5 ~ Select Entries

To Heck With HELL … ‹(ô¿ô)›

Apr 042009

100_3970

Okay ~ I’ve got my thinking cap on again You all are sure to really wonder about the apparent randomness of my posts ~ seems like the topics I bring up are all over the place, huh?

I should be writing more of my story (I actually am working on that) ~ but recently I’ve been thinking that a BIG part of the reason I was able to throw out the BABY and subsequently get out of the “bath water” ~ i.e., escape the QF/patriarchal worldview in which I had invested so much of my life, my very SELF ~ is simply this:

Even as a Christian, I never believed in Hell. I avoided talking about it much because I couldn’t quite fit my universalism into the rest of what I believed about the Bible and Christianity. But I could talk about anything with my uncle, so I wrote the following for him ~ keep in mind that at the time I wrote this, I was still at least a half-convinced Christian.

Also ~ please read all the way through to the bottom because I’m going to tell you about how this idea of mine was used against me in the custody hearing by the home church pastor who believed that I deserved to lose custody of my children after I filed for divorce from my abusive husband.

IT'S TRUE: We've thrown out the BABY … and the bath water

5 ~ Select Entries 128 Responses »

Apr 022009

by Vyckie

0s100_5280

There have been several Christian readers of this blog recently who are leaving comments to the affect that Laura and I were “following” ~ a cultic movement ~ “interpretations of man” ~ a false understanding of God.

Their message is this, “Don’t throw out the baby with the bath water! If only you REALLY KNEW Jesus ~ you would understand that He loves you and seeks your good.” One comment reads, “There’s a big difference between following a cause and following the living Christ.”

I will admit that such comments are seriously aggravating to me because one point we’d really like to make in all of this is that Laura and I were genuine Christians.

While Laura admittedly did “turn off” her brain and blindly accept whatever she was told (mainly by her ex-husband) about authentic Christian living ~ she still did have a conversion experience which changed her heart, mind and way of living. She sincerely desired to please the Lord in every aspect of her life ~ she prayed to God and heard from Him, was led by the Holy Spirit, experienced the joy of the Lord, and felt His peace many, many times in her life as a dedicated Believer.

For myself, I don’t believe I could have been more “sold-out” and wholly devoted ~ not to a “system of belief,” a particular dogma or bible teacher ~ but to Jesus Christ, my Savior and LORD.

The whole reason I posted the long ol’ story of my first marriage which I wrote for my uncle is because it included the testimony of my conversion. Since I wrote it when I still believed it, I’ve included it here for others to read and know that I HAVE experienced an authentic relationship with God ~ by grace, through faith. It was always about HIM. Continue reading »

Every night I would cry myself to sleep, and every day I would convince others that my life was ideal ~ by Angel Renee

5 ~ Select Entries 35 Responses »

Apr 012009

0wb9

The idyllic Quiverfull children. Well okay ~ they didn’t quite have the Duggar look, but still ~ it’s a pretty sweet picture, huh? This photo was taken before church on my 18th wedding anniversary. During the church service, I read aloud a letter to the church telling how Satan was attacking our marriage and it seemed like he was winning ~ but I was not the least worried because “I know it’s been the Lord carrying us all along.” There’s another of my old writings that deserves a special place in “Vyckie’s Tour de Crap.”

[Note from Vyckie: As I read Kathryn Joyce's book, Quiverfull: Inside the Christian Patriarchy Movement, I kept thinking to myself, "Angel HAS GOT to read this!" So as soon as I was finished, I shared my copy with her ~ here is Angel's reaction to the "Daughters" section of the book.]

As a daughter of the Quiverfull movement, I just want to share my view of what happened in my life. I read the Quiverfull book, and my reaction was one of grief and anger. I had collected all of the memories from my teenage years and locked them away in some unconscious corner of my existence. While reading, those memories suddenly flew free and returned with sickening force. Here are a few of the snapshots of my past that have haunted me.

When I was eleven or so, my parents decided to get rid of the girls’ pants. Inside, I protested vehemently to this choice. I loved active sports, gymnastics, climbing trees… and I saw dresses as serious disabling devices as far as my interests were concerned. However, my dad pointed out that I needed to become a meek, chaste lady, so I obeyed and gave away my shorts, trousers, and capris.

Chaste – that was a word that always made me helplessly angry. My dad always referenced the word to a woman who walks with her head humbly bowed in a gesture of meekness and humility toward her father and husband. I often wondered what my father had done to deserve this kind of honor. However, since my job was to be absolutely obedient to my father and give him all respect, I never argued, just asked God through angry tears why I had to be a girl.