I realized the other day that I really didn't like church. I disliked going from a young age, but I let myself be convinced that I liked going. Mom wanted me to go, and I wanted to make her happy, so I wanted to go.

Church was boring. What teenager would enjoy going to church? Brainwashing in action there, I suppose.

By the way, love the new board.

I never enjoyed it either. I thought there was something wrong with ME, because I didn't enjoy church. I didn't ever feel enlightened or comforted by going there. My mother would always go on and on about how wonderful church was, how amazing it makes her feel, how it just fills her spiritual cup so she can make it through the week, how she can't imagine missing even one meeting. /vomit

I always left church frustrated and pissed off at the closed-minded things I heard, at the bigotry, the misogyny. I hated church. I forced myself to go for far too long, thinking there was something defective about me because I didn't enjoy it.

I'm so glad those days are over.

I left the church, but the church wouldn't leave me alone.

i hated going so much that my dad had to pay me to go every week

i was forced to go. if i didn't go i would be grounded from the phone for the entire week and would have to dig holes and move dirt from one end of the yard to the other. my kids will NEVER have to do that over not going to church!

Hated it from earliest childhood.

Once I left home, that was it. I never went to one lousy sac meeting the whole year I spent at the Y. I still remember those damnable priest hoods that would try to drag me outta the sack on Sundays. After swearing at them a few times I was finally left alone.

Funerals and family reunions are all that could ever lure me near a chapel since.

It's funny how these things worked. I loved seminary, especially since my teacher was a good teacher and was willing to spend time having discussions with his students outside of the classroom. I loved studying about Mormonism, which is what eventually got me in trouble. I even enjoyed reading the scriptures. But I can't say as if I ever enjoyed church. It was so boring. And then, worst of all, there was fast and testimony meeting. I couldn't help but feel embarassed for those emotional types who would get up and cry. I remember as a teenager drawing, seeing how numb I could get my legs, looking through the hymnal with my younger brother to see which hymns would be good drinking songs ("As Sisters in Zion" would work), and so forth. It was so boring. And, judging from the sacrament meeting I attended for my niece's baby blessing recently, it still is.

Loved learning. Loved the mythology, and the eschatology. Hated church! Same lame lessons over and over and over and over and over again. And the people were ridiculous in so many ways.

Yeah I forgot to mention that I did love Seminary. I was a year behind in school, but went to Seminary on time to be with my class at church. If I had waited to go until I started high-school, I wouldn't have known anyone.

I actually debated going another year if I decided to go to school still. I ended up dropping out of at the end of my Junior year. I went all 13 years of school, but since I was held back a year and was lacking enough credits to graduate for two more years, I just stopped going because it was pointless. I got my GED recently and scored in the 99th percentile (3760 out of 4000) with no refresher courses. Go figure.

The main reason I went was to check out the girls and some of the fine looking wives. My parents never forced me to go. In the small farming town,,it was the center of the social life. In my senior year ,,I was invited not to attend church functions.

I too hated it. It was sooooooooo boring! The drudgery and so monotonous! I never liked it, ever. I thought that I must have been adopted because I never understood why I could see through the charade when my family seemed to be so duped. I always thought Joseph Smith looked like a perv and Brigham Young looked like a murderer. And the sacrament meeting talks by the laymen – sheer torture. I wanted to be a Catholic with the robes, incense, candles and the statues of Jesus with blood running down looked so cool. I thought that most Mormons were dumb.

I never liked going either, but I was only going in an attempt to save the marriage to my TBM ex-husband. It was only after I filed for divorce that I felt it was safe enough to quit going, and eventually resign when I got an invitation to a singles dance before my divorce was even final. For the most part, I only go inside any church for funerals, weddings, or a baptism. Since most of my friends and family aren't Mormon, I get to attend wedding ceremonies if I'm invited, even if I'm not a member of the church where the wedding is held.

I felt the exact way!

I loved the doctrine, and reading my scriptures much like Ex Aedibus (also got me in trouble)... but I HATED church.

My dad was an exmo, and he would stay home and cook all day while we were at church. The only reason I wouldn't stay home is he would put me to work doing a bunch slave labor around the yard and house... it was almost easier to just put the tie on and sleep during priesthood.

The thing i absolutely couldn't stand though was...GENERAL CONFERENCE!! HOW THE HELL CAN ANYONE SAY THEY LIKE GENERAL CONFERENCE OR THAT THEY TRULY ENJOYED IT???!?!?! Even as a TBM I dreaded every last minute of it. HOLY HELL... watching a bunch of old men drone on about whatever it is... they never even talk about anything that was really relevant to anything anyways.

Theres some serious brainwashing that happens within the church.

I always hated church too. After I left home I probably went once or twice. After that I wised up and realized mormon girls weren't going to go out with me unless I went on a mission. At least Catholic girls didn't make me go to church with them.

Like Shummy I also had priest hoods try to drag me out of bed to go to priesthood meeting. One of them even shot a blank 22 shell at my bed. I still have the blanket with the hole cause by the wadding in the blank. Those Pendleton blankets last forever.

The cussing I gave those pious bastards has lasted over 30 years because they still don't speak to me. And I like that just fine. They got off easy compared to the room mate who let them in the house in the first place.

Yikes Charley, that's effed up.

Holey blankets from real priest hoods.

Yeah that's effed up all right but still they couldn't get me to go to priesthood even at gunpoint. Ah such is life in a redneck town.

A few years later there were some kids playing Russian Roulette in the church parking lot. That didn't end well.

Indeed. Who likes to be controlled manipulated and bored to death?

For one thing, the speakers in SM were often so monotone and boring! And sitting through RS was a nightmare, especially when a woman was giving the lesson who obviously didn't want to or didn't have a clue what she was talking about. I did enjoy seminary though. The teachers taught because they wanted to (usually) and they were much better at it than someone who had it shoved in their face.

But church? I used to make up excuses to get out of going and it always made me feel guilty. What a waste of stress.