Writing about religion, psychology, politics, and other impolite dinner conversations
Finding the sacred after church hurt Photo by OC Gonzalez on Unsplash When I was 22, at the same age a lot of young people leave their faith altogether, Good Friday and Easter were my favorite holidays. I hated the commercialization of Christmas (still do). It was my first year living in the “real world” after college, in … Continue reading Easter Relationship Status: It’s Complicated
The patriarchy is a social system where men believe (consciously or not) they are entitled to control and power over women. This belief is reflected at a societal level with who is able to hold power, and who gets to live in a society that functions according to their needs...
If I have something good, something desirable, this part of me feels guilty that I am “allowed” to have that; that I might be so spoiled as to have such a lovely thing. It comes up with constant reasons why I shouldn’t pursue such things.
No group can be perfect in all these measures, but people who have experienced religious trauma have a hyper-sensitive alert system for anything that feels off. “Off” might include problematic theology, power dynamics, in / out requirements to be part of the group, environments of control or secrecy, and so forth.
First off, let’s acknowledge that a pithy social media quote and a blog post are not going to heal anyone from their trauma. Inner work is a long and complex journey, and I would never pretend that a self-help book and an online article will get you where you need to go. But I would … Continue reading How to Heal From Religious Trauma
Today we are going to jump into some of the specific beliefs that may cause or contribute to religious trauma. The context I am most familiar with is American Christianity, in particular, the very wide net of evangelicalism. Thus, all of my examples are compatible with common beliefs of that system. Some evangelicals (cultural / … Continue reading Beliefs creating religious trauma
Introduction This month, we will be doing a 3-part series on religious trauma. First, we’ll address the question of what religious trauma is, from a psychological, trauma-informed perspective. Two weeks later, we’ll dive a little deeper into the kinds of beliefs that can cause religious trauma, specifically in the context I and many of you … Continue reading Why Religious Trauma is Actually Trauma
I have some seriously conflicted feelings about this whole weekend. I know I am not alone in this, either. For many people who have deconstructed and/or lost the faith they once had, major holidays like this can bring up a LOT of complicated feelings. We used to make a big deal out of Easter and Christmastimes, and now we don't really know what to do with it.
The freeze response may occur in a religious context when people feel stuck or trapped in a harmful situation and they don't see viable options before them to get out or find safety. This could be anything from sexual, narcissistic, financial, or emotional abuse being perpetrated on church members, to simple faith deconstruction like questioning whether hell is real in a system where this is prohibited.
We have officially reached the anniversary of Covid being declared a pandemic. If, over the past year (or more) you have found yourself numb, detached, checked out, unmotivated, and in a word, frozen: then this post is for you.
Christine Greenwald 