Christianity Is Child Abuse

Christianity Is Child Abuse

Exploring the deep wounds that this theology leaves behind

Those of us who were raised in Christianity, and especially Evangelicalism, may not even realize how much damage this indoctrination has done to us until our adult years.

It really doesn’t set in until you’ve gone through quite a bit of deconstruction to fully realize that the root of most of your mental anguish lies in how your developing mind was “nurtured”.

Usually, Christians try to push the narrative that growing up in Christianity causes a set of morals to be conveyed to a child that they wouldn’t get otherwise, and while this Christianity can convey some valuable lessons these same values can be taught to a child without the inclusion of the vast damaging theology that accompanies it in Christianity.

Christianity in almost all flavors teaches us to be ashamed of ourselves, that we are dirty sinful creatures that don’t deserve to be saved, and should be eternally grateful for the sacrifice that God had to make of himself / his son for us. Something that we didn’t deserve at all. We are told this from the time we are children, children who didn’t ask to be born, yet are born into this world and then immediately told how terribly sinful they are, and that if they don’t accept this wonderful gift the bloody man made for them, then well they’ll just go to eternal damnation and hellfire. A place that was made for them by that very same “loving” god.

I remember being five years old and telling my mom I wanted to go accept Christ, I felt guilt for everything the pastor had just said I must’ve done and kept pushing her to bring me up to the front of the church so all these random men could put their hand on me and pray and have me accept Christ. I also remember doing this again at the age of twelve, because I wasn’t sure if it had “stuck”, and of course felt guilty again about whatever the pastor was saying, and I wanted to make sure I was “saved”. After all, for most of my childhood, I was taught that backsliding was very much something that could occur and that salvation could be lost. It wasn’t until I was older that I realized some denominations believed you couldn’t lose your salvation. So I guess it’d be better to opt for that denomination right? Pascal’s Wager comes to mind.

There is something incredibly evil about telling innocent children they are sinful evil creatures just for being born, and that there is a pseudo-deity, the Devil, and his army of angels following them around trying to cause them harm.

I grew up believing that demon possession was real, that the Devil could control people if they weren’t protected by God, and that stuff like faith healing was real. Our TV at home was almost always on TBN or CBN, with loud televangelists trying to collect enough donations to buy their new airplane so they could bring the “good news” to some poor folk somewhere who would likely much rather have something that could assist their material conditions.