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Lisa's avatar

I was raised in fundamentalist Baptist churches (General Association of Regular Baptist Churches) as a child. Social justice was never preached, and the only prophetic text used was Revelation to assure us that trouble in the Middle East meant Jesus would be returning any day and we would burn in hell if we werenโ€™t โ€œright with God.โ€ They used Isaiah and a few other places for Christmas and Easter to show Jesus fulfilled prophecy, but the rest of the books were mostly ignored.

When I ended up only finding Southern Baptist churches when I moved to Missouri, the teaching was much more radical (but I had actually been kind of absent from church for almost two years). I am not sure how long it had been that way, but from the pulpit and in Bible studies they were advocating for changing US law to the OT law (because โ€œGod created us and knows the laws that would serve us bestโ€), the end of voting rights for women, and the social safety net being turned to block grants given to churches to administer. On the OT law, the deacon who preached that sermon observed that adolescent rebellion would end quickly after the first few stonings, and I donโ€™t remember who was preaching the safety net one, but they gleefully discussed being able to control sinners by withholding money to anyone โ€œin sin,โ€ and how much church attendance would skyrocket because people would believe churches they attended would be more willing to help them. ๐Ÿคฆโ€โ™€๏ธ

That church absolutely horrified me, though there were a few very sweet decent people in it. I am not sure how they felt about some of these teachings.

It took a Sunday School at my husbandโ€™s church reading word for word through prophecy (which by this time I was afraid to read because it was twisted so badly out of context in sermons my whole life I believed it was not understandable) for me to finally hear Godโ€™s definition of justice. It was life-changing.

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Cheryl Winters-Heard's avatar

I removed the crucifix necklace that I've been wearing for 40 years. This is my silent protest against those "cristites" (not Christians) who loudly proclaim their holiness and righteousness with their own bejeweled crosses. I've replaced it with a pelican, an ancient feminine representation of Christ serving others by plucking her breast to feed her young. That is what my faith compels me to do, to see Christ in others and serve them.

Namaste: The divine in me sees the divine in you.

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