Jilly Moxham Author Singer Songwriter
BREAKING LINKS is awaiting publication and is the true story of my struggle for freedom. I was born and raised in the Exclusive Brethren Religion escaping when I was in my late forties. However that is not the only escape that needed to happen. I was a captive to many things. This is a story told through the eyes and feelings of a child, a teenager, a lover and a mother. Come with me - as I take you on a journey that is riveting, strange and yet so fascinating, you will think it is a work of fiction.
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The book is written as a legacy for my children and grandchildren who are still members of the religion and honour its rules of alienating those who choose to think or act for themselves. As my grandchildren have not had the chance or choice to get to know me it is my wish to let them know what love is. If I am not able to hold them physically, at least they will be able to read of the love I hold for them in my heart.
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Though my memoirs are composed in part as a legacy, in my heart is a greater mission. I wish to impart to the world how destructive religious extremism can be. Enforced separation of families because of different values or beliefs is archaic in its origin and patriarchal in its values. It creates trauma and suffering.
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I also wish to bring awareness to what it is like living with mental illness. Though this story is not about the sufferer. It is about the child who lives and learns to cope with a parent who has the condition. With the number of suicides growing, it is time to bring this subject more into the open so it can be seen, heard and felt. Awareness educates and education empower​
.On my writing desk two more books are in progress. One is called Breaking Open and is a sequel of sorts to Breaking Links. The other is about recovery from religious cultism and spiritual abuse. There is a void in the market about this topic and psychologists have expressed interest in understanding it better. What's alarming is that in New Zealand - we the taxpayer - are funding this abuse because these religious groups are hiding behind the facade of being a charitable organisation and therefore have tax-free status.
Not a day goes by, where I am not grateful for the freedom I now have.
I am actively dancing, songwriting, and living my dreams.
Lifes too short for regrets. Its too short to play the victim.
I have choice and voice and for that I rejoice.