You will be mocked, insulted, and denigrated by many for thinking this way.

Regardless, I am right there with you pede. My relationship with Christ is personal. It's part of me. I sin. I fail. I beg for forgiveness when I screw up. I try to help when I can even if the recipient of the help is ungrateful. I pray. I try to remind people that they are a unique individual with their own sets of talents and that they alone can help people so long as they help themselves first. I do my best to make His teaching a part of my life.

I may swear, curse, and screw up with the best of them, but I am working to temper that kind of behavior. I may never sucede, but I know He loves me, and I cherish that. I try and take one step at a time to right my wrongs and ask for forgiveness when its called for.

What I won't do is participate in the junk mankind has injected into Christianity. Frankly, I think Christ wouldn't be all that happy with the number of churches that are using His name to rack up BILLIONS of dollars for their "endowments" ... its not unlike the scummy liberal universities that sit on their multi-billion dollar endowments. They cry poor every year yet seem to be making tens of millions in interest on their billions of dollars worth of "endowments".

Also, I have yet to see any justification for the massive, multi-million dollar churches that are built to "honor" Christ. I have not seen ANYTHING that justifies something like Vatican City hoarding treasure and keeping secrets. It is like many of the people I used to revere are nothing but pawns in a giant, multi-century, wait, make that multi-millenia moneymaking scheme.

Let me put it this way. My dad was in Alcoholics Anonymous. I went to a few meetings with him when I was younger. I wasn't a drunk :-) . Reflecting on that, I saw more spirituality and kindness between people in those meetings than I ever saw in church. Most of these meetings are in basements of churches that aren't made to look like those mega-gothic styles ones all over Europe, but smaller, more community oriented size. I think AA has been very successful in that people can talk to one another, share experiences, realize that the problems they have made are their own and that asking for forgiveness while working hard to change the things they can is the way forward in life. That's what church SHOULD be in my worthless opinion!!!!

I pray the great awakening removes the filth that have corrupted Earthly things I used to hold sacred. I am filled with a rage I am not proud of when I see a degenerate like Pope Pinko the Communist make a complete mockery of the teachings of Christ while pushing his New World Order government ... a government that flies in the face of EVERYTHING Christianity taught us.

I sincerely apologize if what I posted offends anyone ... it is not my intent to denigrate anyone's beliefs ... these are my own personal beliefs. I know I might be wrong. I will never claim that I have everything figured out. I don't think I am "better that others" or have a "unique, divine vision" or anything like that. I'm a frigging schlub like the rest of us just trying to make sense of this world and do whatever I can to make it a better place no matter how small my accomplishments may be in the grand scheme of things.

You know, I keep seeing people (mainly liberal idiots and journalists) wanting to "change the world" via stupid, garbage things like technology or entertainment or other trivial, flash-in-the-pan kind of things that are forgotten about 100 years from now.

Only Christ can "change the world" ... and I think all that means is that if we simply follow his humble beliefs and teachings, each and every single one of us can do just that by doing a very small part that betters ourselves and our families. Even if you (not the pede I am replying to, you in general) don't believe (and I am NOT trying to shove anything down your throat), try reading up on the teachings of Jesus ... you will be AMAZED and will understand why we love Him despite the ridiculous behavior of many churches worldwide!