I have a similar issue at hand, and it's a bit long-winded of a story.
I was raised in a Jewish household. And when I say Jewish, we were about as Jewish, as the Olive Garden is Italian. We celebrated all of two holidays, and that was about it. I wanted a Christmas tree. I wanted Easter. I wanted spirituality. But I didn't want a higher power forced down my throat, so I walked away from Judaism when I turned 18.
In 2007, my now ex-wife and I were married in a UU church here in NJ. I knew nothing about UUism, other than that it was "non-denominational", which appealed to me. A few weeks later, I decided to check out one of their sermons. I found it intriguing. I never became a member, but I lurked here and there. In 2012, I began going with more regularity, and in 2013, I became a member - not fully knowing what they were all about, but loving the spirituality.
Fast-forward to today. I'm 38. Relatively happy in life. And while I do celebrate Christmas and Easter, I'm still craving that spirituality. Unfortunately, my UU church has let me down. It's gone from a home of spirituality, to a house of extreme left-wing politics.
Here's my problem....
1: I'm Republican. I'm not a bible-thumping Republican, though. I believe in pro-choice, and LGBTQ rights. I also believe that I should be able to own a firearm, keep as much money in my pocket as humanly possible, and feel that the government needs to stop butting into our lives. I guess you could say that my political views corroborate with an Independent or Libertarian. However, since neither of those parties ever win elections, I vote Republican. For a religion that claims to be "Welcoming to everyone", I find it amazing that us Republicans need to be the silent minority, and keep our mouths shut - no matter how centered or right we are...lest we become ostracized from our spiritual community.
2: I hate lay-led sermons. When I first began attending my UU church, our minister would give sermons all throughout the year, except the one week that he'd go on vacation. As time went on, our congregants began asking to lead their own sermons, and from the end of June through the first week of September, the church goes completely lay-led. Which forces me to look for other UU churches to attend during those weeks, or causes me to skip church altogether. While I get that a lot of people love the lay-led sermons, I do not. I want my spirituality and guidance from a minister. I'm not interested in hearing "Joe the Butcher"'s views on the environment.
3: A lot of UU churches are starting to remove the "spirituality quotient" from their sermons, and are becoming more of a "social justice club" (especially now that President Trump is in office). This is not what I'm looking for. As a rule of thumb, I hate political discussions - regardless of what party is being discussed. I go to church for spirituality, harmony, and peace. If I wanted politics, I'd watch the news, or read the morning paper.
So, with that said...
Are there any other religions - one where I can gain some spirituality, inner peace, and harmony - without having politics shoved down my throat...where I won't be ostracized for being a Republican...and where I can actually get my sermon from a Minister or Reverend? Or should I just walk way from religion altogether? Because right now, I'm hurting for that spirituality that I'm no longer getting.
