I am not Esther - Fleur Beale
The third book of Fleur Beale's that I have read, but the first that she wrote, I am not Esther follows Kirby Greenwood, a young teenager whose life is upended when her mother takes her to live with her 'religious' relations in a Gloriavale type cult. Kirby is renamed 'Esther' by her uncle (as all of them have Biblical names) and struggles to survive in a community where she doesn't feel she belongs.
My overwhelming feeling in reading this book is one of sadness. It is sad that there are people who believe that the Bible would have them live like this. It is sad that such people will end up with warped ideas of who God is and what He is like.
It is also sad that a lot of people reading this book will think that this is what religion is like.
As a person with a very strong faith - in that it has an impact on almost every aspect of my life - I believe there is a huge difference between religion and a relationship with Jesus. It is a hard thing to explain sometimes, but is a relationship based both on love and on a desire to grow. Sometimes God can challenge us to change, but it is never meant to be enforced in the way cults like the one described in this book do, neither is it meant to be so severe, and dead. God can have fun! He invented the platypus! Yet so many cults (and sadly, even some 'mainstream' Christians) strip away any joy from their lives and think that is how God wants them to be.
Fleur Beale tells the story realistically, and we are left in not doubt as to why Kirby would want to escape from such a controlling environment - most definitely she makes the right decision in doing so! I just wish it was a little clearer in the book that not all religious people are like this!
Completed 5 September 2021.
Comments
Post a Comment