One More

The month is almost over and I am almost out of religious things to talk about.
When I start some of these things it seems as if I am full of ideas, then real life sinks in and I sit here staring at the monitor with nothing to type.

So on with the religion.

Do you have to go to church to be religious?
For me this is a big NO, but what about you?

For some people going to church is what religion is about.
I don't get that view.

I have friends who are Catholic.
I don't get Holy Days of Obligation.
Can someone explain?

I just don't understand the idea that if you don't go to Church, God is unhappy.
So belief, faith, and practice aren't enough?
Organized worship is a must?

Maybe someone can answer some of these for me.

kneeling

Sorry about the delay. Sickness slows everything down.

My religious topic of this week is kneeling and other church quirks.
I don't like to kneel.
As a Methodist of sorts I only have to kneel once a month when I take communion at the altar rail.

I have been to church with Catholics who seem to kneel for half their service. I don't like it.
I can't explain why, but I don't like to kneel.

I do bow my head when praying, except when I say the "Lord's Prayer". When I say that one in church I raise my eyes and head. Kinda like looking up in adoration or something, but it is something I do.

One thing I love about Catholic churchs are the incense. I love it. I think Methodists could use incense.

I like to sing in church. I don't do it well, but I like to sing. I always have and once I heard a story that my greatgrand father was notorious for sitting in the back of the church and belting out hymns a triple volume. Seems like he liked to sing in church too.

Anyone have any church quirks?

Jesus

A question that I often ask to stir up trouble is this: "Which is more important, Jesus or his message?"

Being as Christian as a Methodist can be, I still have my own opinion. I think the message is far more important than the Christ figure. Most conservative Christians will throw rocks at you for suggesting the heresey of "Social Christianity" (The message of Jesus without the divinity of Jesus).

I also tend to throw out the "What would you do if today they dug up a grave and could prove without a shadow of a doubt that the remains inside were Jesus' ?"
To me it wouldn't matter.

Once again I think the message of loving your fellow man and doing the right thing is more important than any religious hoodoo that is tied to the message.

I know I will probably get rocks thrown at me for this one, but what do you think?
Is it the Man or the message that is important?
Can you separate the man from the message?

Why are some people so crazy that the man and his divinity is more important that what he taught?

Lent

It is Lent again so I am going to dedicate this month to religion. My take on all that I see and feel religion wise.

A lot of people give things up for Lent. Being Methodist means that we give things up, but I like what my pastor has been doing the last few years. He has stressed that Lent is a time for spiritual growth, not just giving things up to learn suffering or some such stuff.

So what do I do for lent?

I write notes to the people around me. I tell them how they have been helpful or influential in my life over the past year, month or week. I try and do this to people who I don't usually say thank you to, but have helped me in some way.

Part of me wishes that this would be a year round thing, but I get busy, I get lazy, I forget. During Lent I make special efforts to write my notes and get them out those who deserve them. It may not be much, but it makes me think about the people around me who do things that help me in some way or another.

You would be surprise how many people do something, even tiny things, that make life special.