Siobhanne
12-31-2004, 01:02 PM
I am upset about an e-mail I received from a church member that was intended to my husband. When I opened the e-mail, I didn't realize it was intended for him b/c it was not addressed to anyone... either him or me. At first, I thought it was a general letter written to more than one person. When I realized that it was for my husband specifically (his name was mentioned 3/4ths of the way through... I didn't stop reading. I know that was wrong. (which makes this situation even worse). It was sent to an address that only I use.. but is in my husbands name. The woman who sent this probably thought it WAS his address.
The e-mail was about a meeting awhile back. The meeting was held b/c many members have been upset with the way things were going and this meeting was supposed to allow people to voice their concerns and address the issues. Needless to say, the meeting was NOT well publicized. I did not know about it nor did I attend. Evidently my husband did attend and he didn't tell me. The e-mail came from a woman who is the secretary to the minister of pastoral care. In the email, she stated that she did not attend the meeting but heard that my husband had voiced concerns. She made some vague comments about people from outside the church were attacking, along with Satan and not to listen to them because they were trying to destroy God's church. Later in the e-mail, she made reference to prayer requests from one of my daughters and said that it was obvious that "church issues" had been discussed in the home. She went on to emphasize that the leaders were chosen by God and that we should submit to the authority of the leadership. ( I don't know what concerns my husband voiced at the meeting, but I do remember that the people in Jonestown submitted to the authority of their leadership and look what happened to them)
What I am thinking is that my husband was trying to use the critical thinking skills that God gave him.. and this was her attempt to nip it in the bud.
This woman had been my youngest (was 9 yrs old at the time) daughters former SS teacher a year ago. We pulled my child out of the class b/c my daughter was miserable (class out of control) and did not want to go back. We put her in another class at a different time, and she's been just fine since. We gave no explanation to the teacher other than we decided to make a change. This did not go over very well with this woman b/c we got a call about it. According to her, my child was a problem. I know the kid is not perfect.. I live with her but I do find it odd that everytime we inquired.. the answer was always the same... "Oh, she is the sweetest child"..until we pull her out.. and the story inexplicably changes?
I'm not sure what exactly gave this woman the indication that 'church business" had been discussed in our home with our children ( and yes, it had been discussed w/ my older children) My youngest child is 10, and many things go over her head. I don't know if it was something she said in class last year or not. My other children are teenagers (15 and 16) and yes, I've discussed the church problems with them. They are directly affected by the abuse and have asked some very valid questions. Yes, I answered them by pulling out my Bible and showing them what the Bible says... and asked them to consider whether or not that is what our church is teaching.
In our service, they ask people to write down prayer requests on the back of information cards and put them in the offering plates. The idea is that the staff will pray over them. It makes me feel very uncomfortable to think that one of my daughters naively put in a very genuine request about the situation that is troubling her, and have it dealt with like this. I also feel like this woman is trying to put a wedge between me and my husband and children. I feel totally alone in my marriage b/c intimate spiritual concerns I share with my husband are filtered through "chult members" whether I like it or not. I'm the outsider that she is talking about.
Siobhanne.
The e-mail was about a meeting awhile back. The meeting was held b/c many members have been upset with the way things were going and this meeting was supposed to allow people to voice their concerns and address the issues. Needless to say, the meeting was NOT well publicized. I did not know about it nor did I attend. Evidently my husband did attend and he didn't tell me. The e-mail came from a woman who is the secretary to the minister of pastoral care. In the email, she stated that she did not attend the meeting but heard that my husband had voiced concerns. She made some vague comments about people from outside the church were attacking, along with Satan and not to listen to them because they were trying to destroy God's church. Later in the e-mail, she made reference to prayer requests from one of my daughters and said that it was obvious that "church issues" had been discussed in the home. She went on to emphasize that the leaders were chosen by God and that we should submit to the authority of the leadership. ( I don't know what concerns my husband voiced at the meeting, but I do remember that the people in Jonestown submitted to the authority of their leadership and look what happened to them)
What I am thinking is that my husband was trying to use the critical thinking skills that God gave him.. and this was her attempt to nip it in the bud.
This woman had been my youngest (was 9 yrs old at the time) daughters former SS teacher a year ago. We pulled my child out of the class b/c my daughter was miserable (class out of control) and did not want to go back. We put her in another class at a different time, and she's been just fine since. We gave no explanation to the teacher other than we decided to make a change. This did not go over very well with this woman b/c we got a call about it. According to her, my child was a problem. I know the kid is not perfect.. I live with her but I do find it odd that everytime we inquired.. the answer was always the same... "Oh, she is the sweetest child"..until we pull her out.. and the story inexplicably changes?
I'm not sure what exactly gave this woman the indication that 'church business" had been discussed in our home with our children ( and yes, it had been discussed w/ my older children) My youngest child is 10, and many things go over her head. I don't know if it was something she said in class last year or not. My other children are teenagers (15 and 16) and yes, I've discussed the church problems with them. They are directly affected by the abuse and have asked some very valid questions. Yes, I answered them by pulling out my Bible and showing them what the Bible says... and asked them to consider whether or not that is what our church is teaching.
In our service, they ask people to write down prayer requests on the back of information cards and put them in the offering plates. The idea is that the staff will pray over them. It makes me feel very uncomfortable to think that one of my daughters naively put in a very genuine request about the situation that is troubling her, and have it dealt with like this. I also feel like this woman is trying to put a wedge between me and my husband and children. I feel totally alone in my marriage b/c intimate spiritual concerns I share with my husband are filtered through "chult members" whether I like it or not. I'm the outsider that she is talking about.
Siobhanne.