The word "Churcianity" was used recently on another thread and I thought the subject deserved its own thread.
As I understand it the word is intended to differentiate Christianity from what the practice of Christianity has come down to us today as.
As a youth I had questions that were not satisfactorily answered by the denomination I was raised in. Like many of my generation I forsook church attendance for about 20 years. I only read the bible when I was 30. Slowly I started to investigate all of the various presentations of Christianity looking for a useful "nugget" or two that I could build on myself. My advantage was that I was a Christian as a child and that was a sort of shield against the multitude of deceptive traps Satan has woven into the world. The hunger for truth is a critical component in compensation for churches that have been corrupted to varying degrees.
Years later I was teaching a bible study for juvenile offenders who were incarcerated. I was frequently asked which denomination they should attend. I could not honestly tell them of any. I said that it was likely that whatever church they attended, they would be shunted off to a youth group and they would go bowling and have pizza and they might ask what any of this had to do with Jesus. That would be a good question because the answer would be very little.
I suggested that any church they went to they might find an older wiser Christian who clearly showed the love of Christ and if they found such a person, they might ask that person to help them learn to know Jesus as well as they did.
Christianity was always supposed to be about relationships. Organizational systems might excel in efficiency, but they tend to kill relationships. Relationships can be difficult. Christians are told to love each other in the bible so much perhaps because we are all so unlovable.Organizational systems can be attractive because people are often processed as if on a conveyor belt with as little abrasive encounter with each other as possible.
If you consider that the objective of Christianity is individual Christ-likeness, it is difficult to think of any church that could be called successful.
Doctrines are presented in a package that smart people have already figured out. Individual learning is instead replaced with a regurgitation of what someone else has determined.
Most church practice might be condemned with the verse;
Mar_7:7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Most churches may not have the ritual pageantry of the Catholic church. However, the three hymns and a sermon/lecture seem a sufficient substitute.
For those unsatisfied with spiritual infancy, we are left on our own to seek out truth and learn and mature in faith. To this end a forum like this can be an advantage if other seekers can inquire or share what they have learned.
As I understand it the word is intended to differentiate Christianity from what the practice of Christianity has come down to us today as.
As a youth I had questions that were not satisfactorily answered by the denomination I was raised in. Like many of my generation I forsook church attendance for about 20 years. I only read the bible when I was 30. Slowly I started to investigate all of the various presentations of Christianity looking for a useful "nugget" or two that I could build on myself. My advantage was that I was a Christian as a child and that was a sort of shield against the multitude of deceptive traps Satan has woven into the world. The hunger for truth is a critical component in compensation for churches that have been corrupted to varying degrees.
Years later I was teaching a bible study for juvenile offenders who were incarcerated. I was frequently asked which denomination they should attend. I could not honestly tell them of any. I said that it was likely that whatever church they attended, they would be shunted off to a youth group and they would go bowling and have pizza and they might ask what any of this had to do with Jesus. That would be a good question because the answer would be very little.
I suggested that any church they went to they might find an older wiser Christian who clearly showed the love of Christ and if they found such a person, they might ask that person to help them learn to know Jesus as well as they did.
Christianity was always supposed to be about relationships. Organizational systems might excel in efficiency, but they tend to kill relationships. Relationships can be difficult. Christians are told to love each other in the bible so much perhaps because we are all so unlovable.Organizational systems can be attractive because people are often processed as if on a conveyor belt with as little abrasive encounter with each other as possible.
If you consider that the objective of Christianity is individual Christ-likeness, it is difficult to think of any church that could be called successful.
Doctrines are presented in a package that smart people have already figured out. Individual learning is instead replaced with a regurgitation of what someone else has determined.
Most church practice might be condemned with the verse;
Mar_7:7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
Most churches may not have the ritual pageantry of the Catholic church. However, the three hymns and a sermon/lecture seem a sufficient substitute.
For those unsatisfied with spiritual infancy, we are left on our own to seek out truth and learn and mature in faith. To this end a forum like this can be an advantage if other seekers can inquire or share what they have learned.
