I'm glad you had a place to hang out with your neighbors but lobbying by religious groups in the US have real negative consequences for a lot of people.
Not every church is the same.
The Catholic church runs many hospitals. They aren't charity hospitals -- they have similar cost structures that other hospitals have and play the same billing games. In many communities they are the only option. But because of their religious ownership, they can prohibit procedures which are otherwise legal.
My mom took my sister and I to a Quaker "meeting" (not church) when we were young and I had the impression that you actually didn't have to believe in God/Jesus. I could be mistaken though. Very cool experience nonetheless (cool people, no pastor/preacher, people just sitting in (meditative?) silence, pews split across the room, facing one another so there is no altar/front, etc.)
This is very much the case. Quakers are very open about the fact that their meetings are open to everyone who is willing to sit quietly.