Reddit mentions of Heretics, Mystics & Misfits

Delphine, may share an analogy with you?

If you were sick and you didn't know what was wrong with you, you would go to the doctor right? And one of two things would happen: 1) the doctor would figure out what was wrong, or 2) the doctor would not be able to figure out what was wrong. Which situation is better? The first one right? Because then at least you'd have an idea of what was going on and what you might be able to do about it.

I think I can "name your problem" and I want to do so now to help at least bring you a bit of peace (so you know what's going on) and also maybe give you some ideas of what you might need to do. I hope I don't sound pretentious or condescending by saying that, though.

I think what has happened to you, and to all of us, is that we have all become "heretics". We were part of a group that we thought was good, and right, and worthy, and now all of a sudden we don't belong there anymore.

The "orthodox" group claims that they are the ones who decide what is good, and right, and worthy, and we realize that they are corrupt. But because of the mantle of power that they hold, they are sitting in the catbird seat. Because we disagree, they are doing their best to demonize us and disgrace us and banish us.

Being a heretic kind of sucks. When it first happens, your world get turned upside down. For some reason that I don't understand, the universe seems to keep pulling this same trick on me ... making me feel that I've found my special new home, and then I find out that my "family" really isn't who I think they are.

I became a Christian as a teenager, but then realized that many of them don't really care about the teachings of Jesus. I didn't fit, and I didn't understand what was going on until about my 40's ... and then I realized I am a heretic. I have the "wrong beliefs," at least as far as the Churches I'd belonged to were concerned.

I became a UU (Unitarian Universalist) in my 40's. I don't know if you are aware of them, but basically the core idea is that everyone is on their own journey, and that each of the major religions has value. It's practically like you cannot do anything wrong. Garrison Keillor has a joke, "there is nothing sadder than a fallen UU," which is funny because it's basically impossible to be a fallen UU. Guess what? I'm a fallen UU! Long story short (it's actually hard to describe), the minister was involved with a church politics situation that involved the unfair firing of a certain individual (that I didn't even really know), I stood up for them out of principle, which many folks admired at the time but then I kind of was tainted afterward. Oh well, strike two.

I found Daily Kos, and you know the rest. It is simply not the progressive website that we all thought it was, turns out we were all being used to make kos rich and powerful. Which pretty much seems to be the theme of the Democratic Party today. And the Democratic Party is not what we thought it was either, right?

As an experienced heretic, i want to tell you that you will live. It is uncomfortable now, the worst part is the realization that you had been duped for so long and the people you had "loved" were not really the people that you thought they were. It is as if you are banished, and in the old days criminals would rather be executed instead of banished because being banished is scary, and who knows that the "new world" will be and whether or not you will survive.

But because of the actions of MO and the folks who created Kossacks and c99 we have a few islands of safety, and new ones like Liepar's are being created too.

You are doing the right thing, trying to figure out how to survive in this strange new world. You don't owe allegiance to any site, but I want to encourage you to realize that we are friendlies and that keeping in touch is most likely going to be good for your soul. In the end, that is up to you to decide though. Also, many of us are on the same journey as you ... everything feels strange and odd and not quite comfortable. I think those feelings are normal, and that you are not alone with struggling with them.

Anyway, I hope this helps and doesn't seem like TMI. Also, I found a book that I found really interesting and soothing and wonderful to read called Heretics, Mystics & Misfits, turns out you can buy it on Amazon these days: http://www.amazon.com/Heretics-Mystics-Misfits-John-Mabry/dp/0974762318. Basically it's a story of Christians throughout history who found themselves holding "the wrong beliefs" according to the orthodoxy. Most of these people seem like heroes to me, they were the good guys while the orthodoxy was simply the guys who happened to hold power. I think it is a great book, one of my favorites now.

Anyhoo ... I hope this sounds useful or helpful, but if it doesn't feel free to ignore. I wish you the best, and also want to say that I very much enjoyed many of your diaries and posts over at TOP. Good luck.