qadeshet Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 From childhood we're told that we are worthless sinners, doomed to eternal punishment unless we believe. The Church has the answer, of course. Then we get to give 10% of our income for the rest of our lives. Yahweh fits every single example. Sounds like any abusive relationship. Warning Signs of an Abusive Relationship Controlling behavior. Jealousy and possessiveness. Misogyny. Mood swings and short temper. Threats, intimidation, and physical violence. Emotional abuse and put downs. Blaming the victim. Hypercritical nature/Unrealistic expectations. Is the Christian “Relationship with God” Healthy? Battered person syndrome Stockholm syndrome Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Furball Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Yes, god is a serial abuser. The fact that god demands you love him or burn forever should have been a warning sign to me from the beginning to run from that relationship. I was psychologically and emotionally abused for 13 years in the religion of christianity. Your right quadeshet, christianity/god/jesus has all the exact same markers as a human abusive relationship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amateur Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 Yes, it's abusive. And you're not allowed to question anything on a serious level in a church or small-group setting. God is enabled by the preachers and others in authority. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qadeshet Posted August 28, 2015 Author Share Posted August 28, 2015 Yes, god is a serial abuser. The fact that god demands you love him or burn forever should have been a warning sign to me from the beginning to run from that relationship. I was psychologically and emotionally abused for 13 years in the religion of christianity. Your right quadeshet, christianity/god/jesus has all the exact same markers as a human abusive relationship. This argument, and the Problem of Evil, may be our best weapons against Christianity and all other abusive Religions. Pointing out contradictions doesn't seem to help much. If you want to have fun, take a clinical book that diagnoses mental disorders and see if there is a similarity between Narcissistic Personality Disorder, and the Bible God. You may also find sociopathic tendencies, and even some psychopathic tendencies. I have done it. It is amazing. I showed that to some Christian friends and they very quickly changed the subject. But of course I didn't push it with them because they are decent people and I have never had any grief out of them. That's always been my opinion. If a Christian friend is happy, let them enjoy their delusion. But if a friend is a victim of a serial abuser, shouldn't we intervene? I'm not sure how we can best help them. Yes, it's abusive. And you're not allowed to question anything on a serious level in a church or small-group setting. God is enabled by the preachers and others in authority. I was told by an assistant Pastor that the Church had done all my thinking for me so I didn't have to think for myself. So I should shut up and stop asking questions. That was my last day in Church. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
♦ Fuego ♦ Posted August 28, 2015 Share Posted August 28, 2015 "I was told by an assistant Pastor that the Church had done all my thinking for me so I didn't have to think for myself. So I should shut up and stop asking questions." *BWAAAT!* Thanks for playing, pastor. I encountered one such pastor in my time, at a megachurch in Portland. It was clear in very short order that he and his slick cronies wanted your money, were entitled to your money, and didn't want questions, backtalk, doubting, or you'd hear "We think you'd be happier somewhere else". Vile. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qadeshet Posted August 28, 2015 Author Share Posted August 28, 2015 "I was told by an assistant Pastor that the Church had done all my thinking for me so I didn't have to think for myself. So I should shut up and stop asking questions." *BWAAAT!* Thanks for playing, pastor. I encountered one such pastor in my time, at a megachurch in Portland. It was clear in very short order that he and his slick cronies wanted your money, were entitled to your money, and didn't want questions, backtalk, doubting, or you'd hear "We think you'd be happier somewhere else". Vile. I was only a teen but I actually thought that the Church must have good answers and I just wasn't smart enough to figure it out. That's when I learned that there were no good answers to my questions. I still get letters from my old Church inviting me back. You would think that after 45 years, they would get the message. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traveller2 Posted August 28, 2015 Share Posted August 28, 2015 Yes he has a crop of young vulnerable teens every year:I was one of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdelsolray Posted August 28, 2015 Share Posted August 28, 2015 I've always liked Richard Dawkins' comment of the god of the Old Testament: “The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.” The God Delusion, Chapter 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qadeshet Posted August 28, 2015 Author Share Posted August 28, 2015 Yes he has a crop of young vulnerable teens every year:I was one of them. Sounds like the 4-14 Window. 85% of all Christians were indocrinated as children. "What you believe at age 13 is pretty much what you're going to die believing," The 4-14 Window I've always liked Richard Dawkins' comment of the god of the Old Testament: “The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.” The God Delusion, Chapter 2 Sounds like a sociopathic serial abuser to me. As bad as the O.T. "god" sounds, he never promised to send billions of "his" children to Hell for eternity just for not believing. N.T. 'god" is worse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traveller2 Posted August 28, 2015 Share Posted August 28, 2015 The 4-14 window eh? I recall in the 90s leaders banging on about the 80-20 window...probably got the numbers wrong but it was longitudes that the church needed to pray for for there to be most conversions and for missionaries to convert them. The 4-14 window: that's just sick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qadeshet Posted August 28, 2015 Author Share Posted August 28, 2015 The 4-14 window eh? I recall in the 90s leaders banging on about the 80-20 window...probably got the numbers wrong but it was longitudes that the church needed to pray for for there to be most conversions and for missionaries to convert them. The 4-14 window: that's just sick. Childhood indoctrination should be considered child abuse. Here's some more on the 4-14 window. child evangelism movement Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qadeshet Posted August 28, 2015 Author Share Posted August 28, 2015 That's always been my opinion. If a Christian friend is happy, let them enjoy their delusion. But if a friend is a victim of a serial abuser, shouldn't we intervene? I'm not sure how we can best help them. Most of the people whom I know who are Christians tend to be pretty decent people by and large. I really don't know what to say about any intervention. I don't like to do something unless it is just overwhelmingly evident and even then I question myself at every step. I've begun to use sarcasm. "You mean, you actually believe in talking snakes and unicorns? Do you also believe in Santa?". I may have to respect their right to believe whatever they wish, but I don't have to respect their beliefs. I may lose a few Christian friends, but I can live with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
♦ ficino ♦ Posted August 29, 2015 Share Posted August 29, 2015 God is just such a fucking fuck-up. Joseph Stalin at least could get something done. My mind reels at this shit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdelsolray Posted August 29, 2015 Share Posted August 29, 2015 God is just such a fucking fuck-up. Joseph Stalin at least could get something done. My mind reels at this shit. It's comforting to remember that this god is a fictional character. As such, we can only look at the authors of the fiction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyesOpened Posted August 29, 2015 Share Posted August 29, 2015 This just occurred to me. What need would God have for Emotions? Aren't emotions in place, here, in the physical realm, to protect our minds and physical bodies from harm? Isn't that what science says about emotions? What the heck would God need any of that for? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qadeshet Posted August 29, 2015 Author Share Posted August 29, 2015 God is just such a fucking fuck-up. Joseph Stalin at least could get something done. My mind reels at this shit. Hitler learned a lot from his Catholic upbringinging. Remember the Hitler Youth movement? God is just such a fucking fuck-up. Joseph Stalin at least could get something done. My mind reels at this shit. It's comforting to remember that this god is a fictional character. As such, we can only look at the authors of the fiction. The authors and editors of the Bible knew what they were doing. So did L Ron Hubbard. It is the Church that is the Serial Abuser, not a fictional "god". Is there any Religion that doesn't use these same controlling techniques? This just occurred to me. What need would God have for Emotions? Aren't emotions in place, here, in the physical realm, to protect our minds and physical bodies from harm? Isn't that what science says about emotions? What the heck would God need any of that for? All the gods ard made in Man's image. Cruel and vengefull made we them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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