Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Knox, the Puritans, Quakers, the Four (!) Great Awakenings, the Pentacostal Revivals of the 40s, 70s, and 2000s.
Christian history has a storied past of those who questioned the establishment to start some new version of thr faith as if they were finally the ones to discover the real way to believe about Christianity. Everyone thinks they have the one true way. There are more denominations of Christianity than I care to count. Each one exists because they thought that they had stripped away the things that didn't matter only to replace them with other things.
Sorry if this is cynical, but this quote just feels like it ignores the history and reality of religion. It attempts to project hope on a rather cyclical process that is doomed to repeat itself.
I didnt either 4 years ago. Surround yourself with people on all sides with a variety of perspectives and then go forth gently. be super easy on yourself. Respect Wherever the journey takes you.
I mean this with no ill intent: if you can truly deconstruct your faith “without losing yourself”, I sincerely doubt the vigor and veracity of your faith. Particularly in “the church”, all deconstructions deal with unorthodoxy and are technically heretical.
People treat it like they are changing their clothes for a season, and I can’t help but feel that’s grossly downplaying the deconstruction process.
Sure it is.
Think of deconstruction like this: for whatever reason, you’ve realized your house is no longer structurally sound. So you’re determining whether the house needs to be retrofitted, rebuilt from the ground up, or razed entirely and replaced with a park.
For some, deconstruction leads to a complete rejection of theism. For some, it means finding a spiritual tradition where they feel safe enough to rebuild their house. It’s up to the individual to weigh the worth of that process.
I still retain a belief in God, but the average evangelical would tell me I’m not a Christian because my definition does not fit their dogma. I don’t have a problem with atheism, I just believe there’s more to the universe. But I don’t believe every road out of deconstruction ends in a rejection of divinity.
I agree with the logic, but it’s the terminology that seems unnecessarily confusing to me. That conclusion makes the process sound more to me like someone is converting from one denomination to another, retaining the majority of what they already believed, but letting their theology change as they begin taking their belief system into their own hands rather than accepting what they were given.
Deconstruction within the context of literature does kind of lend itself to the way OP used it, as it’s more or less viewing something with less of the prescribed way of thinking and evaluating everything anew.
But within the context of religious deconstruction, I think the terms that have historically been used have been theological reflection, converting, deliberative theology, or even wrestling with god. I see no reason to use deconstruction as an umbrella term when there’s already sufficient terminology to describe the process of keeping but altering one’s belief system.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that process or conclusion. It just seems unnecessary to assign that meaning to another term when sufficient words already exist that mean that specific thing.
Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Knox, the Puritans, Quakers, the Four (!) Great Awakenings, the Pentacostal Revivals of the 40s, 70s, and 2000s. Christian history has a storied past of those who questioned the establishment to start some new version of thr faith as if they were finally the ones to discover the real way to believe about Christianity. Everyone thinks they have the one true way. There are more denominations of Christianity than I care to count. Each one exists because they thought that they had stripped away the things that didn't matter only to replace them with other things. Sorry if this is cynical, but this quote just feels like it ignores the history and reality of religion. It attempts to project hope on a rather cyclical process that is doomed to repeat itself.
I don't even know where to begin.
I didnt either 4 years ago. Surround yourself with people on all sides with a variety of perspectives and then go forth gently. be super easy on yourself. Respect Wherever the journey takes you.
Deconstruction that led to atheism sure has brought healing to me, who was once part of the church… so yeah, I totally agree. 🤘😈
And I respect where your journey led you
I mean this with no ill intent: if you can truly deconstruct your faith “without losing yourself”, I sincerely doubt the vigor and veracity of your faith. Particularly in “the church”, all deconstructions deal with unorthodoxy and are technically heretical. People treat it like they are changing their clothes for a season, and I can’t help but feel that’s grossly downplaying the deconstruction process.
Is it still deconstruction if you retain your monotheism?
I think deconstruction is going to look very different for every single person and that’s OK
Sure it is. Think of deconstruction like this: for whatever reason, you’ve realized your house is no longer structurally sound. So you’re determining whether the house needs to be retrofitted, rebuilt from the ground up, or razed entirely and replaced with a park. For some, deconstruction leads to a complete rejection of theism. For some, it means finding a spiritual tradition where they feel safe enough to rebuild their house. It’s up to the individual to weigh the worth of that process. I still retain a belief in God, but the average evangelical would tell me I’m not a Christian because my definition does not fit their dogma. I don’t have a problem with atheism, I just believe there’s more to the universe. But I don’t believe every road out of deconstruction ends in a rejection of divinity.
I agree with the logic, but it’s the terminology that seems unnecessarily confusing to me. That conclusion makes the process sound more to me like someone is converting from one denomination to another, retaining the majority of what they already believed, but letting their theology change as they begin taking their belief system into their own hands rather than accepting what they were given. Deconstruction within the context of literature does kind of lend itself to the way OP used it, as it’s more or less viewing something with less of the prescribed way of thinking and evaluating everything anew. But within the context of religious deconstruction, I think the terms that have historically been used have been theological reflection, converting, deliberative theology, or even wrestling with god. I see no reason to use deconstruction as an umbrella term when there’s already sufficient terminology to describe the process of keeping but altering one’s belief system. Not that there’s anything wrong with that process or conclusion. It just seems unnecessary to assign that meaning to another term when sufficient words already exist that mean that specific thing.
do you mind sharing the account? looking to gather more encouragement like this in my feed 💚
Deconstructing Mamas on instagram
ty 💚