Why rejecting your faith is different than deconstructing from it
Like most of you, I’ve been posting on social media for many years. Although I considered myself experienced in the social media game, nothing prepared me for going viral on TikTok.
“I feel like I’ve been lied to my entire life.”
This was said to me by a spiritual care client a few years ago. As I held the space for her journey to heal from religious trauma and reclaim the spiritual power that had been taken away from her by religion, I understood her sentiment all too well.
I have many fond memories of growing up in the 60’s and 70’s. However, I also can see the places where the political, educational and religious systems in place at the time failed, allowing some of us to fall through the crack and land where empathy and compassion are void.
It was a time where lines were blurred when it came to religion’s presence in education.
I recently spent time going through questions from followers -- thousands of them from this past year. Some people share their stories. Some people simply want to be seen and loved. But many of them are about being spiritual but not religious.
Embracing the wisdom of the Autumn Equinox
As a child, I always looked forward to the first day of fall. My reasons were entirely selfish, as I eagerly anticipated the arrival of my early October birthday.
”..And we'll never grow old again
You'll find us chasing the sun…”
That’s from a song you may already be familiar with called “Chasing the Sun”. The video has been viewed on YouTube over 127,000,000 times. Well, I don’t know where I’ve been because that’s kind of a big deal. The lyrics speak to the singer’s desire to live loudly and proclaim that immortality is possible if you’ll only believe it.
Why Christian love hurts, dehumanizes and needs to be called out
“There is nothing more hateful than Christian love.”
This phrase is a paradox, and people’s responses to it range from relief by those who have been hurt by it, to anger and offense toward those who feel they have the right to call their cruel and unacceptable behavior “love.”
We’ve been here before, but it’s obvious this is a topic we’re destined to revisit time and again. I’ll begin by admitting that I understand how some people may feel compelled to push back with a “Not all” statement when the truth hits too close to home. I understand this because I’ve been there.
