Mike Dulak grew up Catholic in Southern California, but by his teen years, he began skipping Mass and driving straight to the shore to play guitar, watch the waves and enjoy the beauty of the morning. “And it felt more spiritual than any time I set foot in a church,” he recalled.

Nothing has changed that view in the ensuing decades.

“Most religions are there to control people and get money from them,” said Dulak, now 76, of Rocheport, Missouri. He also cited sex abuse scandals in Catholic and Southern Baptist churches. “I can’t buy into that,” he said.

  • @[email protected]
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    2 years ago

    I’m telling you from experience that their “community” is fake. The people are fake. Under the fake stuff that looks nice on the outside is a deep culture of judgment and shame and fear. It’s not any community I would ever want. Like family get together for family’s that hate each other but they fake it.

    To those who will try to tell me “well not ME or MY church.” I don’t care and I don’t believe you. I have been harmed too much too consistently by these groups.

    • @[email protected]
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      82 years ago

      There are for sure exceptions to this. But by and large this is absolutely spot on in my experience. It feels like getting together with paid actors that are hired to be your friend or sell you sometime in the end sometimes.

    • @[email protected]
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      22 years ago

      Under the fake stuff that looks nice on the outside is a deep culture of judgment and shame and fear.

      Funny, that’s what Christianity seems to be mostly about anyway.

      • Flax
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        11 year ago

        Not really. Only God has a right to judge us.

    • @[email protected]
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      02 years ago

      Yeah I guess there’s an inherent danger with a community where going against groupthink is a sin

      • @[email protected]
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        02 years ago

        Like posting an unpopular opinion on Reddit or Lemmy. You’ll get down voted to hell if your opinion differs from the majority in that sub.