Do you attend a church? If so what religion do you practice?

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We do attend church. I practically live at church these days We are going to a Baptist church and DH and I were both baptised Baptist (me 3 years ago, dh 2 years ago).

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I attend at least once a month which is pretty good considering my family and in-laws. I have been going to the Quaker/Society of Friends since I was ten. I like to say that I am a recovering catholic.

I went to catholic school and when we learned about the emaculate conception I had nightmares for months that I would wake up pregnant and have to explain it to my dad!

Then we did the signs of the cross and I would BAWL. They build Jesus up to be your buddy and then you have to go through every step of his painful death every day for weeks for lent. (or is it advent?)

I like my church it is super small and unbelievably liberal. We have 2 lesbian weddings this year. Which for me is odd to experience being raised catholic and all.

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Missy

TTC 4 years
mc 9/06- molar pregnancy
Started Clomid, yuck
IUI 12/1, 3/4
Missed IUI #2 due to gall bladder surgery 1/4
u/s scheduled for 4/4- follies too big and too small skipped IUI
June- triggered and on prometrium...bfn
July & August- taking cycle off, I'm broke! Babies cost too much!

I was raised Southern Baptist, but now DH and I go to a plain ol' Baptist church. LOL We haven't really chosen a denomination, but so far Baptist seems to fit us best. Any denomination that believes in the trinity and expository preaching (which is different than using scripture out of context to back up their ideas) is just fine with me. Sometimes I am sad by all the division in the Christian church. Every Christian church is the same religion but we have so many different denominations. I wish we could all just agree.

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DH and I are both Catholic. We were both raised to go to church every Sunday, but have lapsed (especially since having Amy - we're more holiday go-ers). We're trying to get back into it but there is only one option for us to go to and I'm really having issues with them. They seem to be all about money. We got letters last year that said they will not sign a form allowing us to be sponsers or Godparents unless they have our dontation envelope each week (they say it the only way to know we are attending). Then a few months ago they set up online bill pay so we can automatically deposit our weekly offering each week. I know they need money, and I'm not against giving it to them, it's just gotten so out of hand that I feel that is their first priority.

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No church for me and DH. DH was raised Catholic. We went to a couple churchs when we got married and two of them wanted 30% of our income for the first year plus we still had to pay for the rental of the church and the father. Then the Catholic school minister wouldn't marry us because we weren't members and weren't contributing, even though his father gave thousands to the church on a regular basis. Oh yeah I was pretty pissed but decided that it was a sign that I didn't have to get married in a church to be happy and sure enough I was right!

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Me, Chris - 30
DH, Kevin - 30
Anniversary - May 17th

3/07 - Angel baby
7/07 - Angel babies
9/07 - New goal is to lose weight and get healthy.
1/08 - Started seeing alternative doc.
6/08 - Down over 20 lbs...Keep on going!!!

I agree 100%!!

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DH and I dont go to church. I wasnt raised in the church and he... well he was raised a johovahs witness. Now Im not saying anything about them but I dont agree with the way he was raised or his family. For instance, his family doesnt talk to him anymore because he joined the Army. They say that Johovah doesnt want them to support the government. CRAP CRAP CRAP lol I cant stand it. And once he got away from it hes having alot of issues with it. We were just talking about this actually because I asked him to go to a non-denominational church because I think I am going to need it when he deploys. He still has alot of anger issues about it all and they way he was raised. I think his parents were extremist. But... we have time to figure it out and its never been a huge issue for us. We just have an agreement that our children will not be raised witnesses. I want to celebrate their birthdays with them! and christmas too!!

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Meghan

We go every Sunday unless out of town or illness. We attend Sunday School and church and my husband is an usher. We are both Baptist.

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We got to church. It's a non-denominational Christian Church.

We could not possibly be happier with our church. It's amazing.

It's huge, and sometimes gets a "bad name" in our city. It's called Southland Christian Church and I've heard it called "Southland Christian Country Club" or "Six Flags over Southland" because of that. But all you have to do is go once, and your mind is changed.

DH didn't want to go with me because he thought it was just a bunch of rich snobs and they didn't really know or care anything about what was going on in the city around them. But after the very first service he said "I was wrong, all you have to do is go once and you realize that"

Just last Sunday at lunch we were talking about the service and he said "I really look forward to raising our kids in that church"

Everyone has (and is more than entitiled to )their own opinion but what we love about it is that

#1 there are people of every background, status, age, race...etc there
#2 it's very laid back. Our minister wears jeans every week. It's more about the message than how you are dressed
#3 the messages really make you think. They are a lot less about "IF YOU DO THIS YOU ARE GOING TO HELL!!!!" (I was raisd in a church like that and so was DH) and more about lessons on how to be the best person you can be. Being kind to EVERYONE, not just those who agree with you.

The thing Dh liked is that they never mention the offering. (In his chruch growing up people were made to believe that if they didn't give a certain % of their income they were bad or "less welcome" than those who did). They take the offering at the very end of the service and no mention is ever made of it. It's done at the very end and it's perfectly acceptable to leave at that point. They do bring in a lot of money, I think last weekends offereing was about $180K but when you see all that they do with that money you're happy to donate.

It's messages are so thought provoking. And I think they encourage people to stop judging others, and take a look in the mirror. For instance the last two weeks our message was called "Living with Eeyore". It was about how to deal with, help, and love the Eeyores in our lives. The "Debbie Downers" that always have something negative to say. It was about trying to understand why they are the way they are and loving them. And the message was basically "aren't we glad Jesus wasn't selective in who He loved and was willing to die for"

It's just so uplifiting.

It's like my weekly therapy.

Literally I laugh and cry at some point during EVERY service. I leave feeling so refreshed and recharged.

Ok, I'll shut up now

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Mandy - Dh and I need to find a church like yours. Dh hates that we have to conform and dress up to worship god. He says that Jesus loves us the way were are and we shouldn't have to dress up to impress. Good for you for finding such a nice church.

I was raised Christian and dh was really involved in a church growing up. We haven't been to church much during our marriage. We have a billion Mormon friends at work. They are great people and we have been to church with them, but I don't know about converting and all that.

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DH and I are both baptist. I have been going to the First Baptist Church right up the road from us since I was 8 years old. It's the church DH and I were married in, and it's the same church we go to now. (The preacher there that married me and DH actually married my grandma to the hubby she's been married to for about 20 years. I thought that was neat.) We go to a "married" Sunday school class with my parents at that church. We go to church with his parents when we go visit them. It's also a baptist church. DH has been going there since he was born and his dad's one of the deacons there. His family is really involved in that church, so we've gotten pretty involved when we go up there. I hope to get involved like that in the church DH and I go to where we live. We don't attend church when we go to places like the beach, other vacations, etc...

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We don't go a lot right now because we haven't found a church here yet. I guess it's time since we've been here over 6 months now!

Back in Orlando we went to a United Methodist church, and I really liked it. My favorite things about it were the laid back atmosphere, many many people wore jeans and teeshirts - Amy I agree with your husband there, I'm not sure how church ever got to be about how dressy you could get one day a week - and there were kids in the service. Little ones, and yeah sometimes they would yell and laugh and jump up and down on the pews, but the pastor would just smile and say we should all have that kind of joy to be worshiping together.

I miss going to church, but it's harder now because I don't know the attitude of the church, and I'm not about to walk into a church I don't know and leave my son in a nursery full of people he doesn't know. I guess we'll just take him in with us and sit near the back so one of us can jet out if the need arises. I really hope to find a church that loves children being involved in the service, though.

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Mary Beth - 31
DH - 30
Baby Kian - 3/24/07
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Oh, I was raised southern baptist, but I wouldn't go there now. I don't say that to offend anyone who is that religion, it just wasn't for me, and maybe it was just that church, but there were a lot of scare tactics that are still with me to this day, things that really inhibit my relationship with God and I hate that.

Hubby was atheist until about 16 (and now is about 10 hours away from his masters of divinity! and is a chaplain). Before I met him he was attending a Lutheran church, and we went there for a little while, and it was ok but I prefer something a little less structured, it didn't feel very warm to me. So that's when we switched to Methodist.

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Mary Beth - 31
DH - 30
Baby Kian - 3/24/07
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That is what DH and I were just talking about last week.

We were raised in churchs like this.

I think what happens is that you are made to believe that if you aren't PERFECT then you are going to hell. If you have one bad thought, say one bad word, you are evil. It sets people up for failure. And I think when someone continues to feel that they have failed as a Christian they give up and it puts distance between that individual and God.

I think that Church should be your support system, what motivates you to be strong in your faith, not what pushes you away from it.

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