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Page: Profile: Wren's Nest News Local
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Article: 19899
[Religious]
Date Posted:
8/4/2008
12:44:13 pm EDT
Wvox Stats
Views: 7,500
RSS: 13,760
Comments: 21
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Couple Looks To Bring Hope To Those Struggling With Satanism
Author: Suzanne R. Stone Source: Aiken Standard (SC)
Title: COUPLE LOOKS TO BRING HOPE TO THOSE STRUGGLING WITH SATANISM
eff Harshbarger spent his high school and college years headed in the wrong direction. Now, more than 25 years later, he has written a book and founded a ministry to help others faced with the same decisions.
Harshbarger and his wife Liz co-authored "From Darkness To Light: How to Rescue Someone You Love From the Occult," published in 2005 by Bridge-Logos of Gainesville, Fla. The couple has founded Refuge Ministries and hopes to have Bible study groups formed by this fall.
The book is partly an account of Harshbarger's own commitment to Satanism as an older teen, the collapse of his anti-faith and his journey back to God. It also offers a primer on forms of spiritualism and practical advice on presenting a Christian alternative for young people attracted to those and similar sects.
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Community Thoughts: There are 21 comments posted | Reverse Sort |
| Wow ... Just ... Wow. | Aug 7th. at 11:17:06 am EDT
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Heather Lynn Fairfield (Canton, Massachusetts) - Email Me
"I wanted to tell people my story so people who could relate could make contact with me and Refuge Ministries. We offer help for anyone wanting to come out of the occult."
Well now.
There really are those unfortunate souls trapped in extreme cults out there (and every religion has it's share of nutcase cults) ... but COME ON.
First of all, (barring those involved in extreme cults) anyone who wants to change religions is welcome to do so without needing help to "get out of" the one they are already in. Anyone who wants to leave the occult faiths is welcome to do so at any time. If you have truly found a path that works for you better than ours, GO FORTH WITH OUR BLESSING.
Second, did anyone ever point out to Harshbarger that leaving a cult (if his pitiful group even qualified as one) that HE created couldn't have been all THAT difficult??? I mean really ... who's going to issue threats to him if he wants to leave?? His reflection??
Wow. The sad part is that there are REAL Satanists and Pagans out there who leave their religions and change to a more Christian-centered faith system every day ... but they don't trash their old belief system in the process. I've known a few who still feel they owe a debt of gratitude to their former faith for being (how did one prior poster put it??) a signpost along the way.
Tripe like this just sounds suspiciously like it's more concerned with serving an agenda than with actually serving people in need of spiritual counseling. Shame on Harshbarger for once again trying to imply a crisis where there isn't one.
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| Can Someone Write Or Point Out A Book | Aug 6th. at 7:16:58 am EDT
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Jenna (Cary, North Carolina) - Email Me
On how to rescue a family member from Christianity? I fear that I have lost several members of my own family to that most mindnumbing of belief systems (second only to Islam, in any case) . How to get family members to actually study science and fossil records and carbon dating without their pastor standing over their shoulders telling them exactly what to think, how to feel, etc. I know I'm ranting, but I've given out Dawkins and Hitchens' books to several of my "born again" (sorry, I was born alright the first time) relatives and they looked at me as if I had just asked them for their newborn to sacrifice to Satan (I know that's not what actual Satanists do, by the way, if anyone's going to accuse me of thinking that. That's simply what Christians think that they do) .
Like most of the posters, I grow weary of the nonstop "I used to be a Wiccan/Witch/Pagan/Satanist before I found the Lord. And now I see that "Amazing Grace" truly was written for me! (By the way, I hate the lyrics of that song. Love the music, especially at funeral when played on bagpipes, but the lyrics make Emo look like a hyper high selfesteem genre. "A Wretch like me?" WTF! Sorry, I don't see a piece of filth when I look at myself and neither should you) . Obviously, these kids were confused when they got into the occult. Instead of turning to sex, drugs, and rock n roll, they turned to "Charmed" with the same result. They were unhappy, unstable, and unable to take care of their own lives, so of course they have to turn to the easy answer fundies for hope. Sorry, kiddies, it doesn't work that way. Life is about the journey; not the destination. There are no easy answers, no great rule book, and yes, you will make lots of mistakes and have some skinned knees before it's all done. But that's the beauty. If you're simply going to live for death, why not go to Iran and martyr yourself now if this world holds no value? Sorry to end on a down note. Shalom boys and girls. Grow the freak up.
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| A Plunge Into The Dark... | Aug 6th. at 2:22:42 am EDT
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bigcat (peoria, Illinois) - Email Me
I've read Levay's book, mostly out of curiosity, but strangely, I did learn some positive things that helped me along my way to finally being eclectic.
It enabled me to take responsibility for my own actions, and freed me from the ridiculous Fundy church hype by presenting it's own side of the coin. While Satanism wasn't the path I chose, (not quite my kind of dark) I still owe it a vote of thanks for setting me on my journey as it proved a sign post along my way.
I have always felt that every philosophy or religion has something to teach, but it does sometimes take courage to seek it out.
Sounds like this dabbler missed the lessons altogether, since he's perpetrating the same silly hype that probably scared him back to square one in the first place.
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| Another Steaming Pile...... | Aug 5th. at 11:23:54 pm EDT
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Karl (Detroit Metro, Michigan) - Email Me
Yes, “low-quality horse manure” pretty well sums it up. As we know, it’s nothing new:
LYING FOR biblegod, A CENTURIES-LONG TRADITION ~ ( [Web LINK] )
Now, top it off with incessant guilt/shame/fear/control-mongering and dogmatic drivel. After all of that, is it any wonder that people become neurotic? (E.G. the Deanna Laney tragedy, etc.) Then a bunch of kids get into some trouble, because they have had no Guidance or Training and they must have been into (fundie-defined) “Satanism”.
[QUOTE=cited article]…. Harshbarger and his wife Liz co-authored "From Darkness To Light: How to Rescue Someone You Love From the Occult,"…..[/QUOTE]The word occult means ‘hidden’ and nothing more. The fundies of course will twist the word ‘occult’ around to mean anything that does not conform to their “only true” sectarian dogma, and which is therefore……of the pathetic construct known as bibledevil. Ignorance of the sheeple is essential to the religionist hierocracy in maintaining its position of power, profit and control. Of course, ignorance=stagnation=death.
Growth in Truth/Gnosis are Key in the Realization of one’s own Personal Divinity. Our Pagan Brothers & Sisters have given us this admirable piece of Philosophy, as cited from above:
“Those who Walk in Love and Truth shall Grow in Honor and Strength.”
The ignorant, weak-willed and undisciplined will perish. Only the Strong will survive, and we will maintain only the highest standards of Honor and Ethical conduct.
We have had enough of being labeled “baby-eaters”, “devil-worshippers” and alleged perpetrators of other evils associated with the Xtian bogeyman, bibledevil. Bibledevil is called the “father of lies”, when it is, in actuality, the churchmen who are the liars, as per their own admissions in the records cited at the above link and as exposed in other documented articles.
The Dark Lord/Destroyer Aspect is the Master of Self-Becoming and the Destroyer of death (did you ever notice how quickly an animal carcass is devoured by maggots?) , hence His title: “Lord of the flies”. IMO, “He Whom before the sky shakes” is the Power of the Black Hole, and much more…..
Hail Set!
Xeper!
K
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| Sigh | Aug 5th. at 8:05:20 am EDT
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Errapel (Lowestoft, England) - Email Me
Maybe he's honest, maybe he wondered into something that wasn't for him, then found something that was. Maybe he just wants to help other people in the same situation. I'd very much like that to be the case. But the fact he's mentioning Mike Warnke's lie filled book 'Satan Seller' that was actualy debunked by fellow Christians, I don't think he's all that genuine. Kerr Cuhulain wote a good article on Warnke, if you were wondering what everyone is rambling about:
[Web LINK]
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| Usual Xian " Testimonial" Lies | Aug 5th. at 6:07:58 am EDT
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foreverknightfan (Dardanelle, Arkansas) - Email Me
Hoo boy here we go again with the " I was a fromer__________ until I found the Lord and got saved " Xian self-promotion self-righteous book. They ( The evangelical/ Fundamentalist Christianity subculture that churns out this stuff) have been publishing crap like this for decades. Warnke's lie-filled book " The Satan Seller", Sean Seller's badly written book " Web of Darkness", " The Witch that Switched" and many, many others like this pop up from the Xian publishing world from time to time.
I'm always suspicious of someone who claims to have been a former satanist or " witch" or a former practitioner of something paranormal who is now a devout Christian who CLAIMS to " care" for us poor "unsaved" "deluded by satan" people. More often than not they never actually were what they claim to be and they melodramatize what they claim exists.
They don't seem to realize that people who actually have some knowledge of what the subject in question is about see their claims as bunk and when they go on to " implore" us to get " saved", they fail because they are trying to get us to accept their lies.
When we see them distort or omit information and outright lie about things we KNOW about that they CLAIM is " true" then how can they expect us to believe them when they talk about Jesus's death, resurrection and salvation?
As far as I can tell, I have found only one Xian book that has been mostly accurate and avoided the lies. Some like " Wicca's Charm" avoid the " I was a former" game by "interviewing" supposed practioners, none of whom are well- known or have been nvolved for very long.
The "satanism" angle sells books to their fellow Xians. Susan Atkins tried that in her " Child of Satan, Chlid of God" book.
Its all hype and lies.
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| Teens Are Often Vulnerable, | Aug 5th. at 2:02:10 am EDT
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Katmandu (elba, Alabama) - Email Me
and busy, but did this guy ever even take time to read the Satanic Bible or any of LeVay's stuff? Or did he and his friend just get together and make up a load of crock?
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| Sounds Like He Needs A Therapist | Aug 4th. at 10:46:42 pm EDT
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AnnieBW (Laurel, Maryland) - Email Me
Or the Winchester Brothers. :D
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| My Comment | Aug 4th. at 7:05:42 pm EDT
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NightLad (Toronto, Ontario) - Email Me
Who knows it if will actually be accepted on the news site, so I'll post it here, too:
I'm Confused...
Was Mr. Harshbarger actually involved with the Church of Satan, or did he and his friend create their own belief system, call it Satanism mixed with an interest in the paranormal, and go from there? Many self-proclaimed Christians who experienced a passing interest in paranormal or occult themes as teenagers are overly quick to proclaim themselves ‘saved from Satan’ and write books about it. Do a search on Amazon; you can read their uplifting stories of being ‘saved’ from the devil by the power of the Lord... for just $10.95.
Those of you considering buying this book may like to perform a Google search on Jeff Harshbarger. He is not a simple Christian with a story to tell; he is a man on a mission and has a lot of not-so-mainstream ideas about Christianity and the Church in general. His message is a radical mixture of evangelism and conspiracy theories, set in a parallel universe where real-life demons fight to wrestle the souls of Christians into hell; where demon possession is a common occurrence (and those he does not like are all possessed, mark my words) , and only he can see the truth.
Ya.
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| Well | Aug 4th. at 6:22:20 pm EDT
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Tempest (Oxnard, California) - Email Me
Ain't this just a load of low-quality horse manure? This idiot was never a Satanist, i can tell you that much. Here is an example of someone trying to relight the fires of the Satanic Panic. According to an earlier poster, he has not mentioned all the usual rubbish that those in the 80s were yelping about.
Maybe he has some semblence of intelligence and actually did some research on real Satanism so his story would sound more convincing.
To the person who called us Satanists (yes, I am one) "cruel, uncaring, and cold-hearted" or something to that effect: We are not as you describe us. I love My friends and family very deeply and am fiercely loyal and protective of them. The reason we are viewed the way you described us, is because we are indifferent to other people who do not enrich our lives, they are simply inconsequential. We choose to subject ourselves to those things which we enjoy.
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| There's An Authorative Piece Of Publication | Aug 4th. at 5:31:29 pm EDT
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Fraoch (Shelby, North Carolina) - Email Me
I give you "The Satan Seller!!!" One of the Satanic Panic's finest pieces of swill...
The superfulous use of the term "occult" is ridiculous as it conspiculously problematic because it lumps in whole groups of people and their traditions. However, I imagine that was the intent.
My shrink tells me that true insanity is trying the same thing over and over again in an effort to get a different result. Here we see the same song and dance about the "occult" from thirty years ago with the attempt to "learn" people about the nature of Witchcraft and Spiritualism (not to mention the so-called paranormal) . It ain't working, as the rational people aren't covorting in mass orgies with every drug known to man only to leave the relgion bereft and heartbroken to become Christians after fifteen years. We're still a community of believers, or however you want to see it.
So, going on that premise...
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| What Hope? | Aug 4th. at 4:15:13 pm EDT
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bigcat (peoria, Illinois) - Email Me
Changing religions is always offered as a "way out" to those who seem to be having life issue troubles. The problem is, they may wake up an xtian the next day, but until they get their own problems in line, it only masks the situation for a time, but doesn't solve the root problem that sent them to seek a way out in the first place.
Another disatisfied dabbler venting his spleen on his discarded path because the glamor failed him.
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| How Original | Aug 4th. at 4:01:32 pm EDT
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Lady-hearted Mojo (Irving, Texas) - Email Me
We've all seen this same story a hundred times before on World Nut Daily or some other Fundie-focused publication: Proselytiser comes from a screwed up family life, finds Satanism/Wicca/the occult (take your pick) , gets involved with drugs or sex or violence or criminal behavior (take your pick) , attempts suicide, realizes the error of his or her way, leaves Satanism to become a Born-again religious nutcase out to save the rest of mankind from its blindness. I knew the premise of the article before I even read it. Yawn.
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| ... | Aug 4th. at 3:47:16 pm EDT
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Draken (Bronx, New York) - Email Me
Another fundie crackpot selling swill. Why are these attention whores and various internet trolls given so much attention?
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| Sounds More Like | Aug 4th. at 3:40:08 pm EDT
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Rowan Foxfyre (Indianapolis, Indiana) - Email Me
Creative proselytizing tactics.....
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