Campy Religions

Once upon a time, I enjoyed camping.
The fresh mountain air, the warmth and smell of a raging campfire, and the clear night sky illuminated with endless twinkling stars.

Then I joined the army and was forced to go on weeks of outdoor "field" exercises where we were exposed to the harsh elements.

I've never been colder, wetter, hotter, dirtier, or generally more miserable in my entire life.

Camping has thus been ruined for me.

Given the choice between comfort and camping, I'll choose the former from now on.

Religion, it would seem, has suffered the same fate. Now that I've voluntarily excused myself from further participation in the LDS church, I just have no interest in seeking out another church to attend. I no longer see the point in it.

For years, I've resented Sundays because of all the meetings I was expected to attend. It's been years since I found anything resembling joy at church, which may be why it was so easy to up and leave once I discovered it was all just a colossal fraud anyway.

I've discovered a newfound freedom on Sundays, now that I know I don't HAVE to go to another Sacrament meeting, ESPECIALLY those lousy fast and testimony meetings where I have to sit there and listen to people whine and cry about the trials they have in their lives. (Hello! We've all got problems. Get over it and move on with your damn life!) Oh, and now that I've sufficiently detached myself from all the brainwashing techniques, all the lies and bullshit have become blatantly apparant. I mean, come on "I KNOW the church is true." Give me a damn break. Unless God or Jesus personally appeared to you and told you that, you don't KNOW it. You BELIEVE it to be true, or you WANT it to be true, but that doesn't make it so.

I've given some thought to testing out some local Christian churches in my area, but I just don't want to get sucked into something else. Do I need church (i.e. organized religion) and all its related legalism in my life? Not really. I can get by just fine without it.

But I guess if Jesus ever dropped by the house with a sleeping bag tucked under one arm and a package of marshmallows in the other and invited me to go camping with him, I'd go.

I'll just bet He likes s'mores.