Young earth creationism had fallen. A literal, inerrant Word of God had fallen. Hell had fallen. Inevitable human depravity had fallen. Suffering as the means to become better was eroding. Hierarchy was eroding. I'd been isolated and put into a metaphorical iron suit of religious propaganda that would contain and restrain my growth as a … Continue reading Religious Indoctrination 13/20 →

My life hadn't just been informed by a belief that suffering was how God turned me into a better person, it had also been informed by a belief in hierarchy as the natural, God-ordained way the universe functioned and humans were supposed to behave. I accepted the concept of God-ordained hierarchy, but one modified by … Continue reading Religious Indoctrination 12/20 →

So much of my life and my choices had been informed by the belief that I was selfish and full of sin, or the desire to sin, and that God had to use the circumstances of my life to remove that selfishness and sin. A happy, easy life wouldn't work to help remove selfishness and … Continue reading Religious Indoctrination 11/20 →

Hell, that source of torment for so much of my life, was the next belief to fall. There was very little support in the Bible's texts for humans spending eternity in a lake of fire. More importantly, forcing humans to spend an eternity in a lake of fire would mark God as a colossal fucking … Continue reading Religious Indoctrination 10/20 →

My discovery of Calvinism brought on a crisis. The idea that salvation had been predetermined and that there was nothing anyone could do to have any control over their ultimate fate rattled me. What if it was true? Calvinism was supported by various texts from the Bible, after all. I decided that if it was … Continue reading Religious Indoctrination 9/20 →

I mentioned becoming part of the conservative Christian and libertarian Christian blog community. Some of my family had become part of this community too, and we'd made some friends from all over the country. Some of these friends were regular readers and commenters on a virulently anti-feminist libertarian Christian blog, which I don't want to … Continue reading Religious Indoctrination 8/20 →

I had a logical mind. I had doubts. I had questions. What I did not have was the necessary data. My beliefs were rational to me based on what I knew. It's just that so much of what I knew was so wrong. My foray into conservative Christian blogging introduced me to new thoughts and … Continue reading Religious Indoctrination 7/20 →

I was 18 and I finally had friends and a social life. I met a fellow nerd at my new job, and he invited me to join the Dungeons & Dragons game he played in. He was a charismatic extrovert that brought people together and was always involved in multiple nerdy activities for which he … Continue reading Religious Indoctrination 6/20 →

There had always been cracks. And cracks, of course, are how the light gets in. My dad would never get fully on board with my mom's desired level of control and isolation when it came to media. We had some freedoms that other homeschooling families did not. Dad was the God-ordained head of the household … Continue reading Religious indoctrination 5/20 →

I was selfish. I wanted things just because they made me happy, not because they advanced God's kingdom or helped spread the Gospel. I knew the desires of my heart were sinful, because I'd been told they were from a very young age. I'd long hated all the things I'd been told were expected of … Continue reading Religious Indoctrination 4/20 →