Why do so many atheist/agnostics feel it is necessary to have/go to a 'church'?
I like the idea of community. If there is no god then we should at least support one another
So your ideal of a community needs to involve church in some way?
I don't think I said church. I try to keep that concept out of my vocabulary
Some make them and it's easier to do that than to put up a fuss for what just an hour a week.
There is a sense of pleasure to go to a meeting where everything is prescribed for you. I can go to any Jewish temple on the planet, listen for a couple of minutes and know exactly where the congregation is in the service. (I wanted to be a Cantor when I was a teenager.) It is more than social or community. It is a sense of belonging to something bigger than you.
The problem for me is that I no longer believe in a God or gods and the service make me very uncomfortable, so I no longer go. and the Jewish Humanist services just don't feel right. My Sundays are spent watching the talking head political shows, doing laundry or playing golf.
That's funny! You make me laugh.
I've been to a Jewish temple in Knoxville, TN. It's an interesting building! I didn't realize the services were so predictable. And Jews are known to be family oriented.
I sense belonging to the Verses and I can't imagine anything any larger than them, but am willing to admit there might be.
I'd only go to church if someone I love asked me nicely to go for some reason. I'm assuming my friend will want me to go to their Christmas Eve mass and I will probably go, just because the church is beautiful and I love meeting new people even though they don't believe what I do.
You're romantic and I appreciate that. When I see church buildings and cathedrals, yes they can dazzle the eye, I see all the waste of money, time, and people. They have become depressing places for me.
I think you mean, why do they still want to go to a church like setting, even after becoming atheist. I think that it is purely a sense of community and validating their ideas with other like minded people. Most people are social by nature (try not being in contact with anyone for a couple of months and you then crave human interaction) so it makes sense they miss sharing ideas and gaining new information from others.
I agree and you interpreted my question correctly. But I don't understand why they even desire to call it a church. To me 'church' is tied to religion. I'm not aware of another meaning. Any enlightening words of wisdom?
I don’t think they would call it a church, unless the6 want the tax breaks! The most famous is Sunday Assembly. You do get Unitarian churches but this is less abou5 atheism and more about spiritualism.
I think it most likely depends on the community one lives in. As several others have stated, it may be the only place to meet (semi) like minded individuals.
I live in the Chicago suburbs, so I have a lot of options available to me. But in rural or less populated areas may not.
Personally, I only go to church when a loved one is getting married or a baby is being baptized. Same goes for any special religious right. That's just decency towards my family and friends though!
I am considering going to my local Universalist Unitarian church because I live in a small town/county and there are no secular groups for me to join. It isn't that I feel a need to go to church, or anything like that. I just feel I need to engage, in person, with some like-minded people. Even though some, or maybe even most, might believe in some sort of god, I think they will be open minded, and more humanist, in their thinking so we would have that in common. I am also considering making the 120 mile trip, at least once a month, to join a Center for Inquiry group in Eugene. If I do that the going to a church thing might become less appealing...although, it is only 12 miles away .
For me, church is not where I find like-minded people or even humanists for that matter. I do understand the psychology of wanting to be one-in-a-crowd as a comfort blanket of sorts. And I understand everyone is developing ... into something or someone.
I go to a UU church here in Washington County. They have an active Humanist group that met last night. Think our church is mostly agnostic, atheist, humanist. If it is only 12 miles, might give it a chance. UU churches have a lot of different feels to them. We lived in Nebraska, and the church there wasn't very friendly, and quite christian. One before that was in New Mexico, and liked it a lot as was friendly and upbeat. I go to our church for community, and a place where I don't have to censure what I say. Have some great discussions.
I think it's mostly looking for company. It's hard to meet real people, and one of the best places is an "open" church where real physical connections can be made.
Merriam-Webster: a building for public and especially Christian worship. Are people so generally weak minded to settle for 'almost' something?
There is the "connotative" meaning of a word, and the "denotative" meaning of a word. Most "religious" and "spiritual" and "New Age" organizations call what they do on a weekly basis, Church... The "connotative" meaning of the word. And this is particularly true of those who identify as secularists but still attend such meetings.
I do not think it's weak minded to seek human comfort. What I don't understand is the inability to understand the myriad of variants in which humans express themselves. Focusing on the denotative and ignoring the connotative ignores our relationship with language... and with each other.
I don't, but it's nice to be in-touch with a community that shares your beliefs. I guess that's why I'm here. Physically, I'm in rural Tennessee, lol.
I agree, but why 'church'?
I'm actually looking into buying a church right now. I want to hold music events for the community there.