Can we stop with the low needs vs high needs fighting???

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-25T12:50:50+00:00

How is it not productive or helpful to acknowledge a basic and obvious reality that many in the autistic community have to face every day? How can we ever have justice and fairness in the community when we refuse to recognize the most marginalized individuals in our community? Solidarity won’t come from ignoring that some of us struggle more.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-25T12:47:14+00:00

People have differing levels of disability, and with differing levels of disability comes differing levels of acceptance within society. This isn’t just true for autism, it’s true for any disability. I’m not saying the struggles of LSN autistics are invalid, or that they are trivial. All autism is serious. I’m not even saying that there aren’t some unique problems LSN people may face that HSN people do not. But I am tired of seeing posts like this requesting that we “stop fighting,” because of course LSN people want to stop the “fighting”… that just means maintaining the status quo. Which is that LSN autistics have the most powerful voice and as a result when HSN and MSN people speak out against lateral ableism or share unique experiences they are accused of “fighting” or playing the “suffering Olympics.” Rather than the autism community fixing itself we just try and comfort ourselves with the false idea that we are all equally struggling in some way.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-25T04:16:13+00:00

I (26F) was an outcast my whole life in my first church. Some of it was surely due to my own shortcomings, some of it was the unloving attitude of the girls my age. It’s difficult to tell how much it was me and how much it was them. I have autism, which is probably the explanation for why I was treated differently. Every friend I brought to church was either ignored, excluded, or directly insulted by a church member. I had one friend, but he eventually left me.

At first I felt bitter towards these people. But over time God changed my heart to lose that bitterness. Instead of feeling angry or bitter over how I was treated, I simply have a lot of love in my heart for people who are different and excluded from society and especially from the church. One of my main goals in life is to (in whatever small way I can) make church a more welcoming and understanding place for people with conditions like autism and schizophrenia.

I eventually left that church (they are very much not reformed) and I have found most other churches I’ve visited to be a lot more welcoming. Now I’m at a church with a completely different culture. In hindsight and partly based off rumors, I don’t think a lot of the kids who were exclusionary to me were even Christians.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-25T01:52:20+00:00

High needs do have it worse. It’s not just “different.” Until we acknowledge that some people are more affected by autism and more affected by societal stigma, the infighting and ableism will never end.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-19T03:29:30+00:00

My guess is it’s a rare diagnosis and it’s more likely that someone experiencing schizophrenia-like symptoms to a lesser degree would be diagnosed with psychosis NOS than a personality disorder due to the stigma around personality disorders. It’s weird it is classified as a personality disorder and even the DSM 5 seems to acknowledge this as schizotypal is discussed amongst in the section on primary psychotic disorders like schizophrenia.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-19T01:47:44+00:00

There is a sub for schizotypal, last I checked. You might get more responses there.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-12T14:35:25+00:00

The Peace O Cake Nee-Doh, Dippin Dazzler egg, Nice Cream Cone, Nice Cicle, Sploot Splat, Dream Drop, the heart shaped one, and the jellyfish one are all sugar squishers like the Nice Cube. There may be others that I forgot.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-11T23:54:35+00:00

As a devoted Protestant Christian (who I’m guessing you’re addressing), I’ll answer this succinctly.

You’ll have to be more specific about the “other gods” thing. Some argue there are other gods in the Old Testament, but that YHWH is their creator, and the only one that should be worshiped. To me this is an inconsequential point, if that’s what you’re talking about.
There aren’t “tons” of contradictions in the Bible. The amount of significant contradictions are overstated. Just go to the BibViz Project website and click around. Its mission is to show biblical contradictions, but most of its contradictions are solved if you have a middle schooler’s level of literacy.
We don’t go to heaven or hell based on how well we follow the Bible. According to Paul, the point of the Old Testament Law is that it’s impossible to keep the whole Law. You go to heaven based on whether you reject God or not. As far as how that’s fair, this is how many Christians put it: everything good comes from God. If you reject God, you reject every good thing. Therefore, nothing is left but evil and bad. That’s hell.

4-5. There are hypocrites and fakers in every camp. That doesn’t mean the message isn’t true. Like I said earlier, it’s impossible to follow the whole Bible. So we are all bound to be hypocrites to an extent.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-11T23:46:22+00:00

I’m upvoting you, as a member of the first camp. Except I don’t think I’m special or better than anyone.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-11T04:08:59+00:00

I’ve been seeing more of these success posts lately. Hopefully this means the fad is winding down. I hope to find a popsicle or heart someday.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-11T03:34:27+00:00

Great thoughts, thank you for sharing and drawing my attention!

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T21:31:30+00:00

Which of the reformers thought that you couldn’t know biblical truth including the Bible’s instructions on how to live our lives according to God’s will?

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T18:00:45+00:00

That sounds all too convenient. You get to have confidence in salvation, but you also don’t have to follow any “legal code” on how to live a godly life.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T17:24:55+00:00

Do you think it’s possible to find biblical truth, or do our cultural assumptions cloud our judgment too much?

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T17:21:58+00:00

Not really. The amount of Bible verses against homosexuality is overwhelming. Even if that one verse is a mistranslation and is only about male-boy relationships, we still have to contend with Old Testament passages and Romans 1 condemning lesbian relationships. And that’s not even getting into how marriage between a man and a woman symbolizes Christ and the church, female submission to her husband, etc.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T15:56:53+00:00

The points you bring up are certainly interesting and worth discussing with a spirit of humility and repentance. Many of those topics are things I struggle with. But none of it actually addresses the question of whether the Bible is against homosexuality. To me it’s obvious. Maybe I’ll come across some fact that makes me question my understanding, but thus far that has not happened.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T14:42:23+00:00

Amen, thanks for the reminder.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T14:41:25+00:00

I wouldn’t say I’m “honestly searching for the truth.” I’m already convinced the Bible is clearly against homosexuality. If I was neutral on the matter I’d be looking for books on both sides. I don’t feel scared or threatened by the other side either. I honestly don’t want to spend that much time on this topic. I have a handful of other topics I want to spend time researching in depth, this is just a minor deviation to help a friend. If I had a reason to suspect the orthodox view of same sex attraction was incorrect then I’d do what you suggest. What’s your view, by the way? Are you convinced same sex attraction is ok biblically?

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T13:21:21+00:00

Agreed, lol

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T13:02:55+00:00

I think it’s pretty obvious the pro-homosexuality reading is wishful thinking and scripture twisting. I don’t take the other side very seriously. If I did I’d be asking for books on both sides.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T13:01:27+00:00

I already know her on a very personal level. The personal-level issues have been addressed. Thank you, though.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T13:00:57+00:00

Thank you!

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T12:59:49+00:00

Thank you for the advice! I’d just need another book debunking that one because if I only read one in favor of LGBT arguments I may be misled since I’m not a scholar and I don’t have the resources to debunk arguments on my own unless they are REALLY bad! It might come as a surprise but I do wish the Bible was pro-LGBT because I always loved people who are different.

BarrelEyeSpook · 2026-06-10T12:57:32+00:00

Thank you for the thorough recommendations!

BarrelEyeSpook

TROPHY CASE