Words mean things, Part 1: On Sex, Penetration, and Krakens

July 19, 2012 By Sarah Moon

[trigger warning for rape, racism, colonization, sexual violence] Penetrates Conquers Colonizes Plants These are words that Douglas Wilson (supported by Jared Wilson) uses to describe the “role” a man plays in sexual relationships with women. Women, on the other hand, should “receive, surrender, accept.” According to the Wilsons (as mentioned here), these are the ingredients of a loving relationship. Says Douglas, What I was talking about occurs within the bounds of a man and a woman who love and respect... Read more

Rape: A Punishment for Egalitarians?

July 19, 2012 By Sarah Moon

[Trigger warnings for rape and abuse] Sometimes, conservative Christians are able to cover up the fact that their bad theology is often used to enable abusers, cover up abuse, and blame victims. Then, sometimes, they slip and people see everything and their attempts to convince people that they do not condone abuse seem laughable. This is what happened today when Jared Wilson of The Gospel Coalition published this article, a critique of 50 Shades of Gray which consists of a quote... Read more

On Cornerstone…

July 10, 2012 By Sarah Moon

I spent last Friday at the Christian music festival, Cornerstone, and I saw some interesting things. By interesting, I mostly mean vomit-inducing. Buzz Feed recently went to another Christian music festival, Creation, and wrote a post about their findings. I figured I’d do something similar, as someone familiar with (and highly critical of) Christian culture. People are going to say that I’m just bitter and angry because of this post. But, you know, maybe I am a little bitter and... Read more

No Experience Necessary?

June 27, 2012 By Sarah Moon

If you wanted an expert opinion on something, usually you’d ask someone with experience on the subject. If you wanted parenting advice, you’d probably ask someone who was a parent, not someone who babysat their siblings a few times. If you wanted to know what sky-diving was like, you’d probably ask someone who’d been skydiving, not someone who’d watched a video of someone skydiving on YouTube. It just makes sense. Experience gives you an insight into a subject that books... Read more

Guest Post at Travis Mamone’s blog!

June 25, 2012 By Sarah Moon

Hey y’all! I wrote a guest post for Travis Mamone on fragile faith that can’t handle questions. If our faith is at the point where it is not truly living, but a vegetable that can’t survive without a constant connection to the things that we’ve always “known” to be true, maybe it’s time to pull the plug. Maybe it’s time to let our sickly faith die in peace. If we are so afraid of questions that we can’t help people... Read more

Same ol’ story.

June 23, 2012 By Sarah Moon

Trigger warnings for sexual assault. “Once upon a time, there was a girl who was pure, virtuous, an angel in a white dress, and most importantly, a virgin. Then, one day, she met a boy and fell in love. Although the girl was committed to remaining pure, the boy kept pressuring her for more than she was willing to give. Using lies and manipulation, he convinced her to come into his bed. The girl feels dirty and worthless. Her purity... Read more

Why I believe (by someone who shouldn’t)–A guest post by Travis Mamone

June 20, 2012 By Sarah Moon

I hope you all enjoyed Abe Kobylanski’s guest post yesterday. Today, Travis Mamone discusses why he is still a Christian, even though atheism makes more sense. I hope you enjoy his post, and afterward, be sure to check out his blog, The Boy with the Thorn in His Side. I’ve been a Christian for almost twelve years. I go to church every Sunday. I know the Creeds and the Lord’s Prayer by heart. I can tell you which books are in... Read more

What makes a good daddy–A guest post by Abe Kobylanski

June 19, 2012 By Sarah Moon

I’m going to be publishing a couple of guest posts this week from some great people! Today, we have Abraham Kobylanski with a belated Father’s Day post, and tomorrow, I’ll be publishing an article by Travis Mamone. Enjoy! Author bio for Abraham: Abe Kobylanski works at a newspaper like it’s going out of style (it is!). He’s currently between religious beliefs. In his spare time, he has a blog of his own at abekoby.wordpress.com. I’ve been told that our dear friend,... Read more

We teach boys to abuse women. We teach girls that abuse = attraction.

June 15, 2012 By Sarah Moon

When I was in elementary school, a group of boys in my class liked to pick on me. Sometimes they got really mean, and it bothered me, so I told on them. The teacher I talked to told me that they were “just being boys,” and that they were probably doing it “because they like you!” When I was a freshman in college, I went to a church on Father’s Day that preached a message about how to raise your... Read more

Guest Post at Alise Write!

June 8, 2012 By Sarah Moon

I’m guest posting at Alise Write’s place today! I didn’t write this piece specifically for Week of Mutuality, but I think it fits the theme. Because of the inequalities that women face in the church, many of us feel that we have to be careful not to be too much. We can’t be too smart or too intelligent. We can’t be too much of a leader or too good at what we do. We have to stay in our box of... Read more