You have heard it: you are not a Christian if you don't adhere to the dietary laws and calls to war. It's a cheap tactic to put you on the defensive, and it's not as hard to respond to as people think.

The truth is some of the most biblically fundamental individuals are Atheists. How do you respond when faced with people who want to use the Old Testament as a weapon? Do you see the pushback when you say it's using it out of context?

When did context become a bad thing? Only in the hands of those who want to use history as a weapon. History could be used just as effectively against them, but self-reflection is lacking these days.

I hope this is helpful to you! Feel free to reach out with a follow-up if you have questions! Mereskepticism@gmail.com

You may remember when mental health was considered fake news in the not-so-distant past. We have come a long way. This is no more true than in the church. We were slow to realize there is more to the brain than we understand. We point to it as a miraculous creation, but then we blindly apply bible verses about sadness as a cure-all for depression and other issues in ignorance.

Groups like the podcaster I mention spout judgment that all depression is slothfulness. Slothfulness is a sin. So if you are suffering, you must pray more and do your duties. In this case, clean that messy kitchen! Now I encountered men who experienced depression who said they were clinical, giving credence to the validity of their experience. I am sure women wouldn't be considered 'clinically' valid. For them, it's just being lazy.

So this podcast responds to people who think they can stand in judgment of what they do not know. They endanger people and misuse scripture as a weapon. If we cannot know that a person with cancer is not in pain, we can not pretend to tell someone battling mental health issues is not in pain, but these kinds of groups take a stance of being all-knowing. When they recover, they point to what they did. I am not implying prayer is not good and right- but to assume it will work to cure everyone is a statement only God can make- and He doesn't.

Some groups still hold these ideas for what appears to be a nefarious reason (misogyny). They have become militant in that they enjoy triggering people to engage with them and then accuse them of not being Christian. They apply general verses and pretend they apply to depression as a cure. They assume they recovered because they were somehow genuine in their faith. This is juxtaposed against the sinful pagans who get help or take medication.

They mock suicidal ideation- one told a woman how they could do it. There is a hallmark of these kinds of groups. A sociopathic lack of empathy towards people who disagree that depression is laziness. They are bible plus people, and bible plus always harms.

I hope we can join in unity to call these people out. Most of us live in free countries- if we want to twist scripture and hate people and even treat women as if they can't know their own minds- that is their right. It is our right to point out they are basing their entire argument on an opinion and no facts. It is our right to draw attention to the danger of a view that ignores 20% of the people who struggle with Major Depressive Disorder with repeated suicidal ideation; if nothing else speaks to the numb heart these kinds of groups give to their adherents-this screams of its danger.

I have yet to encounter one of these groups that isn't also cruel, also a sign it has little to do with God. Being fierce and battling hard is one thing to be cruel and insulting that is a telltale sign this is a man-inspired movement.

We can do better and speak louder than those who peddle hate and call it Love. Let's go!

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Reach Kimie at MereSkepticism@Gmail.com

C.S. Lewis gave us a book that offers us something we badly need today- clarity. We have lost our confidence in a world of deconversion stories and church scandals. But why? Not because God is not real, or even because there are some hard-to-account-for sections of scripture, but because we let fear lead us when reasons for confidence were right before our noses. We handed our detractors the power when retention and control became more important than truth.

How many people have left the church because doubts were stuffed? No one would walk them through the path of truth and see that God was never diminished when everything is considered. God, if He exists, is not afraid of our questions. Skeptics do the same thing the church did; cherry-picking to make the points. If God is God, he never needed the veil of confusion. Please send any questions and issues you want good answers on. If it's over my head, I will send you to reliable sources who care about the truth.

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