CHURCH
I think that so-called "organized religion" is an important part of society. (Although, like scripture, it can be misused, very destructively.) A church or congregation is a collective, bringing together all manner of people and "right" or "wrong" perspectives on God and life, and brings them together for sharing and comparing. There, we can be challenged and shaped by others' views and thoughts. We might be offended or supported by each other's words and actions. In all cases, whether a person is into spiritualism, deism, organized, or disorganized religion, anyone can be tempted to imagine that they have God figured out. NONE of us do! None of us should act or speak as if we do, whether or not we belong to a worshiping body.
That we find hypocrites in the church, even among its leaders, does not prove its uselessness. We have hypocrites in every school, and yet we attend various kinds of schools. Their are many hypocrites in government, and yet most people think it's better to have some governance than none at all. There are hypocrites in our families, and yet many of us remain in families. Partly, we are--or should be--willing to do this because we find at least one hypocrite looking at us in the mirror. Everyone of us acts counter to our own set of morals and beliefs from time to time, and we're usually able to rationalize and forgive it.
The church is a human institution, holds fallible people, and some pretty nasty ones, too. That's not a reason to to disband it, nor an excuse to let the hypocrisy go unanswered. It may allow us enough humility and forgiveness to work within it, and to learn from each other.
My wife has high expectations of me as a husband. I don't always measure up. Luckily, most of my faults and mistakes are livable, and forgivable. Both spouses and pastors can step across lines so that the damage is too great. That doesn't mean that marriage itself is corrupt and should be disbanded, or that church itself is completely worthless for anyone. Overall, many (not everyone) find that the positive relationships and experiences of church-life outweigh the worst. For some, that means applying a lot of forgiveness and self-humility. But I understand: for others the pain, false teachings, and faults of church people can outweigh the benefits. And yet, I'm glad that church and faith is there for those that need it or benefit from it.
As a Christian, I believe that distancing oneself from the church because of its brokenness is distancing yourself from one of the key places he promised to be, and through which his Spirit is at work. He is in the midst of all brokenness, including the sinful hypocrisy of his own "body."
Individually, it is possible to live a Christian life without a home congregation. I think to be effective, though, it's important to be aware and compensate for the gains and losses on both sides, and also to accept that hypocrisy resides within all people, whether or not they have distanced themselves from corporate worship. Meanwhile, it's Christ that continues to connect you to the larger Body, through your personal devotions, reading, reflections, disciplines and actions.
But collectively, we also need the "organized" groups of worshiping believers for the sake of continuity, so that there will be beliefs and a faith that inspires those beliefs; so that there will be a body of people, interpretations, and ideas. Without worshiping groups (whether large congregations, small house-gatherings, or family devotions) I suspect that within a couple generations any distinctive faith-life will dissolve into various forms of private spiritualism (which is actually worshiping your own created image, or self-worship) or perhaps into nothing at all.
There have been plenty who claim that such a dissolution would be a good thing. Some look at the horrors that human beings have done to each other in the name of, or rationalized by, their religions and gods that they claim inspired it. It's arguably true that most of the worst crimes we've committed have been justified by religions and gods. But we forget that the strength of religion and God has also inspired and sustained most of the best humanitarian, social, even heroic efforts of various groups. Even most of the secular humanitarian efforts got their start, and are still funded and supported by religious people who are doing it from their sense of faith.
Religions and religious bodies are organized around the gods they worship, but it's true: they are still human constructions and organizations. They contain both the worst and also the best of who we are as people. Ultimately, God is somehow able to work through churches or in spite of them, even using their brokenness and their committees to do some pretty amazing things, but he also uses them to create and nurture individual relationships... even (ironically) with those who choose to separate themselves from church.
