Quote:
Originally Posted by Ohio
I have yet to find a church that is willing to venture beyond their prescribed doctrinal subset of the Bible. Members yes, but not the leaders. I have been shut down nearly every time I opened my mouth. Why are leaders so paranoid by members sharing from the scripture? In this regard, other churches simply mimic so much of the bad behavior we discuss concerning the Recovery.
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I suppose I have been blessed, then. The bible study I am currently attending at a self-proclaimed non-denominational church allows for many instances of wrestling with scriptures alongside those who are sitting beside us (we are grouped at several round tables). Even the pastor of that study is open to having his thoughts and statements analyzed and challenged once he's done with whatever he's prepared to give us, and he's often honest in telling us that he doesn't have all the answers and is pretty much in the same boat as us. More than anything, it seems like he tries to drive discussion with questions and prompts rather than simply give a sermon or having us repeat stuff from some ministry book. He views his "sermon" as simply his thoughts on the matter and encourages the attendees to do the share their thoughts with each other to figure it all out together.