One such book is called “Speak.” They also watch the movie. This is a book about a very dysfunctional family. Schoolteachers are losers, adults are losers and the cheerleading squad scores more than the football team. They have sex on Saturday night and then are goddesses at church on Sunday morning. The cheer squad also gets their group-rate abortions at prom time. As the main character in the book is alone with a boy who is touching her female parts, she makes the statement that this is what high school is supposed to feel like. The boy then rapes her on the next page. Actually, the book and movie both contain two rape scenes.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Speaking as a Christian myself, a part of me does understand why some things bother you, why you’re not happy with things you view as going against your beliefs.\u00a0 I have a simple argument on that<\/em>-and it’s this-you can’t force<\/em> people to follow your personal code, or the moral system of the Christian church-if it’s forced…it means nothing.\u00a0 Not to them, and not to Christ.\u00a0 People must follow Him out of a love for Him-not because it’s been forced on them.<\/p>\n\nJohn 14:15\u00a0(Today’s New International Version)<\/h2>\n
“If you love me, keep my commands.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
You can make all the laws, rules, regulations you want.\u00a0 If people are following the rules only because they have to-it means nothing<\/strong>. Not to them<\/em>, and not to Christ.<\/p>\nSpeaking as both a Christian and a parent,\u00a0 there is a part of me that understands why you’d rather your kids not read about the unpleasant facts of life.\u00a0 Personally, I’d rather shield my kids from these unpleasant facts for all of their lives.\u00a0 Actually, I’d like to shield all<\/em> children from these unpleasant facts.<\/p>\nThe truth is… we cannot.<\/p>\n
Is this a book I’d be happy with my 6th grader reader? No.\u00a0 But if there’s a 6th grader, a an 8th grader, an 10th grader who has been raped and she stumbles across this book… it may save her life.\u00a0 Rape victims<\/em> are victims<\/em>, victims of a horrific, brutal crime and they need to know they aren’t not alone.<\/p>\nBooks like this can save lives. Can help heal. Now if by chance you read this, and I’m thinking you probably won’t, but I know the automatic response, even in my<\/em> head…Christ<\/em> can heal.\u00a0 I know this-as I’ve said, I’m a Christian and He has healed my wounds, thought thankfully, I’ve never been a victim of such an attack.\u00a0 However, if a teenaged rape victim is lost, alone and decides to end it before she find Christ…well…if she ends it before she can Him…and the suicide rate among teens is terrifying, isn’t it?<\/p>\nNobody wants to talk about the ugliness of life.\u00a0 It’s just how it goes.<\/p>\n
While I haven’t read Speak<\/em>, I suspect that’s what this book is about… the title even suggests it. The main character needs to find her voice.\u00a0 Is she part of a dysfunctional family?\u00a0 I don’t know… but there are many of those.\u00a0 I was one of them.\u00a0 Are we to hide away?\u00a0 Are we unworthy of Christ’s love?\u00a0 Kids in the book have sex but have you read<\/em> it?\u00a0 Is the author saying she’s great with the cheerleaders having ‘more scores than the football team’?<\/p>\nAnd on a side note, pal, I hate to tell you, but it’s that<\/em> attitude that makes so many not want to come to church.\u00a0 They already feel judged…we weren’t called to judge-but to witness, called to love.\u00a0 And they are likely many<\/em> who want<\/em> to come, who need<\/em> to come…but they feel unclean, unworthy…and certain attitudes only exacerbate this.<\/p>\nNow again, I haven’t read SPEAK but it sounds to me about a girl’s struggle after something horrid-she busted up an illegal party, a brave<\/em> move on her part, a strong move…perhaps, one might even call it a moral one, and she was raped.\u00a0 Now she’s trying to live with herself…and she’s doing it in silence.<\/p>\nDoing it in silence because too many do not want to talk about the nastiness, the ugliness of RAPE<\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>\nRAPE<\/strong> happens.\u00a0 Staying silent on it, turning a blind eye and ignoring the pain of the victims, sir, strikes me as a sin…because it’s an act totally lacking in compassion, totally lacking in love.<\/p>\n\nJohn 13:34-35\u00a0(New International Version)<\/h2>\n
34<\/sup>“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35<\/sup>By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\nIn your article, you wrote:<\/p>\n
As the main character in the book is alone with a boy who is touching her female parts, she makes the statement that this is what high school is supposed to feel like.<\/span> The boy then rapes her<\/span> on the next page. Actually, the book and movie both contain two rape scenes<\/span>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\nYou want to call SPEAK a sinful, pornagraphic book and you want it off school shelves.\u00a0 The areas I underlined-are these part of why?\u00a0 The first part sounds to me like the thinking of a confused, lonely<\/em> girl who is all but screaming for help, a friend.\u00a0 The rape scenes-are those what you consider porn?<\/p>\nSir-porn is about sexual titillation, and nothing more.\u00a0 RAPE <\/strong>is about power and force and violence.\u00a0 If you’re confusing the two, there’s a problem…on your side.\u00a0 I’m sorry to be ugly, but there you have it.\u00a0 Porn and RAPE<\/strong> can have things in common but just because a girl is raped in a book doesn’t make it porn.<\/p>\nYou want to call SPEAK a sinful, pornagraphic book and you want it off school shelves.<\/p>\n
I disagree with you.\u00a0 It sounds like a book that needs to be there, for the girls who go through that sort of thing … perhaps it will help them find their voice.<\/p>\n