Post
by nibbler » Thu Sep 16, 2021 6:17 am
As an orthodox believer I internalized quite a lot of the messaging and wound up with a severe case of scrupulosity.
With that background and looking at things retrospectively, I wouldn't call the members that felt like they were going to the CK arrogant or narcissistic, I'd say that they were somehow able to dodge the many bullets that were aimed at assassinating people's self esteem. You'd about have to have the ability to dodge those bullets to come out of the other end a well adjusted individual.
I'm sure arrogant narcissists had a much easier time dodging those bullets but I don't think that everyone that was able to dodge those bullets was an arrogant narcissist.
From what I've seen over the years, the people that didn't internalize what was said at church (for whatever reason) were the happiest. You've got to believe, "that doesn't apply to me" or, "I don't care about that" to make it.
I've seen too many blubbering testimonies at church where people openly confess that they don't feel worthy enough to be the primary president or second counselor in the EQ presidency, or whatever. I'm sure they're all good people, they're just caught in the Mormon monkey trap where they won't let go of the idea that religion has planted in their minds; that they're evil by nature, lower than the dust, not getting the blessing they want because they're not worthy enough, etc., etc.
I don't know if this is intentional, but reflecting back to where a lot of the scrupulosity set in for me (mission), the apostles played good cop/bad cop. Unfortunately it felt like there was a 14 bad cop to one good cop ratio. I had a fondness for one particular apostle because he was the only one that made me feel like going to the CK was possible at all.
All that said...
Tearing other people's self esteem down is something arrogant narcissists do. The church, maybe religions in general, are in a feedback loop of sorts. Arrogant narcissists rise to the top because their self esteem can't be torn down, then arrogant narcissists do what arrogant narcissists do, they perpetuate the cycle.
Maybe I've now graduated and become an arrogant narcissist, because I'm done with the messages that tell me I'm not good enough, that I need more faith, I need more PH power, the toxic perfectionism. I'm good enough. If God's grace can't fill in the gaps enough for me to qualify for a "celestial kingdom" I really don't care. It wouldn't be a place I'd want to be anyway.
We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.
– Anais Nin