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vashticares.bsky.social
Vashti Initiative
@vashticares.bsky.social
7 followers 16 following 34 posts
501c3 non-profit providing virtual support and services to victims of spiritual and religious abuse. Visit vashtiinitiative.org to learn more!
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vashticares.bsky.social
"It’s taken twelve years to chip away at 20 years of brainwashing in the cult. I know many have moved to a different faith, became agnostic, or atheist. This process we are a part of is not an easy road." - Jonathan Grisham

#spiritualabuse #religioustrauma #IFB #cults #deconstruction #exvangelical
Surviving Religious Abuse Led Me to Advocacy
Photo: Image by StockSnap from Pixabay By Jonathan Grisham I woke up this morning in a panic. I had another dream reminiscent of the cult I left somany years ago. It’s been so long, why does this s…
vashtiinitiative.org
November 21, 2025 at 7:15 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"I’m still dealing with the aftermath of the Club Q shooting. That’s the first gay bar I ever went to. I can’t just ignore that pain. I can’t turn away from how my queerness is a big part of who I am." @eleanorskelton.bsky.social

#ClubQshooting #LGBTQ #spiritualabuse #deconstruction #exvangelical
Growing up fundamentalist and queer
By Eleanor Skelton When part of your identity is considered to be a sin, it’s easy to ignore how deeply it shapes who you are.  I’m bisexual and non-binary.  This means that I experience …
vashtiinitiative.org
November 20, 2025 at 7:54 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"During daily chapel preaching, the whole student body is told that God doesn’t approve of quitters."

"They see my rare disease life and the disabilities I manage day to day and consider me 'overcoming' the flesh by attending their Bible college." - Rebekah Palmer

#spiritualabuse #chronicillness
Ableism in the Church: Part Two
Photo: Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay By Rebekah Palmer Content note: mention of child sexual abuse I’m left in my bottom bunk in my dorm room in tears and panicked breathing, again. Cu…
vashtiinitiative.org
November 15, 2025 at 3:31 AM
vashticares.bsky.social
"I feel that it is one of the most human experiences, to feel that something like a disease, or health struggle is not fair. You know why, because it is not fair. Especially if you have been through a hell of a lot already."

#religioustrauma #chronicillness #TrigeminalNeuralgia #IFB #cults
It’s Not Fair: Living with Chronic Illness
Photo: Image by StockSnap from Pixabay Editorial Note: The following is reprinted with permission from Laura Launderville’s blog. It was originally published on June 25, 2023. By Laura La…
vashtiinitiative.org
November 13, 2025 at 3:45 AM
vashticares.bsky.social
"The theology of an abusive God will no doubt lead to an abusive man. For what kind of a God would purposefully make a person evil, then condemn them for being what they were created to be?"

#spiritualabuse #Calvinism #abusivetheology #religioustrauma #IFB #cults #deconstruction #exvangelical
Too Many Tulips
Photo: Image by Pexels from Pixabay Editorial Note: The following is reprinted with permission from Ida’s blog. It was originally published on June 30, 2023. By Ida Growing up, I wa…
vashtiinitiative.org
November 8, 2025 at 3:58 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"The father of the teenage male who sexually abused me is the youth pastor until my church and school hires someone else. They keep coming to sing to me in my hospital room."

vashtiinitiative.org/2023/06/12/t...

#spiritualabuse #disability #chronicillness #deconstruction #cystinosis #lymphoma
This Is Me: Disability and Spiritual Abuse
Image by Lily from Pixabay By Rebekah Palmer This essay was first accepted to be included in a story collection supporting National Organization of Rare Disorders, Inc. (NORD), a project titled Kal…
vashtiinitiative.org
November 7, 2025 at 11:32 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"When I left the ministry after 20 years, it felt like I was on fire. But eventually, different people convinced me to stop and slow down and heal. The flames of doubt, confusion, and other things began to subside." - Karl Forehand

#spiritualabuse #religioustrauma #healingjourney #deconstruction
Stop, Drop, and Heal
Photo: Image by misterfarmer from Pixabay Editorial Note: The following is reprinted with permission from Karl Forehand’s blog. It was originally published on January 22, 2024. By Ka…
vashtiinitiative.org
November 6, 2025 at 3:45 AM
vashticares.bsky.social
"The reality is that I was a depressed child. I was an anxious child. I was a traumatized child." - Lydia Joy Launderville

vashtiinitiative.org/2023/05/05/h...

#spiritualabuse #IndependentFundamentalBaptist #religioustrauma #cults #IFB #mentalhealth #support #VashtiCares #mentalhealthmatters
How Religious Abuse Harmed My Mental Health and How I Healed
Photo: Image by Pexels from Pixabay By Lydia Joy Kaplan “I have mental illness” is a phrase that was very, very hard for me to say out loud to another living soul. Even acknowledging and accepting …
vashtiinitiative.org
November 4, 2025 at 1:41 AM
vashticares.bsky.social
"When you say one person belongs to another, you immediately put in a power imbalance. This power imbalance in the wrong hands can and usually does become abusive to some degree." - Amber Schultz

#ChurchToo #purityculture #spiritualabuse #religioustrauma #IFB #cults #deconstruction #exvangelical
Sorry Paul, My Body Belongs to No One
Photo: Image by Vlad Aivazovsky from Pixabay Content note: marital r*pe, coercion, assault By Amber Schultz “Ladies! Remember, when you get married — your body is now your husband’s to do wit…
vashtiinitiative.org
November 1, 2025 at 2:58 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"Freed
From the creed
I believed
I’m relieved!
Once devout
Now kicked out
Full of doubt
I’m calling out
The ploys
Of your good old boys
I’m making noise
With my big fat voice"

#ChurchToo #poetry #spiritualabuse #IndependentFundamentalBaptist #IFB #religioustrauma #cults #cultsurvivor #VashtiCares
Poem: Holy Hell
By Megan Benninger FreedFrom the creedI believed I’m relieved!Once devoutNow kicked outFull of doubtI’m calling outThe ploysOf your good old boysI’m making noiseWith my big fat voiceRejoiceWhe…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 30, 2025 at 7:38 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"I believe human eyes can be opened to the truth and cold hearts can change and warm. I believe my brother deserves better from his family."

vashtiinitiative.org/2022/07/04/d...

#spiritualabuse #IndependentFundamentalBaptist #religioustrauma #cults #IFB #cultsurvivor
Deconstructing from fundamentalism finally allowed me to authentically love my brother who is gay: Part 4
Photo: Image by Melissa from Pixabay Content note: child sexual abuse, domestic violence, homophobia, conversion therapy attempts, forcing someone to not be gay, religious and spiritual abuse By Wh…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 30, 2025 at 2:45 AM
vashticares.bsky.social
"In my mind, I was automatically never going to be a godly man’s choice because I lived with a rare disease and chronic illnesses. A wife + mother were treated as the only available roles for female adherence to the will of God."

#religioustrauma #patriarchy #chronicillness #complementarianism #IFB
Being female in the IFB: wife and mother
Photo: Image by eloigomez from Pixabay By Rebekah Palmer I remember when I was a little kid playing with my sibling and our friends, either our perspective of family life or using Barbies and dolls…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 28, 2025 at 12:52 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"I told her that I found that the God we grew up with was a hateful, awful one that I could no longer follow. But I had found one that was much more loving. I found him while walking away from an angry church house." - Lydia

#ChurchToo #spiritualabuse #IFB #deconstruction #religioustrauma #cults
I found true peace walking away from the church
By Lydia Joy Kaplan What is peace? If you asked me as a fundamentalist, I would have answered “a peace of that passeth all understanding,” which because it was far beyond understanding, I never tru…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 27, 2025 at 1:45 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"Purity culture taught me many things. It taught me that women were objects—that I could identify the worth of a woman by the length of their skirt or the cut of their blouse. It didn't teach me that women were human beings who deserved to be respected."

#religioustrauma #IFB #cults #deconstruction
What Purity Culture Didn’t Teach Me
Photo: Image by Heiko Stein from Pixabay By Eric Skwarczynski I know what you’re thinking… “Oh great, another guy offering his unsolicited takes on purity culture. Just what the world n…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 26, 2025 at 4:48 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"I was willing to lose everyone and everything to live an authentic life and be where I truly belonged. Ten days after the release of the video, I was expelled from BJU in January of 2022." - Andrew Pledger

vashtiinitiative.org/2023/06/26/f...

#religioustrauma #LGBTQ #BobJonesUniversity #IFB
From Trauma to Triumph: Coming out and being expelled from Bob Jones University
Photo: Image by Michaela from Pixabay By Andrew Pledger Have you ever felt like you don’t belong in your own family? Like you are different from everyone else and no one understands you? That…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 25, 2025 at 2:58 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"In leaving fundamentalism, I left behind a cult-like system of beliefs that caged me."

vashtiinitiative.org/2023/07/13/w...

#spiritualabuse #IFB #IFCA #religioustrauma #healingjourney #independentfundamentalbaptist #cults #deconstruction #Christianfundamentalism #fundamentalism
Why do you say you left fundamentalism?
A Bob Jones University van in the parking lot of Grace Bible Church in Colorado Springs in spring 2013 | Photo: Eleanor Skelton Editorial Note: The following is reprinted with permission from Elean…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 25, 2025 at 2:31 AM
vashticares.bsky.social
"The Independent Fundamental Baptist (IFB) movement, with its deep roots and complex history, often stirs up debates on intolerance, hatred, and abusive practices."

vashtiinitiative.org/2023/06/20/t...

#spiritualabuse #religioustrauma #LGBTQ🌈 #independentfundamentalbaptist #cults #deconstruction
The IFB Movement and LGBTQIA Rights: A Clash with Christian Love
Photo: Image by Marybeth from Pixabay By Jonathan Grisham The Independent Fundamental Baptist (IFB) movement, with its deep roots and complex history, often stirs up debates on intolerance, hatred,…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 24, 2025 at 2:38 AM
vashticares.bsky.social
"You do not need to stay at a church that's harmed you. God does not use guilt, shame, manipulation, or control to keep you in any situation, much less a harmful one."

#ChurchToo #spiritualabuse #religioustrauma #VashtiCares #VashtiInitiative #deconstruction #healingjourney
You Can Move On
Photo: Image by Couleur from Pixabay. By Melissa Neeb In response to those who tell you that you should stay at your church even when church people hurt you because “You are there for God, no…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 23, 2025 at 3:55 AM
vashticares.bsky.social
"When I left the cult, I faced the unknown on my own. At least I had the choice to decide what I wanted to make out of that unknown. It was my unknown. The cult couldn’t have it." - Lydia Launderville

#spiritualabuse #recoveryispossible #religioustrauma #healingjourney #IFB #cults #deconstruction
They Told Me I Would Never Be Happy. They Lied.
Photo: Image by phfilipposarci from Pixabay Editorial Note: The following is reprinted with permission from Laura Launderville’s blog. It was originally published on July 31, 2023. …
vashtiinitiative.org
October 23, 2025 at 1:10 AM
vashticares.bsky.social
"I found myself deeply pulled between the need to condemn the gays for their sins as I was commanded, and to the need to not be the “bad guy” in anyone’s story. I suspect I am not the only one who felt this pull, closeted gay or not."

#spiritualabuse #religioustrauma #cults #exvangelical #LGBTQ
How churches use DARVO to condemn LGBTQ people to hell without explicitly saying it
Photo: Image by Christel from Pixabay Content note: homophobia, religious and spiritual abuse By Elora Dodd  As homophobia falls out of vogue in the wider culture, Christians may find themselv…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 21, 2025 at 9:00 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"Just because my brother is a gay man, he has been outed... physically beaten up, shunned... kept from serving musically in an IFB church, and had people assume many unsavory things about his character and his life."

vashtiinitiative.org/2022/07/03/d...

#spiritualabuse #religioustrauma #IFB #cults
Deconstructing from fundamentalism finally allowed me to authentically love my brother who is gay: Part 3
Photo: Image by WOKANDAPIX from Pixabay Content note: child abuse, homophobia, Christian Nationalism, religious and spiritual abuse By Whiltierna Wolfe Continued from Part 2 Just because my brother…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 21, 2025 at 2:10 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
"My entire life I’ve been told to submit. My earliest memory of singing is me belting out the OBEDIENCE song in Sunday School."

"And nothing taught me how to be different the way fundamentalism did.

vashtiinitiative.org/2023/06/08/w...

#religioustrauma #healingjourney #IFB #LGBTQ #churchtoo
Whispers of Resistance: Nothing taught me to be different the way fundamentalism did
Photo: Image by Hello Cdd20 from Pixabay By Evan Jones My entire life I’ve been told to submit. My earliest memory of singing is me belting out the OBEDIENCE song in Sunday School. As a youth and y…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 19, 2025 at 3:10 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
Content Note: Homophobia in the IFB church

The next person to try to "fix" my baby brother was our IFB grandmother, when she was told about my brother’s “problem.”

vashtiinitiative.org/2022/07/02/d...

#spiritualabuse #religioustrauma #cults #IFB #IFCA #ChristianNationalism #LGBTQIA 🌈
Deconstructing from fundamentalism finally allowed me to authentically love my brother who is gay: Part 2
Photo: Pixabay Content note: child abuse, homophobia, conversion therapy attempts, forcing someone to not be gay, suicidal ideation, religious and spiritual abuse By Whiltierna Wolfe Continued from…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 18, 2025 at 2:58 PM
vashticares.bsky.social
High-control fundamentalist Christian groups tend to elevate the father in a family into absolute power and control, like a king or dictator.

Here's Stephanie Gail Eagleson's story.

vashtiinitiative.org/2022/06/29/i...

#religioustrauma #childabuse #patriarchy #evangelical #fundamentalist
I Survived a Rural Evangelical Daddy Cult
Creative Commons Image by peacemedia_for_future from Pixabay Content note: child sexual assault By Stephanie Gail Eagleson What’s a “daddy cult”? When progressives hear the word “patriarchy,”…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 18, 2025 at 2:31 AM
vashticares.bsky.social
"The IFB cult that I grew up in had insanely strict rules + regulations for what we were allowed to read. Through the classics that I discovered parts of myself that the IFB would hate."

vashtiinitiative.org/2023/06/22/d...

#spiritualabuse #religioustrauma #IFB #cults #deconstruction #bannedbooks
Discovering My Gender and Sexual Identity in a Cult Through Books
Photo: Image by Markus Winkler from Pixabay By Alex Kenderdine The Independent Fundamental Baptist (IFB) cult that I grew up in had insanely strict rules and regulations for what we were allowed to…
vashtiinitiative.org
October 17, 2025 at 2:38 AM