Introduce Yourself - Part 2

[Primadonna]

Good god, don't learn your English skills from fundies.

LMAO! Absolutely, I will not learn English skills from fundies. SOTDRT is not for me. :hand:

Hopefully though, I will learn a thing or 2 from YOU guys! :pray:

[happy atheist]

Welcome to all our new members, and thanks for your patience while we cleaned up after the spam inundation.

[EvilSoup]

Hello all.

I was brought to FJ after reading a story about Lauren and David Fisher on another forum. After lurking here and reading the sparkling thread in its entirety, I then discovered the delightful Hellena and Currawong :oops: and my life is forever changed!

I am glad now be a member!

[Rebelwife]

I've just joined up after lurking for a few months. I finally got off my butt and registered when I kept wanting to chime in on threads. I'm sure I won't be a prolific poster, but everyone once in a while I know I'll have to give my $.02.

I found my way here after browsing at the bookstore. I picked up a book by someone who had left the Gothard group and then got online to find out more. Skipping a lot of weird steps in between, FreeJinger is where I ended up, and I've been stuck here (happily) ever since.

[MalteseBaby]

I'm an American. I grew up on a beautiful farm with my parents Was fortunate enough to receive an outstanding public education. Married and divorced young, then repeated the mistake a few more times with others until I got it right. I married my current husband many years ago, it seems, and we have moved twice, to large cities each time, for his career advancement.

We now live in a beautiful private community in a large state fairly unaffected by religious zealots. ( It must be all the guns the residents own).

I believe in freedom of religion or freedom from religion- whatever a person chooses. I am quietly spiritual but not traditionally religious. My parents took me to church every time the doors were opened for all my growing up years. That helped me make up my mind to stay out of them once I was old enough to tell them no and not back down ( around age 16, when I got my first car).

Hubby and I have no children, thank goodness. I have a son from a previous marriage. We have not spoken in 5 years, since my father became very ill and then died, and I don't expect to have any further communication with the sociopath. Hubby and I have a little family of pets- small white fluffy non-shedding dogs. As close to having loving children as I will ever get. I " retired " from my career as a health care professional when I was 40- husband offered and I didn't give him a second to reconsider. :).

I most likely have slightly to much more conservative political viewpoints than most here, but do not care to debate or discuss my views, because everyone has them, and some things are private.

Some of my favorite things are reading, music, visiting museums in our large city, going to the zoo, exercising ( little white lie- I need to, so I try to enjoy it), and being a mom to our sweet fur kids.

We love to travel. My favorite trip was a 2 week vacation I won to Paris. It was amazingly fun and very luxurious.

Things I want to do before I die: Move to Hawaii, write a best selling novel, take a cruise around the world.

( I may vacation in Hawai'i, but that's it, realistically) :)

My husband was a guest student in England while in HS. He never talks much about his early years, but I think he enjoyed the experience a lot. He is a meat and potatoes kind of guy, so I'm sure he enjoyed the traditional foods. :)

Oh, and not that it should matter, but I am a night person.

I've hit the highlights. Boring, eh? :)

[maia sayet]

I have lurked off and on for ages.

I run a forum elsewhere. I know some of those people post here.

I never turn down a chance to be grossed out by Debi Pearl.

[milkncookies76]

I kinda grew up around fundamentalism- my aunt, uncle, and cousins were (and still are) hardcore fundamentalists, so when a friend told me about this site, I was super-thrilled to have found a place to discuss the crazee.

[geeklove]

I live in the buckle of the bible belt so I'm pretty familiar with fundamentalism although my family leaned more to the agnostic or non church going Christian. I have lurked here for a few months. I'm very excited to have a place to take out my frustrations.

[elsabee]

Hey guys. I've lurked here for years -- really, YEARS -- but this is the first time I've bothered to actually go ahead and make an account. I come from a super liberal American family, but have always been fascinated by those fundies lurking in the shadows. At the moment I'm studying in Scotland, where there are actually more fundies than you'd expect. Looking forward to some good banter and proper snark on the forums.

[samurai_sarah]

Hey guys. I've lurked here for years -- really, YEARS -- but this is the first time I've bothered to actually go ahead and make an account. I come from a super liberal American family, but have always been fascinated by those fundies lurking in the shadows. At the moment I'm studying in Scotland, where there are actually more fundies than you'd expect. Looking forward to some good banter and proper snark on the forums.

Are you sure? Well, you wouldn't say it if you weren't, but there I thought we were somewhat safe here. :( In any case, welcome! :D

[elsabee]

Well, okay, I've only come across a few. But I'd definitely suspected no fundies at all out here, so!

[Toothfairy]

Welcome! I have a question, though, if you are a fan in the sense that you like them, what attracts you to Free Jinger? This is hardly a Duggar fan page.

I found this website via a google web post. I was a lurker for a while then decided to join. (I hate being the new kid on the block) I like being able to say whatever I want without people shoving all their bs down my throat. I'm sick of going back and forth with members on Facebook and on other forums. I also found some other crazy fundies on this site who are much worse than gothard, other fundies and the Duggars :pink-shock: I will admit I use to be a big fan of the Duggars and did drink the koolaid for a while. Btw I was also raised in a strict religious family and grew up around fundie families.

[Earthshine]

Hello. I lead a very secular lifestyle, but live in an extremely conservative christian area. I ended up falling down the fundie rabbit hole in an attempt to understand them. I came across FJ in 2011, and have been lurking(and laughing) ever since.

[LuluH]

Hello everyone,

I am a long time lurker on this board. I think I found it through No Longer Quivering, many years ago. I was raised by QF parents and still live in and around the QF/homeschooling lifestyle.

I doubt I will post frequently (my hide is probably not tough enough to take prolonged bouts of the snark if it were directed at me) but there have been a few posts and topics in the past that, at the time, I wished to add my perspective to. The moment has passed on those, but I am sure something else will come up.

[Snarknado]

Hi

I've been lurking for years and finally decided to take the plunge and register since not being able to reply has gotten too hard. :D

Although I am not a former fundie, I am a former conservative evangelical christian.I have to credit FJ (and all my time lurking here) with helping me finally be honest with myself about who I am and what I DON'T believe.

I have six kids who are all in their first year of public school after having attended the SOTDRT previously. :lol:

[ExLuther]

Hi! Longtime lurker. I grew up in a really f'ed up lcms church and attended school there. Followed fj in the yuku days Emily and dna were my gateway.

[Newriverchick]

Hi everyone, I'm a long time lurker myself. I live in the heart of the Bible Belt, so I'm super fimlilar with fundies/lites went to school with some frumper wearers. I am a hippy gal and grew up Pentecostal. I really enjoy reading all the threads, especially now that the mighty are falling. Thanks for loads of enjoyable reading, Peace and LoVE to everyone.

[GothardsLap]

I was raised Catholic and live in a small New England town housing an eilte liberal arts college. You are more likely to run into a shaman than a fundy. I am fairly agnostic these days but have always had an interest in religion and it's impact on people, culture, war etc. As a teen I longed to be Jewish as I felt they were more intellectual about faith and less absorbed in the "after life" which always struck me like a simplistic method of enforced obedience.

But looking too closely at any major religion always ended up with me feeling like I was being conned or bamboozled by something some very human men thought up to benefit themselves. Then I began focusing on religion as oppression. The more fundamental, the more oppressive. And since constructed by men, it was designed to advantage men over women. Everything I have seen since then pretty much unfortunately confirms this world view. I have been equally repelled by fundamentalist Muslims, Jews & Christians but have become bizarrely fascinated by American Christian fundamentalism. In the Truth is Stranger than Fiction category I include all manner of fundie wackos from Duggars to the Botkins to Doug's Phillips & Wilson, Bill Gothard, Mark Driscoll, I mean, my cup runneth over. I honestly could not possibly conjure up scenarios more bizarre than those that actually exist. It's pretty mind boggling when you first become acquainted with this weird and unhealthy subculture.

Unfortunately it's not just humorous. I think religion is most attractive to those who are searching, lonely, uncertain, confused etc and they are easy prey for these "biblical" vultures. I often wish there was some way I could reach out and help the young women who are being denied an education here in our own country while we are celebrating Malia Yousafzai and lamenting her treatment in Afghanistan as though it was so foreign to us here. But, really, how far would the religious right go if they were in charge? I don't ever want to find out. Whatever can be done to expose and marginalize these bottom feeders benefits the human race.

The reading I have done here shows a diverse, interesting, engaged populace who have a lot to share and I look forward to continuing to "call out" the obscenities conducted in the name of "GOD".

[oneperson]

I'll be 55 years young in April. I have been married going on 30 years and I have two young adult children whom I home/eclectic/un-schooled from birth through high school.

I was involved with a fundamentalist-type group, The Way International, most of my adult life from 1977 through 2005. I say "fundamentalist-type" because The Way has different beliefs than typical fundies. But The Way does believe the Bible is inerrant (as 'originally' given). I currently lean toward agnosticism.

I found freejinger when searching for information about the "Church of Wells" in Texas.

Thank you!

[Unsaved Trash]

Hello Everyone,

I used to be a Fundamentalist Christian until around 15 years ago when I saw the light. Now, I'm Unsaved Trash.

I currently live in sin with my boyfriend after raising my three, now heathen children as a single, divorced mom. After my kids left home, I decided to pursue my dream of obtaining a college education. I'm working on my AS in Computer Science. Eventually, I'd like to obtain my Bachelor's, but one step at a time.

I like to think of myself as a voyeur into Crazy Christian Land. I look forward to getting to know all of you and snarking on "The Crazy" as I like to call it.

[jerkit]

Hello! I have been fundie fascinated for a few years now after the first time I read the student handbook for PCC. I participate on two other forums where I heard about FJ in threads about fundies. I religiously follow Lori, the Pearls, Smuggar, and SSM.

I am in my mid-20s and live in suburbia, where my husband and I are both engineers. My biggest passion though is olympic weightlifting (thus jerkit). I am a devout Episcopalian. I'm also sort of an open book so feel free to AMA!

[karen77]

HI!!

I've been lurking here for a while.

I am also just horribly fascinated by these people, mostly the Duggars since they are more exposed. Just in awe of how people can live in such a sheltered bubble!!

I'm in my mid-thirties, in the pacific northwest, where I work as an engineer and have two little kids. Confirmed agnostic (leaning atheist).

[ExLuther]

Hello Everyone,

I used to be a Fundamentalist Christian until around 15 years ago when I saw the light. Now, I'm Unsaved Trash.

I currently live in sin with my boyfriend after raising my three, now heathen children as a single, divorced mom. After my kids left home, I decided to pursue my dream of obtaining a college education. I'm working on my AS in Computer Science. Eventually, I'd like to obtain my Bachelor's, but one step at a time.

I like to think of myself as a voyeur into Crazy Christian Land. I look forward to getting to know all of you and snarking on "The Crazy" as I like to call it.

I am also unsaved trash. Gave birth to my wonderful four year old little man. Separated (moved out of his house) from his Dad. While we were trying to work it out he and our neighbor (who was married) had an affair. She now lives with him (and her kids from two seperate men) and they take my son to church. They say I am unreasonable for not wanting him to go to church. Checked your cmandments lately?

[Unsaved Trash]

I am also unsaved trash. Gave birth to my wonderful four year old little man. Separated (moved out of his house) from his Dad. While we were trying to work it out he and our neighbor (who was married) had an affair. She now lives with him (and her kids from two seperate men) and they take my son to church. They say I am unreasonable for not wanting him to go to church. Checked your cmandments lately?

My ex had an affair as well.

When my kids were younger they would go to church with their dad's family when it was his weekend. They even had my daughters go to purity retreats and took them to see Passion of the Christ. I taught my kids to think for themselves, so they are very independent people.

My boyfriend is an Ex-Lutheran, Missouri Synod. He went to the Lutheran prep school for high school in Wisconsin, because he had wanted to be a Lutheran minister. He was accepted into the Seminary at St. Louis, but went to Tulane instead.

[kjrsg]

Hello, folks.

I've been reading FJ on and off for many years, and finally decided to sign up. The whole Doug Phillips scandal has had me riveted for months now, along with the whole Gothard mess.

I was raised in the Church of Christ. I'm not religious at all now. Still surrounded by conservative Christians in my family, though.

Glad to be here!