#exvangelical — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #exvangelical, aggregated by home.social.
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Promise Backlund (@eve_wasframed) is a former worship leader turned counter-apologist. I first heard of her on Seth Andrews’s podcast. She wrote a book called Gospel of Lies (the title sounds harsher than it actually reads).
There’s one chapter where she discusses the impact that music, architecture, mood lighting, and large gatherings can have in producing feelings of transcendence and euphoria for the human “spirit.” She writes of going to her first secular rock concert and finding it just like church. “My belief that God was as involved with a rock concert as he was with a worship service turned out to be closer to the truth than I realized. It turns out God was equally uninvolved. But my confusion was by evangelical design, as there is little difference between their worship services and a live concert. Music is already manipulative by nature; that’s why we listen to it.”
She doesn’t mean that musical manipulation is necessarily a bad thing–we listen to music to help us feel good; it’s like art or literature, where the creator of the piece is trying to evoke certain thoughts or feelings to the audience or reader. But you need to be aware that it’s human-made. Otherwise, “these emotional moments can convince you that of course there’s a god…”
“Music’s ability to impact our emotions, physical state and behavior has been widely studied and universally recognized.” Look at the minor keys for the “Imperial March” in The Empire Strikes Back or the Emperor’s theme in Return of the Jedi and contrast that with the uplifting major key of the Rebel fanfare. That’s John Williams who did that, not God.
As a worship musician myself for many years, I have experienced the manipulation from both sides. If a pastor wanted to really turn on the tears during a prayer service, he would give me the nod and I’d gradually shape the improvisational droning of my violin into an upwelling theme that sounded like something out of the Braveheart soundtrack. I didn’t see myself as doing manipulation in that moment, though; I thought I was just being “used by God.”
Find her book here: https://medialabbooks.com/products/9781964487557_gospel-of-lies #atheism #exvangelical
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Promise Backlund (@eve_wasframed) is a former worship leader turned counter-apologist. I first heard of her on Seth Andrews’s podcast. She wrote a book called Gospel of Lies (the title sounds harsher than it actually reads).
There’s one chapter where she discusses the impact that music, architecture, mood lighting, and large gatherings can have in producing feelings of transcendence and euphoria for the human “spirit.” She writes of going to her first secular rock concert and finding it just like church. “My belief that God was as involved with a rock concert as he was with a worship service turned out to be closer to the truth than I realized. It turns out God was equally uninvolved. But my confusion was by evangelical design, as there is little difference between their worship services and a live concert. Music is already manipulative by nature; that’s why we listen to it.”
She doesn’t mean that musical manipulation is necessarily a bad thing–we listen to music to help us feel good; it’s like art or literature, where the creator of the piece is trying to evoke certain thoughts or feelings to the audience or reader. But you need to be aware that it’s human-made. Otherwise, “these emotional moments can convince you that of course there’s a god…”
“Music’s ability to impact our emotions, physical state and behavior has been widely studied and universally recognized.” Look at the minor keys for the “Imperial March” in The Empire Strikes Back or the Emperor’s theme in Return of the Jedi and contrast that with the uplifting major key of the Rebel fanfare. That’s John Williams who did that, not God.
As a worship musician myself for many years, I have experienced the manipulation from both sides. If a pastor wanted to really turn on the tears during a prayer service, he would give me the nod and I’d gradually shape the improvisational droning of my violin into an upwelling theme that sounded like something out of the Braveheart soundtrack. I didn’t see myself as doing manipulation in that moment, though; I thought I was just being “used by God.”
Find her book here: https://medialabbooks.com/products/9781964487557_gospel-of-lies #atheism #exvangelical
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Promise Backlund (@eve_wasframed) is a former worship leader turned counter-apologist. I first heard of her on Seth Andrews’s podcast. She wrote a book called Gospel of Lies (the title sounds harsher than it actually reads).
There’s one chapter where she discusses the impact that music, architecture, mood lighting, and large gatherings can have in producing feelings of transcendence and euphoria for the human “spirit.” She writes of going to her first secular rock concert and finding it just like church. “My belief that God was as involved with a rock concert as he was with a worship service turned out to be closer to the truth than I realized. It turns out God was equally uninvolved. But my confusion was by evangelical design, as there is little difference between their worship services and a live concert. Music is already manipulative by nature; that’s why we listen to it.”
She doesn’t mean that musical manipulation is necessarily a bad thing–we listen to music to help us feel good; it’s like art or literature, where the creator of the piece is trying to evoke certain thoughts or feelings to the audience or reader. But you need to be aware that it’s human-made. Otherwise, “these emotional moments can convince you that of course there’s a god…”
“Music’s ability to impact our emotions, physical state and behavior has been widely studied and universally recognized.” Look at the minor keys for the “Imperial March” in The Empire Strikes Back or the Emperor’s theme in Return of the Jedi and contrast that with the uplifting major key of the Rebel fanfare. That’s John Williams who did that, not God.
As a worship musician myself for many years, I have experienced the manipulation from both sides. If a pastor wanted to really turn on the tears during a prayer service, he would give me the nod and I’d gradually shape the improvisational droning of my violin into an upwelling theme that sounded like something out of the Braveheart soundtrack. I didn’t see myself as doing manipulation in that moment, though; I thought I was just being “used by God.”
Find her book here: https://medialabbooks.com/products/9781964487557_gospel-of-lies #atheism #exvangelical
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Promise Backlund (@eve_wasframed) is a former worship leader turned counter-apologist. I first heard of her on Seth Andrews’s podcast. She wrote a book called Gospel of Lies (the title sounds harsher than it actually reads).
There’s one chapter where she discusses the impact that music, architecture, mood lighting, and large gatherings can have in producing feelings of transcendence and euphoria for the human “spirit.” She writes of going to her first secular rock concert and finding it just like church. “My belief that God was as involved with a rock concert as he was with a worship service turned out to be closer to the truth than I realized. It turns out God was equally uninvolved. But my confusion was by evangelical design, as there is little difference between their worship services and a live concert. Music is already manipulative by nature; that’s why we listen to it.”
She doesn’t mean that musical manipulation is necessarily a bad thing–we listen to music to help us feel good; it’s like art or literature, where the creator of the piece is trying to evoke certain thoughts or feelings to the audience or reader. But you need to be aware that it’s human-made. Otherwise, “these emotional moments can convince you that of course there’s a god…”
“Music’s ability to impact our emotions, physical state and behavior has been widely studied and universally recognized.” Look at the minor keys for the “Imperial March” in The Empire Strikes Back or the Emperor’s theme in Return of the Jedi and contrast that with the uplifting major key of the Rebel fanfare. That’s John Williams who did that, not God.
As a worship musician myself for many years, I have experienced the manipulation from both sides. If a pastor wanted to really turn on the tears during a prayer service, he would give me the nod and I’d gradually shape the improvisational droning of my violin into an upwelling theme that sounded like something out of the Braveheart soundtrack. I didn’t see myself as doing manipulation in that moment, though; I thought I was just being “used by God.”
Find her book here: https://medialabbooks.com/products/9781964487557_gospel-of-lies #atheism #exvangelical
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Promise Backlund (@eve_wasframed) is a former worship leader turned counter-apologist. I first heard of her on Seth Andrews’s podcast. She wrote a book called Gospel of Lies (the title sounds harsher than it actually reads).
There’s one chapter where she discusses the impact that music, architecture, mood lighting, and large gatherings can have in producing feelings of transcendence and euphoria for the human “spirit.” She writes of going to her first secular rock concert and finding it just like church. “My belief that God was as involved with a rock concert as he was with a worship service turned out to be closer to the truth than I realized. It turns out God was equally uninvolved. But my confusion was by evangelical design, as there is little difference between their worship services and a live concert. Music is already manipulative by nature; that’s why we listen to it.”
She doesn’t mean that musical manipulation is necessarily a bad thing–we listen to music to help us feel good; it’s like art or literature, where the creator of the piece is trying to evoke certain thoughts or feelings to the audience or reader. But you need to be aware that it’s human-made. Otherwise, “these emotional moments can convince you that of course there’s a god…”
“Music’s ability to impact our emotions, physical state and behavior has been widely studied and universally recognized.” Look at the minor keys for the “Imperial March” in The Empire Strikes Back or the Emperor’s theme in Return of the Jedi and contrast that with the uplifting major key of the Rebel fanfare. That’s John Williams who did that, not God.
As a worship musician myself for many years, I have experienced the manipulation from both sides. If a pastor wanted to really turn on the tears during a prayer service, he would give me the nod and I’d gradually shape the improvisational droning of my violin into an upwelling theme that sounded like something out of the Braveheart soundtrack. I didn’t see myself as doing manipulation in that moment, though; I thought I was just being “used by God.”
Find her book here: https://medialabbooks.com/products/9781964487557_gospel-of-lies #atheism #exvangelical
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Can I interest you in a little exvangelical novelette, featuring opposites attract, a bi man, a woman discovering her inner strength, a second chance at love, found family, nineties vibes, and Canadianisms?
🩷💜💙
Free Indeed: Tim & Darlene (Queering Edmonton #0.5) by Casey Shepherd is up for pre-order.
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Can I interest you in a little exvangelical novelette, featuring opposites attract, a bi man, a woman discovering her inner strength, a second chance at love, found family, nineties vibes, and Canadianisms?
🩷💜💙
Free Indeed: Tim & Darlene (Queering Edmonton #0.5) by Casey Shepherd is up for pre-order.
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Can I interest you in a little exvangelical novelette, featuring opposites attract, a bi man, a woman discovering her inner strength, a second chance at love, found family, nineties vibes, and Canadianisms?
🩷💜💙
Free Indeed: Tim & Darlene (Queering Edmonton #0.5) by Casey Shepherd is up for pre-order.
-
Can I interest you in a little exvangelical novelette, featuring opposites attract, a bi man, a woman discovering her inner strength, a second chance at love, found family, nineties vibes, and Canadianisms?
🩷💜💙
Free Indeed: Tim & Darlene (Queering Edmonton #0.5) by Casey Shepherd is up for pre-order.
-
Can I interest you in a little exvangelical novelette, featuring opposites attract, a bi man, a woman discovering her inner strength, a second chance at love, found family, nineties vibes, and Canadianisms?
🩷💜💙
Free Indeed: Tim & Darlene (Queering Edmonton #0.5) by Casey Shepherd is up for pre-order.
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Happy #BandcampFriday! If you're a fan of #indie #folk and protest music, I hope you'll like my latest album. You can download this single, my nonbinary, queer anthem, for free. My entire back catalog is free/name-your-price as well.
https://arendleejessurun.bandcamp.com/track/i-am-the-way-i-am-2
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Happy #BandcampFriday! If you're a fan of #indie #folk and protest music, I hope you'll like my latest album. You can download this single, my nonbinary, queer anthem, for free. My entire back catalog is free/name-your-price as well.
https://arendleejessurun.bandcamp.com/track/i-am-the-way-i-am-2
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Happy #BandcampFriday! If you're a fan of #indie #folk and protest music, I hope you'll like my latest album. You can download this single, my nonbinary, queer anthem, for free. My entire back catalog is free/name-your-price as well.
https://arendleejessurun.bandcamp.com/track/i-am-the-way-i-am-2
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Happy #BandcampFriday! If you're a fan of #indie #folk and protest music, I hope you'll like my latest album. You can download this single, my nonbinary, queer anthem, for free. My entire back catalog is free/name-your-price as well.
https://arendleejessurun.bandcamp.com/track/i-am-the-way-i-am-2
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Happy #BandcampFriday! If you're a fan of #indie #folk and protest music, I hope you'll like my latest album. You can download this single, my nonbinary, queer anthem, for free. My entire back catalog is free/name-your-price as well.
https://arendleejessurun.bandcamp.com/track/i-am-the-way-i-am-2
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Both because it is absolutely necessary AND there is already a blueprint for it in the Judeo-Christian worldview. I use to hear about the "Year of Jubilee" growing up in #evangelical church.
This #EXvangelical supports #JubileeOrWar2028
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HONEST caller #deconverts after reading only two #Bibleverses! Reality bites hard sometimes. This caller finds out the hard way.
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I grew up in a Southern Pentecostal Evangelical church that believed in "the gifts of the spirit", including "speaking in tongues" (also known as glossolalia).
This experience began a long process of becoming an #EXvangelical that is fervently opposed to #ChristianNationalism
Ask me anything
#AMA #Christofascism #evangelical #pentecostal #Southern #TTJ #TVAC
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#PromiseBacklund:
#NoFear. #NoShame.TheThinkingAtheist
Promise is best known for her "#EveWasFramed" videos, and for co-hosting "Chewed Gum" on #TheLine. She escaped #fundamentalism and today helps others to do the same.
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An excellent, well-researched podcast episode about the cult I was raised in. Awesome that resources I've contributed to or benefited from over the years helped with the research. Bizarre to hear my own words quoted a few times in the podcast. https://www.ltaspod.com/49
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This is a very thought-provoking article for anyone that has any interest in, or experience with an #AI #chatbot OR a #psychic (or for that matter, a traveling #evangelist that goes from #church to church, especially those in the #pentecostal / #charismatic / #evangelical camp, since they often use the same techniques. If you are an #exvangelical or have suffered #ReligiousTrauma you may have encountered these types - they may actually believe they are doing God's work, but whether they know it or not they are using many of the same tricks that most psychics and stage magicians use. Even some #preachers , #pastors and #CultLeaders use these techniques on their congregations, especially in the #Christian #megachurches).
The LLMentalist Effect: how chat-based Large Language Models replicate the mechanisms of a psychic's con
https://softwarecrisis.dev/letters/llmentalist/ -
I grew up evangelical and #Epiphany wasn't part of that tradition.
I'm still slightly confused about what it's about.
Visit of the Magi, the star, the gifts, all of the above?
And the 'epiphany' is that this child, Jesus, is a bit special?
I have seen it called #LittleChristmas but it is also the last day of #ChristmasTide & #TwelfthNight.
I'll be looking at food traditions associated with Epiphany later.
#exvangelical