Breaking Free: Embracing Identity Beyond Labels
Deconstruct to Reconstruct: Dismantling Dogma
Andy Hahn
Photo by Jason Hogan on Unsplash
The ultimate tragedy is not the oppression and cruelty by the bad people but the silence over that by the good people.
-Dr. Martin Luther King Jr
A Need for Community:
As human beings, our brain automatically categorizes and stereotypes people, places, and things. Part of this is to allow our mind to create shortcuts to understand who is and who is not a threat. We have an instinctual need to be a part of a community, but what happens when these labels become toxic? What happens when these labels confine us, restrict our individual experiences, and define us in ways that may not reflect who we are?
Regardless of the group or labels we place, there will always be a certain amount of balance a person has to do. As an American, I can love my country and be proud of its history while recognizing there are disgraceful parts of my country’s history and rectifying that helps build a more perfect union.
Few organizations offer more “community” than faith groups. Like-minded individuals, when at their best, offer hope for their communities and resources for the less fortunate. However, when these communities become toxic and tainted, it causes unknown amounts of hurt.
My personal deconstruction journey has been years in the making. For a long time, I struggled to articulate what I considered myself to be. Religious labels such as “evangelical” or “Christian” carried heavy connotations that I was uncomfortable with. I began using terms such as spiritual, not religious; it is complicated, a person of faith, and ex-vangelical. I understand individuals have many different emotions and experiences with these “terms.”
However, when I have talked to people with similar backgrounds, I have found some common feelings that lead to a complex mix of anger, frustration, and disillusionment. Recent documentaries have focused on some recent scandals in the evangelical world. Some of these scandals include the exposure and coverup of child molestation in Hillsong, the Southern Baptist Church, and the Gothard homeschool movement. These events highlight the need for a questioning attitude and the role labels and community play in understanding spirituality. I do this while acknowledging that most people involved with these religious organizations were not guilty of the crimes. However, the lack of questioning leads to guilt for those who do not speak out about the wrongs.
Anger and Disillusionment:
Recent scandals rocking religious institutions have ignited further examination in documentaries and discussions among groups of “deconstructionists” on social media platforms. The Hillsong scandal, with its revelations of financial misconduct, hiding of child abuse, and just blatant abuses of power by leadership, has left countless individuals feeling betrayed and disillusioned.
Similarly, the Baptist church’s history of abuse scandals has caused a crisis of faith for many of its followers. These incidents force us to question the institutions we once trusted and confront the reality that there is a dark underbelly within them. Some excuses for covering up the abuses were because of the good these organizations could do. Those that push forth the idea that abusers being held accountable prevents an organization from doing good is the definition of hypocrisy.
The movie Sounds of Freedom documents the rescue of children kidnapped and sold into sexual slavery. It is evil and leaves any person rightfully feeling emotions of anger, sadness, and a need for a call to action to prevent these abuses from happening. The message is valid and resonates with religious and non-religious groups alike.
However, the documentary “Happy Shiny People: Duggar Family Secrets” highlights the extremes of the Duggar family belief system highlighted in the reality show “19 Kids and Counting.” The Duggars were extreme examples of what the documentary calls “The Gothard Movement, “ an evangelical Christian homeschooling program. The program is a curriculum created by Bill Gothard, which he entitled “Institute in Basic Life Principles.” was designed to keep a family protected from the devil and evils of secular society with protection under a system known as an “umbrella of authority” which at its best is a male-dominated dogma that more often then not leads to abuse where sexism is encouraged and questioning anyone in authority is discouraged.
This dogma and belief system led Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar to choose to conceal the sexual abuse of their daughters perpetrated by their eldest son to portray the “perfect family” on TV. The Happy Shiny People’s exposé on the Gothard movement shed light beyond the Duggar family and showed how Gothard’s theology led to a system rampant with abuse that remained hidden for far too long.
It is easy to dismiss many of the examples in recent scandals as extreme examples of the worst a movement has to offer or just as quickly to use the examples as proof that these labels expose every religious group or organization as corrupt.
However, both viewpoints are flawed; the answer is much more complicated. We thrive when communities have places where people can come together for a common cause. Religious groups and organizations can do extraordinary amounts of needed and essential work for communities. Likewise, suppose abuse is tolerated or concealed to protect the reputation of the abusers. In that case, it ignores the immense hurt many groups and individuals have faced at the hands of religious groups that are supposed to be different. Jesus cautions the religious groups of his time of not practicing what they preach and creating huge burdens on people. They find the ”holy” among them are more interested in following a list of rules and laws regarding practices of tithing and service which Jesus said is not wrong, but that they ignore more important manners of the law, which are justice, mercy, and faithfulness.
For decades, groups like the Southern Baptist Convention, one of the most prominent protestant organizations in the United States, promoted and continue to promote a very narrow view on the role of women in leadership while punishing those who disagree, as evidenced in the most of their recent convention with over two-thirds voting to ban women from roles as teaching pastors in their churches while simultaneously having evidence documenting the coverup of allegations and known abuses of people of all ages, grooming of teenagers and children prove that some of the extremes of the paternalistic and abusive theology from Gothard’s movement have trickled into the mainstream of the “Evangelical” label.
Minimizing victims’ pain or discounting the depths of crimes perpetuated by leaders of these groups does a disservice to these groups. However, for years these leaders have stated that any questioning or critique from the outside was just an attack from people that did not understand or align with their theology. The argument may have been sufficient previously, but it does not stand up against the mounting evidence. Ignoring the seriousness of these fundamental problems creates guilt for all who associate with these groups and accept the conduct. Finally, it will compound some of the continuing decrease of influence these groups have on the general population, with polls repeatedly showing a decline in church attendance and the power these groups have to do good for the community.
Embracing a Personal Journey to Move Forward:
The discomfort caused by these scandals also opens up an opportunity for self-reflection and personal growth. I hurt with those that have been discarded and abused in the name of “God.” I have my own hurts and hang-ups and have made awful decisions and my fair share of moral failings, just like anyone else. Recognizing my failings has led to a change in my actions. As I have received a gift of grace, I need to give that gift to others, and I find the ability to do those in the understanding of my faith. But as the Dr. King quote from above reminds us, the ultimate tragedy is if we see wrong and choose to do nothing.
Labels always come with different connotations and meanings for every viewpoint. Breaking free from names and descriptions does not mean abandoning spirituality or community. It encourages us to seek connections with others who share similar values while acknowledging the diversity and complexity of individual experiences and being a voice for the voiceless.
How do I label myself? I do not have the right words yet, but I strive to be an example of what is right and to remember that faith and hope are good things, but the greatest is love.
