If You Don’t Think There’s a Double Standard…

I don’t have much content for you today, Reader.

Really–I just have a couple of screenshots. That’s all it will take to make my point.

Here’s the testimony of a woman on the Humans of New York page about how she got dangerously drunk, then went into a jealous rage and threatened violence, and then kissed a stranger and eventually took her home as a rebound:

And here’s someone reacting to that story:

 

What else do I need to say?  We’re not even trying to deny it anymore…

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Update:

I still don’t have much to add, but a few more male-hating feminists decided to pile on and double-down on their open biases.

Oy, help me, Lord…  The people who think they understand “justice” are making the world a worse place.

Mothers Are Right Even When They’re Wrong

It’s an age-old tale.

Mother gets creepy feeling.

Mother posts pictures and a scary story on social media and asks everyone to share it.

Thousands of equally-concerned mothers assure each other that embracing their paranoia is a good thing because it’s “better safe than sorry” when it comes to their children…

Panic ensues.  Everyone clutches their own children a little tighter… But, ultimately, everyone sleeps better knowing they are good, concerned citizens who have made the world a better place…

…and that Dad and his buddies have the tools necessary to take care of The Problem if a suspicious person makes the mistake of driving slowly near his son again:

This is how the tale is supposed to go…

But–sometimes–with no warning, the well-rehearsed story can take an unexpected turn.  Sometimes the police investigate and discover the person that everyone wants to throw in jail or shoot wasn’t actually trying to kidnap anyone’s child after all.

Now, reader, you might be thinking:  “EGAD! That’s not how it’s supposed to end!… We want JUSTICE…we want to hear that the Child Predator has been CAUGHT AND JAILED (if not SHOT AND KILLED).  We don’t want to find out that we’ve been on the lookout for an elderly woman who didn’t even do anything unkind, let alone criminal.”

But, fear not, dear Reader.  Fear not!

If you’re worried that our Hero and Heroine are planning to wipe the egg off their face and apologize for the overreaction, I was on the scene to ask whether that will happen:

 

Sure enough, Mom responded with a “like” on my comment shortly after I took this screenshot.

So, you see, it’s a happy ending after all…

Nobody was forced to do the mature, respectable thing by taking responsibility for their Alarmist behavior.  And everyone can take comfort in the fact that security cameras are rolling 24 hours a day in a small, Midwestern community, ensuring that we always know what color car drove past a kid on a bike at 6:00pm.

And, just in case there is anyone from the community who thinks it’s distasteful for me to share all of this on my blog, let me just explain something. My post has not made any assumptions. I’m only describing exactly what happened, there are no fingers being pointed, and there are no names in any of these pictures.

So, I don’t think I’ll be taking it down any time soon.

Plus, if you haven’t noticed, I am a mom…so my feelings about things are right even if the facts ever prove me wrong.

New Fundamentalism: They’ve Become What They Hate

A few years ago, I wrote about my escape from “Fundamentalism.”

I noticed that people are attracted to the testimonies of ex-Evangelicals who are willing to say critical things about Christianity.  (The public just loves that stuff!)  So I wrote my post as if I were going to call out my Fundamentalist parents and pastors for ruining my childhood….only to pull a switch at the end to describe the way New Fundamentalists are 100 times more dangerous because they think they’re better.

This week, after a couple of high-profile “DeConversion Testimonies” have made the rounds on social media, the conversation about New Fundmentalism is relevant again.

I was encouraged to see John Cooper (of the band Skillet), clearly and unflinchingly describe the problem with former Christians who keep using their platforms to lead people, even when they have no idea where they’re going:

“I am stunned that the seemingly most important thing for these leaders who have lost their faith is to make such a bold new stance. Basically saying, “I’ve been living and preaching boldly something for 20 years and led generations of people with my teachings and now I no longer believe it..therefore I’m going to boldly and loudly tell people it was all wrong while I boldly and loudly lead people in to my next truth.” Why be so eager to continue leading people when you clearly don’t know where you are headed?

…So the influencers become the voice for truth in whatever stage of life and whatever evolution takes place in their thinking.”

Cooper absolutely nails it with this statement.

In this culture, it doesn’t matter if someone completely changes the message they’ve been speaking for years, they still want to hold the microphone the entire time, without losing a bit of credibility.

These bold speakers see themselves (first and foremost) as TEACHERS, regardless of what they’re actually teaching.  Whether they’re saying “Up” or “Down” or “Red” or “Green,” they want to have an audience listening to their declarations no matter where they go.

This mindset will lead right back to Fundamentalism every, single time. 

I could have chosen several different threads to use in my example, but here’s the one I ultimately documented for posterity:

First, I want to clarify that I don’t have a problem with “rethinking Christianity,” in general.  On this blog, I ask questions all the time, which I hope will encourage Fundamentalists of all stripes to challenge their own beliefs…

But–consistency is very important to me.

So, if you are going to make any absolute statemets about being “empathetic, open, and decent,” you better be willing to question THOSE assumptions, as well. Otherwise Blue is correct: you are simply practicing bigotry of a different color.

If I can’t rebuild, reframe, and reconstruct your new perspective, then you’re no better off than James Dobson:

I’m not going to add commentary between all of the screenshots, because the post will get too long…  Just skim through this conversation and see how many blatant contradictions and double-standards you can spot:

 

 

And this was when I decided to leave Red, Yellow, and Green to continue their church service without me…  Their religion is too deeply-engrained and they have built too many walls for a lone stranger on Facebook to be given a fair shot at dialog.

The best I can do with this conversation is draw attention to a growing sub-culture of Ex-Christians (or Humanists or Non-labeled-People or Whatever) and then ask the Holy Spirit to use it for His glory somehow…

At the end of the day, Fundamentalism is damaging and dangerous no matter who engages in it.  (In that sense, I agree with Red. It doesn’t matter what you call yourself.)

But, don’t tell me that everyone has a right to work through their own faith with no outside judgment, while you judge James Dobson’s and John Piper’s faith.

Don’t wag your finger at people who won’t let you “deconstruct” their religion when no one is allowed to question yours, either.   (And, oh my gosh, don’t get me started on this “I’m traumatized, so I can invent my own rules” B.S.)

If this mess of contradictions and self-glorification is your new religion, I think very little of it.

You have become the Fundamental thing which you hate.

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(My final comments in the thread are below)

You Didn’t Kill Anybody: An Apology Letter on Behalf of Fearful Christians

Dear Gun-Owners,

Normally, I despise “apology letters” written by people who didn’t commit the offense themselves.  But I’m trying to speak the language of the People Who Love Apology Letters. And, since SOMEONE definitely owes you an apology for the thing I came across today, I’ve decided to tackle it.

I’m sorry that fear and lack-of-understanding of your culture has resulted in undue blame for crimes you never committed. 

It has been observed many times that fear of differences often causes people to say shocking, damaging things. It causes us to shout our own perspective, loudly and uncompromisingly, to the exclusion of those who think differently…

Some of my brothers and sisters in Christ have allowed their fear of Gun Culture to influence the way they interract with Gun Owners, in ways which (unfortunately) breed even MORE fear and MORE division.

Sometimes these well-meaning Christians let their understandable fear, grief, or anger cause them to write misguided and hurtful things to their gun-owning neighbors:

 

To the innocent men and women who are being preemptively blamed for a hypothetical Grocery Store Shooting, I am so sorry.

I’m thinking especially of my real-life friends: Bill, Russ, Allen, and David. But I know literally dozens of other responsible gun-owners, who probably don’t want to be listed by name in a cultural climate where they are held responsible for Child-Killers.

Please try to understand, the words being written about you PERSONALLY are not really meant to be taken that way.  If I filled a hallway with people like Bill and Russ and Allen and David (and the rest of you careful, compassionate, and community-minded neighbors),  no one would dare look you in the eye and deliver an inflammatory speech about dead children that doesn’t apply to you.

When we say that we want to be united as Americans against the Bad Guys, we really mean it–even though our emotions cause us to misidentify those Bad Guys at times.

I’m sorry that the cycle of fear and mistrust continues with every careless thing written about Gun-Owners as a group.

I’m sorry that the same people who believe the government is running literal concentration camps at the boarder have said, loud and clear, that they STILL trust that government more than they trust you…

I’m sorry that propoganda is so pervasive, and that some have chosen to wield their weapon of words against you, even though you would never use your metal weapons against them.

You didn’t kill anyone, and you don’t deserve to be treated like you did.

That said–I know the person from the above screenshot in real-life, and I believe she’s genuine in her desire to make a difference in this world, through LOVE rather than fear.  If this was just a lapse in judgment, please don’t hold it against her. We are still in this together, as fellow Americans against Evil, even though this growing loyalty to Policies rather than People feels like betrayal.

Someone has to stop the cycle of fear and division. Let it be you.

Be courageous. Be brave. Step in. Raise your voice.

And remember this post in case you are called to respond to a fearful neighbor with grace and patience today.

That’s far more likely than being shot.

In Christ,

-Amanda

 

P.S.  As an addendum, I want to note that I’ve been in conversation with Conservatives today about the so-called Red Flag laws and the pros/cons of allowing private citizens to identify when an individual may NOT be fit to own guns.   I’m genuinely open-minded because I believe communities are the first line of defense against criminals.  It has been encouraging to interact with fair and reasonable gun-owners to be reminded that there are very few “clinging to their guns” out of pride and selfishness.  Most of the people against gun control are simply concerned that the Government Bad Guys will be even more unstoppable than a rogue Shooter, and they’re trying to protect ALL OF US from being treated like criminals when we’re not.