Do you have to be part of an organized religion to be spiritual?

Does a person have to be part of an organized religion in order to have a strong spiritual relationship with God? Or can it be a private thing? There are definitely advantages to being part of a group that worships God each week at an established Church. In fact, one of the criticisms is that people join a Church just to take advantage of the social atmosphere. Whether this applies or not, it cannot be denied that it is a lot easier to be a good person if you around people who believe in the same things you do. It is harder to be good if you are around people for whom morality is not an important focus of their lives. On the other hand, a lot of people go to Church each week and do things in private that are very different from what they preach or pretend in public. Maybe there is a place in the middle. Find a group of people who think like you do, but live what you believe, rather than just talk about it. As I have said in other places: words whisper, actions scream. If this topic interests you, you might want to read the introduction to my book, He Talks to Me, Too. You can find it under the My Writing tab.