Steve McSwain: Are We ‘Nones’ Becoming a Virtual Congregation?

I’m not quite sure why I’ve been so fascinated with religion lately…

It may be because I am reading so many interesting articles from people who share some of my thoughts and concerns with organized religion…

I’m particularly enjoying Steve McSwain’s articles on Huffington Post.  I actually bought his book and have it on my Kindle.

Now I just need to find time to read it…

It just occurred to me that what this is becoming is a kind of virtual congregation. I never planned on this happening, but I cannot say that I am displeased either.

I left the pastorate nearly two decades ago, broken and disillusioned. Some of the pain I experienced was the consequence of my own life choices. The rest was the consequence of my disillusionment with organized religion. In my estimation, the church had become — and almost universally remains — critically ill. In fact, as I say in my book:

“If the current decline in church attendance were the medical case history of a hospital patient, the diagnosis would read: ‘Chronically ill; resistant to change; on life support; likely terminal.'”

“The church itself is the one institution most in need of the very thing it proclaims to the world — salvation. It boasts of knowing God, but by the sheer numbers who have given up on the church, it is right to question whether the church knows God at all.”(The Enoch Factorhttp://stevemcswain.com, p. 56).

So, I left, in terms of personal involvement and interest. In that respect, I was one of those whom researchers today call nones. The difference is, unlike most, I was a religious leader and a none — that is, a former pastor who had walked away from the ministry. I took up consulting with churches and parishes, Catholic, Evangelical, and Protestant alike. While clearly disingenuous, I didn’t know what else to do. All my professional training was in religion. Besides, I didn’t hate the church. I was just disillusioned by it. Deep within, I held out hope the church would change. I remain hopeful to this day.

I wandered, however, and wondered for many years whether a church existed anywhere that remotely resembled the teachings and practices of Jesus. I found most taught their traditions and practiced them with rigidity. They seemed lost in the madness of their differences from each other, as well as their dogmas, doctrines, and endless debates.

via Steve McSwain: Are We ‘Nones’ Becoming a Virtual Congregation?.