Recovering Fundamentalists Podcast

[nolongerIFBx]

I realize that there is not a set definition of fundamentalism/fundamentalist, so-- while this pod cast is called Recovering Fundamentalist many of you will still consider them fundies (as many would consider me). With that disclaimer, if you are just interested in some of the nuances of IFBx (IFB with an extremist, legalistic view of the Christian life) culture, you might enjoy listening to this pod cast. https://recoveringfundamentalist.org/

[formergothardite]

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Camp Meeting + 72 Verses of “Just As I Am” = Emotional Manipulation 101

This was the title of a comment and it gave me a chuckle because the 72 verses of Just As I Am is so true. That song already has what seems like a million verses and we would have to keep singing through them. 

And this part of the comment is also true. I've seen several variations of this particular emotional manipulation. 

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One evening during a teen week later in the summer, the evangelist preached a fire-and-brimstone message and challenged every teen to come forward and finally get right with God. He also had us all keep our eyes open because we needed to be willing to make this decision in front of our peers.

In the first few verses of the invitation song, lots of kids went forward. We sang more verses. The evangelist kept on and on. More kids went forward. After endless verses, the front of the chapel and the aisles were packed. The only kids left in the pews were my three friends and myself. That preacher focused all of his energy directly at us. The pressure to go forward was STRONG! But my friends and I were good kids who honestly believed there was no more standing between us and God. Going forward would have been just bowing to pressure, not a genuine call by the Holy Spirit.

I heard one revival preacher say he wouldn't end a service until ever person came forward. Or some who would point to an area of the church and claim God told them that someone from that section needed to come to the front. And if no one budged they would keep at it until someone gave in. They would scream and rant that someone sitting in those particular pews was filled with sin and ignoring God. 

[Flossie]

21 hours ago, formergothardite said:

I heard one revival preacher say he wouldn't end a service until ever person came forward. Or some who would point to an area of the church and claim God told them that someone from that section needed to come to the front. And if no one budged they would keep at it until someone gave in. They would scream and rant that someone sitting in those particular pews was filled with sin and ignoring God. 

Does anyone ever just stand up and leave?  It's not like they can force you to stay.

[formergothardite]

19 minutes ago, Flossie said:

Does anyone ever just stand up and leave?  It's not like they can force you to stay.

The peer pressure to stay and go along is pretty strong. I'm sure some people must got up and left at some point, but I don't remember it. 

[Giraffe]

One of my final nope’s in a hyper charismatic church I went to was when there was an evangelist there doing this kind of thing. By the time she got there I was so over the years of emotional manipulation that I sat there stoic while she made it obvious she was expecting everyone to be overcome by the holy spirit. I stayed because I didn’t want to cause a stir. In the end it didn’t matter. I was seen as uninterested in spiritual things after that - all because I had a clear conscience and didn’t fall for the emotional manipulation!

Edited September 3, 2020 by Giraffe
Clarifying

[JermajestyDuggar]

2 hours ago, formergothardite said:

The peer pressure to stay and go along is pretty strong. I'm sure some people must got up and left at some point, but I don't remember it. 

People talk about the peer pressure in high schools but it’s just as strong in churches. And the peer pressure continues into adulthood. 

[Giraffe]

6 minutes ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

People talk about the peer pressure in high schools but it’s just as strong in churches. And the peer pressure continues into adulthood. 

Absolutely! It's easy to wonder why people stay for so long but the reality is in these high control groups it's not unusual for everything to revolve around the group. There are the various services and Bible studies you're expected to attend but there may also be other social groups - sewing, for example. If they have a sewing/quilting group or mom's groups or whatever else, leaving the church means leaving everything and losing all your friends. It's not just leaving Sunday mornings.