Quote:
Originally Posted by Monahammer
It's a fitting-in thing. If you put yourself in an echo chamber where everyone will do everything to justify that belief structure, you start to feel like the crazy one when you don't believe it. They have really developed tactics of guilt and refined them to extend beyond the confines of your own natural life too.
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There is the positive side of fitting in. It's a basic desire to want to feel part of a family/tribe/community. Churches I was in overtly recognized this and used it in their efforts to grow the congregation.
The formula of presenting a strong family with lots of support, unconditional love from believers, music, a powerful sermon by a skilled orator to encourage you to face your problems or loneliness or whatever, then a salvation call to come transform your life with a few simple words.. it can be very powerful and appealing.
And most of the churches I was in definitely did follow through on the support and inclusion (well as long as you didn't colour too far outside the lines), that's one aspect of church life that I miss.. the feeling of having an extended family; a pre-built social and support network.
To what degree it was manipulative and to what degree it was honest people trying to be good to each other and support each other likely varies from person to person, but there was good there at least in the churches I went to.