Return and report: church hunting edition...sorry, long

[Raylan Givens]

DW rather boldy told the BP we are on a sabbatical. Over the last six months we have visited a number of congregations in Salty.

1. Non-denominational is another name for Evangelical church. Same strict literialistic views on many topics as LDS, but with better music, and less pressure to confirm and get in line. Many play lip service to gay rights and gender roles, but when pressed will tell you they have the same feelings about gay marriage and gender roles as LDS. In 150 years I predict the LDS church and Evangelical movement will look pretty much the same. Nice people with good youth groups and seem to be growing in strength.

2. Presbyterian church- lots of old people, traditional with set routines. Friendly, and open to many ideas- including social issues. Very literal in Christ's resurrection, which I can understand. They are losing members just like most church's. "Peace be unto you." I have liked attending, but will probably stick to the holidays.

3. Episcopal Church- similar to Presbyterian, but more open (gender roles, gay issues etc.) and service oriented, at least the congregation we went to, a lot of emphasis on this. Once again, older and lacking in youth. Nice people who like nice choirs.

4. UU- went to both congregations, each was very different. They like socializing afterward, big emphasis on smaller meet and greets. Very political and activist oriented. They are in universalists, cannot pin point where most of the sermons are going. South Valley had a decent youth group, seemed to like kids even in the congregation. The SL UU has a strong youth group, and are quite admamant the kids go there. Overall, nice, but not my style right now.

5. The Community of Christ- a mix between UU and LDS. Small group in Holladay (maybe 30?). Nice people, first leader to really pull us aside and ask lots of questions. Nice people, not a lot of pretense. Same type of music as LDS, pretty conservative. Small youth program, my kids didn't care for it. Pretty noisy, there were a number of special needs kiddos, but my kids are loud too- so we fit right in. They seem to be happy where they are at and it seems they have overcome some adversity as a congregation? Not sure what it was all about.

6. Southern. baptist- like Evangelical, since many consider themselves Evangelicals. Great music, great preaching, a lot more focus on knowing God. They kept handing us pamphlets each time we went. Lots of congregation activities, and decent youth group. Very, very literal on the Bible (most of the non-denominational church explained the back story better on the scriptures, not so much here, God just said it). Kind people who would like bring you in and really help you KNOW Jesus.

7. Oasis Secular group- simple structure, brief lesson/insight from someone in the group. Then a special guest musical number, followed by snacks and socializing. Then they invite a guest speaker on a wide range of topics, some of the speakers are known in the area. Then you fold up your chairs and go home. They have smaller book/social clubs and a small scout troop. We have liked coming there, and check their website for a list of topics.

I hope none of this comes off a judgemental. We have loved our experiences with each group and have met many wonderful people. We tied to go two to three times to get a good feel for the groups. I recognize that many of the branches are dependent on who is leading them, whether they are more conservative or more progressive (for a lack of a better word).

Overall, I think I will keep at Oasis based on what is happening that week. For the high holidays, I will attend the Presbyterian Church by my house (I can walk there). They seem to excel at those events.

I would love to hear your thoughts, and perhaps even more recommendations you have. This has been an interesting process, born out of the idea that DW and I would like to have something we can lean on. At least for now...

[redjay]

Thanks for the perspective. Could see me attending another church at some point in the future, but too busy and cynical right now.

[No Tof]

Interesting exploration.

I noticed you stuck to the christian churches in your area. Are there any other religions to consider in your area or are you only considering christian churches?

Are you leaning on a church for mostly social nurturing or is this a spiritual quest?

Despite my seemingly cynical view on religion in general, I am curious about the human desire to have spiritual understanding or connection.

Where I live there are very few options to choose from so it has mostly been a literature review from my home or the occasional visit to the ward with DW.

Happy trails.

[NewLight]

Thanks for the information - it is helpful. I wondered about doing this type of church hopping in my community to find something to fill the gap, but as it turns out, I am just really liking the "2nd Saturday". My family (kids grown and married as well as siblings and their families) and I are all but completely out of the church so we are fortunate in the respect that all are on the same page.

If you do find yourself more on the outskirts of Mormonism and looking for some kind of replacement for the social/friends piece of your life, have you tried looking into a community in Mormon Spectrum? I joined one in my area just over a year ago and my wife was very soon to follow. We have met some great people there! Wife has organized a book club for the women soon after joining and as the warm weather arrives, there will be more outdoor activities to bring us together. We had a nice brunch with a few of the members last Sunday - it was a lot of fun!

Our group does not focus on religion, but can support one another as many have family members still within the confines of the LDS church. I have enjoyed it very much and it has proven to be a suitable replacement to "church on Sundays".

Good luck in moving forward with whatever your Sundays become.

[Raylan Givens]

Interesting exploration.

I noticed you stuck to the christian churches in your area. Are there any other religions to consider in your area or are you only considering christian churches?

Are you leaning on a church for mostly social nurturing or is this a spiritual quest?

Despite my seemingly cynical view on religion in general, I am curious about the human desire to have spiritual understanding or connection.

Where I live there are very few options to choose from so it has mostly been a literature review from my home or the occasional visit to the ward with DW.

Happy trails.

When DW gave her announcement of a sabbatical. I was fairly surprised, but pleased. She told me she intended to look for churches, and I intended to focus on Christian churches. My wife is more open than I am to other religions, I didn't want to start over from scratch.

Over the last six months I think she is more open to the idea of a 2nd Sunday with occasiononal church/group meeting. Oasis is fitting the bill, they would very much buck at the idea of being called a Church.

I also forgot. We went to another church, Center for Spiritual Living. Nice music and focus on putting things out to "Spirit.," DW's cousin in Cali has been focused on them for some time and their beliefs tend to match much of my wife's beliefs with ideas about no coincidence, things happen for a reason. A little too out there for me, but DW likes them.

[Anon70]

Interesting exploration.

I noticed you stuck to the christian churches in your area. Are there any other religions to consider in your area or are you only considering christian churches?

Are you leaning on a church for mostly social nurturing or is this a spiritual quest?

Despite my seemingly cynical view on religion in general, I am curious about the human desire to have spiritual understanding or connection.

Where I live there are very few options to choose from so it has mostly been a literature review from my home or the occasional visit to the ward with DW.

Happy trails.

I was wondering this too! I do feel like while I may not have traditional beliefs, a non judgmental/loving community might be nice.

[Raylan Givens]

[/quote]

I was wondering this too! I do feel like while I may not have traditional beliefs, a non judgmental/loving community might be nice.
[/quote]

This is where Oasis has been good for us. It is definitely secular, and mostly ex-mormon. No one really overtly talks about issues, they just acknowledge most of us have come from common place, but have moved on.

They do service projects, have a troop, have a band, and offer lessons to kids about how to just be a good person. my five year old told me Sundays lesson was on how to express your emotions. This past week confirmed this is probably a good place for me.

[moksha]

Raylan, since it seems you are in the SLC area, you might want to check out the United Church of Christ in Holladay and the Unity Spiritual Community in Sugarhouse. They have both been known to have intriguing sermons.

Just for fun, you might check out the services at the Cathedral of the Madeleine and Congregation Kol Ami, both in the city.

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For any of you hesitant to ever check out the service for another Church (maybe you've been told there can only be one true church) here is one with a good sermon and a choir that sings more enjoyable songs than those at your local ward.

https://www.slcuu.org/news/latest-news/ ... -for-worse