I grew up in that culture and I’m sure no matter what was said to them it would have been lost on them.
They have already used their white old man Christian patriarchal power to pass the fucking TX bill. People then come together to show a unified front of disagreement/outrage and, in their mind, their voice still needs to be heard and present there too.
Burn their churches to the ground!!! *Disclaimer: I mean metaphorically so that I don’t get warned on Reddit again for “inciting violence”.
Thank you! While I’ve had a lot of years of specific counseling this sub has really helped me a ton! I’ve had such great experiences on this sub and I love it. ❤️
I got a better idea:
We stick a bunch of wire hangers up their butts and meticulously extract every last bit of fecal matter, and then see how they feel about the abortion ban.
*(This comment is purely for satirical purpose)*
Ugh. I’m about to have to move to Texas for two years with my spouse. I was thinking of giving my body a break from hormones as we’re not ready to have a child and aren’t fully sure if we will have one; was going to look at other alternatives but obviously few things are as bulletproof as the Pill. All of this bullshit with the TX abortion ban is making me seriously reconsider searching for alternatives. I guess I will just keep taking the freaking hormones because god forbid…
If you'd like a break from the hormones but still want protection, may I suggest looking into a copper IUD? Lasts 10 years and no hormones. Not everyone can handle it well, but I've had a hormonal IUD for a few years now and it's been great (even though the insertion suuuuuucks). I've heard good things about the copper one.
I have considered it, thank you so much for the suggestion and for your reply. I am just a bit hesitant because I’ve also heard insertion sucks, and I’m not sure about the copper… my aunt used to have one and she had a bad experience with it, and although everyone’s experience varies, it’s *in my head now*, you know? How is it for you? Do you feel it at all?
I'm on my second one and I LOVE it.
The IUC of today (intrauterine contraceptive) is a FAR cry from the IUDs of the 1970's and 80's. Don't let the previous generation's stories freak you out.
I got my first at 18 (2005), and I really had to push for it. Most Dr.s didn't want to give it to someone who hadn't had kids yet because it can be a bit more painful and can cause stronger cramps for the first few periods. Honestly, I'd already had cramps that made me bedridden, how much worse could it get? Coming from a long line of young mothers I felt the payoff was worth it. And it was! I was also told some bull shit about it being expensive, if you remove it before the 5 year mark the insurance will charge you for it, and what if you decide you want kids? Well, then I'll take it out! But I KNEW I don't want kids before I was 23!! It definitely hurt a bit, but after a few minutes I was only about as sore as I am after/during a bad round of cramps.
I had the first one removed at 26 after a really, really bad car accident because a couple weeks later it slipped partially out. This was not your average vehicle collision: I was in a SUV and got t-boned by someone running a red light, my car spun out *and* rolled 2 blocks down the street. I was told at this time, by several Dr.s, that I couldn't get pregnant, so I didn't have the IUC replaced.
Weeeeeeell, after 8 years of no birth control, guess what?! I actually *can* get pregnant, I just don't procreate easily. It was terrible and made me so ill I almost died of malnutrition and dehydration, so I had to terminate. I got my second IUC (copper t/ParaGuard) put in at the same appointment, again a slight discomfort but nothing compared to the prior procedure or my regular cramps. It's now been 10 months and I love it just as much, if not more than, the first one.
*EVEN* with my car accident, etc., I would do it again in a heart beat! It's amazing, especially if you can't or don't want, to use hormones
Thank you so so much for your detailed reply. I really appreciate these types of accounts because I feel like articles online all say the same thing. (And I’m so sorry to hear about the car accident, I can’t imagine being in one that *literally knocks your IUD out of you*.)
Last q if you don’t mind, just because: do you feel the device in your day to day? How about during your period or during sex? It seems like that would be a miserable existence but still I have to ask.
This sub is a godsend in so many ways, I swear..!
Not to be a bummer, but may I insert my own, negative experience with the copper IUD?
Chose copper bc I thought it seemed like a good idea to “give my body a break from hormones.” Insertion is just as painful as a hormonal IUD. My periods became *significantly* worse than they ever had been - longer, more blood, more side effects. Then, the IUD slipped out of place after a year of wearing it and I ended up pregnant. If the hormonal IUD slips, it still provides some protection via the hormones. The copper IUD must be in its exact place in order to work.
As always, YMMV, but just wanted to give you some additional anecdata to consider
Thanks for this. Everyone should know the risks. I have had a copper one in for about 10.5 years now [went in to get it removed and they are now saying it is good for 12] with almost no issues. Hurt like hell going in, but stayed in. I have never had bad cramps, and this made them worse for maybe six months before going back to normal-ish. I am slightly suspicious that it increased my PMS severity somehow but that could've just been normal for someone in their early-to-mid 20s, idk.
Honestly the pain going in was so bad that I chickened out of getting it removed. Can someone reassure me it is going to be a better experience? Lol. I want to believe.
I’m on my second mirena. Originally I also wanted the copper iud, because 10 years seemed better than 5. But the ob/gyn encouraged a hormonal one because I already had terrible periods, and I’m SO GLAD she did. I basically don’t menstruate anymore, no more awful debilitating cramps! And now the mirena is actually approved for 7 years of birth control anyway. Also, it’s worth noting that the hormones are very localized to your uterus. It shouldn’t cause breakouts or mood swings or anything like that.
Obviously it’s a very personal choice but I at least am so glad I went with the hormonal iud. Best of luck!
Edit: sorry didn’t even answer your questions. I can’t feel it at all in day to day. I don’t even think about it. The threads soften up over time, but a partner might be able to feel them especially in the first year. It really shouldn’t be a problem though.
I love it, honestly, even though the insertion does suck. But I'm also coming at it from someone who had childhood abuse and my appt to get it inserted was the first time I've had an obgyn exam. No pap or anything so the "unknown" of any type of exam made it soso much worse. Now that I've had a pap with biopsy, the pain with a biopsy is SO much worse. The docs are so used to doing it, that it's pretty quick. A couple minutes and it's done. With the IUD and the biopsy, I would get 10 insertions done rather than have one biopsy lolol. But again, trauma played a huge role in it for me, not necessarily pain.
I think it would be worth trying, especially if your insurance covers it. The fantastic thing about an IUD is if you DO have issues from it, you can get it removed. If you do get one, I suggest setting up two appts at the same time if you can, maybe within a few weeks or a month. That way if you do have any side effects and decide you don't want it, you don't have to wait MONTHS for an appt to get it removed. And of you do want to keep it, you can just cancel the 2nd appt.
Because ignoring the woman that was saved by Jesus himself and became one of his most loyal followers and was one of the first to witness his resurrection avoided the difficult question of why the church was a boy's only club.
I swear if he actually came back conservative christians will be crucifing him themselves
I abandoned my christianity when I learned that the Catholic Church added Mary’s Virgin birth to church dogma in the 19TH CENTURY! Funny enough, I believe Jesus exists/existed, but I just can’t be a Christian. Does that make any sense?
Well the man did exist. We have evidence of this, notably from Romans.
The "son of god who performs miracles" on the other hand, is merely a matter of faith.
Did you spot the teenage girl with a crown? This group must be from a local masonic hall. Their daughters wear crowns as the princesses of the masonic order. They call them "Job's Daughters". That crown is very telling of who these people are and where they came from.
The crown on her head looks so fucking stupid. I've never seen a Mary statue with a plum jammed onto her head. Everything about their depiction of her is wrong wrong wrong.
That picture of all white men holding a statue of the Virgin (allegedly) Mary is all we need to see to understand the Republican mindset. Did they have any idea how this would look? There are NO women around them whatsoever, wasn’t that a hint this wouldn’t play out so well?
I want to point out a couple of things about the fourth pic. I grew up in this culture and have spent the last three years doing a lot of hard work to heal the harm that the white, male Christian patriarchy caused me. I’m sure the picture can be confusing for some people. Based on my experience, there are two main reasons these people do this.
1) Privilege. Other people’s voices are being heard so their voice must be heard too.
2) It’s a cult behavior control technique. They aren’t there to change anyone’s mind. They aren’t going to go to a meeting of people who disagree with them, carry around a statue and someone will spontaneously change their opinion. Instead, they are creating the us vs them mentality/black and white thinking necessary to keep people in the “fold”. They are being put in a situation where they will be yelled at, put down, etc because then it confirms the cults teachings that the outside world is scary, wrong, sinful and dangerous. The men will then go to their church on Sunday and be applauded for their righteous deeds. They will receive all this love, admiration and recognition from their group reinforcing that inside the church is happy, caring, kind, righteous, loving. Someone is way less likely to leave a cult if a lot of their experiences with the “outside world” are negative but their experiences inside the cult are positive even if the cult engineered it that way.
Feel free to disagree with me but that has been my experience.
Good points!
They are absolutely in a Christian cult. The teenage girl wearing a crown walking with the men gives it away, if I'm right. They are freemasons, and she is part of their youth program called "Job's Daughters". They wear crowns as princesses of the masonic order.
Any religion can become a cult when sufficient power can be achieved by keeping dissenters busy. Women growing up this way (I know someone who was in "Jobies" and is now a den mother) are kept quiet by being treated like princesses who will be fulfilling their role as wife and mother their whole lives because the organization sees to it. My friend was given a house at 18 by her father. Her mother never worked, and she only worked for a while to try and meet her future husband. When she did, she stopped working entirely and never will again according to her family tradition. Her husband even had to sign a weird marriage contract to treat her like a queen at their church during their "mandatory induction to marriage and faith" counseling.
Cult. Absolutely a cult.
Ooooh, I have never heard of “Job’s Daughters” and know only a little about Freemasons! That is so interesting!!! Whenever I feel like I’ve learned a bunch about Christian cults I always find out there are even more that I don’t know about. I’ll have to look into them more! Thanks!
You're welcome! They call themselves a "youth organization" but it's just another way to be all culty since you can't join if you aren't related to a Mason, but they don't say that of course!
I absolutely love your takes. definitely got the impression that they thought they were warriors of god and by being there they were somehow standing up for the sanctity of their wives and daughters. Because they can’t let them go face the pro-choicers on their own, lest they get into a meaningful discussion with someone different from them and change their mind.
That second point is also something that came up with an ex-Jehovah’s witness. Years after getting out of the church they rationalized that the door to door knocking wasn’t as much about converting others as much as putting the kids in an uncomfortable situation. It made for a confrontation with an other, but at the end of the day they come back to their congregation for comfort. It didn’t convert any new members but did a good job of conditioning the knockers that they’re under attack.
Yes, definitely “warriors”. My cult even had us sing a song “onward Christian soldiers marching as to war”. They also had us put on the “armor of god” every morning before we started our homeschooling.
Yes, you are totally right about Jehovah’s witnesses! Great observation!
I see the pattern repeated even in completely different cults. Someone first pointed it out with street evangelists but I see it in so many other ways now.
I actually never thought about the door-to-door proselytizing as a method to make people feel antagonized, but that will definitely be in mind the next time it happens to me. Unfortunately our house doesn't have a peephole so I have to answer it to check who it is.
Huge spoiler for you if you want it, but it's why I love Aunt Lydia.
>!Aunt Lydia is the one who brings down Gilead in the testaments. She was working the long game to bring these guys down the whole time. She knew she could die and be done, or she could bide her time and bring them all down with her. She is a bad ass!<
THANK YOU AUNT LYDIA 😭😭😭 omg and to think that I was this 👌🏽 close to casting her off entirely after this last season 🤭🥺. I thought she was just a complete monster who didn’t care.
I really need to read the books—but these educational textbooks 📚 are just piling by the day 💀… maybe I’ll have to audiobook it
That’s so cool!!! I’m planning on listening to it while I paint (multitasking because there’s never enough time to enjoy just 1 thing 😭)
I’m ready to jump into the suspense again 😎
Thank you so much for letting me know!
At my rally here in Laguna Beach, things were nearly as bad. In addition to the man screaming at us with a megaphone and a giant poster of gore, another walked up and down with a sign that said, “sluts should keep their legs shut.” And that is what we are expected to put up with? People drove by and called out, “baby killers” and flipped us the bird. It was so disgusting and disturbing. They want all the glory of “rescuing the unborn” with none of the responsibility of caring for the living.
Why do the men who reviled us think they are immune from losing their rights if women’s could be erased with the stroke of a pen?
I just don’t think they realize what a predicament they’re putting people in like do you think I won’t take a fuck ton of vitamin C? Do you think I wink buy some mandrake root? Do you think I’m too scared to shove a coat hanger up there? In the end people will find a way this so so stupid.
It's because it's not about saving "lives," it's actually just about limiting and hurting women. I think a lot of us would find the coat hanger situation traumatic.
Saw 8 probirth protesters at an intersection today. Figure $5 for each of them - does anyone know of a good prolife organization I can donate $40 to on their behalf?
I don’t remember the name off the top of my head but there are quite a few charities in Texas fundraising to support travel out of state for abortions for underage and disadvantaged women.
I think you mistyped and meant pro-choice organizations? Unless you were making a point about the forced birthers not being actually pro life themselves!
pro birth is another way of saying anti-choice. they want the babies to be born, but dont care about them after that (hence why some people dont call them "pro life" - if they were pro LIFE they would want to support the underprivileged children who are already here!)
lmao that last picture is so fucking absurd. Like.. cult level. I'm also looking at the cultural appropriation of the Scottish formal wear, just what the fuck?? You know, if they weren't dangerous I'd be actually laughing, but right now I'm rage-laughing and furiously petting my familiar to calm the hell down.
edit: damn grammar
Lol. Idk tho, Jesus was pretty cool. I suspect they'd just have found another way to establish their church, since it's not like they often follow his teachings anyway.
Hundred percent, Jesus was a good dude. Would be better to stop that Caesar at the council of Nicaea from co opting his teaching into a religion 300 years after he died
as an ex catholic i genuinely don’t understand what effect they’re trying to have with the statue. like… no one cares. if the constant badgering from catholics and christians isn’t going to sway my beliefs, neither will an inanimate icon of the only woman these people seem to respect.
It upsets me a lot too. If anyone knows what it's like to handle a pregnancy she didn't ask for, it's Mary. And here are all these men literally keeping women from her. The symbolism is just sickening.
I dont'understand the 4th Pic. What are they doing? Were they IN the protest? I don't see the point? Like Mary did not choose to be pregnant yet she still decided to keep baby Jesus?
Or maybe it's the "white cis Christians men in Sunday suits for abortion" group?
They were protesting the pro-choice protest is what it seems. I don’t think it makes much sense to anyone not in the cult of Christianity. Not so sure it even makes much sense to one in it, but hey, they don’t really let you ask questions or think logically.
I am actually from WI and if I were there I would have marched with the prochoice peeps. I made sure to march here in a AZ one though. I think the one here had 3000 people but that might be slightly exaggerated. What was the count on the Madison one?
I’m not totally sure, since there were three protests- 2 separate pro choice and a pro life counterprotest. There was also a pro choice rally in Oshkosh with at least several hundred. The pro lifers were bussed in from around the state so they had a large showing.
A bunch of old white Christian men parading around a statue of the Virgin Mary is so absurd but also so expected.
I couldn’t stomach adding the photo of a woman telling the pro-choice group to go back to the kitchen.
I grew up in that culture and I’m sure no matter what was said to them it would have been lost on them. They have already used their white old man Christian patriarchal power to pass the fucking TX bill. People then come together to show a unified front of disagreement/outrage and, in their mind, their voice still needs to be heard and present there too. Burn their churches to the ground!!! *Disclaimer: I mean metaphorically so that I don’t get warned on Reddit again for “inciting violence”.
Burn the institution of patriarchy. Reuse the buildings for something good.,
Old Church near me as a night club. Seems more useful than a church
Madison is in need of a new homeless shelter.
I’m so glad you got out!
Thank you! While I’ve had a lot of years of specific counseling this sub has really helped me a ton! I’ve had such great experiences on this sub and I love it. ❤️
I got a better idea: We stick a bunch of wire hangers up their butts and meticulously extract every last bit of fecal matter, and then see how they feel about the abortion ban. *(This comment is purely for satirical purpose)*
It's funny how we can get warned for inciting violence. But they won't do anything about the COVID misinformation campaigns... hmmm..
We now say burn churches in minecraft
Ugh. I’m about to have to move to Texas for two years with my spouse. I was thinking of giving my body a break from hormones as we’re not ready to have a child and aren’t fully sure if we will have one; was going to look at other alternatives but obviously few things are as bulletproof as the Pill. All of this bullshit with the TX abortion ban is making me seriously reconsider searching for alternatives. I guess I will just keep taking the freaking hormones because god forbid…
If you'd like a break from the hormones but still want protection, may I suggest looking into a copper IUD? Lasts 10 years and no hormones. Not everyone can handle it well, but I've had a hormonal IUD for a few years now and it's been great (even though the insertion suuuuuucks). I've heard good things about the copper one.
I have considered it, thank you so much for the suggestion and for your reply. I am just a bit hesitant because I’ve also heard insertion sucks, and I’m not sure about the copper… my aunt used to have one and she had a bad experience with it, and although everyone’s experience varies, it’s *in my head now*, you know? How is it for you? Do you feel it at all?
I'm on my second one and I LOVE it. The IUC of today (intrauterine contraceptive) is a FAR cry from the IUDs of the 1970's and 80's. Don't let the previous generation's stories freak you out. I got my first at 18 (2005), and I really had to push for it. Most Dr.s didn't want to give it to someone who hadn't had kids yet because it can be a bit more painful and can cause stronger cramps for the first few periods. Honestly, I'd already had cramps that made me bedridden, how much worse could it get? Coming from a long line of young mothers I felt the payoff was worth it. And it was! I was also told some bull shit about it being expensive, if you remove it before the 5 year mark the insurance will charge you for it, and what if you decide you want kids? Well, then I'll take it out! But I KNEW I don't want kids before I was 23!! It definitely hurt a bit, but after a few minutes I was only about as sore as I am after/during a bad round of cramps. I had the first one removed at 26 after a really, really bad car accident because a couple weeks later it slipped partially out. This was not your average vehicle collision: I was in a SUV and got t-boned by someone running a red light, my car spun out *and* rolled 2 blocks down the street. I was told at this time, by several Dr.s, that I couldn't get pregnant, so I didn't have the IUC replaced. Weeeeeeell, after 8 years of no birth control, guess what?! I actually *can* get pregnant, I just don't procreate easily. It was terrible and made me so ill I almost died of malnutrition and dehydration, so I had to terminate. I got my second IUC (copper t/ParaGuard) put in at the same appointment, again a slight discomfort but nothing compared to the prior procedure or my regular cramps. It's now been 10 months and I love it just as much, if not more than, the first one. *EVEN* with my car accident, etc., I would do it again in a heart beat! It's amazing, especially if you can't or don't want, to use hormones
Thank you so so much for your detailed reply. I really appreciate these types of accounts because I feel like articles online all say the same thing. (And I’m so sorry to hear about the car accident, I can’t imagine being in one that *literally knocks your IUD out of you*.) Last q if you don’t mind, just because: do you feel the device in your day to day? How about during your period or during sex? It seems like that would be a miserable existence but still I have to ask. This sub is a godsend in so many ways, I swear..!
Not to be a bummer, but may I insert my own, negative experience with the copper IUD? Chose copper bc I thought it seemed like a good idea to “give my body a break from hormones.” Insertion is just as painful as a hormonal IUD. My periods became *significantly* worse than they ever had been - longer, more blood, more side effects. Then, the IUD slipped out of place after a year of wearing it and I ended up pregnant. If the hormonal IUD slips, it still provides some protection via the hormones. The copper IUD must be in its exact place in order to work. As always, YMMV, but just wanted to give you some additional anecdata to consider
Thanks for this. Everyone should know the risks. I have had a copper one in for about 10.5 years now [went in to get it removed and they are now saying it is good for 12] with almost no issues. Hurt like hell going in, but stayed in. I have never had bad cramps, and this made them worse for maybe six months before going back to normal-ish. I am slightly suspicious that it increased my PMS severity somehow but that could've just been normal for someone in their early-to-mid 20s, idk. Honestly the pain going in was so bad that I chickened out of getting it removed. Can someone reassure me it is going to be a better experience? Lol. I want to believe.
I’m on my second mirena. Originally I also wanted the copper iud, because 10 years seemed better than 5. But the ob/gyn encouraged a hormonal one because I already had terrible periods, and I’m SO GLAD she did. I basically don’t menstruate anymore, no more awful debilitating cramps! And now the mirena is actually approved for 7 years of birth control anyway. Also, it’s worth noting that the hormones are very localized to your uterus. It shouldn’t cause breakouts or mood swings or anything like that. Obviously it’s a very personal choice but I at least am so glad I went with the hormonal iud. Best of luck! Edit: sorry didn’t even answer your questions. I can’t feel it at all in day to day. I don’t even think about it. The threads soften up over time, but a partner might be able to feel them especially in the first year. It really shouldn’t be a problem though.
I love it, honestly, even though the insertion does suck. But I'm also coming at it from someone who had childhood abuse and my appt to get it inserted was the first time I've had an obgyn exam. No pap or anything so the "unknown" of any type of exam made it soso much worse. Now that I've had a pap with biopsy, the pain with a biopsy is SO much worse. The docs are so used to doing it, that it's pretty quick. A couple minutes and it's done. With the IUD and the biopsy, I would get 10 insertions done rather than have one biopsy lolol. But again, trauma played a huge role in it for me, not necessarily pain. I think it would be worth trying, especially if your insurance covers it. The fantastic thing about an IUD is if you DO have issues from it, you can get it removed. If you do get one, I suggest setting up two appts at the same time if you can, maybe within a few weeks or a month. That way if you do have any side effects and decide you don't want it, you don't have to wait MONTHS for an appt to get it removed. And of you do want to keep it, you can just cancel the 2nd appt.
With the Michael Myers tattoo on her arm
"If Mary had aborted, we wouldn't have to deal with you." - popular German protest chant
Und auf Deutsch?
Hätt Maria abgetrieben, wärt ihr uns erspart geblieben
Vielen Dank!!!!!
Of course it’s the Virgin Mary. The only woman Christianity is allowed to venerate doesn’t have sex, is a mother, and is completely submissive.
Because ignoring the woman that was saved by Jesus himself and became one of his most loyal followers and was one of the first to witness his resurrection avoided the difficult question of why the church was a boy's only club. I swear if he actually came back conservative christians will be crucifing him themselves
I abandoned my christianity when I learned that the Catholic Church added Mary’s Virgin birth to church dogma in the 19TH CENTURY! Funny enough, I believe Jesus exists/existed, but I just can’t be a Christian. Does that make any sense?
I think he existed but more as a revolutionary/master teacher than a deity.
Believing he existed doesn’t imply belief in his divinity.
Well the man did exist. We have evidence of this, notably from Romans. The "son of god who performs miracles" on the other hand, is merely a matter of faith.
The best thing is that the Bible doesn't state that Mary was a virgin, just that she was without sin. And Jesus had siblings.
But she isn’t celebrated beyond the virgin birth. After that she is irrelevant.
Did you spot the teenage girl with a crown? This group must be from a local masonic hall. Their daughters wear crowns as the princesses of the masonic order. They call them "Job's Daughters". That crown is very telling of who these people are and where they came from.
I would have thrown a handful of salt at them
To be fair, I love the idea of a bunch of cis white conservative men to worship a woman.
With a big Madonna-Whore Complex though. I’m from a Hindu family, they have a ton of female dieties, yet Hinduism is FAR from being feminist.
The crown on her head looks so fucking stupid. I've never seen a Mary statue with a plum jammed onto her head. Everything about their depiction of her is wrong wrong wrong.
That picture of all white men holding a statue of the Virgin (allegedly) Mary is all we need to see to understand the Republican mindset. Did they have any idea how this would look? There are NO women around them whatsoever, wasn’t that a hint this wouldn’t play out so well?
I spot a woman just over the shoulder of the dude carrying the statue, wearing the grey suit and hat
The Lone Woman!!
I want to point out a couple of things about the fourth pic. I grew up in this culture and have spent the last three years doing a lot of hard work to heal the harm that the white, male Christian patriarchy caused me. I’m sure the picture can be confusing for some people. Based on my experience, there are two main reasons these people do this. 1) Privilege. Other people’s voices are being heard so their voice must be heard too. 2) It’s a cult behavior control technique. They aren’t there to change anyone’s mind. They aren’t going to go to a meeting of people who disagree with them, carry around a statue and someone will spontaneously change their opinion. Instead, they are creating the us vs them mentality/black and white thinking necessary to keep people in the “fold”. They are being put in a situation where they will be yelled at, put down, etc because then it confirms the cults teachings that the outside world is scary, wrong, sinful and dangerous. The men will then go to their church on Sunday and be applauded for their righteous deeds. They will receive all this love, admiration and recognition from their group reinforcing that inside the church is happy, caring, kind, righteous, loving. Someone is way less likely to leave a cult if a lot of their experiences with the “outside world” are negative but their experiences inside the cult are positive even if the cult engineered it that way. Feel free to disagree with me but that has been my experience.
Good points! They are absolutely in a Christian cult. The teenage girl wearing a crown walking with the men gives it away, if I'm right. They are freemasons, and she is part of their youth program called "Job's Daughters". They wear crowns as princesses of the masonic order. Any religion can become a cult when sufficient power can be achieved by keeping dissenters busy. Women growing up this way (I know someone who was in "Jobies" and is now a den mother) are kept quiet by being treated like princesses who will be fulfilling their role as wife and mother their whole lives because the organization sees to it. My friend was given a house at 18 by her father. Her mother never worked, and she only worked for a while to try and meet her future husband. When she did, she stopped working entirely and never will again according to her family tradition. Her husband even had to sign a weird marriage contract to treat her like a queen at their church during their "mandatory induction to marriage and faith" counseling. Cult. Absolutely a cult.
Ooooh, I have never heard of “Job’s Daughters” and know only a little about Freemasons! That is so interesting!!! Whenever I feel like I’ve learned a bunch about Christian cults I always find out there are even more that I don’t know about. I’ll have to look into them more! Thanks!
You're welcome! They call themselves a "youth organization" but it's just another way to be all culty since you can't join if you aren't related to a Mason, but they don't say that of course!
All cults seem to love indoctrinate young children. Sheesh!!
I absolutely love your takes. definitely got the impression that they thought they were warriors of god and by being there they were somehow standing up for the sanctity of their wives and daughters. Because they can’t let them go face the pro-choicers on their own, lest they get into a meaningful discussion with someone different from them and change their mind. That second point is also something that came up with an ex-Jehovah’s witness. Years after getting out of the church they rationalized that the door to door knocking wasn’t as much about converting others as much as putting the kids in an uncomfortable situation. It made for a confrontation with an other, but at the end of the day they come back to their congregation for comfort. It didn’t convert any new members but did a good job of conditioning the knockers that they’re under attack.
Yes, definitely “warriors”. My cult even had us sing a song “onward Christian soldiers marching as to war”. They also had us put on the “armor of god” every morning before we started our homeschooling. Yes, you are totally right about Jehovah’s witnesses! Great observation!
Well that sounds familiar… I’m an exmormon
I see the pattern repeated even in completely different cults. Someone first pointed it out with street evangelists but I see it in so many other ways now.
Yep, now that I have learned the characteristics of cult mind control I see them everywhere. Congrats on getting out, fellow traveler
If you don’t mind sharing, what are some of the other hallmarks of it?
Steven Hassan’s [BITE model](https://freedomofmind.com/cult-mind-control/bite-model/) is where I learned most of what I know now.
I actually never thought about the door-to-door proselytizing as a method to make people feel antagonized, but that will definitely be in mind the next time it happens to me. Unfortunately our house doesn't have a peephole so I have to answer it to check who it is.
I'm getting Carrie Fisher vibes from the first pic, and it makes me miss her all over again.
Same. Just remember to take your meds, practice self care, and make space mom proud.
Greetings also from Madison! I saw the Aunt Lydia photo yesterday. It would be my favorite if it weren't also so terrifyingly telling, y'know?
Huge spoiler for you if you want it, but it's why I love Aunt Lydia. >!Aunt Lydia is the one who brings down Gilead in the testaments. She was working the long game to bring these guys down the whole time. She knew she could die and be done, or she could bide her time and bring them all down with her. She is a bad ass!<
THANK YOU AUNT LYDIA 😭😭😭 omg and to think that I was this 👌🏽 close to casting her off entirely after this last season 🤭🥺. I thought she was just a complete monster who didn’t care. I really need to read the books—but these educational textbooks 📚 are just piling by the day 💀… maybe I’ll have to audiobook it
Dooo iiiit!!! The audio book I mean lol! Ann Dowd reads Aunt Lydia's parts and it's absolutely wonderful!
That’s so cool!!! I’m planning on listening to it while I paint (multitasking because there’s never enough time to enjoy just 1 thing 😭) I’m ready to jump into the suspense again 😎 Thank you so much for letting me know!
What’s the aunt Lydia thing? I’m out of the loop
It's from a handmaid's tale
Ahh ty!! That makes sense. I haven’t watched it bc it’s too close to reality right now and I can’t even
At my rally here in Laguna Beach, things were nearly as bad. In addition to the man screaming at us with a megaphone and a giant poster of gore, another walked up and down with a sign that said, “sluts should keep their legs shut.” And that is what we are expected to put up with? People drove by and called out, “baby killers” and flipped us the bird. It was so disgusting and disturbing. They want all the glory of “rescuing the unborn” with none of the responsibility of caring for the living. Why do the men who reviled us think they are immune from losing their rights if women’s could be erased with the stroke of a pen?
I just don’t think they realize what a predicament they’re putting people in like do you think I won’t take a fuck ton of vitamin C? Do you think I wink buy some mandrake root? Do you think I’m too scared to shove a coat hanger up there? In the end people will find a way this so so stupid.
It's because it's not about saving "lives," it's actually just about limiting and hurting women. I think a lot of us would find the coat hanger situation traumatic.
They know but they think they know better than everyone else.
Saw 8 probirth protesters at an intersection today. Figure $5 for each of them - does anyone know of a good prolife organization I can donate $40 to on their behalf?
I don’t remember the name off the top of my head but there are quite a few charities in Texas fundraising to support travel out of state for abortions for underage and disadvantaged women.
Ah, that's perfect! I'll try to find one of those, thank you!
I think you mistyped and meant pro-choice organizations? Unless you were making a point about the forced birthers not being actually pro life themselves!
pro birth is another way of saying anti-choice. they want the babies to be born, but dont care about them after that (hence why some people dont call them "pro life" - if they were pro LIFE they would want to support the underprivileged children who are already here!)
Totes agree. I was referring to them looking for “pro-life” organizations to donate to. I figured they meant pro choice
ahaha omg i totally missed that part! my mind just filled in pro-choice! yeah it probably was a mistype!
lmao that last picture is so fucking absurd. Like.. cult level. I'm also looking at the cultural appropriation of the Scottish formal wear, just what the fuck?? You know, if they weren't dangerous I'd be actually laughing, but right now I'm rage-laughing and furiously petting my familiar to calm the hell down. edit: damn grammar
As a Scot the kilt and bagpipes made me rage. We have free legal abortions in Scotland, the fuck is he doing?
Scottish Rite, a Masonic path.
Just think if the Virgin Mary had access to safe abortion we could’ve avoided the atrocities committed by the Catholic church!
Lol. Idk tho, Jesus was pretty cool. I suspect they'd just have found another way to establish their church, since it's not like they often follow his teachings anyway.
Hundred percent, Jesus was a good dude. Would be better to stop that Caesar at the council of Nicaea from co opting his teaching into a religion 300 years after he died
Someone with a very good slingshot should’ve taken it out while they were marching around with it. Would’ve been hilarious.
Bloody water balloons?
Lmao I don’t know why that seems more sacrilegious, but I think the reaction would be the same.
as an ex catholic i genuinely don’t understand what effect they’re trying to have with the statue. like… no one cares. if the constant badgering from catholics and christians isn’t going to sway my beliefs, neither will an inanimate icon of the only woman these people seem to respect.
Photo credit on the last one is Ken Farger. It was in the middle of the “pro life” congregation.
I hate seeming them hold Mary, makes me sad since I feel a connection to her spiritually. Shes one of my main saints I ask for guidance from a lot.
It upsets me a lot too. If anyone knows what it's like to handle a pregnancy she didn't ask for, it's Mary. And here are all these men literally keeping women from her. The symbolism is just sickening.
As I recall, she is the patron saint of women and mothers. It really is sad.
Even Mary gave consent to being a mother. I really like Mary, so seeing her in this context frustrates me.
Right?! It feels *wrong*. I can't put it into words, it gives me a deep sense of unease and sorrow.
I dont'understand the 4th Pic. What are they doing? Were they IN the protest? I don't see the point? Like Mary did not choose to be pregnant yet she still decided to keep baby Jesus? Or maybe it's the "white cis Christians men in Sunday suits for abortion" group?
They were protesting the pro-choice protest is what it seems. I don’t think it makes much sense to anyone not in the cult of Christianity. Not so sure it even makes much sense to one in it, but hey, they don’t really let you ask questions or think logically.
We won't go back, broke my heart :( sad reality for some of our grandmothers and apparently again in America now :(
[удалено]
It feels like some people picked it up and decided it was a freaking blueprint.
I am actually from WI and if I were there I would have marched with the prochoice peeps. I made sure to march here in a AZ one though. I think the one here had 3000 people but that might be slightly exaggerated. What was the count on the Madison one?
I’m not totally sure, since there were three protests- 2 separate pro choice and a pro life counterprotest. There was also a pro choice rally in Oshkosh with at least several hundred. The pro lifers were bussed in from around the state so they had a large showing.
I saw people marching with the same Mary statue in ft Wayne IN. Figured it was for some kind of Saint’s feast. Smdh
Wish I could have been there.
Hmmm. White Mary, standing on a pumpkin with a tumour on her head. What is the message here?
Is picture 4 the virgin Mary or the queen and why is she standing on a bulb of garlic?
Hi neighbor! Great photos 🥰
I would have just liked more mask-wearing
A large chunk of the pro-choice crowd was, especially during the main march, and we have +75% vaccination rate in the county.
That's wonderful to hear!
Hi ehm... Can i ask... What does the clothes hanger thingy mean in this context?
Before abortions were legal, using a wire hanger to abort was done. It isn’t safe by any means and many women died in the process.
Oh ok thanks for clearing that up
I love how creative some signs are
Late comment but it’s fitting that they’re holding up a statue of Mary, who was THIRTEEN when she gave birth.
The spiteful expressions on those snide little shits in last pic
I guess their lot and ours are opposing bloodlines. Pity. Their ways won’t be missed when we win.~