Hello all,
A few years ago I moved to a small town in Alaska and haven't been able to find a church that feels right for me. The only way to leave town is by boat or plane so I can't just try churches in the next town over. I was a member of an Episcopal church in my hometown, but this particular church was quite conservative. That is not the case with the Episcopal church in my new town which is quite liberal. I am a conservative Christian who prefers a traditional worship service. I have considered joining an LCMS church, but there are two hangups I have with them: I have a hard time accepting the practice of closed communion (my old church allowed all baptized Christians to take communion) and I have never believed that the pastor has the power to forgive sins (The priest at my old church announced God's forgiveness but never said the phrase "I forgive you of your sins"). I know LCMS wants everyone in their church to be in agreement so I wouldn't feel right about pretending to agree with them just so I can go there. I feel like basically stuck between going to a church that is too liberal for me and one that is slightly too conservative. Has anyone else experienced this? What did you do?
A few years ago I moved to a small town in Alaska and haven't been able to find a church that feels right for me. The only way to leave town is by boat or plane so I can't just try churches in the next town over. I was a member of an Episcopal church in my hometown, but this particular church was quite conservative. That is not the case with the Episcopal church in my new town which is quite liberal. I am a conservative Christian who prefers a traditional worship service. I have considered joining an LCMS church, but there are two hangups I have with them: I have a hard time accepting the practice of closed communion (my old church allowed all baptized Christians to take communion) and I have never believed that the pastor has the power to forgive sins (The priest at my old church announced God's forgiveness but never said the phrase "I forgive you of your sins"). I know LCMS wants everyone in their church to be in agreement so I wouldn't feel right about pretending to agree with them just so I can go there. I feel like basically stuck between going to a church that is too liberal for me and one that is slightly too conservative. Has anyone else experienced this? What did you do?