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I have all sorts of logical and theological reasons why I don't like the Pentecostal church I attended and still am forced to attend, but the main thing I don't get is how people see this a fun?
They do it for approx. 10 hours a week collectively and more hours than that privately... Go to church, sing a couple completely uncreative songs, get b****ed at (aka preached to), then have the "alter service", which is the longest part of the whole service. It's the highlight of the service.
Sometimes they dance around and speak in tongues and sing, but the true aim and goal is to get a god given seizure and convulse around. You get like a 5 star rating if you do this. And if you aren't or look like you aren't worshiping enough, they will huddle around you, force your hands up, scream at you, and try to get you to convulse, and when you do, they are satisfied and leave. If you don't they just gradually leave and it's super awkward. I've never caved in to their desires and done it in church, but could if I wanted to. I just wouldn't do it when I was younger and now I'd feel incredibly morally compromised if I did do it.
But all that rowdiness doesn't last long. 10-25 mins depending on energy levels. Some services they get rowdy, many times they don't, but nearly every service they will end up face down in the carpet wailing. ALL the time, just howling and wailing and "travailing". It sounds god awful. Towards the end, everyone kind of peters out and they sit there in silence, the holy hush...
I just don't get it at all. This is the moments they live for. They dedicate a lot of their disposable income to it, most of their free time, sever relationships if they get in the way of it, and fear for those who don't do it. They expect this to be heaven, that garbage all the time...
I have all sorts of logical and theological reasons why I don't like the Pentecostal church I attended and still am forced to attend, but the main thing I don't get is how people see this a fun?
They do it for approx. 10 hours a week collectively and more hours than that privately... Go to church, sing a couple completely uncreative songs, get b****ed at (aka preached to), then have the "alter service", which is the longest part of the whole service. It's the highlight of the service.
Sometimes they dance around and speak in tongues and sing, but the true aim and goal is to get a god given seizure and convulse around. You get like a 5 star rating if you do this. And if you aren't or look like you aren't worshiping enough, they will huddle around you, force your hands up, scream at you, and try to get you to convulse, and when you do, they are satisfied and leave. If you don't they just gradually leave and it's super awkward. I've never caved in to their desires and done it in church, but could if I wanted to. I just wouldn't do it when I was younger and now I'd feel incredibly morally compromised if I did do it.
But all that rowdiness doesn't last long. 10-25 mins depending on energy levels. Some services they get rowdy, many times they don't, but nearly every service they will end up face down in the carpet wailing. ALL the time, just howling and wailing and "travailing". It sounds god awful. Towards the end, everyone kind of peters out and they sit there in silence, the holy hush...
I just don't get it at all. This is the moments they live for. They dedicate a lot of their disposable income to it, most of their free time, sever relationships if they get in the way of it, and fear for those who don't do it. They expect this to be heaven, that garbage all the time...
Can anybody explain it?
It's all fake. They do it because they want to appear spiritual.
It's all fake. They do it because they want to appear spiritual.
I think the bigger question is the followers who get spiritual elevation out of it.
If folks stop feedimg the troll it will die.
And unfortunately such actors are not limited to Christianity only.
All religions have been abused by such charlatans to push their own agenda and deceive people to reach their personal goals of making money.
I don't see much of difference between these actors who deceive masses by abusing the name of religion, and many politicians. Both are the same thing in different roles.
I have all sorts of logical and theological reasons why I don't like the Pentecostal church I attended and still am forced to attend, but the main thing I don't get is how people see this a fun?
They do it for approx. 10 hours a week collectively and more hours than that privately... Go to church, sing a couple completely uncreative songs, get b****ed at (aka preached to), then have the "alter service", which is the longest part of the whole service. It's the highlight of the service.
Sometimes they dance around and speak in tongues and sing, but the true aim and goal is to get a god given seizure and convulse around. You get like a 5 star rating if you do this. And if you aren't or look like you aren't worshiping enough, they will huddle around you, force your hands up, scream at you, and try to get you to convulse, and when you do, they are satisfied and leave. If you don't they just gradually leave and it's super awkward. I've never caved in to their desires and done it in church, but could if I wanted to. I just wouldn't do it when I was younger and now I'd feel incredibly morally compromised if I did do it.
But all that rowdiness doesn't last long. 10-25 mins depending on energy levels. Some services they get rowdy, many times they don't, but nearly every service they will end up face down in the carpet wailing. ALL the time, just howling and wailing and "travailing". It sounds god awful. Towards the end, everyone kind of peters out and they sit there in silence, the holy hush...
I just don't get it at all. This is the moments they live for. They dedicate a lot of their disposable income to it, most of their free time, sever relationships if they get in the way of it, and fear for those who don't do it. They expect this to be heaven, that garbage all the time...
Can anybody explain it?
Sure, I can explain it easily:
1. It's a scam.
2. Lots of people are easily suckered...and will even go along with the scam and swear it isn't a con-game.
3. There will never be a shortage of those that will run a scam the easily suckered.
It's called faith (and necessity), you just choose to believe that it is real. It's also because they use religion to relieve (and/but also indirectly cause) their stress.
The biggest reason is because they were suckered into Bibliolatry and have to take Paul seriously when he says that God gives a "gift" of blathering incoherently in "angelic language only decipherable with gift of prophecy".
I mean, you need to make yourself have at least one "gift" that shows you "miraculously" (because people don't understand themselves well nor psychology) that the Bibliolatry they partake to is evidenced (and thus they can find happiness in an expectation of blissful immortality and power-allegence for themselves).
I have personal experience both with willfully inducing tongues ("letting the tongues be produced through me without obvert conscious effort or control") and with the rationalizations really-religiously-invested Christians come up with for it.
I've read about the use of such "tactics" (not trying to imply hidden conspiracy here) by other religions especially shaman ones or even voodoo (for an African word for "spirit": vodun, with a silent n indicating a nasal u).
The practice must be ancient and Rome must have come across it and it was synchronized with Judaism into the Christianity that was spreading since pagan religious power-bases were accepting/syncretic/oral but Jewish religious power bases weren't.
Phil P, I think people get worked up. I've never been to a Pentecostal service, have only seen similar scenes on certain TV services (maybe not Pentecostal). It's strange to me. If people want to speak in tongues, scream, and throw themselves around then they are free to do so. What upsets me from some of the programs I've seen, however, is the preachers screaming for money. And the people in the congregation looking like they don't have a lot of disposable income. Question for you, why are you still forced to attend these services?
Convulsing in the spirit is the unknown tongues of travailing in the spirit which is out of their bellies will flow living waters , which is the scripture from Galatians 4:19 .....Apostle Paul said ``My little children of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you ``............. See believers who engage in laboring in the spirit will break strongholds from the spirit of this world , grow faster in the Spirit of Christ and the percent of people who will never fall away from the church and never fall from Christ and these will endure to the end of their lives .............See churches can ignore these gifts will still have salvations to Jesus , but those who develop in these gifts will be stronger in the spirit and develop greater works which Jesus does through all His children
Phil P, I think people get worked up. I've never been to a Pentecostal service, have only seen similar scenes on certain TV services (maybe not Pentecostal). It's strange to me. If people want to speak in tongues, scream, and throw themselves around then they are free to do so. What upsets me from some of the programs I've seen, however, is the preachers screaming for money. And the people in the congregation looking like they don't have a lot of disposable income. Question for you, why are you still forced to attend these services?
How long have you been able to tell someone does not have a lot of disposable income just by their looks? Do you base your assumption on their clothing? Physical attributes? Shoes?
If you have never been to an actual service how is it you can have an opinion on something you have yet to experience yourself? For many faith is faith no matter what avenue is used to get there and many times that man you see wearing overalls and worn boots who is with the woman in a plain dress and wearing flats in that 25 year old truck are millionaires many times over.
Convulsing in the spirit is the unknown tongues of travailing in the spirit which is out of their bellies will flow living waters , which is the scripture from Galatians 4:19 .....Apostle Paul said ``My little children of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you ``............. See believers who engage in laboring in the spirit will break strongholds from the spirit of this world , grow faster in the Spirit of Christ and the percent of people who will never fall away from the church and never fall from Christ and these will endure to the end of their lives .............See churches can ignore these gifts will still have salvations to Jesus , but those who develop in these gifts will be stronger in the spirit and develop greater works which Jesus does through all His children
This right here. The OP has hardened his heart but that doesn't mean the ones he is mocking aren't truly taken by the Spirit. Oh ye of little faith.
How is convulsing, wailing, speaking in tongues, and holy hushes the epitome of existence?
It beats listening to some man droning on at a podium all the time about his version of Christianity.
I prefer the joy of singing and dancing.
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