Both my grandfathers were “holiness revivalist preachers. My father was a parish pastor in a “holiness” fundamentalist church. I was steeped in an environment that included religious/spiritual terrorism. I want to say, Christine, that the work you are doing is so important. Thank you. Keep going.
I just want to second that the work you are doing is important, Christine. I was thinking about it while doing laundry or something, haha... A lot of other writers/bloggers/podcasters who talk about religious trauma focus on things like church hurt or abuse. But a lot of your writing actually deals with the harmful ideas and beliefs that come from fundamentalism/evangelicalism. This is important work because it's hard to speak out against harmful theological ideas, in fear of being shunned (re: what you said about the movie). But the beliefs themselves are exactly what need to be addressed and dismantled to start making it safe for conversations like this to happen. You're creating that safe space here. And I can't wait to see your book :)
That movie was on my list and I completely forgot about it. So relatable, and such a hard thing for a kid to understand. (In our case) why do my loving grandparents say unloving things in the name of religion? It’s very hard to hold my inner kid and my actual kids at the same time 💔
I have had adult clients going through “unloving actions in the name of religion “ and it has broken my heart. Saw the movie on the plane to Rome, where I confronted how much Roman wealth came from plundering assets held by Jews. Yup, if I had kids, I would have a hard time explaining the rigidity of religious dogma to them, much less justifying it.
I haven't seen the movie, but what you wrote about it is so relatable. It brings home the fact that so many of the things we fight about, debate about, and disagree about in different religious traditions are actually very basic things that any kid can understand. Like, we should love each other. And, people shouldn't do awful things to each other in the name of religion. Or, if God is good, he wouldn't do something like... *name your traumatizing belief of choice.* I think true "religion" is actually simple enough for children to understand, and we'd all do well to learn from the kids in our lives.
P.S., I feel a "shift" too - Personally, a lot of life circumstances are coming together for me, and I'm feeling a lot more hope and joy this year. If it's not too cringe to include a Bible verse here, it feels unexpectedly like Romans 8:28 - God working all things together for good. :)
I haven't seen this yet but I'm adding it to our next family movie night. Also, I've tossed around doing a virtual support group around the podcast from the Holy/Hurt podcast. Hit me up if you'd be interested in talking about collaborating.
Both my grandfathers were “holiness revivalist preachers. My father was a parish pastor in a “holiness” fundamentalist church. I was steeped in an environment that included religious/spiritual terrorism. I want to say, Christine, that the work you are doing is so important. Thank you. Keep going.
Oh gosh -- thank you so much for the encouragement. It means a lot to be joined by such a warm community of people here.
Also, "religious/spiritual terrorism" is such a vivid phrase that I need to tuck away for further use and reflection!
I just want to second that the work you are doing is important, Christine. I was thinking about it while doing laundry or something, haha... A lot of other writers/bloggers/podcasters who talk about religious trauma focus on things like church hurt or abuse. But a lot of your writing actually deals with the harmful ideas and beliefs that come from fundamentalism/evangelicalism. This is important work because it's hard to speak out against harmful theological ideas, in fear of being shunned (re: what you said about the movie). But the beliefs themselves are exactly what need to be addressed and dismantled to start making it safe for conversations like this to happen. You're creating that safe space here. And I can't wait to see your book :)
That movie was on my list and I completely forgot about it. So relatable, and such a hard thing for a kid to understand. (In our case) why do my loving grandparents say unloving things in the name of religion? It’s very hard to hold my inner kid and my actual kids at the same time 💔
It's so complicated to explain to a child, especially if they otherwise have a really solid or at least loving relationship with the grandparents!
It is hard but I feel like you do a beautiful job trying to strike that balance! ❤️
I have had adult clients going through “unloving actions in the name of religion “ and it has broken my heart. Saw the movie on the plane to Rome, where I confronted how much Roman wealth came from plundering assets held by Jews. Yup, if I had kids, I would have a hard time explaining the rigidity of religious dogma to them, much less justifying it.
Oh gosh such a jarring wakeup (and with some light priming of, religion mostly seems to make people fight!).
I'm so glad I don't feel like I have to justify it to my kids! That cognitive dissonance was an awful part of evangelicalism.
I want to see this. I love the book. And YES I feel the shift this year.
Yes it feels like you're right here in this shift, too!!!
I haven't seen the movie, but what you wrote about it is so relatable. It brings home the fact that so many of the things we fight about, debate about, and disagree about in different religious traditions are actually very basic things that any kid can understand. Like, we should love each other. And, people shouldn't do awful things to each other in the name of religion. Or, if God is good, he wouldn't do something like... *name your traumatizing belief of choice.* I think true "religion" is actually simple enough for children to understand, and we'd all do well to learn from the kids in our lives.
P.S., I feel a "shift" too - Personally, a lot of life circumstances are coming together for me, and I'm feeling a lot more hope and joy this year. If it's not too cringe to include a Bible verse here, it feels unexpectedly like Romans 8:28 - God working all things together for good. :)
I loved the Are You There, God? movie too!
I haven't seen this yet but I'm adding it to our next family movie night. Also, I've tossed around doing a virtual support group around the podcast from the Holy/Hurt podcast. Hit me up if you'd be interested in talking about collaborating.