Today we’re chatting with Rebecca! In this episode, we hear from a former Christadelphian who had no intention of leaving the community until the day she walked out the door. Rebecca shares how she was raised in a small ecclesia in a rural area with the expectation that she would get baptized, become a wife and mother, and play piano for the Sunday memorial services. Despite asking a lot of questions during her childhood, she generally conformed to the traditional Christadelphian path for a woman, married a Christadelphian “brother”, and even raised her children to be Christadelphians. But as her children reached adolescence and began to grow into their identities, she was faced with a choice between accepting her children or allowing them to be harmed by the community she loved and served. Unlike most of our guests, Rebecca hadn’t been preparing to leave mentally or emotionally. But motivated by her love for her family, she navigated the unexpected turbulence of leaving the Christadelphian community and shares both the positives and negatives of life outside the group. We also talk about the guilt of recognizing the harms of authoritarian parenting, raising sensitive children in an environment focused on doomsday theology, and about deconstructing Christadelphian views on the LGBTQ community.

Listener discretion advised.

If you’re interested in coming on the podcast or have comments or questions, you can contact Zinnia at lifeafterleavingpodcast@gmail.com

References:

Shippensburg/ Mid-Atlantic Christadelphian Bible School

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone- Mailbox Scene (Youtube)