A: I prefer the King James Version of the Bible, as I believe it is the preserved Word of God for English speaking people. Please understand that I am not KJVO, a Ruckmanite, nor do I believe people who speak a language other than English are somehow missing out on God's preserved Word. I believe that the Textus Receptus (or The Received Text) was the preserved text and that modern-day translations contain some differences that not only alter the flow of text, but cut out core doctrine altogether.
Q: "Since you are anti-feminism, do you hate women?"
A: Good question. No, I don't hate women. To hate women would call into dispute my Heavenly Father's creation, especially the creation of myself. I feel that feminism has cheapened womanhood and now that women are no longer under any sort of protection or male headship our women are plagued with abortion, STDs and STIs (some of which can lead to cancer), unwed motherhood, poverty, lack of education, sexual harassment in the workplace, rape, sexual assault, the molestation of their children, domestic violence, substance abuse and depression.
Does this mean I feel these issues never hurt women fifty, a hundred, even five-hundred years ago? Of course not. Rape, wife abuse, pedophilia, poverty - all have existed since Old Testament times because of the fall of man into sin. Because sin entered the world it was inevitable these things would occur in society; however, when we remove the protection of a man and encourage women to fend for themselves, we expose them to a great many dangers that once upon a time a much smaller number of women faced.
Q: "Why do you rail against the emergent church?"
A: Because I believe it is apostasy and leading people straight to hell. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 says that there will come a day in which people will not endure sound doctrine. In pursuit of their selfish lusts, to have their "itching ears tickled" they will surround themselves with false teachers and believe fables. I'm paraphrasing, of course. That day is here and it's been here for years, only it was subtle. Satan is always subtle. If he was blatant in his attempts to confound minds people would see it for what it is - godless perversion of the truth.
When we completely ignore the Scriptures, or we try and twist Bible verses or the image of God to suit our agenda, rather than it being the other way around, there is a problem. That is what emergent churches do. They forgo preaching sound doctrine in favor of tickling the ears of the seeker. They use terms like "cultural relevance" to describe their aim. The Bible is relevant to every culture, every creed, every ethnicity, every time period in history. We cannot bend the Word or claim it's irrelevant.
Q: "Do you have a favorite pastor/evangelist?"
A: As a matter of fact, I do. I really enjoy listening to Brother Marty Tate, pastor of the Peaceful Valley Baptist Church here in Georgia. He is an IFB preacher and you can find his sermons available for listening and downloading at www.sermonaudio.com.
Q: "Are you dresses only/headcovering?"
A: I am not dresses only. I do wear pants around the house, because I figure when it's just me at home and my son it's okay if I'm wearing my baggy PJ pants to clean. I do dress modestly both at home and in public. If I must wear pants in public I make sure I wear a tunic top that covers my backside, upper thighs and crotch area. I only head cover for church. I do wear my hair long, which the Bible says is a woman's covering, as is her husband. I believe this is a matter of personal conviction and not a salvation issue.
Q: "Were you raised to be a fundamentalist Christian?"
A: Surprisingly enough, no. I was raised in a home where we were taught that God was real and so long as we didn't kill anybody we would go to heaven when we die. I did attend a Southern Baptist church in my teens and left after my divorce at the age of nineteen. After that I dabbled in various areas of the Occult, including LaVeyan Satanism. Over the years I also studied Wicca, practical magic, green witchcraft, atheistic paganism, and i-ching. I remember one day I was going through my wealth of books on various occult subjects and my father asked me, "does any of this bring you peace?" I said, "well, not yet, but I'm just looking for the right path". He said, "that's funny, because Christianity offers the most peace and there's only one Book". I rolled my eyes and kept going through my library of pagan writings.
It wasn't until my precious mother-in-law died suddenly in October of 2009 that I began to question everything I had felt about Christianity. Her funeral service was held in her home church. The tiny, foot washin' Baptist church house her father preached at when she was a child. I hadn't set foot in a church building, not even for a wedding, in about seven years. As the old Baptist hymns were sung, as I wept through "When the Roll is Called Up Yonder" I realized in that church building I was no longer able to hide from God. I had run away from Him for years and it ended there. I felt a stab of shame when the pastor presiding over the service mentioned that Joyce was able to go in peace knowing her children and their spouses were all saved and would join her in eternity.
I began privately reading Bible verses online and my conversion was gradual. My husband had always reveled in the "fundie jokes" and "hahahaha hail Satan!" remarks our entire relationship, despite being raised in a fundamentalist Christian home. For years I embraced radical feminism. And I don't mean rights to vote, pro-choice in cases of rape/incest/life of mother, equal pay for equal work feminism. No. I mean queer liberation, gender neutrality, reclaiming vile four-letter euphemisms for a woman's genitals, "Vagina Monologues" performance art loving, mandatory abortions for the impoverished to control population, being offended if a commercial depicting a woman baking a cake or scrubbing a toilet came on, not shaving my legs or underarms, etc. radical feminism. Andrea Dworkin feminism. Radical socialist feminism. "Why should you care if a woman wants to have a partial-birth abortion even if it isn't for a medical reason?" feminism. I wear Army fatigues and wife beater tank tops and Doc Marten combat boots feminism. It's a miracle my husband wanted to get anywhere near me, let alone marry me.
I was also very liberal. I believed in free health care, amnesty for illegals, Muslim tolerance, reparations for the blacks, death penalty abolition, anti-war, Code Pink, ACLU, Freedom From Religion Foundation, labor unions, the whole works. I wasn't raised with these views, but I embraced them as part and parcel of my newfound feminist ideology. These views had shaped my early adult years and I was afraid to part with them. Slowly, but surely, God began with softening my heart. He began a work in me that can only be described as breathtakingly miraculous. He changed and shaped my views on things. Not because some televangelist said I should. Not because I read a Christian self-help book that said I should. Not because a preacher, deacon, family member or someone on the internet said I should, but because God knew my heart was wicked and in dire need of regeneration.
So here I am today. While my husband's Facebook page still says "Agnostic" under religion, I know God is working on his heart as well. Just this morning he told me that he prays for me every day. And while he may never be as "fundie" as I am, I'd be thrilled with just having the assurance that when that roll is called up yonder, my entire family will be there.
