Some people who cannot accept church doctrines and dogmas have found other things in Christian congregations that may be better than believing:
- Being part of an extended family with "brothers and sisters" who care about you.
- Participating in the life of a community where your concerns make a difference.
- Locating companions with whom you can work to help bring to the world a greater measure of social, economic, and environmental justice.
- Finding your roots in the rituals and traditions of a people with a history.
- Growing in awareness of your personal values and your potential as a human being.
- Increasing your capacity for open and honest relationships with other people.
- Approaching God directly through disciplined meditation and prayer.
- Having a place to celebrate the joys of birth, marriage, and success as well as to find support in the tragedies of death, divorce, and failure.
The first version of this list appeared in a 1974 flier circulated by St. Mark’s Episcopal Church on Washington, DC’s Capitol Hill, the congregation I served as rector 1966 - 1996. Jim Adams
It is so refreshing to see a tangible presentation of the actual qualities and attributes indicative of a progressive spiritual community. If only more religious progressives/liberals would identify themselves and their communities in such a manner ... then we really would have a movement afoot!
Posted by: sA | May 24, 2005 at 05:20 PM