Church is the Thing with Friendship
Insomniac poetry. (Yes, I know I have a ways to go. And YES I know all churches aren’t bad and NO I don’t think everyone should stop going to church. This is just my personal experience, it’s my therapy, so
Narrowgate X: Part Ten of My Life Inside the Narrowgate Cult at Messiah College
You build me up, you break me down until I’m falling to pieces. The price I pay to live this way, and the fantasy stays alive. (Dream Theater)
There were so many teachings during this general time period. Some of … Read the rest
Supplemental documentation for USA Today article on Oakwood Baptist Church
Yesterday, our story was published in a USA Today article titled “The tongue is a fire’: Southern Baptist church fractures over secrets and spiritual abuse” by Tricia Nadolny. Some external information was referenced in the story, which I have documented … Read the rest
Descending: Part Nine of My Life Inside the Narrowgate Cult at Messiah College
This is blog post nine in this series, and since I started blogging, I have been asked numerous times “how much more is there?” I can say that there is no firm number, as I’m mainly transcribing and commenting on … Read the rest
When Church Hurts
by Megan Benninger
*
Straw men in pulpits weave yarns of conviction
That blind me and bind me into humble submission.
Are these narratives authored in naivety?
Or willfully conceived and designed to deceive?
Realities, world views that seem so
… Read the rest 
The List
by Megan Benninger
Dear SBC,
Christa’s called for 15 years
Through shattered heart and angry tears
To have a list
With your assist
To save the little lambs.
Though she persists
You still dismiss
Her simple clear request.
So since
The Answer: Part Eight of My Life Inside the Narrowgate Cult at Messiah College
This Narrowgate story is a tragedy in Three Acts, and at this point in the story, the curtain is officially rising for Act Two. And I will warn you – if you thought things up to this point were bizarre, … Read the rest
Egalikus: Egalitarian Haikus
By Megan Benninger
In His own image,
God created them to rule—
Male and female BOTH.
(Genesis 1:27-28)
…
A royal priesthood,
Jesus, only, mediates.
No patriarchy!
(1 Timothy 2:5)
…
Boys are not better.
Slave … Read the rest
Church of the Hacked
My vocation is in the field of Information Security, and much of my education has centered on learning about systems and how they are exploited. What that means in common English is how a device has a flaw, and how … Read the rest
Prosperity: Part Seven of My Life Inside the Narrowgate Cult at Messiah College
Sometimes, when the spirit moves me, I can do many wondrous things. I want to know when the spirit moves you – Did ye get healed? (Van Morrison)
At this time, many people in Narrowgate were in significant debt. As … Read the rest