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How Heretics Like Me, Impress With Only a Few Bible Passages.
It’s what I refer to as my Lawrence Taylor strategy.
For anyone interested in Scripture analysis and debunking harmful beliefs, consider taking a deep dive with former Orthodox priest, Father Nathan Monk.
Example, his essay: “The word homosexual never appeared in any translation of the Bible until 1946”
I, not a theologian, and also an ex-Christian, wouldn’t dare dissect Scripture.
In my thirties I was a devout (liberal) Methodist for 12 years. Lots of Bible studies, prayer circles, tears during Christian rock songs, including at 2am on my porch with cocktails and a husband who begged for better date night music.
My religious euphoria was genuine.
Yes I was filled with Jesus, even though at the time I was figuring out how my liberal values meshed with the “Believe In Him to Get In” (or possibly) rot theology. Methodists aren’t hit-you-over-the head damnation types.
My religious journey started a few years after my daughter was born. I figured my husband and I should give our child some kind of religious foundation, and the Methodists seemed the least worst.
We were both believers mind you, only lazy, not church-y, and skeptical of organized religion.
But I did join the church and dragged my family to services a couple times a month.
My daughter attended and taught VBS, did kid and youth group, immersive charismatic retreats, and put up with my forced 30 second gratitude prayers at dinner and bed time.
But during high school she stopped buying anything God had to sell. Her thesis: If God is so real and so powerful, why let babies die?
So she became a non-preachy quiet agnostic.
Translation:
If you want to believe, great, I won’t tell you you’re wrong, except for the homophobia, and the shame on you temptress Eve misogyny, or the earth-is-only 5,000-years-old or the husband as head-of-household bullshit.
I mean, my daughter is the spawn of a psychology/science feminist mom, she had to draw the line somewhere.
