Why do fundies flip flop so much?

[Deleted08]

http://biblegirl1999.blogspot.com/2012/ ... eline.html

Is it mental problems (I have bipolar so I can talk about that one lol) or just feeling convicted or something?

Between Brandy and the above link, it's just so much back and forth it'd leave me confused.

I left fundiesm in 2009 when self injury happened and I knew living by all these man made rules was bullshit. I still

read some fundie-lite blogs but I have never wanted to get back into it.

What's your view?

[tropaka]

That link sends me nowhere (blank post) but I see that she's into "plain" living(?) Did she scrub because she ditched it?

[Deleted08]

I tried to edit it so it wouldn't link back to FJ...I need to fix that LOL. :D

She's still Plain, not a Torah Keeper anymore.

[alba]

I thought you were talking about the Duggar girls' favourite footwear, in which case the answer is probably a combination of them being cheap and hard to run in :P

As for that timeline, I really wonder where the 1706 date for Presbyterianism comes from. The Church of Scotland, a Presbyterian church, was formed in 1560.

ETA: As for the flip-flopping, I'm not sure. Maybe it's because religion forms such a big part of their lives? To an ordinary Christian, being Protestant and finding a church in line with their morals and basic beliefs is often enough, but for a fundie their entire lives are dictated by religion.

[maybeizfundie]

For a lot of people, fundamentalism is one stop on a much longer journey. It's not really fundamentalism itself that makes people flip flop (plenty of life-long fundies or multigenerational fundie families, after all). It's more like something that draws people looking for "home". It's "safe" because of the rules and solid lines drawn around everything. At least for a while.

I knew Dawn was headed towards Catholicism years ago. Same trajectory as my parents, lol. Hope she finds "home" and peace there, as they did.

[Lady]

It's cheap. Though I think on a subconscious level they are equating flip flops with the modern version of biblical footwear.

[Sweetpea1]

I thought you were talking about the Duggar girls' favourite footwear, in which case the answer is probably a combination of them being cheap and hard to run in :P

.

I thought that, too.

I wonder if they buy used and save the difference. (Ewwww)

[Kaylee]

As for that timeline, I really wonder where the 1706 date for Presbyterianism comes from. The Church of Scotland, a Presbyterian church, was formed in 1560.

It's the date the first Presbyterian church than can still be directly linked to an extant congregational body in American was formed. My guess is someone Googled and typed in the first date that popped up without knowing much else.

As for Dawn, I'm not totally surprised. She's taken a similar path to the one I have and a lot of friends who've taken similar paths have ended up either Catholic or Orthodox.

I think maybeizfundie & alba both raised good points on the reason why but, If I knew the answer, maybe I'd have done less flip-flopping myself over the years. Part of it is placing a lot of importance on religion and trying to "get it right". When you find others who see some of the same things you have and who look like they're really trying to follow God the "right" way, it does eel like coming home and you want to be a part of it. Then, after a while, you start seeing problems, usually manipulation or twisting scripture, so you look for the "real" truth, find a new group or spin on things, and it starts all over again. I think maybe a lot of people who do this have a certain personality type or something that makes us look for answers but also feel like we need a sort of structure or rules and to be part of a community with those same guidelines.

[margiebargie]

It sounds like she's moving in a positive direction. While it sucks that she'll be supporting a heinously evil organization like the Catholic church at least it is a personal improvement for her. It's not where you end up, it's how far you've come, right? Maybe she'll wind up an atheist eventually.

As to why fundie's flip-flop - I'd say fundie-ism is not sustainable. It's extreme. The hateful teachings lead to conflict in real life, which I'm sure is difficult and stressful. I'm sure there's a lot of cognitive dissonance between fundie claims and reality - what with all the silly, superstitious pap. It's exploitive. The pastor fleeces the flock. The husband dominates the wife. The wife takes it out on the kids with abusive discipline practices. I'm sure that leads to a whole lot of misery. And all the while they have to pretend they're happy-clappy and perfect. I don't know how they stick with it for even one second.

[The Archivist]

I think sometimes it's because they are trying to make really petty decisions based on the Bible, issues on which the Bible doesn't have a single clear directive (see head covering, wearing pants, listening to rock music, whatever.) It may not change their whole religious outlook, but it does have an impact on how they live their daily life. They'll read one scripture that seems to indicate a certain way, and then another that seems to contradict it - and if they're literalists, they will follow any of these ideas like commandments. The only problem is, when they are not actually commandments, the Bible may be vague or even contradictory on them. I seriously doubt if there was a god that he would care whether or not Candy listened to rock music.