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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2014 23:10:48 GMT -6
I grew up around people who attended a snake-handling church. My dad was a preacher at a Pentecostal church before he left to join a snake-handling church in north Georgia. They also had a community hidden in the mountains. It was secret, militant, and extremely fanatical. The church is repressive, women are not allowed to cut their hair, wear nail polish or make up, they have to wear dresses, they are obedient in all manners towards their husbands, that includes adultery and incest. They are expected to accept whatever treatment their husbands decide to inflict upon them. They have no say in anything. And they are also expected to handle the snakes. If a man commits adultery then the wife is expected to accept it and go on. It is none of her business. If a man commits incest then they are expected to turn their heads and pretend it did not or is not happening. If he wants to submit the children to snake handling then she is to keep silent and accept it. My Mom refused to attend the church. She was treated very poorly because of it. She also wore whatever she wanted to, she was beaten for it. They had a hidden community in the mountains. It was atop a mountain, the only way in or out was to ride an elevator up the cliff. In the community was a fanatic, militant religious sect, the Pentecostal snake-handlers, their families, and other members of the sect. They also sometimes ate crushed glass and drank poison. Or cut hunks out of their legs to prove that they were "worthy". Not all snake handling churches go to these extremes, but all of them are fanatics. The community eat only live food. They had greenhouses were they grew huge amounts of fruits and vegetables. Nothing dead was eaten. It had to be alive, fresh from the ground. Or juiced from fresh vegetables and fruits. Why? Because eating anything dead causes disease and cancer. So no donuts or pizza. What you read in articles and see on the news only covers a small amount of information about these people. There are many of these "sect" communities around the country. You won't hear about them, they do not want any attentions. But they do exist. There was no joy in Christ. Only mutilation, and fanatical insanity. Freed in Christ! Amen.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2014 2:43:03 GMT -6
People like this have went off the deep end. I am a full gospel believer but even then I'm very moderate.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2014 8:45:56 GMT -6
After reading that is it safe to say you were an abused child?
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Post by carpathianpeasant on Feb 18, 2014 9:14:53 GMT -6
I take it your mom eventually "escaped" and took you and your sister out of it. ...?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2014 15:43:46 GMT -6
Not my cup of tea. Being a Christian is a joyful, happy experience for me, nothing like that. I am so glad. Abused? How do you judge something like that when the adults are abusing themselves, they are not fit to be people much less parents, yes my parents were insane. Mom was too sucked in, dad had her more or less hoodwinked. She fought with him until he died. My sisters stayed, they are emotionally, mentally, and physically damaged. Too late. I got out. I left when I was 13 years old. Never went back. I keep in touch but do not go there to visit. Over the years I tried to get my sisters to leave, then their children, they won't. If one moves to one area they all move there. Scary. It is instilled in you when you are young. They never let up. I thank God for leading me out of there. Thought you might find it interesting though. They don't tell you everything in those articles. They leave a lot out.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2014 16:35:49 GMT -6
I can relate, we suffered a lot at the hands of my father. Our mother made up for him she was always there for us. Later I blamed her even though I never told her so, she should have done something but she didn't.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2014 19:34:46 GMT -6
He probably drove your mom insane, my dad drove my mom insane. After a few years with him she didn't have a lick of sense. Then it was simply trying to survive on a day to day basis. She tried to fight back but he always found a way to sabotage her efforts. Finally she got tired and give up. The last conversation I had with her, before I left, convinced me that she had lost her mind. My only consideration after that was to see that I did not end up in the same condition, so I left. Sorry you went through that. It leaves scars that you have to deal with the rest of your life. You never get over it. You do learn to live with it though and move on. We have a cordial relationship now, not as mother and daughter, more as friends. I help her out financially whenever I can. Works as long as we stay 500 miles from one another. Can't deal with being around them. You have family you visit?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2014 19:56:06 GMT -6
I grew up around people who attended a snake-handling church. My dad was a preacher at a Pentecostal church before he left to join a snake-handling church in north Georgia. They also had a community hidden in the mountains. It was secret, militant, and extremely fanatical. The church is repressive, women are not allowed to cut their hair, wear nail polish or make up, they have to wear dresses, they are obedient in all manners towards their husbands, that includes adultery and incest. They are expected to accept whatever treatment their husbands decide to inflict upon them. They have no say in anything. And they are also expected to handle the snakes. If a man commits adultery then the wife is expected to accept it and go on. It is none of her business. If a man commits incest then they are expected to turn their heads and pretend it did not or is not happening. If he wants to submit the children to snake handling then she is to keep silent and accept it. My Mom refused to attend the church. She was treated very poorly because of it. She also wore whatever she wanted to, she was beaten for it. They had a hidden community in the mountains. It was atop a mountain, the only way in or out was to ride an elevator up the cliff. In the community was a fanatic, militant religious sect, the Pentecostal snake-handlers, their families, and other members of the sect. They also sometimes ate crushed glass and drank poison. Or cut hunks out of their legs to prove that they were "worthy". Not all snake handling churches go to these extremes, but all of them are fanatics. The community eat only live food. They had greenhouses were they grew huge amounts of fruits and vegetables. Nothing dead was eaten. It had to be alive, fresh from the ground. Or juiced from fresh vegetables and fruits. Why? Because eating anything dead causes disease and cancer. So no donuts or pizza. What you read in articles and see on the news only covers a small amount of information about these people. There are many of these "sect" communities around the country. You won't hear about them, they do not want any attentions. But they do exist. There was no joy in Christ. Only mutilation, and fanatical insanity. Freed in Christ! Amen.
Some religions have strange practices
I'm not putting any religion down unless it harms someone.
I had two lovely ladies drop by my house the other day. The were Jehovah Witnesses We had a conversation. I told them upfront that I was United Methodist.. Still the conversation continued and they began to tell me why my church choice was wrong.. I listened politely. Things that they considered 'wrong' with my religion were
The Trinity The symbol of the cross The celebration of holidays and finally.. blood transfusions.
I knew enough of their religion to know that the latter is a big sticking point. I asked how they felt about life saving organ transplants.. Utter silence.. They had no answer.. they would have to get back to me on that one.
If any of you out there are practicing Jehovah Witnesses please don't take this personally. They gave their input, I gave mine. Not saying one is perfect over another.. just different. I believe if God gave Drs the knowledge and means to save human lives then it's a blessing.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2014 21:41:06 GMT -6
I believe you are right Skylar.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 19, 2014 2:39:59 GMT -6
He probably drove your mom insane, my dad drove my mom insane. After a few years with him she didn't have a lick of sense. Then it was simply trying to survive on a day to day basis. She tried to fight back but he always found a way to sabotage her efforts. Finally she got tired and give up. The last conversation I had with her, before I left, convinced me that she had lost her mind. My only consideration after that was to see that I did not end up in the same condition, so I left. Sorry you went through that. It leaves scars that you have to deal with the rest of your life. You never get over it. You do learn to live with it though and move on. We have a cordial relationship now, not as mother and daughter, more as friends. I help her out financially whenever I can. Works as long as we stay 500 miles from one another. Can't deal with being around them. You have family you visit? I have a brother and sister that live only a few miles away, We talk on the phone every few days and see one another often.
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Post by rdlb on Feb 23, 2014 15:19:23 GMT -6
As a licensed Pentecostal minister and quite conservatively so, I have found that taking a totally literal approach from the scriptures and putting that approach into practice has poor consequences.
If this group was of God, then why hide in the mountains? “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden." How is that being the light of the world? For myself another group of individuals controlling others so they can keep their sin in as much secrecy as possible.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 24, 2014 8:35:39 GMT -6
As a licensed Pentecostal minister and quite conservatively so, I have found that taking a totally literal approach from the scriptures and putting that approach into practice has poor consequences. If this group was of God, then why hide in the mountains? “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden." How is that being the light of the world? For myself another group of individuals controlling others so they can keep their sin in as much secrecy as possible. Amen!
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