I have never felt comfortable at church. It has been 20 years since I last had a church home. And when you hear something about yourself enough times, you believe it. Therefore, with the people around me at church playing a big part in it, I developed the belief that I was pathologically shy. Only in the last several years have I discovered and been able to fully appreciate that I am simply highly introverted. That does not repair the damage done from many years of believing that there is something wrong with you. Anyway, I can empathize with the writer's concerns
here.
I looked at that link and it appears Protestant in cultural tone and perception to me. But the diction in you're second sentence in which you say, "It has been 20 years since I last had a church home," ought indicate to me you are Protestant. For one thing, it reflects how you understand the conception or reality one calls "Church" or "church."
One side of my family is Protestant (with only a few practicing Protestants). And the other side is Catholic (with the only remaining practicing Catholic being my mother--all her siblings and her children have left the 'Church.'"
So, I have some grasp of the different cultural traits between the two. Be sure that difference is shrinking as even conservative Catholics assimilate themselves into some of the dominate and successful cultural and media presentations of Protestant Christianity.
Both conservative and liberal lay Catholics alike would loath to be as meek, humble, and self deprecating as St. Bernadette. A saint I have prayed to often. Both of them tend to glamorize being extrovert. The conservatives Catholics are the most self righteous on any internet discussion board about the subject. Rarely do I inject myself into the convo. In general the #1 response conservative lay Catholics have is that introvert people, introvert Catholics are simply narcissistic.
I think narcissism
can be one of the contributing factors (irrespective of how they got that way) for some or perhaps many introverted people. But I'm of the opinion all humans--or mostly all anyways--have some small or great narcissistic traits to their personalities. Yes, that includes me. But it's along the lines that I think no human you know or see can be 100% selfless. We can be more selfless than others but not 100% selfless as even seeking eternal salvation in heaven is motivated by a selfishness, a self interest.
There is nothing wrong with being extrovert. There is nothing wrong with being the life of the party. There is nothing wrong with being outgoing or the great communicator.
But one thing I notice about adults--and I pick on adults because we are often smug and we are the ones that cause this world to be so messed up, not children--is that we like to interact in the world as thespians. We learn this as children through the learning process we call "playing." And as adult we still "play" by "acting" a certain way in public. And adults in general prefer to stay in this sleep or fictional "reality." They don't want to take the matrix pill that wakes them up.
So, Bill Cosby and Bill Clinton would be extroverts. And the adult world would love them for it. Pope John Paul II and probably Pope Francis as well would be regarded as extroverts. Pope Benedict the 16th was much more of an introvert. A very closed-behind-the-doors scholarly type.
Does God love only extroverts?
I'm not persuaded God does.
I'm persuaded God values
loyalty to Him above whether or not you are introvert or extrovert.
But what do I mean by "loyalty." If you are a man (or woman) think of yourself as a wife and think of God as husband. Your husband. Do you prostitute yourself to His reviles like protecting the Satanic religion beside Christianity or above it so you can be "cool" and "American" amongst your peers?
To understand loyalty I would suggest one reflect upon the Orthodox monks be they on mount Athos or in the Egyptian deserts, and reflect upon the Muslim Ummah which would tolerate no rival beside their God nor tolerate injury to their beloved prophet Jesus.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UA59E_phBnw
I used to be very fearful to speak as a child in large part due to my father threatening me and exploding over things even as minor as spilling a cup of water. Now, my father was Federal law enforcement. But I have some cousins that had it much worse (actually, I have many cousins on both sides of the family that had it much worse). Their father, my uncle, was a cop, and he emotionally and physically abused them. When they were kids they were extremely "shy" and you could tell in the look of their eyes their spirits were broken. As older teens and now adults that became "off the hinges." Buck wild. Lots of bottled anger too. They are night and day from what they were. They rarely speak to their father.
Unlike conservative Catholics I don't think being "shy" merely and only comes from being a wicked narcissistic person. There can be a number of things that leads to a person being shy.
Liberal Catholics like that whole stage theater performance where you walk into the parish church and every stranger is magically best friends, holding hands during the Our Father prayer, taking extra long tome to "chop it up" during the kiss of peace (or whatever it is called). I find the whole thing childish and disingenuous. And they all want to be entertained like the "Sister Act" or whatever that movie is.
This is probably the most I have ever said on the issue of being introvert vs extrovert. And I don't think I'll have anything else to say about it. Nor am I going to argue over it.
Though, I'm not sure what I am. I'm more extroverted than some, and less so than others. Though, I'm generally mistrusting of others, including those regarded as "good people" by popular society.
I should also say... for whatever psychological reason... it is said in Alcoholics Anonymous and CA and NA that alcoholics and drug addicts often
develop a fear of people. I think there is a lot of truth to it. At least for those that have been addicted for decades. I'm not sure if it may be related to addicts being the most shamed people on earth who prefer to hide in the shadows, or not? But AA claims that with their help the recovering addict will overcome those fears.
