Heretic?

So I was lurking around on the web this morning and found this site I think through Kim's site via another site and it is called "Emerging Women" and there is an excerpt I so identify with I copied down below. So it got me to thinking about some things about myself. I am a Christian, but I am a liberal. I am a girl who loves the city and adores and lives in the country. I will be the neighbor who will borrow a cup of sugar or an egg or 2, use your lawn mower, come over when I smell good food cooking and invite myself for dinner. I will give you tips and my opinions you probably don't want or care for, on your gardening or remodeling projects. But, I will watch your dog and water your flowers and get your mail and clean your litter box when you go out of town. I will watch your kids while you run to the grocery store real quick. I will give you a dozen eggs and a 5 pound bag of organic sugar to replace the 1 cup I borrowed, also you will be invited back to my house to eat some concoction I made from my Fine Cooking subscription. You may not like my politics, but you will love my flourless chocolate cake. I love all the "bad" music" and the more it ROCKS out, the better, and I also love classical, bluegrass, christian and hymns. I am full of contradictions my husband lovingly calls me out on, all the time. I love to argue politics with conservatives, and I don't take it personal. I am voting for Obama and I hope Hillary runs with him. I too, so many times, have probably been on other's prayer lists. I get the, "you can't be a real Christian if you believe that". But all this you may already know about me, but honestly I am a doubter. I always have been, it is in my nature and no matter how hard I pray and ask God to remove that part of my brain, He doesn't. Oh to be the "perfect believer". So on to the point of my blog this morning, wouldn't it be nice to have a group of women, to have thought provoking, intelligent conversations with who you could voice doubts, misgivings, and fears without condemnation? So, because I am not witty, clever, or smart enough to put into words my own thoughts, I stole them from someone else. Here they are. Have a great day.

http://emergingwomen.blogspot.com/
Community: Wherever You Happen to Be
I “emerged” in an unlikely environment. Just a few notches away from the buckle of the Bible Belt, my hometown of Dayton Tennessee made a name for itself back in 1925 when the Scopes Monkey Trial put it on the map as the last great bastion of conservative fundamentalism. Not a whole lot has changed since then, so my “Obama 08” buttons, AIDS awareness crusades, and shelf full of “liberal propaganda” by the likes of Brian McLaren and Tony Jones have been met with some skepticism and concern from friends and family. I’ve even made to a couple of church prayer request lists. When I read about Emerging gatherings in big cities around the country, I find myself getting a little jealous. I long to fellowship with other women who want to break through the stained glass ceiling. I’d love to spend an evening in the company of fellow doubters and questioners and contrarians. I’d like to have an honest conversation without getting labeled a heretic. I’d like it if people got my jokes about postmodernism.Of course it would be easier if I were within driving distance of a more progressive church, but I’ve decided that perhaps it wouldn’t be better. It hasn’t been easy, but I’m beginning to learn that sometimes the best community is the one in which you don’t really fit. Folks around here won’t let me get away with hypocrisy or faulty arguments. They keep me on my toes and pray for me even when I think I don’t need it. They have inadvertently taught me the spiritual disciples of patience and self-control, and I find myself getting better and better at holding my tongue and thinking before I speak. As it turns out, not all opinions have to be expressed, and sometimes unity is more important than winning a debate. While I have not plans to return to my fundamentalist roots, Monkey Town has taught me not to get too comfortable. Community doesn’t mean surrounding yourself with people with whom you agree. It means surrounding yourself with whoever is there.