As the Christofascist / American Taliban movement becomes more extreme and more worshipful of their "Golden Calf"-- lying, misogynistic con man Donald "Two Corinthians" Trump -- someone who's very familiar with what happens inside fundamentalist churches lays it out in her book and an interview on AlterNet. Dr. Marlene Winell, author of "Leaving the Fold: A Guide for Former Fundamentalists and Others Leaving their Religion," was interviewed by Valerie Tarico, a former fundamentalist who broke from the church over its harsh fundamentalist teachings. Winell explains what she means by "Religious Trauma Syndrome" and why it's so destructive. An excerpt:
Winell: Religious trauma syndrome (RTS) is a set of symptoms and characteristics that tend to go together and which are related to harmful experiences with religion. They are the result of two things: immersion in a controlling religion and the secondary impact of leaving a religious group. The RTS label provides a name and description that affected people often recognize immediately. Many other people are surprised by the idea of RTS, because in our culture it is generally assumed that religion is benign or good for you. Just like telling kids about Santa Claus and letting them work out their beliefs later, people see no harm in teaching religion to children.
But in reality, religious teachings and practices sometimes cause serious mental health damage. The public is somewhat familiar with sexual and physical abuse in a religious context. As Journalist Janet Heimlich has documented in, Breaking Their Will, Bible-based religious groups that emphasize patriarchal authority in family structure and use harsh parenting methods can be destructive.
But the problem isn’t just physical and sexual abuse. Emotional and mental treatment in authoritarian religious groups also can be damaging because of 1) toxic teachings like eternal damnation or original sin 2) religious practices or mindset, such as punishment, black and white thinking, or sexual guilt, and 3) neglect that prevents a person from having the information or opportunities to develop normally." (our emphasis)
The entire interview is a fascinating look into the harmful, authoritarian mindset of the fundamentalist Bible-bangers. We won't even touch on the evangelical "prosperity gospel" quackery that teaches avarice is good and helps mega-rich evangelical ministers explain why extreme wealth is a just sign of favor by the lawd.
Fundamentalist religion has become so integrated with the right-wing Republican / New Confederate political movement that the two have become indistinguishable. The damage they're doing not just to the body politic, but to countless individuals' minds and bodies is serious and deserves more attention.
(Cartoon: David Hayward)
