain things from a non-Christian perspective.

 7. I left the church because I didn’t want to be anyone’s “project.” 


I don't think I was ever anyone's "project". If I was, they failed. Oops.

8. I left the church because it was often assumed that everyone in the congregation voted for Republicans.

Not entirely true within "my" congregation growing up, but from the outside it may have seemed that way. Definitely untrue of "my" congregation in college.


9. I left the church because I felt like I was the only one troubled by stories of violence and misogyny and genocide found in the Bible, and I was tired of people telling me not to worry about it because “God’s ways are higher than our ways.”

Not at all true of my college friends. Although I did walk out of a service once because people just kept praying for world peace-type issues and I knew none of them were actually doing anything about it besides praying. I don't believe prayer works. I just think it makes people feel better.

10. I left the church because of my own selfishness and pride. 


Damn straight. I mean, uh, no?

11. I left the church because I knew I would never see a woman behind the pulpit, at least not in the congregation in which I grew up. 


I've had female preachers, and I didn't find them any more or less appealing than the males I've heard. This is probably a denomination difference issue.


12. I left the church because I wanted to help people in my community without feeling pressure to convert them to Christianity. 

Absolutely.

13. I left the church because I had learned more from Oprah about addressing poverty and injustice than I had learned from 25 years of Sunday school. 


Probably my favorite on the list.

14. I left the church because there are days when I’m not sure I believe in God, and no one told me that “dark nights of the soul” can be part of the faith experience.

Not one of the reasons I left, but it seems pretty legitimate. Although, I will say that "dark nights of the soul" are not only a part of any faith journey, but also a part of life. If you've made it to age 27 (the age at which the list's author left the church) without realizing this, you've probably had a great ride thus far. Congrats!

15. I left the church because one day, they put signs out in the church lawn that said “Marriage = 1 Man + 1 Woman: Vote Yes on Prop 1,” and I knew the moment I saw them that I never wanted to come back. 


I think this is an issue I've had with the church since I was about 14. My friend and I used to take the Methodist Book of Discipline and go through and find the passages that talked about homosexuality, photocopy pages, and then talk angrily amongst ourselves. Occasionally we would talk to others in the church about it, but they never seemed to think it was as big a deal as we did.