On Faith...

This evening I finished reading 'Churched: One Kid's Journey Toward God Despite a Holy Mess' by Matthew Paul Turner. I enjoyed it immensely.

Here is an editorial review that gives a little background on the story.

“A funny, heartfelt portrayal of one man’s attempt to find true meaning despite his upbringing among fundamentalists who taught him that Azrael–the cat from The Smurfs–was an agent of Satan. The true miracle of this book is that its author never manages to lose his faith.”
–Robert Lanham, author of Sinner's Guide To The Evangelical Right

These are a few of the many thoughts that struck me as I read.

'According to anybody who was anybody at my church, the devil was a cunning individual. But he was also a simple creature. For instance, nothing made him happier than luring our young minds in front of the television to watch 'Knots Landing.' Hollywood was on his side.'

'"Matthew, do you really think God would use me in your punishment?" I didn't know how to answer that. I hoped he wouldn't, but I didn't know. People said a lot of odd things about God. They said he was in control, but when a teenager was killed in a car accident or a young mother died of cancer; they said he allowed those deaths to occur so other people would come to know Jesus'

'Prior to meeting Mrs. Nolan, I'd never been disliked by anyone before, especially an older woman. Old women fell head over heels for me. I didn't even have to try--it just happened. I thought I had a gift. As soon as I walked into church, women over the age of thirty-four threw candy at my feet like I was Mick Jagger and the Tootsie Rolls were underwear. But Mrs. Nolan was indifferent to the charm other women saw in me. She wasn't impressed with me. I really needed her to be impressed.

At my church and school, perception was everything. How people viewed you was much more important than how you actually were. The truth didn't matter. What people believed to be the truth mattered. I learned early on that if everybody believed I was the well-behaved, good-natured boy without a sin in the world, it didn't matter what the truth was. The truth was secondary to a person's opinion or perception of the truth. It was all about good PR, and prior to having Mrs. Nolan as a teacher, nobody stared at me too closely.'