Why the fuck do American churches look like that?

Why the fuck do American churches look like that?

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youtube.com/watch?v=GIIxZ587s3Y
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so the miracles can be seen by everyone

to spread the word of christ to as maybe people as possible. you cannot achieve this in a tiny church. are you brainlet by chance?

every business has to be profitable, you know?

how is it spreading the word of christ when it's just one big idolization?
also, have you heard of cathedrals?

Because churches are supposed to be a gathering place for a congregation. How would you get a congregation that big into a smaller building?

Also, those are usually evangelicals who build those things. Being Catholic, it was weird going to one of those places for the first time.
Pic is my childhood church, located in a tiny Midwestern town.

it's broadcasted around too
>have you heard of cathedrals?
yes there are here too

>catholic church
>not a single painting or statue

>one big idolization?
What are you referring to?
>also, have you heard of cathedrals?
We have those, and the pic in OP might very well be one itself.

Wait, isn't this the american place of woreship?

the ceiling looks covered with flying crackers

bunch of people up on stage with big shiny television screens behind them and bright lights shining on them, being broadcasted to thousands of people. how is that not idolization?
i refuse you can feel a connection with God inside an arena with 20,000 other people clapping and saying "yess preach!"

their sermons are more like self help seminars

youtube.com/watch?v=GIIxZ587s3Y

not all do. greek orthodox here. ours is a rundown old pool hall with relics on the walls

no, that's their version of an advanced toilet

Silent prayer and contemplation? Ridiculous. You gotta play that shit on repeat to get the people PUMPED! How else do you expect to get them to donate to the Mega Church? Those big TV-screens don't pay for themselves, y'know.

every religions must be inherited only by introverts.
Otherwise, it becomes just a noisy party seeking for primitive stimulation that lacks solemnity and imagination.

I mean the preachers are basically performers aren't they. They get up on stage, quote the bible or whatever for an hour or two. Rack up a bunch of cash and fuck off to the next town.

So americans are like conservative laestadians, they like to get together in huge crowds.

But even they only get together once a year, not every sunday.

>statues of Mary and Joseph on either side of the knave
>cable-suspended crucifix over the altar
>Stations of The Cross
>alcoves with devotional candles and statues of saints
>stained glass windows have illustrations
Look more closely.
No, that's a mall, and your implied insult is about 15 years out of date. You'd have been better off posting a pic from Walmart or a screenshot from Amazon. Malls are almost all dead in the USA.
I'm not an evangelical, but I don't think what they're doing is idol worship. It just seems like exuberant praise to me.
Again, not my thing, but I don't see why it would bother anyone.

Do they need the money for this machine?
Nothing wrong with a bit of fun, my man.
youtube.com/watch?v=bO-_rX4FG_M

>But even they only get together once a year, not every sunday.
That's not true.

There's no Christian imagery or statues in there, the focus is on the speaker on the stage, not on Jesus, and it all feels very commercialised and fake.

money is their god

looks exaxtly like a concert.
also apparently there are people in american churches going around collecting money from worshippers. it's so obvious that it's all a scam

It was just friendly banter. I get why you pray.

>greek orthodox here
Very cool.

>I'm a 15 year old in 2002: the joke

>Malls are almost all dead in the USA.
That sounds like bullshit. Did anything replace them? Or do you only socialize in your cars now?

>also apparently there are people in american churches going around collecting money from worshippers. it's so obvious that it's all a scam
But its here too.
Almsgiving during mass is common in Catholic Church and wiki says it exist in Protestant denomination too.

>being religious in 2017

lmao m'lady

>There's no Christian imagery or statues
That's common for many protestant denominations.
>in there, the focus is on the speaker on the stage, not on Jesus
But the preacher is mostly likely talking about Jesus or His teachings, so...
What Christian church's service doesn't feature the minister preaching at the head of the congregation?
>and it all feels very commercialised and fake.
I don't get it either, but that seems a bit harsh. As far as fakeness goes, some of the people I've known to attend megachurches were some of the most genuine Christians I've ever met.
>looks exaxtly like a concert.
You're judging their harmless faith practice by its appearance? Jeez...
>collecting money from worshippers
Our government doesn't tax people on behalf of their church. I don't know about Denmark, but afaik that's how they do it in Germany.
>it's so obvious that it's all a scam
That's likely true for many of them. Nonetheless, it's all voluntary on the part of the congregants, so it's none of my concern.
I don't live in Detroit.

>during mass
tacky catholic bullshit. I bet old ladies see this as a competition for status.

That's not some joke that's "dated", that's just how the world views you people. The only reaason that's how it seems to you is that for that short period that view that americans had for a time matched up with the opinion of the entire rest of the world.

Absolute degeneracy

>bullshit
Here, check out Dan Bell's Dead Mall Series:
youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNz4Un92pGNxQ9vNgmnCx7dwchPJGJ3IQ
>Did anything replace them?
Amazon and Walmart

the analogies aren't the same

even in the most religious european countries people are less willing to spend money on the church or their officials than in the US

>>collecting money from worshippers
>Our government doesn't tax people on behalf of their church.
No, but if you don't pony up the cash when the church asks for it, you become ostracized. Can be especially harmful in tightly nit, religiously homogeneous areas.

You're supposed to put your donation in an envelope. Why are you being rude?
>that's just how the world views you people
Their view is outdated. I also get the impression that foreigners think the movie Religulous is still representative of religion in the USA.

>I don't live in Detroit.
Weakest comeback ever.

>Why are you being rude?
I've spend enough time on Sup Forums to forget there are non-aggressive ways of talking.

It’s true though. Most malls are struggling and most of the anchor stores are too. People just shop online now and they just shop at higher end stores or lower end like H&M. Theres no more middle

>if you don't pony up the cash when the church asks for it, you become ostracized.
That's simply untrue, and I don't even know where you'd get that. Besides, how would anyone even know if you did or did not donate?
>Can be especially harmful in tightly nit, religiously homogeneous areas.
See
I'm from a tiny Midwestern parish, and I've never seen anything like what you're describing? Are you possibly projecting what small town congregations in Finland are like onto us?

It wasn't a comeback. I'm a sincereposter.
That's understandable, I guess.

>You're supposed to put your donation in an envelope. Why are you being rude?
if your donation is big enough. Most people will usually throw in coins or small banknotes, ranging from 1PLN (¢25) to 20PLN (¢5). Using envelopes for this purpose would've been just wasteful.

Judging someone by the amount given is poor taste.


Right I forgot that in rich western countries the poor don't need feeding, the church and cemetery maintain themselves and clergy eats dirt and drinks water from the puddle
>degeneracy
Rich coming from a christian denomination allowing lesbian pastors to give the right of marriage to transgender muslims.

>I'm a sincereposter.
Weird way to say autism.

$$$

>Most people will usually throw in coins or small banknotes
They put cheap little envelopes in the thing on the back of the pews that holds the missalette. Some people just chuck in cash or a check, but most here use the envelopes.
>poor taste
I'm pretty sure it's got to be some kind of sin, although I'm not sure which one.
I'm actually pretty normie irl, so I don't feel the need to be socially acceptable here. If my refusal to play along with memes irritates or frustrates the average Sup Forums user, isn't that the best possible troll?
I've had some of the most interesting discussions of my life on Sup Forums, but the site culture here is the cancer. Sup Forums is the cancer killing Sup Forums.

American pastors say that the eye of the needle was a small gate in the walls if a city. Wealthy merchants and travelers on horses or camels took the main gate while the poor took the eye of the needle gate. A camel cpuld go through it but to fo so would require a rich man to humble himself and walk (ride on) the path of the poor.

Don't feed the troll is the best way to starve the troll. So yeah, you're somewhat right.

But to be fair, you give money to churches so you're the cancer in general.

>Rich coming from a christian denomination allowing lesbian pastors to give the right of marriage to transgender muslims.
I don't see a problem in what you said. Live and let live.

Not just americans. That's a big anglo myth. Among the stupidest I've ever heard.

So they can make more money from church tickets.
Do you even murrica?

Because many Americans go to church?

>churches
No, friend, I don't give money to churches. I give my money to the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.
>big anglo myth
If all of the Finnish posts ITT have been you, then I'm left to conclude that you've never met a Catholic.

I have never heard it in Anglo Canada but yes, it's stupid

How would a church keep the lights on without money from the congregation?

...

Very good post.

God is not real.

I dunno what you think I meant. That Camel thing is a widespread misconception that exists in britain, australia, many anglo countries.

>How would a church keep the lights on without money from the congregation?
Not my problem?

So you're just not religious. Even then there is nothing wrong with donating money to a church since they act as a community charity. Money put into the church (a real church not the American style mega-church) is money donated to community causes, much of it for children, the poor, and the elderly.

I think it's mostly because Americans are really extroverted and just like social gatherings. Even orthodogs christcucks who live in the US attend churches more often than people in orthodogs majority countries.

pr*testants believe christian imagery is blasphemy. They're basically the same as ISIS

How about this guy?
Somehow his words are intriguing.

It's not just an Anglo thing. Catholic teachings about scriptural interpretation tend to be cross-cultural, and that's what I've been taught in Catholic school.
>Not my problem?
Then why do you care if someone else gives them money?
I've got some money to spare, and my church enriches my life. That doesn't sound cancerous to me.

Maybe they can sell shrimpcocktails to the community. Or just maybe they should start a charity to community causes.

With the money they can lobby for more laws that are outdated.

Which laws, and what if I agree with those laws?
Also, I can still donate to other organizations with opposing aims. I could donate to my local Catholic parish and Planned Parenthood (I won't).

They generally sell pastries not shrimp (bake sales are quite popular), but that would be okay. A lot if churches sell cook books too, with recipes from all the little old ladies that attend. There really aren't many municipal based charities and the ones that do exist, like the food bank, often rely on help, volunteers, and donations from the churches.

You don't have to be religious to see the value of the churches in a community and to donate something towards that.

>>Red hot preach
When I saw this phase for the first time I burst into the laughter in front of my PC monitor and kept laughing for 15 minute.

We have imported so many cultural fragments from US but it seems we have just missed the very essence of USA.

Oh you know, the whole freedom, euthanasia, condoms and diseases thing you have and all the other bullshit I'm not going to look up.
I get it. Smallscale there isn't really wrong with what you do and believe and I can get behind the love thy neighbourg stuff. It's the big organised ones with political influence and wanting to break church and state are more worrysome.

Yeah, I don't like the large, wealthy, political churches either

At least we can agree on that.

I need to go now, I can win free groceries at the local supermarket. So if all the religious people here can pray for me, than that would be great, can use all the help I can get :^)

This is the Brazilian place of worship.

>freedom
That's a very broad term. Afaik, the Church hasn't interfered with my freedom. If you're talking about things like gay marriage, I was open with my priest and parish about my position of support for marriage equality. I was in the minority, but many agreed with me.
>euthanasia
I don't agree with the Church's position there, but it's philosophically sound.
>condoms and disease
Afaik the Catholic Church hasn't lobbied to ban condoms or to deny the link between condom use and limiting the spread of disease. Their position is that abstinence works better, which is undeniably true.

I unironically just prayed for you to win your free groceries. If you win, please consider donating a portion of your winnings to someone less fortunate.

Why do protestant churches look like this?

>Their position is that abstinence works better, which is undeniably true.
You can't actually be serious about that

The combined power of their minds fuels the astronomican.

Please tell me how this is an incorrect statement: abstaining from sex is the best way to prevent sexually transmitted diseases. I'm not asking whether or not its practical, just whether or not its factual.

>its
it's*
...and twice, no less.
Sorry.

Yes of course. If you don't have sex, you can't get STDs. But the concept of "abstinence only" doesn't work.

Malls have taken a massive shit here
A great number of them have closed since their peak in the 80s and have been replaced by large strip malls instead

>But the concept of "abstinence only" doesn't work.
Not if it's not practiced, it doesn't. Regardless, saying something is sinful is quite a different thing from trying to make it illegal.

Too bad zero tolerance is a utopian concept that kneels like a bitch before statistics and hard facts.

>zero tolerance is a utopian concept that kneels like a bitch before statistics and hard facts
That's a pretty dense phrase. Would you mind telling me what you meant, exactly? ELI5

>christfags on Sup Forums
Fuck off vermin.
下げる。

I'll pray for you.

>下げる。
Idiot weeb. The e-mail field command is "sage" for a reason, and that is because the imperative form is the only one that makes sense you ciggy butt brain

Faggots

youtube.com/watch?v=a9GHCVHXeEw

The Muslims are right on one thing: America is the land of degeneracy.

That seems unnecessarily rude.

Never forgetti

archive.org/details/Marjoe.1972.Legendado

I would propably get ill and die from attending such a church. My brain would blow up.

>My brain would blow up.
Yeah, traveling back in time at least 20 years might do that to you.

It's so different from our humble sermons.
Damn a Rammstein concert is propably less emotionally loaded than this.

Yeah, it really is strange to witness in-person if you haven't seen it before. I didn't personally care for it, but it seems to bring a lot of good to some people's lives.

Look at their hands. They're clapping.

Aside from the meme, what's wrong with rhythmic clapping while singing?