Hey Kim - you're jumping into the frying pan this week. But seriously, I think it's unfortunate that a lot of organized religions have not changed to reflect the modern world. I don't mean they should change their core beliefs (the more spiritual elements) but the man-made "religious" dogma that's been layered on top of that over the centuries. It not only pushes single people out, but gay people, people of different ethnic origins -- anyone that doesn't fit the cookie cutter image of the "perfect" member profile.

I go to a non denominational Christian church and despite the fact that it's full of single people (many divorced myself included) there is absolutely no ministry that specifically addresses the place of a single adult in that church. I've asked if I could start something for us, more than once, and basically was told they were too busy with other concerns.

I was raised Catholic but now I'm not religious but strongly spiritual. You're right about organized religion but they've lost me and perhaps others. I don't think it matters whether you're single or married for a real spiritual connection. God seems to have a sense of humor with me. Once I was riding my bicycle on 8th Ave and 14st Street in New York City. My basket got stuck on a Christmas tree protruding out of a car. I boinged out into oncoming traffic. I could only hope I hit something broadside. I smashed into a cab and flipped over my bike. My bike morphed into a pretzel and I only had a tiny scratch on my wrist. I guy ran out into the street and handed me the card, "Jesus Saves."
Another time I was walking in Washington Square Park biting the chocolate chips out of a double decker ice cream. It was scandalously my second and that day and I promised God I would never have one again. At that moment a soccer ball hit me in the head and squished the ice cream cone in my face.
True story.
Dale

This is a wonderful and very courageous subject to take on and you are right - there is no 11th commandment that says "Thou shalt be married"! That's a riot... Remember the Mel Brooks movie where Moses dropped that extra tablet so there were 15 commandments but we only know what the first 10 are ;-) Funny! Singleness or being divorced in the church for the most part doesn't go over all that well; certainly if someone wants to stay single. I commend you and the magazine for creating a way to celebrate singleness... Kudos!! Even though I don't reside in SoCal I enjoy keeping updated on this magazine :-)

I think that church administrators are afraid of us. They think we're on the verge of some kind of sexual frenzy. If they had a singles ministry, "oh dear!, what might happen? - what if it turned out to be some kind of place to 'hook up'?" They think just because we're single we're some kind of sexual loose cannons! Whereas if you're married, you're somehow "safer" because you have a "legitimate" sexual partner. Po-lease!!

As we all know, religion is the greatest marketing ploy ever promulgated on the human specie. Anyone who's had marketing 101 knows you must indoctrinate malleable young minds in order to have a life long customer, where better than to focus on families with young children or those planning on having children in order to assure zombie like obedience and unquestionable devotion. Coke does it in High Schools, they learned well from the Mother of all marketers. No wonder the bible states that the punishment for divorce is stoning to death. Adult singles are a poor target and don't have as much to offer religion, it's a simple economics decision, less bang for the buck. Singles are a lost cause anyway, with their premarital sex, use of contraceptives (yes, condoms are for sinners) and choosing not to have offsprings, they have a one way ticket to eternal hell and will be roasting mashmallows with the likes of Hitler and Mengele.

I have to disagree, I have never found religious environments hostile to single people, in fact we are looked with some envy! Maybe it's because I am from the UK, and a more secular culture, I find that dominant culture oppressive with how it views single people, the expectation to be married or at least have a sexual partner is huge.

Check out www.agapelive.com for a very LARGE and ACTIVE singles ministry (movies, dances, hikes, potlucks, speed-dating) for straight and gay alike. Spiritual and all-encompassing (not organized religion)

Churches simply want everybody to get married and reproduce, so that they can get more donations from people who belong to their church. Nobody should tell anyone to get married or stay single. It's nobody's business but yours only.

But what about connecting with a Higher Power? Do you believe there is "something" out there? Can a church create an atmosphere where that kind of connection is easier to make?

Dear A Believer... why would the "church" have more knowledge about the afterlife or a higher power from let's say... the gardener pulling weeds in my garden? Any belief about an allege "god" is pure stipulation and guesswork. Mohammad Atta used "God" to justify killing 3000 people in NYC, George Bush used "God" to justify killing 100,000 people in Iraq, maybe we could do with a little less "God" in our lives.