NationStates Jolt Archive

I got back from Friday prayer at the Mosque recently(which was really great btw) and I had question for you guys.

For the people of faith: how often do you go to your house of worship and also have you ever been in a place of worship other than your own(i.e. a Christian going into a temple) and how did you feel abou it? Were you comfortable or did you feel out of place.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

I have. And I remember a distinct feeling of absolute boredom for most of the time.

Sometimes interesting art work can be found in houses of worship, though.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

I've visited local Gurdwaras, Mosques and Churches, and to be perfectly honest, aside from the pretty unusual smells in them, I didn't get much out of it. It's just a world I'll never really be part of.

I have. And I remember a distinct feeling of absolute boredom for most of the time.

Same here.

Seriously, what is with the funky smell of those places? Even catholic highschools have that stink.

Are the nuns smoking something?

Seriously, what is with the funky smell of those places? Even catholic highschools have that stink.

Are the nuns smoking something?

It's the combined smell of incense and repressed sexuality. Smells like holy spirit.

I used to go to a run-o-the-mill church, not much to say...

I am at church about 3-4 times a week.

The girls and I go to Synagogue during Passover for a Chocolate Seder it's quite nice, and we feel welcome.

I always liked the smell of incense. Other than that churhces have generally been boring and occasionally cold.

My place of worship if my meditation room at home. Although I wouldnt call it worship. I think of it more as a friendly chat with a friend. redundant? No... you can have not so friendly chats with friends :P

oh yeah... also I have been to different types of houses of worship with friends/family (i.e. niece singing in choir, meeting before a ski trip, whatever...) and have never felt comfortable.

Seriously, what is with the funky smell of those places? Even catholic highschools have that stink.

Are the nuns smoking something?

The Mosque I go to doesn't smell period, either good or bad. Maybe weird smells is a chruch thing?

I'm a Christian,but I don't go to any such church because I only recently became one.I do go to a youth group at a Methodist Church though,which I do really enjoy.

The Mosque I go to doesn't smell period, either good or bad. Maybe weird smells is a chruch thing?

No, I've definitely noticed a smell in Mosques and Gurdwaras, too. I think you get used to it after an hour or so.

The Mosque I go to doesn't smell period, either good or bad. Maybe weird smells is a chruch thing?

Yes,only churches smell weird.:rolleyes:
Well,they don't.They don't smell of much at all unless there's incense out or something.

Oh, absolutely. Whenever I want to think or collect myself, I'll go to my nearby church and just sit for a while to think or simply sit and allow the feeling to permeate me. It's like a kind of meditation, actually and it does have a positive effect on my mood.

Maybe it's God, or maybe it's just me...either way, I do benefit from it and I do feel something.

Yes,only churches smell weird.:rolleyes:
Well,they don't.They don't smell of much at all unless there's incense out or something.

I don't think I've ever been to a church that didn't smell like one.

I don't think I've ever been to a church that didn't smell like one.

But they don't smell weird per se.Soviestan said it like it was patronising,that's all.

I have. And I remember a distinct feeling of absolute boredom for most of the time.

Sometimes interesting art work can be found in houses of worship, though.

Yep the only reason for me would be the artwork I'd love to visit the sistine chapel for example.

I don't think I've ever been to a church that didn't smell like one.

what types of churches do you go to?

my church doesn't smell.......well, I mean sometimes it smells like food, but only when we are eating there.

I haven't been to any house of worship for years, apart from going to a church recently for a funeral. I grew up Catholic, but I did visit a few mosques and synagogues from time to time for various reasons, and also attended service at Protestant churches every now and then. I remember thinking that the architecture in the mosques was pretty, and that the synagogues had people with pretty voices. I also remember being confused at the Protestant services, because they were so similar to Catholic mass but just different enough to perplex me.

But they don't smell weird per se.Soviestan said it like it was patronising,that's all.

Sorry, it wasn't meant to be patronising. I wasn't try to say "Mosques are better than Chruches because they don't smell" or anything like that. I was just saying I don't noticied any scents at the Mosque.

I got back from Friday prayer at the Mosque recently(which was really great btw) and I had question for you guys.

For the people of faith: how often do you go to your house of worship and also have you ever been in a place of worship other than your own(i.e. a Christian going into a temple) and how did you feel abou it? Were you comfortable or did you feel out of place.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

I was raised in a Christian household, though my parents weren't very religious. When I was little I didn't get much out of church except Bible stories. When I got older I was wayyy into it, and now since I haven't gone to any church in nearly a year, I won't get much out of it.

Sorry, it wasn't meant to be patronising. I wasn't try to say "Mosques are better than Chruches because they don't smell" or anything like that. I was just saying I don't noticied any scents at the Mosque.

It's quite possible we don't notice said smells because we're used to them.If I went to a mosque it would probably smell weird to me.

what types of churches do you go to?

my church doesn't smell.......well, I mean sometimes it smells like food, but only when we are eating there.

None at all any more. But I've been in churches in Germany, Austria, France, Italy, England, Scotland, Ireland and Canada. They've all had this particular church smell.

None at all any more. But I've been in churches in Germany, Austria, France, Italy, England, Scotland, Ireland and Canada. They've all had this particular church smell.

were they all Catholic?

I have noticed Catholic churches have a smell, but most of the protestant churches I have visited did not (lack of incense I suppose)

were they all Catholic?

I have noticed Catholic churches have a smell, but most of the protestant churches I have visited did not (lack of incense I suppose)

No, of course not. Some were Catholic, some were Lutheran, some were CoE, one was Calvinist I think, some of them I don't know what they were.

No, of course not. Some were Catholic, some were Lutheran, some were CoE, one was Calvinist I think, some of them I don't know what they were.

oh, okay.

I think that CoE and Lutherans still use incense though.....

Oh, Churches! They are nice. Particularly if it's hot and the church is made out of stone. Gives me the cool feeling.

I think the smell issue is restricted to Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches, no? A bit funky, yes, but not too bad.

Some subjective observations:

I was Lutheran myself, so you can understand why I'm not religious anymore. Boring as hell. Well, that's not entirely true, cos I'd imagine hell would be a lot more interesting than a Lutheran sermon.

Greek Orthodox takes the cake for me. Not that it is particularly inspiring or anything, but I've had most fun in a Greek Orthodox church. They have this tradition in which the bestman has to keep a crown of sort over the grooms head (some 10 centimeters over, to be precise). We had a bet with my friends how many times the bestman had to change hands to be able to make it through the whole ceremony (it's a long-ass one). I won. That's the most money I have made in a place of worship. Props to G O church. Oh! and the priests rap. Fun.

Mosque... I don't know what was said there, cos I was too busy checking other people's socks - it's easy to do when in the back row (that, plus I didn't understand the language). It's interesting that people have socks with holes in them on when worshipping their god. To me, that seems like wrong.

In synagogue I haven't been during the actual worshipping thingy, but to be honest, it didn't seem like much more inspired place than the others.

Catholic churches... well it might have to do with the locations (St. Paul's and Peter's, La Sagrada Familia and Notre Dame), but it seemed like they have bling-ratio of 11 on a scale of 1 to 10.

Mosque... I don't know what was said there, cos I was too busy checking other people's socks - it's easy to do when in the back row (that, plus I didn't understand the language). It's interesting that people have socks with holes in them on when worshipping their god. To me, that seems like wrong.
Your problem with Islam is their socks?

I got back from Friday prayer at the Mosque recently(which was really great btw) and I had question for you guys.

For the people of faith: how often do you go to your house of worship and also have you ever been in a place of worship other than your own(i.e. a Christian going into a temple) and how did you feel abou it? Were you comfortable or did you feel out of place.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

I don't give any special thoughts or anything to houses of worship. Man cannot contain God in a building. He is everywhere, in everything. So why do we think that we can only feel Him in Church/Synagogue/mosque/temple etc???

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

Well, I've been in mosques and churches, since I have family in both. Each time, however, I wanted to beat someone to death with their own limb. Everything seemed so irrational and pointless in there, it made me want to scream.

Went to a Baptist church with a friend. Got pretty pissed off and walked out halfway through the sermon. Didn't feel much of the love of God at all, to be honest - just a lot of the hate of Man.

Your problem with Islam is their socks?
Yep. My problem with the whole fucking world of Islam is the FACT they ALL have dodgy socks. You got it.

Yep. My problem with the whole fucking world of Islam is the FACT they ALL have dodgy socks. You got it.

That's one of the better reasons I've seen.

I got back from Friday prayer at the Mosque recently(which was really great btw) and I had question for you guys.

For the people of faith: how often do you go to your house of worship and also have you ever been in a place of worship other than your own(i.e. a Christian going into a temple) and how did you feel abou it? Were you comfortable or did you feel out of place.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?
Everytime I step into a place of worship I get scared out of my mind by all the religious symbols everywhere. Scary places, they are. I avoid them as much as I can.

That's one of the better reasons I've seen.If only it was true... the most elaborate socks I've ever seen...
But I've only visited Mosque for 2 times... there might be bad socks as well. Evil socks, if you want. Posing as religious socks among the good socks. That's not right!

I saw the baby jesus manger in Rome. It was made of wood. Real mangers are usually made of stone.

Sums up the whole thing really.

I have. And I remember a distinct feeling of absolute boredom for most of the time.

for me it was all the time when i was force to go by one of my grandmothers

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

I have been in a church a few times (went to a Christian high school so went to a church for part of grad and a few other times) but that was pretty meaningless since everybody sat with friends and cracked jokes. I remember going to a church on Christmas eve as a child. I sat in the front row and tried to blow out the candles.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?Yes I have, and no I didn't get anything out of it. I was quite bored actually.

The universe is my house of worship, and I feel quite uncomfortable there.

Fortunately, I don't need to go very often, only every fifth Multiversal Trimester or so. (yes, the Multiversal Year is divided into Multiversal Trimesters, which in turn are divided into Multiversal Months, Weeks, Days, Hours, Seconds, etc.).

My place of "worship" is anywhere I happen to be at the time :) though I do have a buddha atop my pc (the fat laughing one because he makes me smile). For me worship isn't really the right word.

I've been in many Churches as I was brought up Catholic. Never seen a Synagogue or the inside of a Temple or Mosque. I would love to visit some though.

My place of "worship" is anywhere I happen to be at the time :) though I do have a buddha atop my pc (the fat laughing one because he makes me smile). For me worship isn't really the right word.

I've been in many Churches as I was brought up Catholic. Never seen a Synagogue or the inside of a Temple or Mosque. I would love to visit some though.
Ah! The Shrine of Buddha et al... I thought I wrote an exhaustive post, and for got the eastern religions alltogether.

MORE subjective notions;

In the East, you can drink booze in a shrine/holy place. This is most welcomed.

For the people of faith: how often do you go to your house of worship

My house IS my house of worship. I have an altar at home.

and also have you ever been in a place of worship other than your own(i.e. a Christian going into a temple) and how did you feel abou it? Were you comfortable or did you feel out of place.

Been to mosques, churches, gurudwaras, synagogue (just one in Kerala), and Buddhist monasteries. Brought up in Christian, Muslim and Hindu missionary schools.

I don't feel like I am somewhere I am not supposed to be, because I think that God is one although religions may be many.

I don't feel like I am somewhere I am not supposed to be, because I think that God is one although religions may be many.I so agree. If God is, he won't mind. "swanky shrine there Abdullah"

Christian, never go to church.

Would like to visit a mosque sometime, though. Mosques are beautiful. Islamic architecture has always fascinated me.

I got back from Friday prayer at the Mosque recently(which was really great btw) and I had question for you guys.

For the people of faith: how often do you go to your house of worship and also have you ever been in a place of worship other than your own(i.e. a Christian going into a temple) and how did you feel abou it? Were you comfortable or did you feel out of place.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

I went to Catholic school for six years when I was a child, which involved going to mass two or three times a week. What I mostly felt then was extreme boredom, peppered with frustration at the fact that we always seemed to sing the same stupid crappy songs.

As an adult, I've been to more churches, synagogues, and mosques than I can count. It is rarely a religious experience, but not an unpleasant one. I can think of only a very few occasions on which I have been made to feel in any way unwelcome - generally, I've encountered very much the opposite. I've literally had almost this exact conversation on four separate occasions:

Them: You should join our church choir! We would love to have you!
Me: But...you know I'm not actually a member of your denomination, right?
Them: Yup! You should still join our choir! Also we have cookies! Let us give you cookies!

Whether this is a testament to my singing, their hospitality, or both, I don't know, but it's rather nice either way. :)

The only "church" I ever regularly went to for actual prayer-related purposes was my college's nondenominational chapel, which was a very large, very beautiful, very peaceful building where I would often go sit by myself and think or sing. I find a lot more of God in quiet, empty spaces than I ever do in crowds.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it?

Of course, and almost every time.

For the people of faith: how often do you go to your house of worship


The only thing I consider my "house of worship" is my house. I'm there everyday.


and also have you ever been in a place of worship other than your own(i.e. a Christian going into a temple)


I've been in Churches from most, if not all of the major Christian denominations or sects. Plus places of worship with Jews, Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus.

I think that covers where I've been, I'd have to think if there's anything missing.
Oh, "pagans" too.


and how did you feel abou it? Were you comfortable or did you feel out of place.


Comfortable.

My "house" is the theater, and I've had many special moments in them over the years. Most churches are just theaters where the set doesn't change :)

My "house" is the theater, and I've had many special moments in them over the years. Most churches are just theaters where the set doesn't change :)

Art and religion have long been intertwined...

Man cannot contain God in a building. He is everywhere, in everything.

true

So why do we think that we can only feel Him in Church/Synagogue/mosque/temple etc???

I never said that, however for me there is something special about being at the Mosque.

I never said that, however for me there is something special about being at the Mosque.

I would say a building dedicated to God would provide an environment well-suited to experiencing Him. I mean, you're talking an entire structure, that might have cost millions of dollars and years of labor and craftsmanship, that was dedicated solely to glorifying and worshipping God; that's not something to be taken lightly, especially if it's a great mosque or cathedral.

Those structures are something else...absolutely celestial. God can be anywhere, but those places provide a focus that is conducive to experiencing and communicating with Him.

I see some real believers had a direct contact with the Holy Spirit.
Socks are such a great problem we accept donations.

Yes our parishioners are making socks for our Lord (size 11).
Our priests try the sock before the Lord will wear it.
We have to do that in case a sock is not well made with love and devotion.

Socks suck the soul of Jesuites.

Mosque... I don't know what was said there, cos I was too busy checking other people's socks - it's easy to do when in the back row (that, plus I didn't understand the language). It's interesting that people have socks with holes in them on when worshipping their god. To me, that seems like wrong.


Silly, what could be more appropriate than worshipping your god while wearing your most holey socks? :p

*dodges well-deserved blows*

i've been to a variety of churches and temples, and other then the holy roller literalist christer types the're all pretty cool.

i think probably the coolest looking one in the world is the baha'i house of worship in india, the one they call the lotus temple.

baha'is mostly meet in each other's homes and have no priesthood, but they do have one temple on each continent. eventualy there may/will be more.

i'm not currently a practicing fallower of any (earth human) organized beleif.
(the nalanuthu of lananara has elements in common with daoism, buddhism, shinto, indiginous traditions and several others).

my personal belief is that sacredness is found more in nature then in the coerciveness of human society.

nontangable friends certainly can, and probably do exist, but just as probably, it seems to me, that no system of organized belief entirely knows what it's talking about.

=^^=
.../\...

Well, thanks to the invention of web-based image search, description is no longer necessary, as I can simply link to my old church:

http://www.stpaulsirvine.org/html/parishhistoryx.htm

A picture of the building is about halfway down the page. I miss living near there, since it was truly an awesome structure, and elaborately decorated inside, with a wonderfully muralled dome with a tiny glass window at its top, which I used to look through to see the clouds whiz by at apparently high speed. Interesting how fast clouds fly when you narrow your view of them. Nowadays I'm not even sure if my denomination exists in this area, and since I'm never sure how long I'll be here, I haven't kept up.

As for other churches, I've been in dozens of different kinds of Christian churches and two Jewish temples. Some were old and impressive, but most are modest, especially in small towns. Haven't noticed any odd smells.. :p

When I used to observe I went to church. Now... I'm sitting in my house of worship right now.

So responding to the topic as a Pastafarian (our only worship is to dress up like Pirates, and I sure as hell get something out of that)

I have been through quite a few years of religious education via the Unitarian Universalists (my mother is one) and I have to agree that mostly I experienced boredom while there. But I wish to convey my respect for the UUs system. In their youth program they teach about UU values when the kids are younger, and in high school there is a very comprehensive religious education programme. Through this program I have visited the respective places of worship for a variety of Christain denominations, Musilm, Jewish, Siekh (spelling), and Buddhist groups, as well as spoken with individuals who prescribe to a variety of less common beliefs (Hindu, Taoist, Pagan, etc). I feel that I did get something out of this. For one thing the view of these religions presented by the UUs was always very supportive of the religion, so while I have had public school teachers who allowed thier personal beliefs to tinge thier view of history, the UUs were more interested in learning about a religion not only from a historical standpoint, but also from the view of how does that religion want to be known. I think that my favorite places of worship were the Baptists (a huge 30 year old basketball player was the preacher, the singing was great, they were AMAZINGLY freindly, and some people started writhing on the floor with the holy spirit) and the Mosque, because they were also AMAZINGLY welcoming and gave us a bunch of tasty food, even though they did not eat any.

I think that everyone, no matter if you feel you have the true path to God/Allah/enlightenment figured out, should attend other's places of worship with open eyes. Empathy is what we need.

I got back from Friday prayer at the Mosque recently(which was really great btw) and I had question for you guys.

For the people of faith: how often do you go to your house of worship and also have you ever been in a place of worship other than your own(i.e. a Christian going into a temple) and how did you feel abou it? Were you comfortable or did you feel out of place.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?Special places of worship or rituals are only for those who have no real connexion with their gods. Just like belief is for those who no god talks to.

I got back from Friday prayer at the Mosque recently(which was really great btw) and I had question for you guys.

For the people of faith: how often do you go to your house of worship and also have you ever been in a place of worship other than your own(i.e. a Christian going into a temple) and how did you feel abou it? Were you comfortable or did you feel out of place.
I go to Mass every Sunday.

I have been in a synagogue and a mosque. The former was quite small and quaint, almost. The latter was quite grandiose. All the Muslims and Jews were quite welcoming and I felt confortable in there. Except for the requirement to divide men from women.

[QUOTE=Cameroi;12093369]

my personal belief is that sacredness is found more in nature then in the coerciveness of human society.

nontangable friends certainly can, and probably do exist, but just as probably, it seems to me, that no system of organized belief entirely knows what it's talking about.]

Well put. I would add to this by saying that the belief in imaginary friends is in prophets evidence of mental illness (or a subtle temporal power grab), and in brainwashed believers (usually indoctrinated as children before their critical faculties have had chance to develop), a sign of gullibility and naivety.
As far as an explanation of religion as a human phenomenon is warranted, here is the logical one -
1. All mortal animals are doomed to die.
2. Of those animals (on this planet at least), only humans have the intelligence to appreciate that fact.
3. Interestingly, only humans have religions telling that AFTER death, we DON'T die.
4. And to deal with the vagaries of chance and the sufferings of a relatively unsophisticated world, these religions also put the matter of those sufferings onto another with responsibility for them, and provide through the organisations various social punishments, rules, rewards, justifications etc for conformity in the believer.

Religion is truly a crutch for the ignorant and weak-minded.
DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE! :)

Out of all the religious institutions I visited. I must say Orthodox and Catholic christian churches hold the most wonders for me.

For example in the Roman Catholic Cathedral I visited, it was filled with carvings, majestic purple silk, marble flooring and pillars, very elegant wooden benches, and lots of golden lining everywhere. Also the bishop and all his paraphernalia had lots of gold, his ring had a giant ruby. The roof was gigantic and high up and complexly decorated. Then when there is no mass, there is a queit Gregorian chant playing in the background, and also the curious and pleasent smells (I presume they come from the candles on lights in the small side altars). Overall I got a very humbled feeling in the building.

Out of all the religious institutions I visited. I must say Orthodox and Catholic christian churches hold the most wonders for me.

For example in the Roman Catholic Cathedral I visited, it was filled with carvings, majestic purple silk, marble flooring and pillars, very elegant wooden benches, and lots of golden lining everywhere. Also the bishop and all his paraphernalia had lots of gold, his ring had a giant ruby. The roof was gigantic and high up and complexly decorated. Then when there is no mass, there is a queit Gregorian chant playing in the background, and also the curious and pleasent smells (I presume they come from the candles on lights in the small side altars). Overall I got a very humbled feeling in the building.Which church building was this?

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

Yes, but not in at least 3 years. And no, not really.

Hmmm. Last night I went to a Christmas festival at some church camp with my family. All I got was pissed off, though that was probably my mom being downright annoying.

Other than that, I got nothin'. :cool:

my parents used to take me to church every sunday. now i just feel a bit ill if i go to church. i've been to the local mosque when they had their 'discover islam' exhibition, it was interesting.

my parents used to take me to church every sunday. now i just feel a bit ill if i go to church. i've been to the local mosque when they had their 'discover islam' exhibition, it was interesting.

The Christian recruit method is wayyy trite. For kids it's basically a youth pastor with a Bible asking for money to send to Alberta, Canada to build a church for all teh ebil atheists.

If I step inside a church, I'm afraid that I will get kicked out almost as soon as I open my mouth.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

I have been to chruches, synagogues and a mosque, and all I found was an overwelming feeling of boredom. And in one of the churches an experience that greatly intensified my dislike of christianity.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

I enjoy old religious buildings for their architecture and sense of history, ut apart from that, nope.
Durham cathedral has some fantastic drum pillars.
http://static.flickr.com/84/225152073_f99e2adb0d.jpg
The engineering is amazing.

For people w/o faith: Have you ever been in any house of worship and if so did you get anything out of it? Such feeling more calm or at peace or anything like that?

I went to the vatican. When I tried to enter it the building started to tremble, so I decided against it.

Seriously though, I have been in many churches (both during and outside services), several mosques, seen several pagan "altars", one Buddhist temple and sofar no synagogue.

While they are often pretty, I did not feel any presence of a higher power.

Never been in a synagogue or mosque, but church have some nice archecture and are good for singing in, apart from that, not much else, despite having gone to a catholic church for the first 18 years of my life.