Hope Pennington, atheist

[16strong]

I've had the feeling for awhile that she was learning and growing, and moving in a more inclusive direction, but this is a change I never would have predicted. And no, this is not her sister, Alecia Faith, legal rebel, that I'm talking about. I occasionally peruse the Pennington kids' social media accounts because I'm a shameless stalker, and because this family fascinates me (in both good and bad ways). Anywhoo, Hope just wrote a message about her conversion to atheism. She says her family is supportive. Wonder if it's another finger in AF's direction, or if they really have loosened up in their rigid beliefs. 

[purjolok84]

Wow, that's mind blowing! 

 

So, the big question is, which family is supportive of Hope in her new found atheism? Just the extended family with Alecia Faith, or pretty much everyone except Mum and Dad? Because I know which option I'd be betting on ...

[Gobsmacked]

Hopefully her Grandparents will be able to protect her from her parents as they did with Faith.

Good luck in your new life Grace.

[Palimpsest]

Wow.  That's interesting.  I checked Pennington Point expecting to see a self-pitying rant from Lisa as another daughter has blown.   Good luck, Hope!

Did we cover Grace's wedding here and I missed it?  I had no idea she got married.

[Feministe9000]

Honestly we have to get back on the Pennington train.

Maybe it's just me but I have totally followed Hope's journey on her youtube videos/instagram, etc. from Texas to Washington after she started her relationship with Jeremiah.

I find them fascinating, especially Lisa's new book, and all the comments and pictures here and there at the Pennington compound.

 

[Koala]

If Lisa doesn't comment, it will be because the kind of attention this will get her, won't be the kind she wants. 

Having one child toss the party line is one thing.  She was able to spin it into a tragic tale in which she was wronged (and oh, the pain!).  

It won't be so easy a second time around.  Her devout friends will be giving her and her husband the side eye, wondering what they did to drive two of their kids from the faith (and I suspect more will follow).

Anyway, good for Hope.  Sounds like she's realized she can think for herself.  It had to have been uphill work after living under Lisa's rule for some many years.

[Howl]

Officially, totally, incomprehensibly, lying on the floor, utterly gobsmacked!  Is Hope the second daughter in the Pennington line up? There are some beautiful and thoughtful responses to Hope's announcement on FB. 

Grace is the oldest daughter who moved to the Dallas area awhile back to nanny for Lisa's sister -- she married recently.  

Yeah, not a peep on Lisa's blog, which is fine.  It protects her children's privacy. Lisa's very good at marketing her brand.  The appearance of her blog has changed, and she's focused on the boys still at home and is keeping it light, very very light.  She's also written a second book, Tightropes and Teeter-Totters.

Edited March 10, 2017 by Howl

[Palimpsest]

6 minutes ago, Howl said:

There are some beautiful and thoughtful responses to Hope's announcement on FB.

Can you give a link - I can't find it.  Thanks.

8 minutes ago, Howl said:

Is Hope the second daughter in the Pennington line up?

Grace is the oldest but I'm not sure about the rest. Grace was the most outspoken in defense of her parents over Alecia Faith.

Is Patience likely to blow next?

[Howl]

Hope's fb says she is living in Washington state and has published her first novel. The Pennington girls are all very smart and very creative -- lots of writers in that family.  I have no doubt that all of the kids love their parents, but for the girls the restrictions placed on their lives, with a predictable trajectory of SAHD, marriage and babies, were unbearable. 

Hope's FB is here.  The March 8  post and comments are public. 

[JillyO]

Here's her Facebook, and it's the first post: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100007962437726

By the way, she isn't talking about her extended family being supportive. She explicitly says:

Quote

My mom and dad and siblings have already been amazing.

Hope and her boyfriend Jeremiah Stiles have also broken up because they don't think it is a good idea to get married to someone who believes such completely different things (I'm guessing he is still a fundamentalist Christian). They do say they are still friends though (and Jeremiah has replied very politely to some questions).

[Feministe9000]

9 minutes ago, Palimpsest said:

Can you give a link - I can't find it.  Thanks.

Grace is the oldest but I'm not sure about the rest. Grace was the most outspoken in defense of her parents over Alecia Faith.

Is Patience likely to blow next?

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this is the only way I know to copy the link to her Facebook.

 

If you go to Patience's Instagram, she is severely devout. All her posts she goes on and on basically writing love letters to God, asking how she can be more of an eager servant, displaying God's beauty through her photography (which I think is great by the way, she is very talented, so no snark there).

I'm not sure, I feel that now Faith and Hope have both diverted from the road Lisa forced them on, Grace (now married) and Patience will cling even tighter to their faith, perhaps also to defend their parents and to prove that their severely restricted and legalistic upbringing hasn't damaged them the way it has (in their minds) their sisters.
 

After following Hope regularly since last year, i found it interesting when she spoke about how she became close with Jeremiah, leaned on him for emotional support and comfort, because she didn;'t have any friends and felt depressed and sad. There goes the theory about all your siblings being your only needed companionship, it was also very heartbreaking, especially seeing her sheer joy and excitement at traveling to ComicCon, the Christian Film Festival, going on a road trip, and moving to Washington to be with her boyfriend, even if they have decided to go back to being friends.
She has had more adventures and new experiences and fun and excitement in the past year or oso than all of her teenage years.
And Lisa (along with her pompous self righteous father James) kept that from her.

Again I will say as I said when Faith initially left, they should be ashamed of themselves, and the tragic thing is, Hope is clearly such a lovely person (at least I feel), that no doubt she has nothing but respect and love for her parents, despite the ways they stunted her growth.

[JermajestyDuggar]

Looking at Alecia's fb, her boyfriend died a few weeks ago. And it looks like it may have been suicide. I'm just going by a post about suicide she made not long after he died. And it looks like he died a day before her sister's wedding. Poor Alecia. 

Edited March 10, 2017 by JermajestyDuggar

[Marian the Librarian]

1 hour ago, Koala said:

If Lisa doesn't comment, it will be because the kind of attention this will get her, won't be the kind she wants. 

Having one child toss the party line is one thing.  She was able to spin it into a tragic tale in which she was wronged (and oh, the pain!).  

It won't be so easy a second time around.  Her devout friends will be giving her and her husband the side eye, wondering what they did to drive two of their kids from the faith (and I suspect more will follow).

Anyway, good for Hope.  Sounds like she's realized she can think for herself.  It had to have been uphill work after living under Lisa's rule for some many years.

They held on waaaay too tight, and they controlled waaaay too hard.

I read something, somewhere, that drew an analogy between raising a child and holding a wet bar of soap in your hands. The harder you squeeze, the faster it slips away and the further it flies. (Yes, it's simple, please don't judge...this is the best I can do, pre-coffee ;-)

Hooray for Hope. My bet's on the rest of the siblings following in short order.

[usedbicycle]

2 hours ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

Looking at Alecia's fb, her boyfriend died a few weeks ago. And it looks like it may have been suicide. I'm just going by a post about suicide she made not long after he died. And it looks like he died a day before her sister's wedding. Poor Alecia. 

Lisa dropped the news in a wedding post after Grace's wedding. She frames it as an inconvenience to the wedding, on the same level as a power outage and the family having a cold. She's a hypocrite and still the worst...

 

Quote

While the day of the wedding was wonderful, the days leading up to it were rough.   There were many small challenges, but three things really made it hard.

- Death. One of our daughter’s boyfriend died suddenly on Thursday morning.  It was shocking and devastating.  As a mom I was torn between wanting to go be with her and being there for my daughter who was getting married.  As we set up the church and reception I kept crying.  People around me who didn’t know the situation thought it was because of the wedding, but it wasn’t.  It was my heart breaking for my other daughter and this young man’s family.

- No power. The electricity was out in the area of the church where we were setting up.  There was no power for the entire 2 days we were working.  We had to iron the linens on the other side of the building, we couldn’t use the kitchen and couldn’t do many of the things I had planned for setting up.  We just kept plugging away despite the issue.  I mean, what else can you do?!  On Friday night before the wedding the power came back on.  What a relief!

- Illness.  Our family got really sick the Monday before the wedding and when it was time to leave on Wednesday my husband and one son had to stay behind to try to rest an extra day.  I oiled us all up and used every supplement and trick in my bag and miraculously we made it through the wedding without the hacking coughing we had been doing all week.

 

[JermajestyDuggar]

1 minute ago, usedbicycle said:

Lisa dropped the news in a wedding post after Grace's wedding. She frames it as an inconvenience to the wedding, on the same level as a power outage and the family having a cold. She's a hypocrite and still the worst...

 

 

What a fucking ______ <----- you insert your favorite insult here. Lisa is just disgusting. I really hope all the girls leave the fundie bullshit behind them. 

[Koala]

Yep.  Colds, power outages, and suicide.  File Under: What are things that inconvenience Lisa?

 I just can't with that woman....

And worrying about being with Alecia?  She's never been there for her before, so why start now?

Besides that, anyone can hold her daughter's hand while she mourns the tragic loss of her boyfriend.  It's takes someone really special to iron linens, though. 

Edited March 10, 2017 by Koala

[FundiesInParis]

I think I just threw up in my mouth some, Lisa Pennington is an absolute monster.

(We all already knew this, I honestly shouldn't be surprised.)

[Gobsmacked]

6 hours ago, Gobsmacked said:

Hopefully her Grandparents will be able to protect her from her parents as they did with Faith.

Good luck in your new life Grace.

Not quoting myself! Just realised reading back that I've written the wrong name. Oopps

[ILoveJellybeans]

Good for her, I am glad to see more of the Pennington kids finding their own way in the world. I cant believe her parents are okay with this, maybe there is hope of them loosening up a bit? Probably wont cure Lisa's selfishness though.

 

Sorry to hear of the death of Alecia's boyfriend, that's so sad  I hope she is okay.

[HermioneSparrow]

Katie Smith (Morton) replied to Hope's post about her atheism  in her profile's picture she looks exhausted and drained, I think. 

[jozina]

Lisa is repugnant. A young man dying is a small challenge?  Ugh.  What a Christian heart she has.

 

 

Edited March 10, 2017 by jozina

[Palimpsest]

2 hours ago, Gobsmacked said:

Not quoting myself! Just realised reading back that I've written the wrong name.

Eh.  I don't have a problem wishing Grace luck and distance from Lisa in her new life.  I hope she runs like hell too.

That is terrible news about Alecia Faith's boyfriend.  My thoughts are with her, his family and friends.  So sad.

And Lisa certainly reached a new low there.  Whenever I think she has reached rock-bottom she manages to sink further into the abyss.   All the essential oils in the world won't cure her narcissism. 

[Gobsmacked]

Lisa had been gallivanting at Disney World with one of the younger boys. Pics all over her Facebook. 

Sorry I can't post, not technical.

[nickelodeon]

3 hours ago, HermioneSparrow said:

Katie Smith (Morton) replied to Hope's post about her atheism  in her profile's picture she looks exhausted and drained, I think. 

Seeing her talk about how Jesus is always good and faithful is just so sad.

[faraway]

Katie writing things like that make me scared for her kids. Somehow I wish when people go through some terrible things they would finde some common sense and strength in things other than Jesus (who obviously didn't fail them, it's just a trial when your husband molests children).