Just random observations.

So are you saying that you’re the Kwisatz Haderach to MB’s Bene Gesserit affiliated Lady Jessica? I kid, I kid.

I sat in a vaunted “Mother Barry Group Bible Study Leader Training” once (every missionary I knew literally quivered when they mentioned I was going to this at a staff conference) and I saw many missionaries trying to give hard lessons and strategies for teaching the Bible study. When I got finally fed up and said, “Actually, the Holy Spirit needs to lead it. All of these things might work or not, we need to follow Him, not a set of strategies!” She looked at me and actually laughed happily. She liked that idea.

Joe says she’s a ball of contradictions. I’ve been reading the Dune series recently and I think the author had a deep understanding of how religious movements (let by easily corruptible religious people) are overwhelming in their power to deify a person, and in this way take away their freedom.

If she speaks openly and honestly about specific problems with leaders, there would be civil war in UBF, I have no doubt. She is caught up in protection those she loves, I think.

Hilarity and contradictions always come out of a situation like that. She’s a wonderful person but is caught up in the same tidal wave that possessed dr lee.

I like your point about family, especially. I got the funniest looks when I often spoke in my sunday messages that “God made the family before he made the Church.” It’s true. God’s church started with a family (that is, if we are willing to view Adam and Eve as the Church). Missionaries looked down, seeming impatient or like, “This guy is ridiculous. Why we have to bear with this. We should suffer a lot for him.” But Americans almost always looked up and smiled. They liked the idea that family and church should have a healthy balance.

Ruth and Boaz were not put together through the Church but through love, and God accepted and used it.

Paul also said that if a person’s family is healthy, he can then be a deacon or overseer.

It’s amazing that we studied Genesis so many times and simplified the problems of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph into “faith” or “no faith.” Their family issues were very real and they made very real mistakes.

If we look at the faith perspective, Rebekah wins. But if we look at the family perspective, she’s well-inentioned but fatally manipulative.

God used it. But there were consequences.

When I brought up how David’s family problems ended up being Kingdom problems, I got similar reactions, by the way.

From an outside observer, I find this odd. I would not take parenting advice from someone who does not have children.

Why does SB say that adults in ubf need many rules, but children should have no rules? I agree that teenagers should not be controlled with many rules, but I also am not an advocate for lawlessness.

SB is advocating the opposite of good parenting advice. Young children need many rules, and then less and less as they grow until they become adults with interdependent minds and can think critically.

SB is thinking in terms of UBFism philosophy, which teaches children have less rules, and grow into more and more control. UBFims slowly binds your life with more and more rules until you cannot think independently well.