I'm having lots of conversations on FB at the moment, and getting a tad sick of repeating myself so will just keep this fairly short and dot pointed! Would appreciate any suggestions

* I am christened Anglican.
* I used to attend church often when I was a child (inc sunday school and GFS)
* I feel the need to reengage - not sure why, but I just do.
* I need to feel a part of a community with similar thoughts, morals and values as me.

In a church I need:
* flexbility - the choice on whether to attend church every week or not. The choice to just learn and appreciate my faith at home and at church when I choose to
* to accept me, welcome me, with open arms and guide me with all these questions I seem to have!
* community - where members do things together outside of the church
* young people - I'm 28 and would really like to be around people of all ages, older people, my age people and a church that definitely accepts and encourages children.

I don't want:
* a church that tells me what I can't do - for example, if it tells me I have to wear a skirt, if I cannot consume alcohol, if I cannot have sex before marriage or if I have to be submissive to males - forget it!!!

So - where do I start looking. What is likely to be the best faith/religion that is going to suit my needs? I don't have the energy to go church/religion hopping (although on FB we are joking we should all go pub crawling - church style!). I just need someone to point me in the right direction as a starting point.

Help?

I am sorry, but religion is a very personal thing. Nobody can "pick the right church" for another person. My church/religion suits me, but it might not suit another person (even though we both are of the same religious denomination).

I would suggest you attend an Anglican Church near your home (since you said you were raised as an Anglican). If this does not fulfill your expectations, then try another.

I'm not trying to be rude - this is a genuine question...

Are you looking to re-engage with church or with God?

As for where to start, where abouts are you? I know of an independent church in the inner-Sydney area that would really meet your needs in terms of community style, but I think the best place to start is by thinking through what you already know about God and start talking with Him about where the best place to go is...

hmmm... probably come across as some weirdo there, but I mean that really. God is stirring your heart to start asking questions, He can put you in the right place to get some answers.

If you want to start with some questions - I'd be more than happy to share my (limited) knowledge/experience of Christianity with you, just PM me

I don't think the OP is asking that at all, my understanding is that she is looking for a church that has certain kinds of qualities and is asking the EB community to perhaps suggest one that's suited.
Sorry OP I can't help, but I understand the urge

I grew up Methodist which had now become Uniting and I have always found the ministers pretty cool, non judgmental, and often with a good sense of humour whenever I have attended church for weddings, funeral and christening etc.

You can look up the big ones on the net - doing that now in search of a church for DD christening now we have bought a new house in a new city - the well put together ones will offer info on all the different activities they have attached to them.

I think you are in Tasmania so I can't help you with a specific church.

You will find that even amongst different local Anglican churches (for example) they will vary considerably with regards to how welcoming they are, community outside church, attitude to children etc. So try your local church and if it doesn't suit you try the next closest.

Lots of churches have websites now & it can give you an idea of what their doing, you can also phone and speak to a minister but nothing beats visiting a church yourself & often you need to go more than once to give it a good go.

Just two suggestions, neither is ideal.

Look for a church within reasonable distance and check it out on the web. You may get a feel for the style of the church and you will see all the activities associated with that congregation. If you like what you see, pay a visit.

Do you have a friend who might go with you? Some company might make you feel more comfortable.

I endorse the advice of the PP who suggested prayer and I'd add an openness to the unexpected.

PPs have given you some good advice. The only other comment I can make is that in my experience, the Anglican churches which tend to be more prone to telling you what to do and the like are the more low-church evangelical ones. You might like to see if you can find one which is a bit more Anglo-catholic and see how that suits you. (For the record, this is not because Anglo-catholics are liberal about morals or the like, but I would say they see guiding you in that as something God will do, rather than something they need to dictate. At least, that's my observation!) I'm in Melbourne, but if you'd like a recommendation I can ask some friends of mine who know Tassie and its parishes fairly well for a recommendation.

I recently changed my church, I was going to Church of Christ, now am going to Anglican.

Twice I have changed churches and both times, I got a list of churches to visit.
Google helped me find them. Plus the phone book (back in the day when they were more helpful than google)
So I had a list of about 12 churches to visit, I went to each one on the list in turn and crossed out the ones that definitely gave me bad vibes.
Then I revisited the ones that had been not so bad, maybe 2 or 3 weeks in a row for each church to gauge the "family/connection"

I then picked which one was the best fit for me and kept going there.

Choose other denominations too, just to get an idea of what is out there.

I can relate to the need to re-engage with the church community.

I grew up Presbyterian (which became Uniting) but as a teenager and in my 20's, I attended Baptist churches, as they seemed to suit my needs then.

I have recently attended an Anglican church which is local and very prominent and active in our area, as close friends go there. I have found it very welcoming and warm, and I think this is really the crux of what you need to look for. People who care, are genuine, and love God, and thereby stick close to His teachings. Unfortunately, this means you may need to do a little bit of "church hopping", but hopefully not too much!

Do you know anyone who attends churches near your home?

What area are you in?

Thanks everyone for your thoughts.

A good friend goes to Church of Christ and has asked me to go along with her, and have decided I may just take her up on that offer.

I have also emailed the Anglican Church and asked for recommendations about a parish who's membership includes people around my age as well.


I think both? I've always felt God was present in my life, but I have this urge to learn and engage more and feel that the church is where I will gain this knowledge from. If that makes sense? I also crave that community feel - it's so difficult to explain! There's something going on inside of me and everytime I take a moment to feel it and think about it, I'm always brought back to the same thing - religion and heading back to church.

Hope your friend's church is great for you.

I just saw your sig, and sincerely hope all is going well with your little girl x

I think trying a church with your friend and emailing the Anglican church is a good idea...

To be honest, I don't think anyone can give you much of a recommendation unless they actually live near you and are engaged with some of the local churches because in my experience individual churches vary a lot and sometimes churches within the same denomination can be really very different...

I understand your need for community though... I think it's one thing that church going people really have in abundance that others often find they lack, and sometimes don't even realise it!

Do look around on the web for some of the local churches... Also keep an eye out for things in local newspapers and other community things... The churches that are involved with their community often make themselves known and you can get a lot of info about them that way... Even something simple like how many services they run and how they describe them (ie 'Family' service or 'Traditional' service) can tell you a lot...

You could also try 'sussing' out a church through some of the other activities they run... Like a playgroup or youth group... That way you can get to know a few people from the church and get a feel for it before walking into a service full of lots of people...

If all else fails, just start walking into random churches in your area... Scary thing to do I know, but if they're nice to you and you feel welcomed and comfortable there, then you'll know you've found somewhere to go...

Hi OP

Others have given great suggestions.

I *think* I understand your situation... I was in the same boat several years ago.

Would a bible study group be a starting option for you?
I started my reconnection journey with joining a bible study group several years ago.
I do my bible study through BSF International, an interdenominational bible study group (which is non directly linked to a particular church) and it has been a great blessing.
I get to know different people from different churches and I could find out which one that might suit me best through our friendships.
I checked their website (www.bsfinternational.org), they don't seem to have a class in Tasmania yet.

HTH...

PS. Feel free to PM me if you are interested in more details of my journey or if you have any questions

I forgot to come in an update!

After a long conversation with the Minister from a local Anglican church he invited me to attend the service at Easter. Unfortunately DD and I were away for Easter but we did attend last Sunday. And I can say I've found a "home" They were incredibly welcoming and supporting and could not have done any more to make us feel 'wanted' at this particular church. DD had a great time at the kids' program and I've enjoyed since meeting up with other mums for a church playgroup.

So, thank you everyone for your suggestions. I feel like I've made a good choice and starting a new journey - one I've been wanting to start for awhile now.

That's excellent! So glad you have found the right place for you and your DD.

Hope all continues to go well for you.

I'm so happy for you!