Undamned: My Escape From the Old Testament

by L.E. Kinzie

L. E. Kinzie was always a believer, but she was damned, a spiritual zombie. Her life
was a quest to discover why God hated her and what she did wrong, so she could fix it and find peace and joy. Then, she began asking questions and came to a shocking conclusion: her beliefs about God and herself were a debilitating addiction that was ruling and wrecking her life.
She went on a spiritual and biblical pilgrimage to detox and recover. Along the way she encountered the phenomenon of McChurch. It looked contemporary, but somehow made her feel like she was living in 100 B.C.
Kinzie realized hers would be a more solitary path. Her story chronicles her amazing transformation from spiritual victim to a joyous,free, unashamed daughter of God, returned from exile.
UNDAMNED tells how she woke up, wised up, and freed herself.

Genres: Religion

196 pages, Paperback

First published January 27, 2014

About the author

L E Kinzie is a poet, singer, author, youtube spoken word performer and a sarcastic but very sincere theologian. She dares to ask the questions of religion in this book that we all wonder, but might not want to ask out loud, and even proposes some novel answers. She actually asks them out loud in rhyme in her video. She writes of how separating herself from her fast- food religion, and a self- designed spiritual detox program were imperative in discovery of a loving Creator and herself as a child and channel of that Creator.She shares her harrowing but triumphant journey to recovery, along with some very spicy poetry in her first book, Undamned, My Escape from the Old Testament.

Reviews

[Allesandra Bell · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is about religous addiction. This woman reads three Bible verses out of the entire Bible, and traps herself into their conflicting meaning.
This book was a difficult read because I wanted to scream at this lady and call her an idiot. Luckily halfway through the book she starts reversing course.

[Babs · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me forever to get through this book. I don't know if it was the style of the writer, the story that was being told or what but it never really held my interest. I kept putting it down then picking it up again since I hate to leave a book unread.

[Sharan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I won this book from a First Reads giveaway. I thought it would be right up my alley, as I love to read about religion. I was wrong. It bored the snot out of me. It was honestly a struggle just to finish the thing.

[Judie · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an adult, L. E. Kinzie realized that obeying what she thought her religion required of her made her unsatisfied and disheartened. She believed she was always obligated to give while not expecting appreciation or acceptance. She focused on what she wasn’t doing correctly according to her interpretation of the Bible and believed she deserved punishment because she wasn’t perfect. She stayed in an emotionally abuse relationship for a decade, beginning while she was sixteen, because she thought that loving anyone else, even as a friend, was tantamount to adultery even though she wasn’t married. She felt she was addicted to her religion but “the way I was using it in my life, it was a destructive and debilitating crutch.”
UNDAMNED My Escape from the Old Testament is her story of how she was eventually able to reconcile her personal religious needs with what was available in the religious community. First she had to learn what was important to her. She had to ask herself “why” something mattered to her before trying to find out if it was important. She realized she couldn’t trust God because she was afraid of Him. She had to learn to accept and love herself as an individual and step away from the “one-size-fits-all” church, focused on marketing to attract the biggest, most financially supportive congregation. Her book tells the steps she took and tools she used to reach her place.
She questions whether people are worshiping their religion instead of worshiping God. She includes several poems reflecting her thoughts at various times. The opening one, “The Wizard of Oz” describes why and how she set out upon her journey.
I think the subtitle, My Escape from the Old Testament, shows a lack of total understanding of the Old Testament. She writes about the restrictions and rules that bound her but doesn’t mention the positive portions such as those in Leviticus and Deuteronomy telling how to treat others (e.g., not using false weights, releasing slaves, consideration for other life forms, teaching children). She says the women in the Bible were “models of submission” ignoring the many times they acted independently and sometimes against their husband’s wishes. She refers to a 2000-year-old book, but it is the Christian Bible that is that age. As a positive example, she cites Jesus saying to “Love the Lord...with all your heart and ...Love thy neighbor as yourself.” The first quote can be found in Deuteronomy 6:5 and the second in Leviticus 19:18 and 19:34 She mentions the Pharisees twice. They are not part of the Hebrew Bible.
She advocates people put themselves in God’s care to learn what is right for them. That could also be an excuse for people committing acting against society’s standards. For example, her first boyfriend could have claimed that he was doing what God wanted him to do even though it was so harmful to her.
While L. E. Kinzie has some excellent ideas and states that this is what worked for her, she repeats those ideas much too often. Her writing is generally coherent and the book is well-edited except for misspelling “exile” on page 30 and not explaining the transition between her first boyfriend and the man she later married.
I received this book as a Goodreads Early Reader.

[Helen Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a beautifully written journey from bondage to freedom. She comes from a religion place that many of us came from. One that didn't question, didn't challenge authority, and tried desperately to follow all the rules. My heart ached as I read and felt the chains of bondage that limited her total concept of God or a Higher Power. There are many types of addictions, and she truly had a religion addiction that brought her so much pain. As she begins to tell her life story, I was totally sucked into the story. She bares it all with a style of writing that made me feel as if we were talking over a cup of coffee. Her spiritual makeover was inspiring as you watch the changes in her life unfold. I loved the way she sprinkled the story with poetry from her soul. This book is an excellent read whether one is religious, agnostic or atheist. It's a story of a seeker finding her way to a happy and fulfilling existence. I read in a one afternoon setting. I simply couldn't put it down.
Helen Johnson

[Carrie G-s · Rating 5 out of 5]

While the title might deter some from reading this book due to perceptions that this might be a 'Bible bashing' book, I feel that this is a must read for those involved in church leadership. This is certainly NOT a 'Bible bashing' book - far from it. I found following the author's journey to be very thought provoking. I deeply believe that those who are involved in ministry and/or are part of leading a church community would benefit from reading about this journey. I believe that those of us in churches don't always get it right when it comes to supporting those who need it most, and the only way we learn as faith communities is to discuss, discuss, discuss. This book is at a times a meaty read - lots to chew on. I found myself having to put it aside at times to sort out in my head some of the ideas presented. While the style at the beginning of the book made me pause because it feels so unique and quirky, this is a book whose ideas are certainly worth the time to read.

[Kathy]

Good message but...

The message the author is sharing is good. However, the book is riddled with typos , run ons, and other errors. The fist several chapters restate the same sentence a hundred different ways. It has ythe feeling of an essay someone tried to flesh out into a whole book. I gave up about halfway through because shed already made her point repeatedly. Also, I was put off by the vagueness of her story...I was expecting a personal memoir of growth but she wrote it without hardly any of the actual events. "I went to church and something happened that changed how I felt" but what was the something?

Needs extensive rewriting to be of use to anyone.

[Debra Torgerson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Discovering you are undamaged.

This is the story of the author s journey to discover who she is. Of escaping religious trappings that helped her to .make wrong choices. She discovered her God and that he loves her for her. She shares a portion of her life and how she found her true self, in hopes that her journey will help us on ours. Worth a look.

[Janet · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book and thought it a good book for anyone who is having trouble with religion and guilt.
Parts of this book have fit myself at times in my life and possibly could help others to see that the church sometimes lacks the ability to help its parishioners. Good read

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book in a Goodreads First Reads giveaway. It just arrived a couple of days ago. I'm looking forward to reading it and sharing it with friends and family.

[Marilyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just the message I needed

I have looked very hard for a book that expresses my beliefs---and now I have found it!! Enjoyed the book very much.