Noemi experienced love bombing, gaslighting, and manipulation within Hillsong Church.
Hillsong Church lacked clear LGBTQ+-friendly policies and displayed financial extravagance.
Noemi faced backlash from the church, including gaslighting and manipulation, after speaking out about her experiences.
Deep dives
Growing up in a fundamentalist church
Noemi shares her experience of being raised in a fundamentalist Pentecostal Apostolic Church, where strict rules and beliefs shaped her identity. From being limited in clothing choices to dealing with homophobia, Noemi felt the constraints of the church as she realized she was queer and began questioning their teachings.
Encountering Hillsong and experiencing betrayal
Noemi discusses her involvement with Hillsong, a global mega-church known for its progressive and inclusive image. However, Noemi recounts how she encountered manipulation, invalidation, and a lack of acceptance within Hillsong. She shares her disappointment in the lack of clear LGBTQ+-friendly policies and the financial extravagance exhibited by the church.
Speaking out and facing the consequences
After leaving Hillsong, Noemi speaks out about her experiences, questioning the church's policies and sharing her disappointment with the leadership. This leads to backlash from the church, including gaslighting, manipulation, and social media trolling. Despite the negative repercussions, Noemi remains determined to advocate for her truth and raise awareness of the toxic dynamics within religious communities.
Experiencing Toxicity in a Religious Institution
Emmy shares their experience of attending Hillsong church and the negative impact it had on their mental health and identity. While seeking a welcoming and inclusive community, they found themselves in a system that controlled and invalidated individuals, even as it claimed to be accepting. Emmy recounts being met with discrimination when questioning their sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as witnessing an oppressive and manipulative environment within the church. Despite the initial hope and excitement, they were ultimately disillusioned and left feeling unsafe and unsupported.
Finding Authenticity and Healing Outside of Organized Religion
After leaving the church, Emmy embarked on a journey of self-discovery and deconstruction. They explored their own spirituality and began to question traditional religious structures. Emmy describes their exploration of their indigenous identity and the importance of decolonizing faith. They now identify as agnostic and find divinity in nature and in people. Emmy's experience with Hillsong led them to prioritize their mental health and well-being, ultimately finding peace and happiness outside of organized religion.
Former Hillsong member Noemi Uribe opens up about love bombing, gaslighting, manipulating and harmful practices Noemi says they experienced while involved with the disgraced megachurch.
I want to hear from you, too. Have a toxic topic you want me to explore? Email me at askdrramani@redtabletalk.com. I just might answer your questions on air.
Guest Bio:
Noemi Uribe (she/they) is a queer Latinx advocate living in Boston, MA. Growing up in a Latinx Pentecostal church shaped the way they saw homosexuality and Christian theology. After leaving their families church and attending a Hillsong church in Boston, they thought they had found a safe space to finally question their sexuality and faith. But what she experienced was the complete opposite leading to a mental health crisis. After leaving and surviving religious trauma, Noemi is now speaking out in order to warn others of the dangers of ill-equipped spiritual leaders and church ambiguity on LGBTQ+ policies.
This podcast should not be used as a substitute for medical or mental health advice. Individuals are advised to seek independent medical advice, counseling, and/or therapy from a healthcare professional with respect to any medical condition, mental health issue, or health inquiry, including matters discussed on this podcast.
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