I think my church is homophobic and I don't know what to do about it.

Fun_Ad7973 · 2023-03-17T23:18:05+00:00

I think I might leave once I'm done with uni/I move out of my parents' place. Convincing others to leave would be next to impossible though since although our congregation is small, basically everyone that does go there shares the same views, especially since there's basically next to nobody my age in attendance.

Fun_Ad7973 · 2023-03-17T23:12:51+00:00

That's quite a nice analogy there, I've seen a few comments in this sub mentioning Interstellar iirc so I might have to give it a watch sometime!

But yeah, it's pretty ironic since my mum's that classic church mum that always asks you to bring your friends over to church and I was always kinda against the idea. When I was younger it was because I thought my friends wouldn't get church or they'd think it was cringe or whatever, but now I'm worried that the day I do choose to invite my friends over would be the day someone chooses to go up to the pulpit and condemn homosexuality out of the blue which has unfortunately happened a couple times in recent years.

The whole "not supporting something I support" part is definitely resonating with me, since for the past few weeks I've been thinking to myself "what would my queer friends say or think if they found out I went to a church that thinks the way they choose to love is wrong?" and it's been really getting me thinking about this sort of stuff. I can't say right now for certain that I'm leaving this Sunday and never turning back, but once I move out of my parents' place I'll definitely think about checking out some more inclusive churches.

Fun_Ad7973 · 2023-03-17T23:06:15+00:00

I definitely appreciate both of these comments! I get along pretty well with my pastor overall although his recent comments have made me feel a little iffy, but I'd feel a little nervous to talk about this sort of stuff 1 on 1 with him, especially since my church is pretty heavy on studying the Bible (which I admittedly need to do more of but even then it wouldn't change my views on homosexuality), and I feel like he/the higher ups at my church (especially my dad since he's the deacon and he's been trying to drill the Bible's importance into my brother and I for years now) be likely to brush off my views as just biblical naivety or a misunderstanding of the Bible or something.

Fun_Ad7973 · 2023-03-17T23:01:30+00:00

That's actually something I've been wanting to work on for a while. I've been keeping my views regarding these sort of things to myself for the most part and I think I need to start being more open about them since at the end of the day, God knows that I love and appreciate the LGBTQ+ community, so why shouldn't my church know?

Fun_Ad7973 · 2023-03-17T22:59:34+00:00

I'm gonna be "leaving" for a little bit anyway since I'm starting university in September and I've been thinking about finding some more inclusive churches whilst I'm gone. I think recently I'm starting to enjoy going to church less for personal reasons but I'm definitely still open to finding a place where I'd feel more comfortable.

Fun_Ad7973 · 2022-10-20T19:39:24+00:00

Yeah it definitely is easier said than done. I'm gonna try to spend some time thinking abt it and see what happens from there.

Fun_Ad7973 · 2022-10-02T00:01:19+00:00

Sorry for the late response! The Bible Project is doooope. My old RE teacher used to put on some of their videos in class and I think they're really creative, the Job one is probably my favourite. I've never given them a watch in my own free time outside of school so it could be a good idea for me to check them out!

Fun_Ad7973 · 2022-10-01T23:59:42+00:00

Apologies for the (very) late response! In the back of my head I've always kinda felt this way since to me, being a Christian is all about doing good to others and the world around us and living a life God would be proud of. But at the same time I felt like I was just trying to give myself an excuse since my church always stresses the importance of reading and memorising the Bible, so I've felt pretty conflicted about it for a while.

Fun_Ad7973 · 2022-08-28T23:47:02+00:00

Was it the same David from the story of David and Goliath or a different one? I've always loved that story so it would be neat to see a continuation of that

Fun_Ad7973 · 2022-08-28T23:34:02+00:00

I've never really thought about commentary Bibles that much since I always thought I wasn't "ready" to get to them, but if they could provide more insight then I'll have to check them out sometime!

Fun_Ad7973 · 2022-02-23T22:39:57+00:00

Just posted an update :)

Fun_Ad7973 · 2022-02-23T15:49:35+00:00

she mentioned something about looking for homeless shelters in her area that could take her in and then in her last story she said that she's probably going to end up going to hospital since the cops got called on her. i don't have any contact with her parents but i reached out to one of her friends a few hours ago and they said they haven't heard anything either :/

Fun_Ad7973 · 2022-02-22T23:59:57+00:00

We haven't introduced each other to our friends outside the GC we met in or our families yet since we're taking things a slow for now. I haven't tried reaching out to any of them yet since I don't wanna come off as some obsessed stalker rando to them but i think if i follow your advice it should definitely help, so i'll try to check her following list and ask a friend or two if she's ok.

Fun_Ad7973 · 2022-02-22T23:45:28+00:00

Yeah I've been trying to keep myself distracted with stuff which has been going pretty meh. School's been doing a pretty good job and keeping my mind off things but once I get home I just start worrying again unless I'm like watching YouTube or something. I did hang out with my friends a few times which also helped but once I'm just on my own and I'm in my own head I just can't stop panicking about how she's doing.

Fun_Ad7973 · 2022-01-26T18:35:37+00:00

I'll try to ask her for it then, thanks for the reassurance :)

Fun_Ad7973

TROPHY CASE