What Inspired Me To Write 'The Stolen Light Of WoMen'
Q: “What inspired you to write your book?”
A: 'The Stolen Light Of WoMen' came from a lifetime of being immersed in religion and seeing the fallout for women, gays, lesbians, and transgender individuals. I came from a deeply religious background that was steeped in old dogma and beliefs: 'A woman's highest calling was to get married and have children. Gay people were an abomination in the eyes of the Lord. God made man the head of the household and his wife. God consecrated sex to only be between a man and a woman in marriage.' and on and on.
Many, many times in my adult life my instinct for compassion was in direct contradiction to the Bible. I believed in women's rights and equality. I never felt God would condemn a gay person for loving another human being. I did not believe ONLY Christians went to heaven. Yet I was reminded again and again that this went against the 'inerrant Word of God'. For someone who was a full Believer, this presented a very real crisis of faith! I didn't dare question. To question these things felt like questioning God and I loved God too much to ever think of it...
Until I had a near death experience.
When I did, my experience had nothing to do with Christianity and it spurred this lifelong journey to understand the Bible and religion.
The book details all of this, but it holds all of the decades of information I had to learn in order to undo the indoctrination of my faith.
I learned why the Bible treats women as second rate, and I discovered how that mindset has been continued even to this day in society and a workforce that still pays women less than men for the same job!
I found out just why the Bible is used to condemn gays, and in researching discovered that every verse used is either mistranslated, misinterpreted, and even purposely turned into propaganda in a way it was never meant to!
Ultimately I had to take the blinders off. It was painful. I understand both sides. I know where the heartfelt Believer comes from, but I also know now how damaging all these dogmas and beliefs are to our modern society, especially to women, gays, transgenders, and even the men who dare to step out of the norm. That is why I wrote this book. I wanted to speak to those who are religious and those who are not be they agnostic or atheist. Religious people need to know these things so that they can make the decision once and for all about what they believe. If they insist on staying in their religion, understand where it came from, know what the Bible REALLY says, and ask yourself if you are following the heart of your faith or is it all the dictates of imperfect men with their own agendas? And if you do not agree with these aspects of your religion, you have a responsibility to speak out against it.
Non-religious people, whether gay or straight, should read the book because it reveals the hardcore religious mindset... but more than that, religion is coming to a crossroads. People who fight for reason and equality are coming up against religious backlash more and more. This book arms them with information to properly stand against the Biblical mindset. Already I am hearing from gay youth who have used the book to start a conversation with religious parents with great success.
Every time I hear that the book is changing someone's views, or helping them to rid themselves of feelings of religious guilt, my heart soars.
As an academic, I read my fair share of boring, dry text books about the Bible. As the Kirkus Review for this book notes, the information itself is not new because academics have known it for a long time, but what I strove for and succeeded in doing was making it interesting and accessible for everybody. At every turn I tried to make this an easy read. I tried to instill not just dry facts, but spiritual insight into how the information matters for every individual in their lives right here, right now.
As several reviewers on Amazon have noted, the book is fast paced and held their interest to the point of sacrificing sleep to read on to the end. I am grateful that the reviews are showing that I accomplished what I set out to do.
I do not envision a world without religion...
What I envision is a world where religion does not hold the power to control the minds and souls of others. This can only happen when religion’s history and the truth of who shaped rules, beliefs, and ’sacred’ texts over thousands of years is made clear. The meaning of religion is to reconnect humanity to the divine, but the actual history of religion reveals the prejudices and will of imperfect men over great spans of history. Do we continue as human beings to let that dictate our minds, hearts, and souls in our modern world, or are we ready to look to our own Souls in order to find spiritual fulfillment and true peace? I envision a world where compassion, respect, equality, and love exist for all human beings regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, and especially religious belief. Everybody assumes religious fanaticism is something that only exists right now in the Middle East, but the truth is that it is growing everywhere and the only way to fight it is with knowledge, education, and compassion.
Am I religious now? The short answer is no, and the long answer is 'read the book'.
I personally no longer hold to religion, but I am deeply spiritual.
I have a deeper connection with my Soul than I ever had before, and my relationship with what religion calls 'God' did not die, but underwent a revolution. Religion says it has the light, but as a woman I never realized that I had lost mine because of it. It was a great spiritual journey to find it again. Like far too many I lived in happy ignorance while so many suffered around me. All I can hope is that the book will help many, many individuals also find their Light.
- C.C. Campbell
A: 'The Stolen Light Of WoMen' came from a lifetime of being immersed in religion and seeing the fallout for women, gays, lesbians, and transgender individuals. I came from a deeply religious background that was steeped in old dogma and beliefs: 'A woman's highest calling was to get married and have children. Gay people were an abomination in the eyes of the Lord. God made man the head of the household and his wife. God consecrated sex to only be between a man and a woman in marriage.' and on and on.
Many, many times in my adult life my instinct for compassion was in direct contradiction to the Bible. I believed in women's rights and equality. I never felt God would condemn a gay person for loving another human being. I did not believe ONLY Christians went to heaven. Yet I was reminded again and again that this went against the 'inerrant Word of God'. For someone who was a full Believer, this presented a very real crisis of faith! I didn't dare question. To question these things felt like questioning God and I loved God too much to ever think of it...
Until I had a near death experience.
When I did, my experience had nothing to do with Christianity and it spurred this lifelong journey to understand the Bible and religion.
The book details all of this, but it holds all of the decades of information I had to learn in order to undo the indoctrination of my faith.
I learned why the Bible treats women as second rate, and I discovered how that mindset has been continued even to this day in society and a workforce that still pays women less than men for the same job!
I found out just why the Bible is used to condemn gays, and in researching discovered that every verse used is either mistranslated, misinterpreted, and even purposely turned into propaganda in a way it was never meant to!
Ultimately I had to take the blinders off. It was painful. I understand both sides. I know where the heartfelt Believer comes from, but I also know now how damaging all these dogmas and beliefs are to our modern society, especially to women, gays, transgenders, and even the men who dare to step out of the norm. That is why I wrote this book. I wanted to speak to those who are religious and those who are not be they agnostic or atheist. Religious people need to know these things so that they can make the decision once and for all about what they believe. If they insist on staying in their religion, understand where it came from, know what the Bible REALLY says, and ask yourself if you are following the heart of your faith or is it all the dictates of imperfect men with their own agendas? And if you do not agree with these aspects of your religion, you have a responsibility to speak out against it.
Non-religious people, whether gay or straight, should read the book because it reveals the hardcore religious mindset... but more than that, religion is coming to a crossroads. People who fight for reason and equality are coming up against religious backlash more and more. This book arms them with information to properly stand against the Biblical mindset. Already I am hearing from gay youth who have used the book to start a conversation with religious parents with great success.
Every time I hear that the book is changing someone's views, or helping them to rid themselves of feelings of religious guilt, my heart soars.
As an academic, I read my fair share of boring, dry text books about the Bible. As the Kirkus Review for this book notes, the information itself is not new because academics have known it for a long time, but what I strove for and succeeded in doing was making it interesting and accessible for everybody. At every turn I tried to make this an easy read. I tried to instill not just dry facts, but spiritual insight into how the information matters for every individual in their lives right here, right now.
As several reviewers on Amazon have noted, the book is fast paced and held their interest to the point of sacrificing sleep to read on to the end. I am grateful that the reviews are showing that I accomplished what I set out to do.
I do not envision a world without religion...
What I envision is a world where religion does not hold the power to control the minds and souls of others. This can only happen when religion’s history and the truth of who shaped rules, beliefs, and ’sacred’ texts over thousands of years is made clear. The meaning of religion is to reconnect humanity to the divine, but the actual history of religion reveals the prejudices and will of imperfect men over great spans of history. Do we continue as human beings to let that dictate our minds, hearts, and souls in our modern world, or are we ready to look to our own Souls in order to find spiritual fulfillment and true peace? I envision a world where compassion, respect, equality, and love exist for all human beings regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, and especially religious belief. Everybody assumes religious fanaticism is something that only exists right now in the Middle East, but the truth is that it is growing everywhere and the only way to fight it is with knowledge, education, and compassion.
Am I religious now? The short answer is no, and the long answer is 'read the book'.
I personally no longer hold to religion, but I am deeply spiritual.
I have a deeper connection with my Soul than I ever had before, and my relationship with what religion calls 'God' did not die, but underwent a revolution. Religion says it has the light, but as a woman I never realized that I had lost mine because of it. It was a great spiritual journey to find it again. Like far too many I lived in happy ignorance while so many suffered around me. All I can hope is that the book will help many, many individuals also find their Light.
- C.C. Campbell
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