To the Church that raised me,
 

You have failed me.
You have failed me by teaching me
That my body is a shameful thing
Which I must hide, else some man become too distracted and stumble

You have failed me by silencing me
With your judgement and hate
Instead of reflecting the the love of our Savior

You have failed me by telling me
That lust is a man’s problem
And women exist merely for their pleasure, within your narrow definition of marriage


By telling me that every kiss I give away tarnishes me
So that my future husband won’t have all of me
Or won’t even want me

Why does the Body of Christ assume that
All I have to offer a spouse is a body?

You tell your girls to be leaders but then tell them they are nothing but
Flesh, meat for a hungry man to devour
 

And why does the Church talk about men like they are animals?
As if desire, which by the way is not confined to the male sex, turns them into freight trains  with no self-control.

You have failed me by refusing
To talk about real issues regarding sexuality
Rape, assault, consent, healthy relationships, and how we are each born with different identities
Instead of just telling boys to turn off the porn
And girls to cover up
The skin that God gave them

I am ashamed of my body because of you
I am afraid to have sex with my future partner
Because the Church has me convinced that sex is dirty
Instead of a pleasure that can be used to glorify God


I am even more ashamed
Because you told me
I am an abomination because I am attracted to people

With the same anatomy as me in addition to those with opposite

Have you forgotten that in the Garden we were naked?

That intimacy is holy
That desire and love can be connected and not dirty
That part of growing up is learning to harness desire
To share with who you choose?

Have you forgotten that Jesus
preached a message of acceptance
while he dined with prostitutes?

Have you forgotten that our bodies are made in the image of God?
Worse than all the ways you have failed me
In how you taught me

To view myself
Is that you have failed yourself
And the message of the Gospel
By focusing on condemnation
Rather than on serving the marginalized whom Jesus came to rescue.

From,

Your Prodigal Daughter