The book suggests that the defining problem driving out most people who leave is … just how American life works in the 21st century. Contemporary America simply isn’t set up to promote mutuality, care, or common life. Rather, it is designed to maximize individual accomplishment as defined by professional and financial success. Such a system leaves precious little time or energy for forms of community that don’t contribute to one’s own professional life or, as one ages, the professional prospects of one’s children. Workism reigns in America, and because of it, community in America, religious community included, is a math problem that doesn’t add up.
My family was non religious growing up and my best friend had lesbian moms and was conceived in vitro at a time when the church and public was bullying them and claiming that people convinced in vitro didn’t have souls. I definitely went through a new atheist phase but have mellowed out having had friends who are very religious but the type who are compelled to do better rather than just be bigots.
Must be the work hours and not that people are realizing the truth 🤷♂️
Also, the vast majority of organized religions are just a front for grifting. “Collection plate” my ass, let me see those books.
Discovered that the real opiate of the masses is opiates
my mom stopped going because she found out they were
spoiler
you know what they were doing.
I also think the behaviour of the church and the way it inexplicably tied itself to right wing politics and the monarchy (in my country) is a big part. They ask why have people stopped coming - come on man you know why you just don’t want to address it because you worship capital before God
Yeah there’s currently a huge split among American Methodists right now, which was a church founded to basically be “normal default Christians” and not embroiled within deeper theological or political questions.
They’re tearing themselves apart over gay and trans issues. Half of the Methodists want to just stop hearing/talking about it, the other half want to start their own explicitly conservative version of Methodism. It’s making a lot of people simply disinterested in going to church, going from what I’m hearing from Methodists.
My in-laws are Methodists and I got in a little trouble with my wife a while back for inquiring with my MIL about whether their family’s church was staying with the “progressives who aren’t bigots are a minority that is tolerated” branch of the church or schisming with the “if you allow a minority of non-homophobic/transphobic Methodists to remain in the church, eventually they’ll overthrow the conservatives” branch.
I did phrase it a little more diplomatically of course.
I actually still don’t know which they are.
I actually still don’t know which they are.
I think a lot of church members are confused too, since the whole reason they became Methodists instead of explicitly bigoted Baptists or Pentecostals was to avoid this kind of church politics in the first place.
I doubt it’ll get handled democratically either. Methodists are just gonna show up to church one day to see a sign saying “no wokeness allowed” because their preacher joined the openly bigoted side
My grandma is a Methodist and has been going to church every Sunday for the past 80 years. This year she stopped going because according to her it’s constantly brought up and argued about. She’s the old fashioned “I don’t care and I don’t want to hear about it” type when it comes to LGBT which is about as good as you can expect from her age group. I guess there’s some pot stirrers in her congregation that keep trying to push everyone rightward and it’s tiring her poor old heart out. I am very anti Christianity but I can’t help but feel bad for her since she’s losing one of the only consistent things she’s had her whole life.
I live in a very liberal area at the moment, and there’s a Church near me with a sign saying “everyone welcome” and the gay/trans pride flag on it. Most people obviously still don’t attend weekly, but I’ve talked to people that say they would never have attended for Easter or anything in the first place if it wasn’t for the church making it clear they preach tolerance.
