Hello! I am new here, and just thought I would throw my pennies out there for what it is worth.

I will first explain that I am a very independent spirit, and one who continually questions by what authority decisions are made, and where is the scripture to show me? Where is the biblical standard, the biblical example? (Something I was taught in my first church.) Please understand, I am not rebellious nor one who causes strife....just one who asks alot of questions.

When I got "in church" many years ago, I lived in Germany, and we had a small little group who fellowshipped and worshipped together. That is where I was saved. In that area, there was a local German church. There was a lady I knew who was a single woman, who worked very long hours and strange hours (she was in the medical field) and sometimes she couldn't get to services in "her church" and since we held our meetings at unusual times (Tues. evening and Sunday afternoon) she would be able to make ours instead. We did not see her as intruding, neither did "her church" see her as hopping or being unfaithful.

She was our fellow sister, and part of THE CHURCH.

It is my opinion that there is only ONE church. There may be lots of buildings, and lots of congregations, but if they all teach and believe the truth they are just all chapters of the SAME church.

Where we live now, there are quite a UPC churches, some PAW churches and some others as well. There is an elderly man who goes around to just about every one of the UPC churches. He has family members in almost all of them. So he is visiting all of the "chapters" and seeing his earthly AND spiritual family at the same time. No one has a problem with it.

On the other hand, several years ago, we had moved to another area. We lived a good long ways from the assembly that I regularly attend. I knew that because of my husband's work, that I was going to have trouble making it all the way to my regular church on Wednesday evenings, so (thinking of my sister in Germany) I figured I could go to the nearby UPC church on the evenings that I wouldn't be able to make it to the next county in time for service. It meant visiting a local assembly, or not making it at all.

Much to my shock (me thinking we were all of the SAME church) I was called out from the pulpit and told I couldn't come to that church without my pastor's permission, and that I had to go to one or the other!

I was very saddened by this, and ended up missing alot of church because of it.