Deep Sorrow, Exposed

"..how high-control churches can be harmful and abusive, often resulting in trauma. She shows how elements of fundamentalist church life–such as fear of hell, purity culture, corporal punishment, and authoritarian leaders–can cause psychological, relational, physical, and spiritual damage." - From the blurb of "When Religion Hurts You: Healing from Religious Trauma and the Impact of High-Control Religion" by Laura E. Anderson

This concept is now stated. It can be talked about with some structure and careful thinking. How can we tell if the main accusation holds true? First, we have to divide between Church and World, saved and unsaved, because these two groups, separated through holiness by the fact of Christ's great saving work, have fundamentally different perceptions, behaviors, and reactions, and so the accumulation of trauma is different between them.

Christians love these concepts. We know that discipline doesn't seem nice at the time that we're disciplined. We accept that as part of revealed wisdom. We go beyond it. We understand the use of shaping the soul in context of the environment of our sin-riddled bodies, and we're glad for the support in this thing we want and are consciously trying to do!

Worldlings have embraced some of these things throughout history, because they only seem traumatic to anyone under special conditions, such as the current social voice. Today, though, it seems to the World like authority is bad, and they don't even know half the benefits of purity! They judge it from a distance. We practice righteous judgment, like our Master teaches us.

Many things can be said about these concepts. Corporal punishment is very sad, but killing murderers who just won't stop is a protective measure for the whole society. Hell is a real place; it's not a psychological control device like some suppose that it is. We were all going there as a natural part of what's happening. We thank our Master Jesus for doing what God sent His Christ to Earth in a human body to do. We're glad enough to glorify Him for it! He did well for all His enemies, and for us, even when we were also His enemies.

I think churches have these ideas in the backs of their minds. I think these very ideas are a gigantic sore in Christ's body. We should excise it, because even though it hurts for a time, it helps overall. It's just plain smart.

The World thinks good is evil. Churches need not adopt the viewpoint of the World in order to win the lost or take on any other vile trickery like that. The world's concepts of freedom to sin cause 'psychological, relational, physical, and spiritual damage', both to one's self and to others!