[Lady Valkyrie]

Early in my spiritual walk with The Divine I thought that it was a "sin" not to go to church. As my hypocritical grandma told me "The Bible states do not forsake the assembing of yourselves." I was a slave to this thinking. If I was sick and couldn't go I had people tell me, "What better place to be when sick... in the house of God!" When I didn't go I felt so very guilty.

Later in my spiritual walk I come to learn the truth. Going to church doen't make you no more of a "christian" than bathing in a muddle puddle is going to get you clean. I learned that going to church is merely to fellowship with other believers and worship the Divine together in one accord. But even this can be done in a home. It doesn't have to be done in a "church building".

I have chosen to stay away from churches for a while. Certain situations in my life right now, even though are pure, on the surface may look to the conservative christian as sinful. And today Christians are more likely to ridicule, tar and feather and burn at the stake people like me before they actually got the full truth of the situation. Therefore I choose to save myself and my children the hassle of being haggled by a church.

Someday soon I'll go back to fellowshipping with other believers within a church building, but for now I do my worshipping at home with my family.