I want to address a critique I get often in my DM's and on some of my public posts about the church, racism, sexism, and violence against women.
I can think of a few posts recently where people have said that my language is divisive, bitter, or unproductive. This usually doesn't bother me--I've been unfriended and blocked since the beginning of my deconstruction journey. But it is interesting to hear these calls of peace from people contributing to the problem. It often puts me to mind of the passage in Jeremiah (6:13-14) where God is offering a warning to Jerusalem:
"From the least to the greatest,all are greedy for gain;prophets and priests alike,all practice deceit.They dress the wound of my peopleas though it were not serious.‘Peace, peace,’ they say,when there is no peace."
For the longest time, Jeremiah has been my go-to for lament, frustration, deconstruction, and validating my experiences in the church. While so many cry "Peace, Peace" through calls not to be embittered or divisive or unloving, they fail to understand the severity of the wounds of those around them.
We are surrounded by people bleeding out from the wounds inflicted by their faith systems, and yet, so many observers wish to pass over the hurt and focus on the "positive."
Hard truth: For many, there is no positive.
Another hard truth: For many, it is unfathomable to return to these faith systems.
The hardest truth: Your whitewashed tombs are not attractive to those on the outside.
Let people lament. Let people deconstruct. Let people tear it all down and start over.
When the foundation is cracked, the whole thing needs to be razed. Don't stop people from creating safer, stronger spaces.
