All the Ways Christian Education and the Church Have Failed Me
I’ve held this in for so long. Now let’s talk.
Spirituality and I have never harmoniously gotten along. Religion and spirituality have practically covered every single part of my childhood, adolescence and even most of my current adulthood. And yet, despite that, church has been something I almost completely avoid. I don’t like to talk about it. I don’t want to go to church. I don’t want to go to those Christian marriage groups. I don’t want to go to Bible study and I don’t like discussing my beliefs with people who do.
Based on my 20 plus years worth of experiences in religion, there’s not much anyone can say to me that would make me excited much less want to go back to church. I realize that everything I’m about to say may hurt or offend or even cause “the Lord to speak to you to reach out” to me, but please bear in mind these are my experiences and my personal opinions.
I don’t want anyone to try to explain them away, make excuses for the behaviors of the individuals mentioned, or try to convince me to come back to Christianity or any other religion. Any attempts to do so will be politely ignored. That being said here are the ways Christian education has failed me.
It Put the Fear of God in Me
When I was growing up, I went to a Baptist school near my house. It’s the place where I was exposed to religion. It’s also the place where I accepted Jesus Christ into my heart as my personal Lord and Savior. The reason why I did? I was afraid to go to Hell. I remember that day, too.
I was in preschool. All the kids were sitting on the floor listening to our teacher, Mrs. Burney, use a green felt board to show us, with little paper cutouts of Jesus and the Devil, how He died for our sins and we needed to repent in order to be with him in Heaven. Otherwise, we would go to Hell where there were eternal fire and weeping and gnashing of teeth.
After I found out what gnashing meant, I was horrified. I didn’t want to go to Hell. I wanted to be in Heaven with my…
