Quote:
Originally Posted by Cal
I agree with your previous post except for this, assuming you are approving of it, and you seem to be. Shunning children is abuse, in my opinion. I don't see that God ever shuns his children. We leave his presence, but I would not say he shuns us. As you yourself said, "He's always standing at the door waiting."
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Our definitions may differ. I look at shunning as distancing oneself from another emotionally. Then there is the extreme of complete social and emotional rejection. Also, adding context may help as well.
God doesn't stop loving us. If we resist Him, however, He may not shower us with His love but will continue to love us from a distance. The same happens with parents when their children misbehave. They won't stop loving their child but because of the child's disobedience a parent's immediate affection is withdrawn for a time until the child has learned they have done something wrong.
Unfortunately when it comes to cult groups, love is typically not a factor in their process of shunning their members. And so I don't think shunning itself is the issue, it's the lack of love that hurts the individual or rather the realization that love was never really present to begin with.