sethosayher Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 Today, at the suggestion of another topic on this board, I watched the documentary "Marjoe." Besides his incredible insight into the business aspect of modern evangelism, something that really struck me was how...boring the scenes of his preaching were. This isn't a fault of Marjoe - indeed, I've felt the same way about nearly every minister I've encountered. Some of the people on this board were once dire-hard believers who savored the messages of their ministers, but I've never felt this way. Since my youth, I've found church to be repressive, boring as shit, and a tremendous hassle. And this was when I believed in God. Now, as a hidden atheist compelled to attend church to keep the peace, I find services to be immensely insufferable. The only way I keep my sanity is by ogling the gorgeous but-out-of-reach church gals...and by having whispered conversations with my many church friends, all of whom don't know of my disbelief... ...Just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MathGeek Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 I find it as boring as a trip to the laundromat. This only happened after I started to deconvert. Actually, I have this twinging, almost ADD-like need to look around at others, so I can likely say my attention was somewhat diverged. The sermons are boring now since I have reverted to Roman Catholicism. Since then, I want to put a gun in my mouth whenever I step foot into that empty, deadening hall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWIM Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 I found it boring as a kid, then I started playing the "do her" "not do her" "REALLY do her" "aggh aweful" girl watching game, it made church more interesting... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Knitterman Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 I found it boring as a kid, then I started playing the "do her" "not do her" "REALLY do her" "aggh aweful" girl watching game, it made church more interesting... yup. same as "brief, boxer, boxer, brief, boxer, boxer-brief" :-) I think every gay teenager in church played this version of it, especially during Youth Services, the Christ Ambassador rallies, and the summertime camp meetings. I suspect it's a universal pastime, altered only by the players involved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MonolithTMA Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 Despite my deconversion process, there are still some ministers that can keep my interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenny Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 If I wasn't involved in playing music for 30 minutes of the service, I'd be bored out of my mind. I only have to deal with the boredom for half the service. I compare that time to watching a Barney video with my daughter when she was little. She enjoyed it and I could stand it because she was happy and sitting on my lap. My son has a great talent for sketching and I spend the remaining 30 minutes of the service commenting on his drawings and complimenting him. Before ya know it, the offering plates are about to be passed around and it's time for me get my guys ready for the happy music we play as folks are leaving. Then, it's chow time. Fairly painless. I don't enjoy it at all, but I can deal with it. Mom and the kids are happy campers. Therefore, I'm a happy camper. And $150 richer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bellsybop Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 The only place other than a waiting room that I can fall asleep with my eyes open. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MathGeek Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 This might be insensitive but my wife had a migraine today and that was my out. I used the time to go to the laundromat to do laundry. As the washers and dryers hummed along, I paced around the building while reading "The End of Faith". If Tool had been playing the background, then it would have been a church service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godlessgrrl Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 I found Marjoe's preaching fascinating, but I think that's because I was looking at it from a completely different viewpoint than before. I hadn't been to church for a number of years before I saw the film, so it was like looking at the whole thing as a willing but unbelieving observer, instead of an unwilling but believing participant. That, and even during my Pentecostal days I never really went to anything like a tent revival. We'd get people speaking in tongues and doing some jumping up and down and singing, but I never remember anything as emotionally intense - and clearly manipulative - as the kind of preaching Gortner was doing. So I found it just... mesmerizing. Incidentally, I learned a little while ago that the spouse's grandfather used to be a tent preacher. When spouse and I watched Marjoe, spouse was sitting there nodding his head knowingly, it was all so familiar to him. But one's mileage may always vary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XCCC Posted February 26, 2008 Share Posted February 26, 2008 The only church I liked was Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa when I was a teenager. The Sundays weren't all that exciting but the rock concerts and the bible studies with "surfer" preachers (and my cadre of friends) were alright. Then I learned to really dread Sunday mornings in college and when I went on staff with Crusade. Nothing like working for god all week and then getting to get up early, get dressed up and go sit in a boring church service on your "day off" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest eejay Posted February 27, 2008 Share Posted February 27, 2008 As a kid I found the catholic masses EXTREMELY boring. I remember when they weren't even english. I just found the repetitiveness nauseating. Maybe the reason we did the get up, sit down, get up, kneel down thing was to actually prevent people from falling asleep. Didn't work. As far as the evangelical x-ian services, I couldn't stand the fire and brimstone type preachers. Those services were definately esteem busters. I always left feeling more badly about myself. As for now, I don't attend church at all. Sometimes though when I curfing through channels in a hotel room, I get one of those fundie channels, and it is actually entertaining since my deconversion to see people carryone on like they do. The bullshit that spews from the preachers mouths, and then the folks who are so into the holy spirit is just comical sometimes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skiergirl24 Posted February 27, 2008 Share Posted February 27, 2008 I was Catholic so our church services were always boring as hell. I HATED HATED HATED church as a child. I used to dread Sunday mornings. Imagine being an ADHD 4 year old, forced to get up and dress in fancy clothes (patent shoes, dress etc), go to church for an hour and sit and listen to someone talk about stuff that makes no sense (it made no sense then and it makes no sense now). Plus you have to be silent. Totally silent. I remember counting the ceiling beams. Our Church was a cathedral with loads of gold, ornate beams. I used to count them, and then count the pews, the windows, the pieces of stained glass etc. I hated Church and still do. I never, ever liked it and I always zoned out. Once I was old enough to actually pay attention I quickly realized the whole thing was a shit show and would zone out and daydream, sing songs in my head etc. What a waste of time church is! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skiergirl24 Posted February 27, 2008 Share Posted February 27, 2008 I love betty butterfield goes to mass, services etc at a ton of places and rants about them. funny http://www.archive.org/details/vlog_butterfield Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest eejay Posted February 27, 2008 Share Posted February 27, 2008 Hey skiergirl! If you were catholic, do you remember the fucking envelopes that had your named printed on them and all? They wanted to check to see who was placing what in the baskets. What a joke> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skiergirl24 Posted February 27, 2008 Share Posted February 27, 2008 yes i do remember those! hahaha. i remember my grandmother used to write checks JUST SO the priest would know she came to church and donated to the collection! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest laceknitter Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 *nods* I haven't been to church in about a decade, but I have never, ever been able to stand church. My parents were Catholic when I was a kid, and then switched denoms to Ass of God when I was a teen (no, seriously). I had thought the hour-long Mass was boring, but going to a church where the pastor went on and on "as the spirit led" was absolutely miserable. I skipped church as often as possible in my early 20's, while attending a Bible school that required it, and really didn't feel guilty. The real kicker came when I started having my own kids. I just couldn't put them thru the torture of sitting thru a service, so we stopped going. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest eejay Posted March 3, 2008 Share Posted March 3, 2008 *nods*I haven't been to church in about a decade, but I have never, ever been able to stand church. My parents were Catholic when I was a kid, and then switched denoms to Ass of God when I was a teen (no, seriously). I had thought the hour-long Mass was boring, but going to a church where the pastor went on and on "as the spirit led" was absolutely miserable. I skipped church as often as possible in my early 20's, while attending a Bible school that required it, and really didn't feel guilty. The real kicker came when I started having my own kids. I just couldn't put them thru the torture of sitting thru a service, so we stopped going. Oh man, that's what my parents' did. Though the catholic church was super boring, the fundamentalist stuff is just plain weird. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mentalhh Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Ah boredom. I felt it as a kid, I was a tomboy- so those dresses were a source of torment. I was glad to eventually wear trousers (and still do) when I could choose for myself. Though that boredom feeling dampened when I felt I believed for myself. Towards the last two years (17-19) I got increasingly dissatified however. My parents went to a Presbyterian church, and only sickness was a viable excuse for not attending... Or schoolwork/revision. Odd as it seems, I think that although they truely believe they placed my academic education before almost everything (including social activities unfortunatly, but whatever). XD. When I did Religious Studies for GCSEs, I'd always study RS on Sundays but not any other day... The rest of the week was dedicated to other subjects. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amethyst Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 I found it boring as a kid too. Not to mention I can't tolerate boredom for long. I never comprehended why they thought singing centuries-old songs would keep people awake any more than making them stand up and sit down frequently. Most people in church just got up and dragged themselves out of bed to have a cup or two of coffee and put nice clothes on. Boring them to death doesn't help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vendredie Posted March 6, 2008 Share Posted March 6, 2008 I had to wear dresses to church until I went to the "community" church. It was torture. Fortunately the "community" church didn't care so much about dressing up on Sunday, it was pretty much "come as you are" unless there was a holiday or major event. Didn't make the sermon any more entertaining though. I wound up drawing Harry Potter-themed sketches on the church bulletins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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