#Christianity is child abuse

[hurricanehiatus]

I don't fuck with that Christianity shit because the people who have hurt me the most were christians who hurt me in the name of their god. So fuck them and fuck that.

[self-loving-vampire]

Whenever I make a post about the catholic church saying something transphobic there's always a handful of people awkwardly trying to like, rehabilitate christianity in the notes going all "oh but the pope and the clergy are wrong about christianity, which is actually super progressive and good and loves trans people".

I wish those people a very "maybe actually read the bible sometime".

[cath-lic]

it is my religious belief that we need to abolish the death penalty. yes, for everyone.

it’s important to note that i’m speaking from an american catholic perspective here. capital punishment has been outlawed in 23 states, and i pray and vote that it will be outlawed in more.

as a note, capital punishment is generally legal for cases of murder, treason, and in some states, sex crimes against children.

when i say it should be abolished for everyone, i mean it. yes, that means the lowest of the low. it means rapists, torturers, abusers, murderers.

i think the actions of these kinds of people are horrifying and disgusting. and, yes, as a human, i want them to die.

i have been extremely lucky to never have been victimized by these types of people. i hope that i never will be, and if you have been victimized, i hold deep sympathy and respect for you.

here’s the thing. when you justify violence against a certain group, you find ways to put other people you simply don’t like into that group.

it’s the oldest trick in the book. it’s why innocent black men have been lynched. it’s why the government, regardless of party, mistreats mexican immigrants. it’s why gay and trans people have been killed on the streets.

do you honestly think a group would justify crimes against others without believing they were the scum of the earth? we all believe we’re the hero of the story.

you might say, yeah, but i only would kill the people that deserved it. i want you to think about what everyone else would say, too.

christians are just as liable to fall into this trap. the old testament is chock full of groups of people being destroyed because they “deserved it.” and—if it’s not too heretical to say this—i wonder who really wrote that down.

in order to have compassion for the innocents, we must also have compassion for the guilty. there is no in-between. there is no line in the sand.

i will not use the tired superhero’s argument that the death penalty “makes us no better than them.” i will not say that some people don’t deserve to die, because as a human with hate in their heart, i do think that some people deserve to die.

i will simply say that in this age, it is more important than ever to abolish the death penalty.

if you’ve read this far, thank you for having an open mind. god bless you, my sibling.

[deservedgrace]

cult jokes are a symptom of and contribute to the simultaneous sensationalizing of cults (cults are all dark cloaks and animal sacrifices and devil worship and group suicide and despicable/unhinged beliefs) and diminishing of cults ("uwu come join my CULT XD we're gonna make cookies and WORSHIP SATAN teehee"), but i'm realizing how they go so hand-in-hand with the mindset of "only ~stupid/evil/crazy/etc.~ people could possibly join a cult. if it were me i would simply not fall for cult propaganda."

the diminishing part means that people don't take you seriously if you say you're an ex cult member or talk about your experiences in a cult or believe you are a current victim of a cult, because cults are just silly little groups that have weird beliefs but are otherwise innocuous. the sensationalizing part means people will also not take you seriously because if it was Actually a cult cult, that does harm and has evil beliefs, you should've known better because any reasonable person would have seen through it. the other side of "only an [xyz] person joins a cult" is "i am not an [xyz] person so i will never join a cult or be victim to propaganda and other cult tactics." the other side of "if it were me i would simply not fall for propaganda" is "someone falling for propaganda is fully a choice and a personal failing on their part." and combined they make: if you were [xyz] enough to join a cult and fall for propaganda, that means you deserved it.

people who would never make jokes about any other kind of abuse but feel perfectly fine making cult jokes used to kind of baffle me, because why is joking about personal abuse a problem but large-scale/group abuse is fine? why is it suddenly funny when you're the one that wants to perpetuate the abuse? but if your belief around cults is: "your experience wasn't that bad [diminishing], and if it was that bad [sensationalizing] it was your own fault and personal failing [i would simply not fall for propaganda], which means you deserved what you went through [only stupid/evil/crazy/etc people join cults]" and you don't understand how cults or cult tactics work, cult survivors/victims probably feel like a fair target for jokes (they are not, to be clear).

[riverphoenixsgothwife]

so y'all were very nice about this post i made earlier where i asked if you'd be interested in some more jd analysis from me! so jason "j.d." dean is a traumatized eighteen year old boy who's been abused all his life by his father who bullies people and blows things up for a living. jd lost the only adult in his life who loved and cared about him, his mother, at a young age after his father drove her to suicide, and she died right in front of jd, who was only a child at the time. jd desperately wants someone to love him. then, he's moved to westerburg (his dad also moves him around, so it's hard for him to make connections,) and he meets and falls in love with veronica sawyer. personally, i think that he pretty much immediately sees that veronica is really unhappy being dragged around by the heathers, and that she wants an escape.

so he makes himself into her ideal james dean esque bad boy who she'll fall for. he tries to be brave, he snarls and smokes and rides around on a motorcycle his dad gave him, probably copying "bad boys" he's seen in movies. and it works, and veronica is finally able to have courage to stand up to heather at the party. when thinking about this, i always think of how he tells veronica that her real feelings were "too gross and icky for her to face."

jd just loves her so much, and he feels like he can't just be himself, the scared traumatized boy, around her, because she's veronica and that won't be good enough for her. and, of course, his dad is a horrible role model, and jd doesn't know anything else, and he ends up going way too far with it. he seems genuinely confused when veronica is horrified by how far he goes, because he thought that was what she wanted from him.

at the very end, jd even seems proud that his beloved veronica has beaten him, or this fake version of him he's created. he loves her, and he's proud of her.

okay, that's all! i'm just a girl who analyzes characters a bit too much sometimes!

@ltr-png @velvetvexations @yourundiscoveredgyrl

[crimeronan]

pretty much everyone positions modern AU philip wittebane as a hyperconservative westboro baptist style cult leader for obvious reasons, which i think he 100% could be, like. that's not a stretch.

HOWEVER.

in my heart of hearts. if you REALLY want to preserve the Horror that is belos and How He Is in the canon....

....then. modern AU philip wittebane is a christian psychologist.

[chipinsolace]

“God’s Healing for Your Difficult Childhood”

- Ike Miller

[daughterofcainandchaos]

where was your almighty god when my father was abusing me? what flavour of popcorn did he eat while watching my father beat me up? if he was there the whole time & chose to simply watch, i don't wanna have anything to do with him. may he burn in the hell he himself has made

[ex-catholic-in-new-england]

Confession absolutely lowers a child’s self esteem and makes them feel guilty about every little thing they do.

[c0ckedgun]

guardian angel

[hurricanehiatus]

[spurgie-cousin]

ok YES i just need to start participating in ex-Christian tiktok bc this was my thought immediately after hearing this family was mormon and nobody else was talking about it!!

these kind of ideologies idealize and reward strict parenting bc strict parenting = more controllable adult congregation members. everyone is so confused on how this 8 passengers mormon mom was sharing these horrible parenting moments unapologetically and it's like, yea, it's because she thinks she's right on a *spiritual* level so she doesn't give a fuck what people outside of her ideology think. Bc she wholeheartedly believes they're not on her level.

[nowaytoheaven2]

sometimes I randomly remember that time my dad said it was okay to hit your spouse/kids if they disrespected you (cishet male leader of the house) and realize most of my problems trace back to him and Christianity.

[anarchistauthor]

Thinking about how Americans (which I am) are so predominantly Christian, and how those religions' "humans are bad by default" mentality is probably what makes older generations so inclined to think that children are basically demons who can only be taught to behave with violence and fear. (AKA abuse)

I see a lot of reels about what I consider to be good parenting techniques, and because my mental health isn't ideal, I check the comments and see a lot of serial killer shit from boomers.

[mint-8]

Moral Orel AU - Everyone’s happy and good (ish)

Trigger/Content warning: Mentions of guns and death, plus implications of child abuse. Also there Christianity is used a lot.

Clay Puppington

- Moralton’s respectful mayor, Orel and Shapey’s proud father, Bloberta’s loving husband, Danielle’s loyal best friend and the prime example of a good Christian man, dad, and spouse to his family and everyone in town.

- Clay has a loving and healthy relationship with his nuclear family. He deeply respects Bloberta for being so capable at managing things around the house, and pretty much lets her be the one to call the shots in their home. He is deeply in love with her and will always find any opportunity to compliment her or showing his affection (helping with chores, buying her gifts, hugs, kisses). He also encourages her to go out and have fun if she is ever too stressed, as in his own words: “You already work so hard for our family! Is only fair you take a break every once in a while”

- Alongside Bloberta, they tend to monitor Shapey more than Orel, mostly due to his behavioral issues, although Shapey is going to a therapist and actively taking psychological treatment, so his reactions are more toned down. He still loves him though, and buys him plenty of toys and enjoy some son-father bonding activities, usually playing board games, doing art or just talking.

- Orel is his pride and joy, his little son and big champ. Yes, Orel tends to get himself into trouble, a lot. And yes, he also tends to get into random shenanigans like, every other day, but he firmly believes that nothing can’t be solved without proper apologies, attaining for your actions and talking about it. He absolutely will not harm Orel even if he was threatened, but does have multiple talking sessions in his study, usually with some apple cider. He also spends quality time with Orel, and just like Shapey, they partake in bonding activities, with the added bonus of Clay being the town’s scout leader and taking him and his friends to camp every other weekend.

- Clay’s relationship with his father, Arthur, is a bit awkward. He still caused his mother to die due to his stupid prank, but Arthur still did his best to raise him properly, however he never really forgave him for killing his lovely bride. Clay still feels extremely guilty and made a promise to himself, his dad and his mom at her funeral, that he will definitely live his life as a proper Christian, to atone for the sin that he committed and which he will never forgive himself for. He still sends letters to his father regularly, usually giving him updates about his family, the town and sometimes sending money through post if he ever needs it but, more often than not, he sends him gifts and letters from the other family members.

- Danielle’s best friend and drinking buddy. They’ve known each other since high school and have stuck together through thick and thin over the years. While they usually talk about Orel and Shapey’s school performance, they tend to reminisce about the old times and set up drinking parties or simple hang outs. He doesn’t really care that Danielle is gay, after all “God loves all his children equally”.

Extra facts:

- Clay doesn’t like guns, and only has 1 fire arm for emergencies. He will teach Orel how to use it one day.

- Not super fond of alcohol, he is more of a social drinker. Instead he has an apple cider collection in his study.

[deservedgrace]

"Being victim to christian indoctrination is a personal failing bc there are people that were also exposed to christianity as a child and still didn't take on the views 🙄"

Were they exposed to other points of view? Did the adults in their life not take it very seriously? Was it taught as an option rather than fact? Were other people's faiths (or lack thereof) seen as valid and okay? Were they allowed to have relationships with people outside the church? Were they taught critical thinking skills? Were they allowed to develop their own morality? Were they allowed to research other viewpoints and come to their own conclusions? Were they not metaphorically dangled over the flames of hell every second of their life?

Being "exposed" to it and being forced into it to the point that your physical and emotional safety is at risk if you fall out of line are entirely different things. Did you go to church on Easter every year, or did the only people you were allowed to be around (which you had no say in) manipulate how you think and dictate your reality and morality and beliefs and undermine your ability to think critically so you wouldn't stray?