Monday, April 25, 2011
People have said many things about me in my time, but I don't recall anyone telling me I was possessed by a devil.
I suppose there's a first time for everything; and I set myself the exercise of trying to respond as firmly and as respectfully as i could:
"Alex: This makes me feel sad. Jo, you have a demonic possession. You cry and get emotional, and that can make many people sympathetic to what you say. But you have to make a great effort to get out of the situation you are in. God can really help you in that. There are many examples of His wonderful hand in situations like yours. But it is YOU who have to make the decision. Do not delude yourself. You are not following God's will. Get out of where you are! "
Thank you, Alex. I am sure you sincerely wish me well.
The Gospels describe people with demonic possession as tearing off their clothes, screaming, bawling, harming other people as well as themselves.
This does not describe my behaviour in any circumstances, and so you must be meaning a different kind of “demonic possession”.
I am assuming you are referring to my transsexuality.
You are suggesting that I make a great effort of will and that then, with God’s help, I will be “cured”.
I am afraid you are completely mistaken.
I know this because I followed this course of action for over forty years. It failed to help me.
What helped was learning to resist the kind of fear and shame that you seem to advocate and regard as an expression of “God’s will”.
God, by definition, is beyond the reach of our understanding and imagination and I think we need to be very careful about ascribing our own beliefs to him, or her, however sincerely and fervently we might hold them.
Jesus warned us that many people would preach in his name and told us that a good way to distinguish between them was to judge by results. “By their fruits shall you know them”, he said; and the fruits of those who ascribe their own prejudices to God are generally injustice and hatred.
We each need to think of these things within our own conscience and our own hearts. None of us have any right to tell anyone else how to live.
Meantime, dear Alex, I wish you all happiness.
Jo
I suppose there's a first time for everything; and I set myself the exercise of trying to respond as firmly and as respectfully as i could:
"Alex: This makes me feel sad. Jo, you have a demonic possession. You cry and get emotional, and that can make many people sympathetic to what you say. But you have to make a great effort to get out of the situation you are in. God can really help you in that. There are many examples of His wonderful hand in situations like yours. But it is YOU who have to make the decision. Do not delude yourself. You are not following God's will. Get out of where you are! "
Thank you, Alex. I am sure you sincerely wish me well.
The Gospels describe people with demonic possession as tearing off their clothes, screaming, bawling, harming other people as well as themselves.
This does not describe my behaviour in any circumstances, and so you must be meaning a different kind of “demonic possession”.
I am assuming you are referring to my transsexuality.
You are suggesting that I make a great effort of will and that then, with God’s help, I will be “cured”.
I am afraid you are completely mistaken.
I know this because I followed this course of action for over forty years. It failed to help me.
What helped was learning to resist the kind of fear and shame that you seem to advocate and regard as an expression of “God’s will”.
God, by definition, is beyond the reach of our understanding and imagination and I think we need to be very careful about ascribing our own beliefs to him, or her, however sincerely and fervently we might hold them.
Jesus warned us that many people would preach in his name and told us that a good way to distinguish between them was to judge by results. “By their fruits shall you know them”, he said; and the fruits of those who ascribe their own prejudices to God are generally injustice and hatred.
We each need to think of these things within our own conscience and our own hearts. None of us have any right to tell anyone else how to live.
Meantime, dear Alex, I wish you all happiness.
Jo
Labels: demonic possession
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