Have You Ever Changed From One Faith Group to Another?

[SpiritSong]

(If this goes in some other place on these forums, please forgive me and move it there!)

I'm wondering what it is like when one moves to another faith group or church? Have you ever done it and how did it go? Were there any bad repercussions from the church you were leaving? Did the new church welcome you with open arms??

In my case, I want to return to my original faith, now that I can get a ride there from someone I know who is reliable. (I don't drive and buses do not run on weekends). Before, when I was church "shopping" (when I first moved here) it was not possible to get a ride there. It was too far for me to walk there.

I am currently visiting this nice church of loving people. The problem is, I feel it would be better for me to be in this original faith I was in when I first became a Christian. I have visited it several times now and it is a wonderful church. I learn so much more there! The pastor uses so much more Scripture in his sermons than the pastor does at the church I am attending.

If you have never switched to another faith, tell me what you think of all this anyway. And if you have switched faiths, I really want to know how it went.

 

[Mary Meg]

Watching...

It's a possibility I might make a journey from where I am someday...

 

[HTacianas]

(If this goes in some other place on these forums, please forgive me and move it there!)

I'm wondering what it is like when one moves to another faith group or church? Have you ever done it and how did it go? Were there any bad repercussions from the church you were leaving? Did the new church welcome you with open arms??

In my case, I want to return to my original faith, now that I can get a ride there from someone I know who is reliable. (I don't drive and buses do not run on weekends). Before, when I was church "shopping" (when I first moved here) it was not possible to get a ride there. It was too far for me to walk there.

I am currently visiting this nice church of loving people. The problem is, I feel it would be better for me to be in this original faith I was in when I first became a Christian. I have visited it several times now and it is a wonderful church. I learn so much more there! The pastor uses so much more Scripture in his sermons than the pastor does at the church I am attending.

If you have never switched to another faith, tell me what you think of all this anyway. And if you have switched faiths, I really want to know how it went.

I went from being baptized in a Southern Baptist church to being a non Church member for a number of years. After returning to Christianity and a number of years of study I rejected the protestantism of my youth in favor of the Orthodox Church.

I left my hometown years and years ago and have no real contact with anyone from there so it has never come up. My family is still nominally protestant but none attend church at all. The subject never comes up with them either. Though I did overhear my mother tell her sister once that i am "a Christian. He's Greek Orthodox". Not that either of them would know any real difference.

 

[Apologetic_Warrior]

(If this goes in some other place on these forums, please forgive me and move it there!)

I'm wondering what it is like when one moves to another faith group or church? Have you ever done it and how did it go? Were there any bad repercussions from the church you were leaving? Did the new church welcome you with open arms??

In my case, I want to return to my original faith, now that I can get a ride there from someone I know who is reliable. (I don't drive and buses do not run on weekends). Before, when I was church "shopping" (when I first moved here) it was not possible to get a ride there. It was too far for me to walk there.

I am currently visiting this nice church of loving people. The problem is, I feel it would be better for me to be in this original faith I was in when I first became a Christian. I have visited it several times now and it is a wonderful church. I learn so much more there! The pastor uses so much more Scripture in his sermons than the pastor does at the church I am attending.

If you have never switched to another faith, tell me what you think of all this anyway. And if you have switched faiths, I really want to know how it went.

A few thoughts...one need not switch particular faith groups to switch Churches or denominations. I've only changed faith groups once in my life, from Assembly of God to Presbyterian, and this was a major change that did not happen overnight, and involved a great extent of struggles. But so far as Churches go, so long as the leaders do not teach/preach anti-Calvinism, I am okay with differences. I suppose Soteriology is a theologically sensitive spot, and while differences are welcome, mutual respect is always important. One cannot disrespect and love two Christian theologies at the same time, love respects even where there is disagreement. I've found the repercussions of being a Calvinist, to be much more severe than as a Wesleyan, but it is what is, we are who we are, we can only be who God has called us to be. May the Lord guide, help, and comfort you through the struggles, may He calm the storms as they come in your life. Soli Deo Gloria!

 

[JAM2b]

I grew up attending a church that strongly discouraged us from looking into other denominations or participating in any of their activities, even other churches in our own denomination that some of the leadership didn't approve of. We were taught to be fearful of being lead astray.

After I grew up, I've found that by exploring other denominations I have learned a lot about church and a lot about God, who He is, and who He isn't.

Only seeing and hearing one view or only the parts that a particular denomination focuses on is very limiting to our understanding. Everywhere I have gone I've learned and grown and become stronger for one reason or another. Sometimes I've learned that some of the original teaching I had was wrong, misrepresented, or misapplied, and gained an understanding of why. Sometimes I've learned that some of the things others believe and teach are faulty, and gained an understanding of why. I've learned a lot about people and about religion as an institution.

It all boils down to there is one God who is extremely complex, more than we can imagine or begin to understand. People are weak and easily distracted and tend to be narrow minded and very prideful. I would encourage everyone of sound mind and solid faith to explore other denominations and don't be afraid to learn something.

There was a missionary I heard speak once who told about how communisn had taken over her home country, and all of the churches in her town were seized. All the Christians were given one building, and they all had to share it. The ministers and leaders of the different denominations met together and decided to focus only on what they all agree on and loving all the people. Christianity was strengthened and grew greatly there.

 

[Soyeong]

(If this goes in some other place on these forums, please forgive me and move it there!)

I'm wondering what it is like when one moves to another faith group or church? Have you ever done it and how did it go? Were there any bad repercussions from the church you were leaving? Did the new church welcome you with open arms??

In my case, I want to return to my original faith, now that I can get a ride there from someone I know who is reliable. (I don't drive and buses do not run on weekends). Before, when I was church "shopping" (when I first moved here) it was not possible to get a ride there. It was too far for me to walk there.

I am currently visiting this nice church of loving people. The problem is, I feel it would be better for me to be in this original faith I was in when I first became a Christian. I have visited it several times now and it is a wonderful church. I learn so much more there! The pastor uses so much more Scripture in his sermons than the pastor does at the church I am attending.

If you have never switched to another faith, tell me what you think of all this anyway. And if you have switched faiths, I really want to know how it went.

I grew up attending a Baptist church. About 10 years ago, I started studying the Jewish cultural and historical context of the Bible and eventually I was compelled to come to the conclusion that the view of God's Law that I had been taught was wrong. For instance, the Psalms express an extremely positive view of God's Law, such with David repeatedly saying that he loved God's Law and delighted in obeying it, yet I realized that I held a negative view of God's Law in spite of the fact that I considered the Psalms to be Scripture and everything in them to be true. In Romans 7:22, Paul also delighted in obeying God's Law, so he was on the same page as David, yet I was not, and that needed to change. For example:

Psalm 1:1-2 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.

I had memorized these verses growing up and I'm sure the same is true for many other Christians, however, most Christians would rather argue against obeying the Mosaic Law and consider meditating on it day and night to be legalism than to enjoy the blessing of delighting in it as it was intended. Likewise, there aren't many who agree with the view expressed Psalms 19 or in Psalms 119. Jesus came to bring fullness to Judaism as its Jewish Messiah in fulfillment of Jewish prophecy and he practiced Judaism by sinlessly keeping its Law, so it now seems strange to me that so many Christians want to follow him while not wanting to follow his example of obedience to the Mosaic Law and want to be made to be more like him while at the same time wanting nothing to do with what he was like. They ask WWJD?, but don't consider that he would obey the Mosaic Law and teach others to do the same. It is bizarre that it is even in question whether followers of God should follow the instructions that He gave to His followers for how to follow Him.

In any case, there is a quite a bit of depth of understand that can be gained through studying the Bible within the framework of its Jewish context, so I highly recommend that even if you don't reach the same conclusions about the Law that I did.

My parents had attended that Baptist church for about 30 years and held many leadership roles, including my dad being the head elder. For about a year they were attending both my the Messianic synagogue on Saturdays and the Baptist church on Sundays until they felt convicted to act upon what they were learning and officially switched congregations. They met with the church leadership to explain why they were leaving and on their last Sunday there they were prayed for in front of the congregation and left with their blessing. In my opinion, that is the right way to handle someone leaving their church. Some people understood their reasons, while others did not, and we and some even visited the Messianic congregation, though we regrettably had a close family friend who thought that they needed to break off contact with us, which hurt, especially because my uncle's family is still good friend's with them. My mom continued to meet with her same prayer group once as week.

 

[PloverWing]

I'm wondering what it is like when one moves to another faith group or church? Have you ever done it and how did it go? Were there any bad repercussions from the church you were leaving? Did the new church welcome you with open arms??

I grew up Southern Baptist, and I went to a Christian K-12 school that was sponsored by a nondenominational church. I grew up believing in the inerrancy of the Bible and in young-earth creationism; those beliefs did not survive my college education. I also grew up with a very individualistic focus to my spiritual life: the importance of one's individual commitment to Christ, and on individually seeking out truth by studying the Bible for one's self. (I still retain some of this individualism; it's not a completely bad thing.)

I went to an Evangelical Christian liberal arts college (Wheaton College, Illinois) for my bachelor's degree. I was a math major, but I took lots of elective courses in Bible and theology subjects. By the time I had finished studying the Bible as closely as my college courses demanded, I could no longer see the Bible as words dictated inerrantly by God; I saw too many signs of fallible human authorship in the text. This was very, very disturbing to me, because I had been taught that if the Bible is not perfectly inerrant, then it is entirely false, and Christianity is false -- and I still wanted to be a Christian! I went through a very dark couple of years. But I was also taking a series of courses in historical theology, which traced the development of Christian belief from the apostolic times and the church Fathers through to the medieval, Reformation, and modern theologians. By the end of that, I could see that Christian theology had developed in a gradual, sensible, understandable way through the centuries, and that process was something I could ground my Christian beliefs in.

As I emerged from that dark time and found a path that would still allow me to be Christian, I looked for a church that was rooted in history and tradition, but that was also open to intellectual inquiry and uncomfortable questions. After exploring a dozen or so different kinds of churches, I found my home in the Episcopal church, and was confirmed there in my mid-20s.

Some of my Baptist friends supported me, and several came to my confirmation. Others of my Baptist friends thought I was moving farther from God. My mother cried, a lot. My father was supportive; his own journey as a young adult was from Congregationalist to agnostic to Baptist, and I think he had more appreciation of the variety of Christian experience than my mom did.

My husband is Southern Baptist. He sees many good things in the Episcopal tradition, and I still see many good things in the Baptist tradition, so there's enough mutual respect there to make for a harmonious marriage, even though we don't agree about everything. It helps that neither the Southern Baptists nor the Episcopalians view themselves as the one-and-only-true-church; we can happily coexist side by side, with our strengths and weaknesses, different limbs in the body of Christ.

 

[Resha Caner]

I'm wondering what it is like when one moves to another faith group or church? Have you ever done it and how did it go? Were there any bad repercussions from the church you were leaving? Did the new church welcome you with open arms??

Yes, I've done that. I had a bit of an attitude from a very young age (my dad loves to tell stories). So, I only went to church under protest, and planned to leave as soon as I was out from under my dad's control.

My older sister objected to specific things about the United Methodist church we attended, and it finally came to a head such that we switched to a Lutheran (LCMS) church. I was only 12 at the time, but I don't recall any backlash from the church we left. The new church was very open and friendly. My best friend came from that church.

There were some odd consequences, though. My dad remained a huge influence on my life, and his views were very much in line with the frontier churches - that odd combination of Reformed theology and the Great Awakening. It took both he and I decades to fully absorb what the LCMS was saying and why it was different from that first church.

Further, that first switch didn't convince me. I still intended to leave. When I went to college I attended an LCMS church to keep my dad happy, but also experimented with other churches: Evangelical, Baptist, Catholic, etc. I had de facto joined an evangelical church, and it wasn't until I entered grad school that I changed course and headed back to the Lutheran church.

The social activism of the evangelicals is what appealed to me and kept me there, and it's still something that grates on me about Lutherans. However, what finally drove me away from evangelicalism was it's near cult status - very, very controlling. My radical individualism of that time simply couldn't abide such a thing. That time there was a definite backlash. Though not official, there was an air of excommunication. I had some very good friends at the evangelical church as well, an interestingly enough, they left with me. I didn't try to directly influence them, but I do wonder.

 

[Dave-W]

Have you ever done it and how did it go? Were there any bad repercussions from the church you were leaving? Did the new church welcome you with open arms??

Yes I did it. It was a slow transition during the 1990s, from traditional Wesleyan based Charismatic Pentecostalism to Messianic Judaism.

It was a Spirit-led transition that included taking classes in traditional Judaism (which made the gospel stories really POP btw)

The more we incorporated Messianic thought and practice, the more uncomfortable our congregation became for us. That ended in 1998 when we moved from Michigan to Maryland and joined a Messianic congregation. Yes we were made very welcome.

 

[Albion]

I'm wondering what it is like when one moves to another faith group or church? Have you ever done it and how did it go? Were there any bad repercussions from the church you were leaving? Did the new church welcome you with open arms??

A majority of people have done so. Most of the time, they are received with open arms by the new church because, after all, who wouldn't be happy to see a new convert/member joining in?

In my case, I want to return to my original faith, now that I can get a ride there from someone I know who is reliable. .

even moreso!

 

[A Realist]

Yes, from Methodist to Disciples of Christ to Independent Fundamental Baptist (boy, that was a mistake) to Southern Baptist back to Methodist and now just a plain old Christian with no ties to any group.

Repercussions? Pfffftttt.....what are they going to do to me?

 

[mama2one]

following

 

[Not David]

Yeah, from Evangelical to Orthodox. Most of my friends and family think I am crazy, but the Orthodox treat me well. I do what I do for the Holy Church of Christ.

 

[seeking.IAM]

I felt convicted to leave a mainline Protestant denomination. I was warmly received and accepted by my new church. I think in this day when so many are turning away from the church, most churches will be very welcoming to new members. Transition was tough for me. I felt guilty for leaving a church where I had been a member for over 20 years. And then there was the sadness that most of my former church friends just let me slip away once I began attending elsewhere. I remained in touch with only one couple. Neither the clergy or 99% of the members bothered to pick up the phone and ask about me, why I left, etc. It would not have made any difference if they had, but it left me feeling that they didn't really care about me one way or another. The experience caused me to redefine relationships among fellow church members. Brothers and sisters in Christ, yes. "Friends" not so much.

 

[FenderTL5]

I was raised Independent Baptist and shifted into the Southern Baptist Church as an adult.
I was Chrismated into the Orthodox Church in 2015. The Orthodox have been extremely welcoming. There's been very little negativity from members of my former church. My dad has been supportive but my mom much less so. She came to our Greek Festival but absolutely refuses to enter the church itself, even for a tour/look outside of the services.

 

[Knee V]

From generic non-denominational to Reformed, to attending a Catholic parish with the intent to convert (although I went another direction before I was received into the Catholic Church), to Orthodox.

 

[Yarddog]

(If this goes in some other place on these forums, please forgive me and move it there!)

I'm wondering what it is like when one moves to another faith group or church? Have you ever done it and how did it go? Were there any bad repercussions from the church you were leaving? Did the new church welcome you with open arms??

In my case, I want to return to my original faith, now that I can get a ride there from someone I know who is reliable. (I don't drive and buses do not run on weekends). Before, when I was church "shopping" (when I first moved here) it was not possible to get a ride there. It was too far for me to walk there.

I am currently visiting this nice church of loving people. The problem is, I feel it would be better for me to be in this original faith I was in when I first became a Christian. I have visited it several times now and it is a wonderful church. I learn so much more there! The pastor uses so much more Scripture in his sermons than the pastor does at the church I am attending.

If you have never switched to another faith, tell me what you think of all this anyway. And if you have switched faiths, I really want to know how it went.

I was raised as a Southern Baptist but quit, at about the age of 12, because of the fire and brimstone style of preaching of the new pastor. I later began listening to some TV evangelists and joined the 700 Club.

After an ordeal I finally had my ah ha moment and God called me to get baptized and I became a Catholic 36 years ago. Loving life.

 

[Rescued One]

Oh, yes! I was raised without religion! I became a Mormon and stayed a long time. God led me out (they weren't exactly nice, but not as bad as I've heard Scientologists towards ex-Scientologists). I had to try a lot of churches to get things figured out.

 

[Rescued One]

My post disappeared, so I'm trying again. I grew up without religion, but when I was only four a 17-yr.-old German girl taught me to pray in German. She helped me memorize the prayer. Praise God!

Well, I wondered about different churches, became a Mormon and that entrapped me for several years until I realized how fruitless it was to stay in a place I truly disagreed with, and began to pray and read my Bible. When I left, the Bishop yelled at me, they excommunicated me, and sent me a letter telling me to repent (my "sin" was wanting to disassociate myself from the religion). I didn't know which church to try so I tried several (some were friendly, some ignored visitors).

God is so good and keeps teaching me. I don't have transportation to church.



Now I see my post above this one.

 

[Happygal]

(If this goes in some other place on these forums, please forgive me and move it there!)

I'm wondering what it is like when one moves to another faith group or church? Have you ever done it and how did it go? Were there any bad repercussions from the church you were leaving? Did the new church welcome you with open arms??

In my case, I want to return to my original faith, now that I can get a ride there from someone I know who is reliable. (I don't drive and buses do not run on weekends). Before, when I was church "shopping" (when I first moved here) it was not possible to get a ride there. It was too far for me to walk there.

I am currently visiting this nice church of loving people. The problem is, I feel it would be better for me to be in this original faith I was in when I first became a Christian. I have visited it several times now and it is a wonderful church. I learn so much more there! The pastor uses so much more Scripture in his sermons than the pastor does at the church I am attending.

If you have never switched to another faith, tell me what you think of all this anyway. And if you have switched faiths, I really want to know how it went.

I was born in a Taoist family and in my teens accepted Jesus Christ, making me the only believer in my family. My traditional parents were very upset especially my mum as she strongly against me moving into Christianity as she claimed why do I goes against her to become a Christian, isn't it contradicting in one way when we disobey our parents, it doesn't pleases God but if I pleases my parents, I will never be a believer. Nonetheless, I know God still love the perfect me because when I am down and needed his guidance in a lot of things, he will come forward with an offering he gave to me. To me, is enough, do whatever God wanted me to do in my best possible way