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Leaving Fundamentalism

Author: G. Elijah Dann

Publisher: Wilfrid Laurier Univ. Press

Published: 2009-07-30

Total Pages: 246

ISBN-13: 1554586658

In a time when religious conservatives have placed their faith and values at the forefront of the so-called “culture wars,” this book is extremely relevant. The stories in Leaving Fundamentalism provide a personal and intimate look behind sermons, religious services, and church life, and promote an understanding of those who have been deeply involved in the conservative Christian church. These autobiographies come from within the congregations and homes of religious fundamentalists, where their highly idealized faith, in all its complexities and problems, meets the reality of everyday life. Told from the perspective of distance gained by leaving fundamentalism, each story gives the reader a snapshot of what it is like to go through the experiences, thoughts, feelings, passions, and pains that, for many of the writers, are still raw. Explaining how their lives might continue after fundamentalism, these writers offer a spiritual lifeline for others who may be questioning their faith. Foreword by Thomas Moore

Leaving Christian Fundamentalism and the Reconstruction of Identity

Author: Josie McSkimming

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-10-04

Total Pages: 271

ISBN-13: 1317106563

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There is an increasing interest in the influence of religious fundamentalism upon people’s motivation, identity and decision-making. Leaving Christian Fundamentalism and the Re-construction of Identity details the stories of those who have left Christian fundamentalist churches and how they change after they have left. It considers how the previous fundamentalist identity is shaped by aspects of church teaching and discipline that are less authoritarian and coercive, and more subtle and widely spread throughout the church body. That is, individuals are understood as not only subject to a form of judgment, but also exercise it, with everyone seemingly complicit in maintaining the stability of the church organisation. This book provocatively illustrates that the reasons for leaving an evangelical Christian church may be less about what happens outside the church in terms of the lures and attractions of the secular world, and more about the experience within the community itself.

Leaving the Fold

Author: Marlene Winell

Publisher: Marlene Winell Ph.D.

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 322

ISBN-13: 9781933993232

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Have you been harmed by toxic religion? Learn how to recover and reclaim your life. Psychologist Marlene Winell is uniquely qualified to address the subject of this book. In addition to her personal experience with leaving fundamentalist religion, she has worked with clients recovering from religion for 28 years. She is known for coining the term Religious Trauma Syndrome. Leaving the Fold is a self-help book that examines the effects of authoritarian religion (fundamentalist Christianity in particular) on individuals who leave the faith. The concrete steps for healing are useful for anyone in recovery from toxic religion. In this book you'll discover: - what you can expect about stages of religious recovery - information about the key issues of recovery - relevant family dynamics - the power of manipulations - motivations for belonging and for leaving religion - specific steps for healing and reclaiming life - further steps for rebuilding life in the present Leaving the Fold is the only self-help psychology book on the subject of religious recovery. The accessible, compassionate writing is ideal for the reader who needs clear information and concrete help. Buy Leaving the Fold and begin your healing journey today

Fleeing Fundamentalism

Author: Carlene Cross

Publisher: Algonquin Books

Published: 2013-06-03

Total Pages: 291

ISBN-13: 1616202947

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At a time when the distance between church and state is narrowing and the teaching of intelligent design is being proposed for our classrooms, it is startling and provocative to hear the reasoned voice of a dissident from inside the church. For Carlene Cross, arriving at this shift in belief was a long and torturous journey. In Fleeing Fundamentalism, Cross looks back at the life that led her to marry a charismatic young man who appeared destined for greatness as a minister within the fundamentalist church. Their marriage, which began with great hope and promise, started to crumble when she realized that her husband had fallen victim to the same demons that had plagued his youth. When efforts to hold their family together failed, she left the church and the marriage, despite the condemnation of the congregation and the anger of many she had considered friends. Once outside, she realized that the secular world was not the seething cauldron of corruption and sin she had believed, and found herself questioning the underpinnings of the fundamentalist faith. Here is an eloquent and compelling story of faith lost and regained. Certain to be controversial, it is also a brave and hopeful plea for greater tolerance and understanding.

Leaving the Witness

Author: Amber Scorah

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2020-06-02

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 073522255X

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"A fascinating glimpse into the consciousness of being an outsider in every possible way, and what it takes to find your path into the life you'd like to lead."--Nylon A riveting memoir of losing faith and finding freedom while a covert missionary in one of the world's most restrictive countries. A third-generation Jehovah's Witness, Amber Scorah had devoted her life to sounding God's warning of impending Armageddon. She volunteered to take the message to China, where the preaching she did was illegal and could result in her expulsion or worse. Here, she had some distance from her community for the first time. Immersion in a foreign language and culture--and a whole new way of thinking--turned her world upside down, and eventually led her to lose all that she had been sure was true. As a proselytizer in Shanghai, using fake names and secret codes to evade the authorities' notice, Scorah discreetly looked for targets in public parks and stores. To support herself, she found work at a Chinese language learning podcast, hiding her real purpose from her coworkers. Now with a creative outlet, getting to know worldly people for the first time, she began to understand that there were other ways of seeing the world and living a fulfilling life. When one of these relationships became an "escape hatch," Scorah's loss of faith culminated in her own personal apocalypse, the only kind of ending possible for a Jehovah's Witness. Shunned by family and friends as an apostate, Scorah was alone in Shanghai and thrown into a world she had only known from the periphery--with no education or support system. A coming of age story of a woman already in her thirties, this unforgettable memoir examines what it's like to start one's life over again with an entirely new identity. It follows Scorah to New York City, where a personal tragedy forces her to look for new ways to find meaning in the absence of religion. With compelling, spare prose, Leaving the Witness traces the bittersweet process of starting over, when everything one's life was built around is gone.

A Restless Faith

Author: Keith Mascord

Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers

Published: 2016-09-05

Total Pages: 270

ISBN-13: 172523744X

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This book tells the story of Keith's restless journey of faith, from his early days at Prairie Bible Institute in Canada, through positive encounters with Anglican evangelicalism in Australia, and into a more restful and sustainable faith. The book charts a way forward for people who feel they must choose between fundamentalism and jettisoning their faith altogether.

American Pope

Author: Sean Swain Martin

Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers

Published: 2021-10-15

Total Pages: 137

ISBN-13: 1666723355

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As arguably the most influential voice in American Catholicism, the vision that Scott Hahn offers in his works, read by millions of Catholics throughout the world, is one of the most formative in American Catholicism. His numerous books and public speaking engagements are shaping the American Catholic Church in a uniquely powerful manner. This work demonstrates that the Catholic vision that Hahn claims to be providing his audience is, in fact, always quite different from the one he actually presents. What he coins as Catholic faithfulness is instead a straightforward and damning Catholic fundamentalism. As this vision is delivered to millions of the faithful who look to Hahn as a trustworthy guide to an authentic life of Catholic faith, American Pope acts as a critical analysis of his work.

Leaving Christian Fundamentalism and the Reconstruction of Identity

Author: Josie McSkimming

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2016-10-04

Total Pages: 277

ISBN-13: 1317106571

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Stories of a Recovering Fundamentalist

Author: James C. Alexander

Publisher: AuthorHouse

Published: 2008-04-30

Total Pages: 202

ISBN-13: 1452042225

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It has been said that the opposite of faith is not doubt, but certainty. Drawing on this notion, Stories of a Recovering Fundamentalist: Understanding and Responding to Christian Absolutism recounts the author’s journey as a member of the fundamentalist subculture as a child and his life among the Jesus Freaks (Jesus Movement)-- a congregation of deserters from the hippie drug culture of the late 1960's and early 1970's. This movement, though of great importance in the culture of the times, now largely goes unrecognized--although the Jesus Movement provided the cover stories for many prominent secular magazines chronicling the youth culture of the late 60's and early 70's. While, not devoted to a history of the Jesus Movement, the book does a service in bringing a discussion of the Jesus Freak phenomenon to the attention of today's readers. The book goes on to recount the author's eventual abandonment of fundamentalism. As the story unfolds, critical research related to the psychology, sociology, and history of the subculture provides a framework for understanding Christian fundamentalism. Stories of a Recovering Fundamentalist recounts a gripping personal pilgrimage—at times both humorous and painful— that is rooted in honest reflection and informed by theory and research. It offers worthwhile reading for mainline Christians, curious evangelicals, recovering fundamentalists or anyone wanting to understand this timely topic.

Leaving The Fold

Author: Edward T. Babinski

Publisher: Prometheus Books

Published: 2003-06-30

Total Pages: 462

ISBN-13: 1615921672

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This riveting new collection offers testimonies of former fundamentalists who became disillusioned with their churches and left. Presenting more than two dozen personal journeys, this book gives a clear picture of what attracts a person to the fundamentalist faith and what can drive believers away from their religion. Photos throughout.