Growing up in the evangelical, Southern Baptist Church, we were trained to view the humanity of people as the bad part, the soul as the only thing that mattered.
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When we interacted with people, we were taught to watch their actions, and even though we often said, "don't be judgmental" we were bring trained to judge everyone by everything they did without understanding who they were. 2/
There was one girl in my junior high/high school that I always wanted to witness to. I gave her a bible after our church visited her home to tell her the "love of Jesus" and wanted her friendship so badly-- for the wrong reasons, so that I could help her "be saved" 3/
We had similar childhood experiences of trauma that we could have connected on, that we could have talked about. And while I did want to do that, to connect, it was about eternity, because that was always the front lens of everything. 4/
And to be a good Christian meant that everything, EVERYTHING was about heaven or hell. And if we couldn't get our friends into heaven, we'd be held accountable. Can you imagine the weight I carried on my little shoulders? 5/
I was deeply loved by the people in my life. But we were taught about a God that is an authoritative gavel holder. And those ideas were upheld by the church in every way.
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Now I think often about messaging those people I grew up with, letting them know that there was a kind of brainwashing that took place, a training to become someone that I didn't realize I was becoming.
Religion is a hell of a drug.
Dogma is a hell of a trap.
Be careful.
Religion is a hell of a drug.
Dogma is a hell of a trap.
Be careful.
