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Jesus: "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household." Matthew 10:34-36 Stanton: "See, our families are against us, so we must be on the right track." Inigo Montoya: "I do not think that means what you think it means." One of the grossest perversions of Jesus's words by Stanton is its abuse of Jesus's prediction that a man's enemies would be the members of his own household. If you're in the sect, you've probably heard this argument over the [...]

I realize that the use of the word "cult" is "triggering" to some. But nevertheless, I persist, because confronting reality is better than sticking our collective heads in the sand. I don't want to get off-track on the subject of whether the Stanton Church of Christ is actually a cult or not. For that, you can go here for my thoughts. But for this article, I'd like to flesh out the idea that there is a common thread among those who have come out of—let's say—controlling organizations. I promise that I won't use the word "cult" from here forward, to reduce any further "triggering." I want to approach this from the standpoint of an abusive/controlling relationship. Why, you might ask? Because I've helped mentor dozens [...]

Does Stanton really believe the church must be unified on all teachings in order to remain "The One True Church?" You could be forgiven for coming away from their classes thinking that. I mean, after all, that's their chief criticism of other churches. "The Catholic church changes their teachings to whatever the Pope says." "The Baptists change their teachings at their annual Baptist Convention." "The Mormons change their teachings at the whim of their current 'Prophet.'" "The Jehovah's Witnesses change their teachings at the behest of the Watchtower publication." "The Lutherans change their teachings to whatever the Missouri Synod decides." Given the above, how is it not fair to say that the Stanton Churches of Christ change their teachings according to the results of the [...]

I’m not sure where to start. Should I start at the beginning? A-when I held you for the first time after that 28-hour labor, knowing a love like no other? M-when I brought you home and you refused to eat, trying everything while I was alone, worried that you were losing weight? I had no money, no support, no phone…I’m not sure I’ve ever told you how hard that first week was. I was thinking about all the good times we’ve had. I was a good mom. I made almost every decision after having you around YOU. Date nights? No, my kids are too small and I already leave them because I have to work to pay the bills. Travel alone? I don’t think so. [...]

I'm proud of my wife. I'm proud of my kids (most of the time!). I'm sometimes proud of this site, and of the people who have made it a good place to grow in faith and knowledge. I'm also proud of my country, and its forefathers who designed it to preserve freedom as well as it has (so far). But then there's this handy little verse I memorized as a kid: Proverbs 16:18 - Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Do the above statements make me prideful in the sense that this verse is talking about? Of course not. One of the biggest problems with Stanton's exegeses of scripture is that they refuse to think critically about the meaning of the [...]