Happy Birthday TWW!

Posted on by March 19, 2015avatar

"Your life is a gift from the Creator. Your gift back to the Creator is what you do with your life."

Billy Mills

http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=61559&picture=burning-candlesBurning Candles

Can you believe it?  It was six years ago today that we launched The Wartburg Watch.  Dee and I discussed the possibility of starting a blog for several years prior.  We wanted to focus on Christian issues.  Beginning in the summer of 2008 we spend a considerable amount of time each week doing internet research on various topics that caught our attention, including:  complementarianism, Neo-Calvinism, Sovereign Grace Ministries, Mars Hill Church/Mark Driscoll, Acts 29, patriarchy, young marriages, quiverfull, and the list goes on…

Then in mid-March 2009 Dee called me and exclaimed, "If we don't start this blog NOW, I believe we'll be swallowed by a BIG FISH."  That nudge has come to be known as the "Wartburg Tingle".  Together, we wrote a short post called Who Hijacked My Church?  After all these years, we still have the same concerns highlighted in that post, and I now believe the 'big fish' Dee was worried about was Neo-Calvinism.  In hindsight, we were in two different churches that unbeknownst to us identified with the Neo-Calvinist crowd.  We are grateful we got out before we could be 'disciplined' or 'excommunicated'.  🙄

We were ecstatic when we received our first comment on a post, and we celebrated when the counter at the bottom of the page reached 1,000.  When TWW started getting more traffic, we switched blogging formats and gradually transferred over our older posts.  Unfortunately, we were unable to transfer all the comments related to those older posts because it would have been far too labor intensive.

Within weeks after launching TWW, we began to detect what would become our focus – abuse in its various forms (physical, sexual, and spiritual).  We developed a strong desire to provide a voice to those who have been silenced and lend support to those who have been marginalized.  As we move forward, this continues to be a prime directive.

As our categories section indicates, we have covered a wide range of issues since the blog's inception.  Some of those topics have come from suggestions made by our readers.  Thank you for your enthusiastic support for all these years!   Without our fantastic readership, this blog would never have gotten beyond its 'obscure' phase. 😉

As we move forward, we want to encourage you, our dear readers, to continue sharing your ideas for post topics — either in the comment section or by e-mail.   We believe that together we are making a difference in Christendom. 🙂

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Perhaps this photo taken at Wartburg Castle (Germany) by our friend Dr. James Duncan (a professor at Anderson University) best depicts how TWW is literally reaching around the globe.  We LOVE it!  What a fantastic birthday gift!

Comments

Happy Birthday TWW! — 51 Comments

  2. Congratulations, Deebs. You are doing important work for the Kingdom of God. Keep standing up for the victims of spiritual abuse.

  4. This blog has helped me discover so many things. Dozens of times, I’ve heard of a subject here for the first time and then learned so much from studying it further. 😀

  5. Wow, that is awesome. Happy Birthday TWW. Thanks for all you do, Dee and Deb. The old Watchdog is closing in on 56 years – in dog years.

  7. Happy birthday!! Its been a privilege to read your posts for most of those six years! God bless, and may that tingle keep on tingling!

  8. Happy Birthday! Thanks for all you’ve done. I first read here over 2 years ago. It was such a relief to see that maybe I wasn’t so crazy after all to think that the church we were in was to put it “kindly” very unhealthy. This blog along with Survivor set us on a path to leave the church we were members of and we are now on a path of healing. May God continue to bless this blog as you continue to reveal truth.

  10. Deebs, Happy Birthday!
    From the point when I followed Eagle over here from iMonk 5 or so years ago, I have read almost every post you’ve posted. I greatly appreciate what you guys do. I know it is hard work, mentally and emotionally. Thank you. You do make a difference. You have helped keep my faith alive. I look forward to meeting you guys someday. 🙂

  11. Happy Birthday TWW and Deebs! Thanks for keeping us informed and educated about what is going on in the Evangelical wilderness. I am grateful.

  12. Congratulations, happy blog-a-versary, and totally rock on!

    And thanks for the immense resource you’ve created, Dee and Deb, for helping us process our experiences and understand issues both alrge and small on the landscape of spiritual abuse.

  13. Congratulations! TWW assured me that we were not wrong and we were not alone as we navigated the days and years after leaving a spiritually abusive church. Thanks for sticking up for the sheep and ripping the fake sheepskins off of the wolves!

  14. TWW is the first place I check in the morning and the last before I retire in the evening. Deb, Dee, and the Guy Behind the Curtain are so appreciated. Thanks for all you do to provide a safe place for a wide variety of commenters and especially for victims of abuse.

    Happy Birthday!

  16. Well done! Thank you for your hard work. I’ve learned so much, have shared your posts with others, and was able to recognize early the signs of what was happening in my church. Such a great blog..life-changing.

  17. Congratulations, Ladies!

    It has been a wild and amazing six years. You guys have covered so many topics!! I have been a regular reader of TWW posts for most of those years. I have enjoyed the perceptions and interaction among the many commenters.

    I continue to recommend your blog to many others who contact me via my website as well as those who I connect with in various other contexts. People have thanked me for putting them in contact with your blog.

    It is great to be part of the amazing TWW family—sight unseen, yet passionate about these crucial issues. Your blog voice matters!! Keep up the good work!!

  18. I remember when you folks first started, your blog has been a blessing to me. Happy blog birthday.

  20. Happiest of birthdays to you! Many happy returns! Now I’m conflicted as for you to keep going means all this rubbish in the christian world is continuing…erm, you get the gist. Big hugs to you ladies.

  21. To mark the occasion, Scotland has been treated to the extraordinary spectacle of a crescent Sun. The point of maximum coverage (95%) has just passed as I write.

  22. Congratulations from ‘down-under’. Hebrews 4:13 says: ‘Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account’. You are working for God to uncover what is hidden. May God richly bless both of you.

  28. Thanks for your presence, wisdom, and committment to what is true. Having been forcibly removed from two major religious systems (1 neocalvinist, 1 parachurch), I love being with the rabble here (rabble meant in the most complimentary way!).

  30. Happy Birthday/Anniversary! I started reading here last year and while I rarely post, I do check in every day to see what’s up. Keep up the good work.

  31. Happy Birthday, TWW! You are my heroes. I so appreciate all your support for abuse survivors of all types. Thank you for all your excellent analysis and moxie in standing up against wrongs in the Churches.

  33. “CELEBRATE YOUR BIRTHDAY!
    THE DAY IS FINALLY HERE!
    EAT A LOT OF BROCCOLI
    AND DRINK A LOT OF BEER!”
    — Seventies-vintage Dr Demento

  34. Thanks for all of your hard work over the years. You have certainly opened my eyes to people and organizations that I have not been familiar with. And, you have helped create a community that cares for each other. I raise my mug of coffee to toast your success and to many more years of swift fingers and thoughtful writing.

  37. “If you want to change the world, pick up your pen and write.”
    ― Martin Luther

    And so you have done. Congratulations and thanks to both of you. I consider myself fortunate to be able to call you friends.

  39. To the Deebs, GTBC, et al, С Днем Рождения and many happy returns. I admire your dedication, persistence, effort and the time that you deploy. I think the good effect you have is inestimable. (there’ll still be ‘agree to disagree’ over Mother Teresa, and that’s ok!)

  40. I’ve been reading for at least five if those years. I’m rarely leave a comment, almost every posting has been relevant, well researched and healing. The discussion is challenging. I no longer worry about having the “right” stance – since healing from spiritual and emotional abuse. Instead, I can rest in some mysteries. I am softer on myself and more graceful to others. Thanks for the healing ride.

  46. Thanks everyone for your wonderful comments! You make our efforts worthwhile, and we are blessed by you presence in this online forum.

  47. So thankful for you two. And it’s not just the blog – – it’s the behind the scenes stuff, like when Dee took a desperate call from a woman being sued for $500,000 by her former pastor. You gave me hope, that I would win, and you were right. Happy birthday!

  49. Happy Belated Birthday Deb and Dee and The Wartburg Watch!

    Thank you for taking your bad church experiences and not just sitting on them, but creating this awesome forum for people to discuss serious topics about church and get some healing. You are helping people all over the world and your ministry is so important.

    This birthday calls for a special treat: I would recommend a Sacred Cow Sundae invented by our own Gram3.

    Sorry I have been away for work and I haven’t been able to post until now.

  51. Awesome! What a wonderful and powerful resource of healing you have been! Much LOVE to you! 🙂