I was just looking at my blog today and noticing some of the ads in my Google AdSense.  There are ads for some 'universal church' and ads for some 'holy bull' blog.  Seems everybody's got a beef to pick with 'organized religion' these days.  It's kind of sad that we organized folks have screwed up so much to make people think that they need to come up with something new, but the idea is actually really, really old.  Gnostics have been around since the beginning of Christianity, each sect claiming some special secret knowledge ('gnosis') that you need to be perfect or what have you.

But we know that when questioned by Pilate, Jesus boldly stated that he had said nothing in private.  His teaching had been on the hillsides, on boats, and anywhere there were people who had an ear to hear.  The very nature of Christianity is the Gospel, which is literally the good news, and Christ instructed us to not keep it hidden but to be like a beacon on a hill and the flavoring of the earth.  Christians should know that there is no secret revelation that they need. 

The Church itself is held to the teachings of the Holy Scriptures and the deposit of the faith, what St. Paul called "the traditions which [we] were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter." (II Thess. 2:15)  None of this is secret but is plain for everyone to see and hear in the Bible, the Church Fathers, Doctors, catechisms, encyclicals, pastoral letters, and so much more.  There is a public historical and doctrinal record of the Church from the earliest of times; there is an unbroken succession of bishops from the apostles to today.  Just think about it--literally, there is a physical link back to the apostles by the passing on of the ministry by the laying on of hands in ordination.

So I would not get too caught up in these new fangled organizations and individuals who claim to have some special knowledge about God that is all you need.  All of these indirectly depend upon the Church for their knowledge about God and Jesus, and what is in the Bible itself was decided by this same Church.  Without this 'organized religion', we would have no knowledge of God beyond that which the pagans have, which is, as St. Paul said, "written in their hearts."  But that would make the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Incarnation of no effect--God revealed himself first through the Law and the Prophets and later by becoming one of us, not only to redeem our human nature but also to make himself better known to us. 

This revealed knowledge of God would be unknown to us without the so-called 'organized religion' so often anathematized today.  So even these who claim we don't need organized religion contradict themselves as they partake of the knowledge of God we have from Revelation afforded by organized religion.

Similarly, I would not be too keen on new organizations claiming to be 'universal', meaning they have no creed or doctrine and 'accept' everyone.  The Catholic Church is universal, not only in name ('catholic' coming from the Greek for 'universal') but also in reality--it stretches to every part of the earth.  It is also accepting of every individual as a human being with dignity, made in the image of God, loved by God, and able to receive the grace God offers through the Sacraments. 

Accepting and loving someone does not mean you have to approve of and love everything that person does.  Somehow this is confused all too often these days, part of the post-modern, relativistic mentality so popular in our culture.  I would suggest that loving someone means more than just hugging them and saying so; it means also that you sincerely want what is best for them and that you will try to help them become the best that they can be.  Sometimes this means letting them know that what they are doing is not the best for them.

So no, no thanks.  I think I'll keep my 'organized' and 'universal' religion.  We may not be perfect, but we are trying to be.  We are trying to grow in love, joy, peace, and the other 'fruits of the Spirit', but it is a process that most of us will not complete until we enter those pearly gates and behold the face of God.  We're not happy to just be as we are--we want to be all that we can be through the grace of God.  Now doesn't that sound better than being alone or simply patting each other on the back all the time while being internally miserable?  I think so...