066 Rebecca Policello: Grew Up in the World Wide Church of God. Tragedy Ends Friendship and She Runs to God. Research at a Catholic College Leads to Agnosticism.

Voices of Deconversion

English - August 27, 2019 05:08 - 1 hour - 111 MB - ★★★★★ - 88 ratings
Religion Religion & Spirituality Christianity atheist deconversion agnostic exchristian freethinker humanist secular skeptic Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed

Previous Episode: 065 Oklahoma Fire Fighter Wiley Gabehart: As a Marine Became an Aggressive Christian. Faith is Tested with Tough Questions. He Looks at Faith & Mental Health Transparently. He's Now an Atheist.

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What an amazing story!

Rebecca grew up in a cult-like Christian church called the World Wide Church of God. Her particular congregation was quite small and at one point only consisted of around 20 people.

They celebrated Jewish holy days, but adopted their own meaning. They kept a version of Kosher as well. They had very peculiar beliefs about becoming gods one day and having to slay sinners when the resurrection occurred.

In such a small church there weren't many children her age. Rebecca became very close to her friend Linda and Linda's family. She even referred to Linda's mom as Aunt Kathy. In a sudden and tragic way, Rebecca loses her friend Linda and Linda's parents.

Tragedy sends Rebecca running toward God. She embraces her faith wholeheartedly. She decides not to curse, minimizes the media she consumes and dives into purity culture. She was as devout as it gets for a teenager.

When she goes to college, the demands of piety become too much. Personal research and a class at her Catholic college begin to change what has always been a fundamental part of Rebecca's life.