Why Many People Stay Away from Religious Gatherings

I am coming to believe that there are a lot of people who avoid church (and, probably other religious assemblies), because they don't like being around people who try to do violence to their souls.

This is just a sense I have been getting lately.

There is something that smacks of force and disrespect and psychological violence that characterizes much of the Church's preaching and teaching. And, people feel it when you are trying to mess with their souls whether you know them well or barely even know them.

Another thought about this: So many people for good reason feel very confused about God, faith and religion. And, when you are confused in an area of life, you can be quite disturbed by people who try to convince you of their philosophy about that area of life, especially when their efforts to convince are very forceful.

The truth of God, however, comes showing respect for each individual person, and does not come as manipulation or force in any way, but as the opposite of such psychological oppression. When people begin to feel that their souls are being honored and respected, those people begin to recover a sense of deep self-respect. The truth of God comes through a humble approach to other people, whether those other people claim to be religious or irreligious or somewhere in between. If my approach to another does violence to their soul, then it is not of God, from God or about God, but from some dark place in me that sadly needs to raise myself above others.

Jesus said that his "yoke was easy and his burden light" compared to the "heavy burdens" the religious leaders of his day put upon people's souls. Instead of trying to manipulate people into following him, he warned them that it was going to be very hard, and that they should count the cost before making up their mind. Passages like this are almost never preached about, because these teachings of Jesus expose our arrogance in the church and then "the game is up." Then, we would have to start treating people with respect - all kinds of people that we have no idea how to understand and so continue to alienate and put down.