Sunday, March 17, 2013

Treat Others as You Would Want to Be Treated


So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.
Matthew 7:12

            I am pretty tired of talking about gender equality (or inequality - a message I received constantly while in the FOC). But it’s an issue because there are women and girls who are living with these attitudes and behaviors.
            Men are commanded to love their wives. How loving is it to hit your wife? How loving to tell her she is less than you? Let’s look at some of the potential results of being put down:
  • Depression
  • Weight gain
  • Children feel insecure
  • The victim develops addictions such as: food, shopping, gambling, alcohol, drugs, sex
  • An unkempt home which reflects the victim’s beliefs and experiences


Anyone my age or older, who came from the same group, can recall at least one instance of a woman being beaten into insanity. To any person who has been told that they are worth less than others, please read these words. Please believe this:
  • You are lovable
  • You are valuable
  • You are worthy

            Treat others as you would want to be treated. Do you think you’re better than women because you were born male? If you do, consider this:

Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew 18:4

12 comments:

  1. This is such an important, supportive and moving post x

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  2. So many times the victims are afraid to come forward because they are so afraid of more torture. We need to support these women and children!

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  3. So many have chimed in on this subject (on the last post) and I think you are spot on here.

    So often I see scriptures used to beat up on people, or contrariwise, the scripture beat up to make a point. Men and women are accorded the same status, the same Spirit, and the same promises in the Kingdom of God. The only differences lie in functions, which are both needed. Both were created in the image of God, and in fact "twain are one." Any man who demeans his spouse, or abuses her, is doing so to his own self(Ephesians 5:29) as well as to another Child of God.

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  4. According to your examples of what the results of being "put down" can result in, I would say beyond a shadow of a doubt that as a group the foc is completely opposite of your examples. To bring up 1 example of an abusive husband is ridiculous. Looking at the entire group it's obvious, using Suzanne's criteria, that the foc are the exact opposite of what she is referring to. I know all of them and their children and they are NOT a group full of depressed fat people with insecure children. As a whole the percentage of people whith have any of the above examples are almost none. I have worked for over 20 years in people's homes and it's a VERY rare occasion that I get to work in a home that are anywhere near as kept up as followers homes. This is just another example of Suzanne trying to pigeon hole an entire group because of one vague memory from her past. BTW Suzanne, everyone that knew DL and SL knew SL was crazy way before anything happened to her in marriage. I'm just guessing that's who you are referring to.

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    1. You are wrong about the example you describe, but that's not surprising since his own dad - the man who was left in charge of the group for so many years - was an unrepentant wife beater who encouraged other men to do the same and counseled abused women that they "deserved" to be beaten.

      To claim that spousal abuse is not commonly accepted there is ridiculous.

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    2. Wow! How's it feel to know you are a total liar?

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  5. So all of the women in the FOC are slender, happy, and confident and not at all affected by a lifetime of being told they're inferior?

    I smell a skunk!

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    1. Nope, obese people both in the FOC and in the world. As far as the clean house, of course their houses would be kept up, most are stay at home moms. As a woman, you are also talked about if your house is messy. Heaven forbid there is a death and the church comes to visit and the house is not cleaned. You will be the topic of conversation for years!

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  6. Do you know the foc members? I do and I know that spousal abuse is not something that was ever or will ever be excepted. I'm sure that in the history of such a huge amount of marraiges their has been cases of abuse but to insinuate that it is in any way excepted is ridiculous. Just more false accusations from ignorant people. Here's a challenge for you Suzanne, why don't you explore the divorce statistics of the foc vs people outside of the foc. I think it would be interesting for someone like you to try to put your jaded spin on that. While you're at it why not throw in premarital sex, s.t.d.'s, and drug abuse. It seems to me that you have done a lot of research on the foc and could shed some light on these issues.

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  7. The divorce rate is low because they believe they will go to hell for sure so people suffer through abuse. I believe spiritual or mental abuse is much worse than physical abuse at the FOC. Physical abuse happens but it is not overly common. Physical abuse would not be accepted by most at the FOC.

    Women are told and raised to believe that they are inferior to men at the FOC. It is not that they have different roles but women are constantly told that they are the "weaker vessel" as 1 Peter 3:7 says. Women are also told to submit to their husbands as Ephesians 5:22-23 says. These verse are elevated above verses that speak to the husbands role.

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    1. When Peter used the term "weaker vessel" he was not disparaging women, or intimating an inferiority. He was stating an obvious physiological difference in how they were created and why men should care for them. It is no different than when the psalmist declared we were made " a little lower than angels"(Ps. 8:5), and these angels God has given the role of protecting us. We, as mankind, were created "a little lower", but in the resurrection we are "as the angels in Heaven" (Mark 12:25) and Paul assures us that we will even be judging over angels at that time. (I Cor. 6:3)

      The lesson is to accept our weaknesses, and our responsibilities, in this world, as in the future one we will be held accountable and all of our weaknesses will disappear. The last shall become first.

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  8. Fantastic post! People do need to remember this, I do try and treat people as I would wish to be treated myself but it isn't always easy!

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