God is a Prop

Although I do not participate with any religious congregation, I kinda understand the appeal and potential benefits of such institutions.

I was raised in the Presbyterian Church (God's Frozen People) and in a fair-to-middlin' progressive congregation. There were a few fanatics but mostly, when Presbyterians are faced with a controversy the form a committee. That's pretty benign in the grand scheme of things.

I recognize the value of "fellowship," and think that's a generally good thing. In small towns there is some logic that fellowship centers around a church.

Personally, I find Jesus to be a pretty wise observer of life and human nature and how we mere humans should approach life. Too bad most "Christians" don't think like that.

If there were a Church of the Jeffersonian Jesus, I might join. At least I'd appreciate the fellowship with fellow congregants.

I don't need the mythological parlor tricks -- water-to-wine, Lazarus, making the crippled see again and the blind to walk!

I mean, I kinda buy into to peace-makers getting blessed. And I'm not the one to cast the first stone at anybody, thanks to Jesus' advice. And a lot of that other stuff.

But as soon as the twice-born step up and claim they speak for God because they donate 10% of their (net, not gross) income to The First Church of the Gooey Death and Discount House of Worship, I feel good that the writers of the Constitution of the United States of America got pretty specific about separating church and state.

I think in small towns church membership is more of a social commitment than spiritual. You want to see your banker or your best customer or a lawyer in a non-professional context, just in case. And what better venue than a covered-dish dinner in the church basement?

There was a piece on NPR about "The First Church of Beethoven." It's in a former gas station somewhere; the former garage has been converted into an auditorium for the local community theatre. People go there on Sunday mornings and sometimes poets read their stuff, sometimes they discuss books or ideas, and often musicians simply perform... frequently Beethoven or Bach... and the whole point is sharing a spiritual experience and having coffee and donut holes together afterward.

I think that's what "church" is for people in small towns.

CONservatism is weighted toward those twice-born who think they've got one foot in heaven and the other on a banana peel. And they rejoice at the prospect!
They're pretty extreme in their expectations and conviction they're among God's "select."

I suspect most of them got where they are simply for the free coffee and donut holes and the "fellowship." And they pick up the patter.

They don't know what they believe. Their friends cite a couple of Bible verses and to belong to the crowd they parrot snips of Leviticus just to fit in with the free-coffee-and-donut-holes crowd.

It's about being human.

That is what religion does and is for.

God is simply a prop.