- Joined
- Jan 31, 2012
- Messages
- 7,855
- Reaction score
- 627
- Points
- 113
I have observed this person as they have traveled through the struggle of their journey. The conclusion that they have arrived at is an error filled mess in my opinion. At the same time I have an abiding sympathy for the hurts piled on them by the people who misapplied scripture for their own sake.
***********
"This will be a bit of a vulnerable post -
I studied this subject extensively a few years ago after a experiencing a major moral injury that was loosely related in a Baptist church. The experience raised some major questions for me.
What I learned while explorining this topic as deeply as I could radically changed my point of view — and that has cost me relationships. (sometimes that stings but I am ok with it - Ive accepted that I am not made to “go along to get along” and loss unfortunately comes with the territory.)
It also taught me some important lessons that have revealed much on a broader scale.
1. People are not actually governed by a honest adherence to a set of beliefs. They ignore the parts they dont like and make the text say what they want it to say regardless of what it actually says or any historical or cultural context. They dont really care what it says. They care that about maintaining status quo.
2. People will justify literally any immoral or inconsistent position by picking and choosing from the text and twisting themselves into pretzels to use the text to maintain their preferred position. (the women in leadership, and trump and talarico discussions are both excellent examples)
3. When they do these things, they dont actually believe anything at all - not spiritually anyway - because spiritual belief requires subordination of preferences to truth. It requires subordination of what feels normal, or comfortable, or upholds our own personal power to truth. If we subordinate truth to preference - we dont believe it is truth at all. If we subordinate what is moral to justify the status quo we dont actually adhere to that moral standard at all.
Obviously this pretty much discredits entire movements. So the remaining puzzle is sorting out truth independently - which is difficult. Obviously once the authority and credibility of an entire leadership structure has become discredited you cant trust anything that has been presented from said leadership structure. And once you fall down that hole you find it is a very very deep hole that has implications far beyond said leadership structure.
This isnt a warning about pursuing truth. Yeah that’s hard. Youre gonna have an entire identity collapse but who wants to build their identity on a lie?
This is an indictment of the structures that corrupt what they claim is incorruptible whether intentionally or unintentionally and subordinate truth to power, and I guess a repudiation of their authority. They have none - because the forfeited it.
Its been like living in a hall of mirrors and a sudden chain reaction that causes the mirrors to start breaking in succession - a domino effect that began with a subject, then multiple movements, then your own sense of identity. and then even people you have always believed in.
Sure - the hall of mirrors was illusory. But when its all you have ever known and all of it breaks, there really is nothing left and noone to rebuild with - because literally everything was totally distorted.
Platos analogy of the cave comes to mind. The problem is you cant go back in the cave. And you cant get the people in the cave to come out with you.
So there you are disoriented by the blinding sun and alone in figuring out what is next."
*************
Sadly, this is way too common and I suspect it will get worse.
***********
"This will be a bit of a vulnerable post -
I studied this subject extensively a few years ago after a experiencing a major moral injury that was loosely related in a Baptist church. The experience raised some major questions for me.
What I learned while explorining this topic as deeply as I could radically changed my point of view — and that has cost me relationships. (sometimes that stings but I am ok with it - Ive accepted that I am not made to “go along to get along” and loss unfortunately comes with the territory.)
It also taught me some important lessons that have revealed much on a broader scale.
1. People are not actually governed by a honest adherence to a set of beliefs. They ignore the parts they dont like and make the text say what they want it to say regardless of what it actually says or any historical or cultural context. They dont really care what it says. They care that about maintaining status quo.
2. People will justify literally any immoral or inconsistent position by picking and choosing from the text and twisting themselves into pretzels to use the text to maintain their preferred position. (the women in leadership, and trump and talarico discussions are both excellent examples)
3. When they do these things, they dont actually believe anything at all - not spiritually anyway - because spiritual belief requires subordination of preferences to truth. It requires subordination of what feels normal, or comfortable, or upholds our own personal power to truth. If we subordinate truth to preference - we dont believe it is truth at all. If we subordinate what is moral to justify the status quo we dont actually adhere to that moral standard at all.
Obviously this pretty much discredits entire movements. So the remaining puzzle is sorting out truth independently - which is difficult. Obviously once the authority and credibility of an entire leadership structure has become discredited you cant trust anything that has been presented from said leadership structure. And once you fall down that hole you find it is a very very deep hole that has implications far beyond said leadership structure.
This isnt a warning about pursuing truth. Yeah that’s hard. Youre gonna have an entire identity collapse but who wants to build their identity on a lie?
This is an indictment of the structures that corrupt what they claim is incorruptible whether intentionally or unintentionally and subordinate truth to power, and I guess a repudiation of their authority. They have none - because the forfeited it.
Its been like living in a hall of mirrors and a sudden chain reaction that causes the mirrors to start breaking in succession - a domino effect that began with a subject, then multiple movements, then your own sense of identity. and then even people you have always believed in.
Sure - the hall of mirrors was illusory. But when its all you have ever known and all of it breaks, there really is nothing left and noone to rebuild with - because literally everything was totally distorted.
Platos analogy of the cave comes to mind. The problem is you cant go back in the cave. And you cant get the people in the cave to come out with you.
So there you are disoriented by the blinding sun and alone in figuring out what is next."
*************
Sadly, this is way too common and I suspect it will get worse.
