I work at a United Methodist church. As I (jokingly) say, "Someone has to do the Lord's work" and so most Sundays I cannot attend services. I probably wouldn't attend services at the church I work at, although I like their mindset (asking lots of questions is encouraged, people should reach their own decisions about faith, reconciling congregation, etc). Their service is just a little too hippie for me. I prefer attending services at the Episcopalian church, as they have a very traditional service (combined with liberal beliefs) and I can get the Eucharist regardless of what Sunday it is. They too open their doors to lesbians and gays, and the Presiding Bishop is a woman (Katharine Jefferts Schori is her name, and she used to be the assistant rector at the Episcopalian church I occasionally attend).
Generally, though, I find that I prefer to go for a hike in the woods and see the miracles around me than to sit in a church. God is everywhere, after all.
And yeah, I agree with Anne Rice--the Sister Margaret McBride case really burned my biscuits as well.
This reminded me of a column by Nicholas Kristof that I liked:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/18/op...18kristof.html
I also enjoyed his column on the Sister Margaret McBride issue:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/27/op...27kristof.html I particularly liked what one doctor who worked with Sister Margaret had to say about the whole thing: "'She is a kind, soft-spoken, humble, caring, spiritual woman whose spot in Heaven was reserved years ago,” he said in the e-mail message. “The idea that she could be ex-communicated after decades of service to the Church and humanity literally makes me nauseated.”
“True Christians, like Sister Margaret, understand that real life is full of difficult moral decisions and pray that they make the right decision in the context of Christ’s teachings. Only a group of detached, pampered men in gilded robes on a balcony high above the rest of us could deny these dilemmas.'"