I understand Marjorie’s decision & her reasons for leaving the Church. She is rightly outraged by the corruption. But I still disagree with her decision. I urge those who share her concerns not to leave but stay & fight for Christ’s Bride to be purified. https://t.co/41tB7Ej90a — Bishop J. Strickland (@Bishopoftyler) May 5, 2022
I wouldn't criticize the Catholic Church. I know its history very well, many priests are friends, their scholars and Christian apologists are some of the best in the world. Furthermore, I'm aware of the problems and, for me, the assorted tainted leaders, are only a part of it.
I'm always a bit sad when someone leaves a church because of the church people. I too, face a similar decision. So, I do understand people leaving a fellowship. The thing that comes up is, do I stay and fight for what I believe is right? Or, do I move on to where I believe I may be better served?
The first person to drag me into a Church and make it stick was Tom Purdue & his lovely wife Barbara. I had been "Christian" for well over a decade by then, so it wasn't my aversion to religion. I had tried and failed to become Catholic. I know, huh? How do you fail at that? Ask too many Bible questions the priest can't answer satisfactorily and hold up class for a couple of weeks?
I have always wanted fellowship with fellow Christians, but always found an excuse. I had found a spiritual fellowship outside of churches. It's how I met Tom and Barbara!
Tom and I were alone one day, I think I was along for a ride to one of his service calls. He was a great plumber. I was a helicopter mechanic at the time (hydraulic systems on aircraft are plumbing) so I wasn't useless. Then he started in on me again. He was good!
He saw the "hypocrites" coming before I said it. He looked sideways and said, "If you think we're all hypocrites, you can still come. There's always room for one more.". I think he saw my shoulders slump, beginning to surrender, he knew me pretty well, so, he went in for the kill. He said, "It isn't bad, Norm, think of it as a hospital for the spiritually ill." His glance at me silently said, "You know we both need THAT!" I nodded.
My job required me to be out of the country for long periods. After many months out of country, I received a letter from the church that was beyond painful. I had consulted with the pastor and leaders about some family problems. They worked hard to help me get my issues resolved. Ultimately, even Congress failed, me. My employer was the government, and my skill sets were simply too valuable. Helicopters were only one of my skill sets. They needed me where they wanted me, straight away, there would be no delays to resolve family issues.
I did continue to support that church, even being out of the country. I was on their mailing list. A letter from that church invited me and my family, which they intimately knew I had lost due to my abrupt change of work locations, to some special church function. I cried.
It wasn't that I had lost my family that hurt so terribly. That was extremely painful, certainly. I understood that loss. I even believed their happiness was probably better served with the course that had been chosen. But it did slaughter me that that church would send such a horrible reminder to me. Had they not fought weeks to help me with my family issues?
Hurt, I stopped supporting that Church, and never went back. I knew that letter wasn't intended to hurt me. We don't always make wise decisions. Our emotions are too often our own worst enemy.
I tried to become Catholic again at some point. I made it further in the adult indoctrination classes. I have forgotten the appropriate name of the classes. I was politely asked to find answers outside of classes. Hey... if they want me to make that kind of commitment, vow to the rules of some book I haven't read... I failed again. If you're born Catholic, you have a much easier road to hoe.
So I've been a Christian without pure Christian fellowship most of my life. You won't meet many of my friends who don't know I'm a Christian. I've probably nagged all of them at one point, if they were not Christian. I've even been invited to speak at religious events! Asked to teach classes...
To answer my own question, I stayed and fought for the fellowship where I met Tom. Even helped start a parallel fellowship in Mexico and Germany, without the corruption. Ultimately, too many of the friends among us "fighters" were sued, jailed, or both, all on invalid claims. I escaped the wrath of the corrupt.
I knew from my days studying law that justice through the law is mostly a bad joke. The best lawyer wins. The best lawyer can ask for as much money as they please. Those who can pay for the best lawyers win. From time to time a real justice will break through and everyone applauds. They rarely hear the big win was overturned on appeal. Horribly hopeless attitude, but simply learn one law, the constitution, then follow a few important legal battles. See who wins. I would only ask you which side had the better lawyer(s)? Who threw more money at the lawsuit?
So, against my mother's persistent advice that "You can't fight City Hall" I always did. I think she had the better philosophy. Her philosophy was, "I'm a squeaky wheel." After a while, if my mother called 'city hall' they said, "Yes ma'am, well have someone out there tomorrow." They knew it was a losing battle. Just oil the squeaky wheel.
The reason I did fight when I did was because I had become an insider. I wasn't just a member any longer. I had become a leader, someone people looked up to. I had a responsibility to be the good example expected of me, not because I must, because it was the right thing to do. At some point I had been the image in their mind, however briefly, that said, I can do that. I can be that! I owed it to those people, from love, not from duty. So when I failed, it was not for lack of effort.
Marjorie Taylor Greene is not a leader in the Catholic Church. I understand the reasons she left the Church. I applaud her sacrifice of having to leave a fellowship that was a big part of her life for the sake of her children. But today, Marjorie is a bigger than life, leader. Her revealing her decision now, is more than a simple statement. She did not stay and fight. But ultimately, when she was "safe", she attacked with a missile. It was still effective. There are rare but caring opportunities. Like a refuge who wrote a popular book about the nightmare they escaped, to shine light on the darkness.
So what do you do if your fellowship is corrupt? I've broadened the idea from church to fellowship as the same principle applies to Lion's Clubs, to Rotary Clubs, to Book Clubs. When they go sour, what should we do?
If YOU matter a lot to them, fighting may make changes quick if you succeed. What if you aren't important to them? What if you're the shadow on the wall or the person in the back pew no one says hello to, but you still love the fellowship?
I have some answers. One, you already thought of... Leave, find better companionship or support. Become a popular positive influence to millions and then bomb them? Be like my mother, an annoying squeaky wheel?
A final warning. People hate a squeaky wheel. It's why they get the oil. From my observations, folks grow fond of taking care of routine tasks, like oiling squeaking wheels. They stop seeing them as something annoying, they begin to appreciate the value of the wheel itself, not the noise it makes. Only you can decide if you will be a light on the hill, or a candle in the darkness.
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