If You Attend Your Sister’s Wedding, Don’t Come Back Home!” My Father Threatened Me. 💔

My parents refused to bless my sister's wedding because her husband was not a member of our church. I grew up in a home ruled by many dos and don’ts, but none came close to the rules of the denomination we attended. Church was not just a place we worshipped. It controlled our choices, our friendships, and our future. From when we were young kids, my father warned us repeatedly that when it was time to get married, we must marry from our church. If not, he would never give his blessing.At first, it sounded like a joke. But the more he repeated it, the clearer it became that this man was dead serious. My sister would often look at me and say, half laughing, half angry,“God forbid bad things that I will marry from our church. But wait, which brother am I supposed to say yes to? Is it the ones that barbed their hair molo and rubbed vaseline on it until it was shining like something I don’t understand? Or the ones wearing old suits that cannot even dress smart, not to talk of wearing jeans and polo with canvas, all because of nonsense indoctrination? God knows it will never be me. I will never marry from that church. The laws I suffered in this house and in that church, none of my children will ever go through it.” Her words always pricked my heart, but deep down, I understood her.Speaking about some of the laws we go through, Do you know she have to loose the wool or attach on her hair before returning back home from school for breaks because we were being careful of what the church and papa will say?We dare not post anyhow pictures on WhatsApp or even Facebook because of a set of church mopol which their work is to scrutinize everything you do and remind you that your lifestyle is hell fire straight. Moreover, we've grown, and unknown to my parents, my sister had been in a relationship for over a year with a man who was not a member of our church. Was I scared for her? Of course I was.Every day, I dreaded the moment the truth would finally come out. When their relationship clocked two years, my sister gathered courage and told our parents that someone wanted to marry her. She also told them that she had been in a relationship with him for two years. Heaven wanted to scatter that night. In our church, relationships did not start like that. The man in question have to first submit your name to the marriage committee, then the marriage committee will tell your parents, who will now eventually tell you. Then if you agreed, marriage counseling would begin. But here was my sister, standing boldly, saying she had already been in a two year relationship. My father exploded. He shouted like a man possessed. “You have been in a relationship for two long years without your parents knowing. How are we sure you have not been fr0licking with this young man?” “No sir, I have never done such a thing,” my sister replied immediately.“Then why are we hearing about it now?” “Because if you had known earlier, you would have destroyed the relationship immediately, just like you are trying to do now.” Something shifted in my father at that moment. He went quiet for a few seconds, then asked calmly,“Wait. This man that wants to marry you, is he a member of our church? Where does he worship?”He paused, then shouted again,“I asked which church does he attend?”That night was terrible. My sister took a deep breath and said, “Christ the Chief Cornerstone Church.” “Eehh. Which Cornerstone?” my father screamed. “God forbid that I will give my consent to this marriage. Of all the good looking brothers in this church, you did not see anyone to marry. It is a brother from another church that will take you to hell fire. God forbid.”To everyone’s shock, my sister knelt down and begged him. She cried bitterly, telling him this was the man she loved. My father did not move an inch. He said he would never give his consent, even without meeting the man. My mother said nothing. As expected, she stood by her husband. My sister wiped her tears and said, “If you will not give your consent, then so be it. My marriage will go on with or without your blessing. I know the Bible says honor your father and mother, and I believe I have done that. But if you and mama choose to remain caged by indoctrination and allow church rules to destroy this family, then so be it. Any church that forbids someone from marrying outside their denomination, even when it is the same body of Christ, is an occult, not a church.”She stood up and walked away. Nobody spoke. I did not sleep that night. My mind kept racing, wondering what she would do next. The following day came with more drama. Her fiancé came to beg my parents personally. They refused him completely. Not because he was irresponsible or unkind, but because of church doctrine. For over a month, he kept coming. They kept refusing.One month later, my sister had a court wedding. I secretly stood as a witness. I could not abandon my own sister. When wedding cards started circulating, church members warned that anyone who attended that wedding would be suspended. In my heart, I already knew I would collect that suspension. God forbid that I would miss my sister’s wedding. I was even one of the groomsmen. When my father found out that I stood as a witness at the court wedding and planned to attend the main wedding, he said,“I might forgive you for standing as a witness. But if you step your foot into that wedding, do not come back to this house. Just follow your sister to her husband’s house.” I was torn in between two worlds. I was in 100 level at the time. Even though I had skills and earned me small money, I still needed my parents assistance l. I was tired of being born into a home like this. Attending my sister’s wedding would not only earn me suspension from church, which I was ready for. It would also cost me my parents. That was the moment I began to consider not going. Do you think I should go or not go? To be continued.

Other insights from Ghost 👻

Contributor Points

Points-to-Coupons

Referral Earning