I’m thankful that I was not brought up with the nonsense about the rapture (which is weird because I grew up in the Exclusive Plymouth Brethren until the age of 9, and it was apparently the founder of the Plymouth Brethren, JN Darby, who popularized the concept of the rapture, along with dispensationalist theology). But I recognize that it is still traumatic to think about for a lot of people.
Continue readinginterfaith
Debunking clobber verses
Websites that unpack and de-fang religious beliefs about same-sex love and gender nonconformity come and go. I occasionally still meet people who think that all churches are homophobic, or that Christianity and homosexuality just aren’t compatible. And there are always new exvangelicals emerging blinking into the light of day and deconstructing the toxic beliefs that were foisted upon them.
So it is great to see a new series of essays from Father Nathan Monk on Facebook:
Continue readingAfterlife jokes
When I was a kid, there was this joke.
A man goes to heaven. As he’s walking along the entrance hall with St Peter, he sees a closed door. He asks who’s in there. St Peter says, “Sssshhh, that’s the Plymouth Brethren* in there — they think they’re the only ones here.”
(* Insert obnoxious denomination of your choice)
Continue readingOn being a Queer Muslim
Amazing conversation on being a Queer Muslim, leaving and returning to your religion with a fresh perspective, navigating different spaces that don’t support every aspect of who you are, and dealing with religious trauma.
Changing Paths 