ragpicker wrote: ↑Fri Jul 16, 2021 2:51 pm
The extremely high level of corruption, sexual perversion and spiritual abuse (at best) that occurred in the churches closely connected to R&S is well documented and was widely experienced. It’s sad and amusing to see people play it down.
If I claimed that one of the top Nationwide bishops and a R&S board member used to look at himself in the mirror and gloat about how much power he had amassed, some of y’all would try to claim it wasn’t that bad. I have him on tape stating this. Etc. etc.
I didn’t care for “Dear Princess”; for example, it exhorted young women to make sure to never smile at a man unless you knew he was a Christian.
But one of my friends (a Missionary Baptist, incidentally) really liked the book, and appreciated a lot of its perspectives on things. Her reaction to the above bit of advice was “Well, I think she just means you should avoid being flirtatious with random strangers. Seems like good advice to me.” She happens to be one of the more friendly, caring, and inclusive people I’ve known.
R&S published some excellent books from the late L. Bauman, which happens to be R&S’s only “best seller”. But I agree that the rot in the organisation was so bad, it calls into question everything they published and accomplished. An untold story that I wish would get told is how elements within NWF eventually excised the worst of this rot.
ragpicker wrote: ↑Fri Jul 16, 2021 2:51 pm
The extremely high level of corruption, sexual perversion and spiritual abuse (at best) that occurred in the churches closely connected to R&S is well documented and was widely experienced. It’s sad and amusing to see people play it down.
If I claimed that one of the top Nationwide bishops and a R&S board member used to look at himself in the mirror and gloat about how much power he had amassed, some of y’all would try to claim it wasn’t that bad. I have him on tape stating this. Etc. etc.
I have no desire to downplay abuse.
As for the Nationwide comment, I would find it very amusing his practice and he should be removed from his authority.
I am not privy to the several incidents referred to in the last couple post. Probably similar to the ones I do have knowledge of.
Had I known so much of this back when I was shown the shined up side of CM-ism, I might've canceled my subscription to this CM life at the very beginning.
ABC 123 wrote: ↑Fri Jul 16, 2021 3:19 pm
I am not privy to the several incidents referred to in the last couple post. Probably similar to the ones I do have knowledge of.
Had I known so much of this back when I was shown the shined up side of CM-ism, I might've canceled my subscription to this CM life at the very beginning.
Sure, toss the CM life. Don't toss the truth they do teach. Much of what they practice is Biblical and far better then most of the "worldly" churches out there, they assuredly do have blind spots too, but so do you.
ABC 123 wrote: ↑Fri Jul 16, 2021 3:19 pm
I am not privy to the several incidents referred to in the last couple post. Probably similar to the ones I do have knowledge of.
Had I known so much of this back when I was shown the shined up side of CM-ism, I might've canceled my subscription to this CM life at the very beginning.
Sure, toss the CM life. Don't toss the truth they do teach. Much of what they practice is Biblical and far better then most of the "worldly" churches out there, they assuredly do have blind spots too, but so do you.
Almost everytime i try to sort this stuff out, I am told this very thing. It is like swimming in jello.
ABC 123 wrote: ↑Thu Jul 15, 2021 8:53 am
The person stated they didn't want to reveal their identity because they figured people would find a way to discount what they are saying.
A not entirely unjustified concern, considering some of the company he has very publicly associated himself with.
You know who's doing By Thy Words? Would you care to share who it is?
0 x
No half-heartedness and no worldly fear must turn us aside from following the light unflinchingly. --J.R.R. Tolkien
When you can't run, you crawl, and when you can't crawl - when you can't do that...you find someone to carry you. --Firefly
With the continual growth of the page, I thought it would be a good idea to do a pinned post explaining who we are and what we do.
By Thy Words exists to expose the warped teachings that are remarkably prevalent within Conservative Mennonite churches by providing readers with quotes from their own literature.
BTW is primarily a website that has new articles every sometime, dissecting Mennonite literature from a satirical perspective. The goal is to expose the fallacies and mind games with humor, and to allow those still struggling with the brainwashing to work through it by laughing at what once controlled them.
Check it out at bythywords.com
The FB page has a lot of pictures of the contents of books, as well as links to the websites. The satirical commentary mostly comes in the comments. As a result, the FB page can be pretty triggering, because you're exposed to the toxic teachings head-on, so be aware of that.
Everything posted comes from actual publications, most of which I personally possess, and I try to cite them so you can see the sourcing.
A few more things:
1) I don't hate Mennonites. I am still part of a reasonably conservative Anabaptist church, and appreciate a lot about the doctrine and culture.
2) Why do I do this? Because I'm sick of the mind games that so many conservatives play to twist people up in. And I'm sick of the ones who support them with their silence, or worse, by trying to shout down their critics.
These ideas are toxic, and they are put into print, and me giving them a broader audience shouldn't be a problem.
Jesus said that those who do righteousness come to the light.
3) No. I haven't reached out to the authors with my concerns. I don't intend to, any more than John the Baptist reached out to Herod privately about his concerns regarding Herod's marriage, or Jesus reached out to Herod before calling him a fox publicly.
Those silencing tactics don't work here.
4) I'm sure some of you who have come across this page have had wonderful communities and wonderful experiences. That's great. I've got no problem with that. As long as you realize that there are hundreds of people who had BAD experiences, many of which were remarkably similar.
If you're shocked and hurt by what you see here, take a step back and ask yourself if maybe other people have seen a side to the culture that you haven't seen.
Take some time to see their point, and hear their story.
And for pity's sake, don't try to defend the crazy. It's indefensible.
If you have any further questions, drop them in the comments, or message the page.
P.S. Who am I?
I've chosen to be anonymous for reasons that you can see on the about page of the website.
My identity isn't a state secret. I just refuse to play the "tell us who you are so we can figure out how to invalidate your criticism" game.
**Oh, and one more thing.
The irony of posting a comment criticizing me for criticizing people who are critical of those who disagree with them is not lost on me.
0 x
No half-heartedness and no worldly fear must turn us aside from following the light unflinchingly. --J.R.R. Tolkien
When you can't run, you crawl, and when you can't crawl - when you can't do that...you find someone to carry you. --Firefly
ABC 123 wrote: ↑Thu Jul 15, 2021 8:53 am
The person stated they didn't want to reveal their identity because they figured people would find a way to discount what they are saying.
A not entirely unjustified concern, considering some of the company he has very publicly associated himself with.
You know who's doing By Thy Words? Would you care to share who it is?
0 x
No half-heartedness and no worldly fear must turn us aside from following the light unflinchingly. --J.R.R. Tolkien
When you can't run, you crawl, and when you can't crawl - when you can't do that...you find someone to carry you. --Firefly
Sure, toss the CM life. Don't toss the truth they do teach. Much of what they practice is Biblical and far better then most of the "worldly" churches out there, they assuredly do have blind spots too, but so do you.
Almost everytime i try to sort this stuff out, I am told this very thing. It is like swimming in jello.
Well... Pick your jello well. You will answer for it.
