empath

5:21 pm “If your brain causes you to sin…” He had made a deal with God, and he had done everything he could to uphold his end of it. The Sinner and Saint were strangely quiet once more. Elisha didn’t know what that meant. Was it somehow his fault that he was alive, or had God stepped in like he had when Abraham meant to sacrifice Isaac? Was he cured of his depravity or sentenced to life as a tare before an eternity in hell? The teen ran his fingers through Small Fry’s fur gen

Copy ordered…. Unfortunately, the book backlog is significant. lol

Thanks for sharing as well @Modified Cub! ❤️ My dad wasn’t a shouter, but there was no doubt in my mind that homosexuality was sinful and a choice - one I most definitely could not make, and didn’t for three decades until the dissonance had sucked all love, joy, self-worth, and hope from my life. Even when the message is “reasonable” it does incalculable damage.

Suicide, homelessness, and mental health are all major issues for LGBTQIA+ youth largely because of people with extreme dogmatic (no offense Small Fry) views like Hosea's and Julian’s. Right now, many people proliferating those views have found themselves in incredibly powerful positions across the globe. I find that terrifying and unacceptable. Like Marcus, I am learning how to explain why articulately and unapologetically, despite the guilt, shame, and anger I’ve been limited by for so long.

What’s a throwaway line? In all seriousness, this one was tough. Thanks all, for getting through it with me. ❤️

4:51 pm “He’s from Chicago, dad, and he's my fiancé. You WILL eat with him, or you won’t be eating with me!” Marcus felt Joshua tense up before attempting to pull away, but he refused to let him fall back into the internalized homophobia he was only now beginning to overcome. “Marriage is a divine and holy institution between one man and one woman. You cannot marry another man! Pretending to do so in an affront and an abomination!” The man’s pasty white face was red with indignant

Love the quote! And yes, the ability to do harm “in faith,” and in the name of the divine is… well, it’s something else.

Cicero!

2:13 pm “Mr. Ortiz.” Marcus took several deep breaths as he stood. He had been waiting for his turn before Professor Radcliffe and his assembled panel of fellow professors for over an hour as they worked their way alphabetically through the class roster. He nodded to his remaining peers as he moved towards the classroom door and what, assuming he passed, would be the final test of his long college career. “How are you doing, son?” The familiarity and fondness ran deeper than in the

This story has been challenging and provoking for me personally, as I assumed it would be for others, regardless of background and worldview. It is first a story, but it is also an exploration of the culture I grew up on the fringes of through the lens of one looking back, eyes open, from the outside. I’ve tried to be fair and avoid melodrama. I’ve tried to remain neutral as the narrator. I find it strange, feeling like I should defend Hosea’s zealotry and hypocrisy as sadly believable, because they are so unbelievable. There is so much I want to say, but I’ve tried to say most of it in the next few chapters through the words, thoughts, and actions of the assembled cast. I love the comments, critiques, and reactions. Please, keep reading and keep them coming! ❤️

You, wise sir, are a true prophet.

Yes @Summerabbacat and @Mattyboy, Joshua has made his own way and wealth, although University and some seed money came from his grandfather, Peter Motts, through a trust. There is much still to tell about Peter Motts and John Renkin, but as much as Joshua would like to believe he is “self-made,” he isn’t. Both for better and for worse.

It’s the good Doctor! Sending me through another wormhole of obsession. hehehe… I haven’t read or studied Jefferson much - I thought he was okay in Hamilton. But you have planted a seed which is already sprouting.

10:41 am The energy around him seemed completely different than it had every school day prior. It was generated by the same students, faculty, and staff doing the same things they always did, but Elisha felt as though he was seeing and feeling the frenetic and chaotic dance of high school for the first time. It was at once more vibrant and more alien. He found himself viewing the world around him with neutral eyes rather than categorizing everything by which of his mental constructs

Indeed! There are Eastern Orthodox churches here as well, and no real thing as a singular American Christianity. Denominations and beliefs (both theologically and practically) differ widely and almost all would, at least officially, find varying degrees of fault with the faith Elisha has built on the actions and beliefs of his family and tribe. Yet, you don’t have to look further than the front page headlines any given day to see his ideas about god and morality aren’t unique.