Quote:
I still say there are many seeking Local Church members who are starting to eye the exit with favorability. They want to understand what is happening to them. There is psychological manipulation, peer pressure, cultural pressure and a whole host of things. These are the matters they need to become clear on. These are the things that started the lights to go off in me when I was at that point.
If someone had come to me and blasted me with “IDOLATRY,” I’m not sure that would have mattered a hill of beans to me. But group dynamics, now there is something that is very easy to see.
|
I agree, for myself, with this. I know when my husband and I left the church, we didn't really have very many people we could talk to about these issues -- and really no one to talk to that had already been through that experience. So much of what we did was just sort of floundering to find our way. Now, no doubt that is somewhat true in most or all cases of people leaving -- in one way, it is a personal, solitary journey. Still, every hard experience can be made easier with a shoulder to lean on.
On the other hand, I am a pretty subjective kind of person and the things you write about in the first part of this quote are exactly the kinds of things that are interesting to me, and the knowledge that I needed when leaving the LC. But my husband --- now, he is a different duck from me. The discussion on idolatry would be very interesting to him, and would have been helpful to him while we were in that leaving process.
So maybe both discussions are valuable. I would love to see lots more threads about the psychological manipulation, peer pressure, cultural pressure and group dynamics. I won't be on the forum much in the next 6 months, so sadly these threads will miss my wise additions.
But go for it, you guys.
Seeing you until Saturday, probably not much after that,
finallyprettyokay
-