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Garlands of Grace Debacle

3/21/2012

7 Comments

 
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So this happened yesterday.  I'd been holding off on blogging about it because I was hoping for a clarification / apology from them, but no luck (at least not yet).  They've been quiet little church mice since this thread spiraled out of control.

To date, there have been almost 240 comments.  I did a quick "stick tally" and found that an overwhelming majority of respondents were Catholic women who were very hurt by such an arrogant and thoughtless comment.  Their customer base immediately began shrinking as folks not only removed themselves from the page, but cited their refusal to purchase from them and their refusal to advertise for them through blogs and personal references.

I immediately wondered if Garlands of Grace realized they had so many Catholic customers.  If they didn't before, they most certainly do now!

Seriously, though... this comment was completely unnecessary.  A simple "We're not Catholic, but we do espouse Christian beliefs" would have sufficed.  Instead, they had to go and take it a step further with "I am burdened for all who stand with the Catholic Church and would plead with you to come out and believe the Word of God."

...

Excuse me?

I do believe this business just accused me of not believing in the Word of God.

I also believe Garlands of Grace attempted emotionally martyring itself for my benefit.

Let me go ahead and pull the emergency brake on that one.

First of all, as I mentioned in the GoG thread that spawned on FB, not only do Catholics fully believe in the Word of God, we fully believe that Jesus Christ IS the Word of God incarnated. 

As such, being the Church that Christ founded and all, we don't need a Protestant denomination martyring itself for our salvation.  Thanks for your concern for my immortal soul and all, but as a faithful, fully-vested Catholic, I've got that covered.  I don't need your condescending pity for my supposed ignorance to save me from hellfire.

That being said, I've made the decision to stop patronizing this business (which breaks my heart because all my favorite veils are from them!).  Until they rectify their stance (which has successfully alienated about 100+ of their previous customers) I simply cannot reconcile supporting a business that views my faith as a burden.


And for the record, I was purchasing from them knowing full well they weren't Catholic.  I didn't care one way or the other about their religious beliefs.  I still don't.  I do, however, care about being belittled and and being condescended to simply because I'm Catholic.

From my experiences in dealing with the women of GoG (they're sisters), they seem to be wonderful, loving and highly talented individuals.  They have families, friends, and trials the same as the rest of us.  They are dedicated to their mission of spreading love of God through veiling, and that's great.  I wish them all the best.  However, I cannot - at this time - be a party to what I see as a sad and hurtful attack on some of their best customers simply on the basis of our faith.

I sincerely hope and pray these women come to their senses and retract what was obviously a hurtful and ignorant comment.

*** Blog Responses ***

I read two blog responses yesterday that I really loved - posting them here for your benefit!

Liturgical Time (She makes beautiful head coverings as well)

A Woman's Place  (Eh, you guys know I'm a huge Cam fan)


UPDATE:

Joann Jordan is the founder of Garlands of Grace Ministry, a separate organization that goes by the same name as the sisters who create head coverings. 

These are not the same groups, so please don't confuse them. Garlands of Grace Ministry is a cross-faith women's Bible study program. 

In this particular entry, I'm specifically referring to the Garlands of Grace company that creates head coverings.

7 Comments
Karen link
1/1/2014 01:36:40 pm

Unfortunately, this happens quite often with some of our Protestant brethren. I have family members who were raised Catholic but are now Evangelical, and the things they are told about the Catholic church are horrible and just not true.
If you're interested in quality veils from a Catholic company, check us out: www.silverhilltreasures.com

Reply
Gina
1/3/2014 06:51:28 am

Karen,

I love the mantillas! They're beautiful. :) Thanks for the heads up!

Reply
Gwenalison Lee
10/11/2014 04:03:29 pm

Has Garlands of Grace apologized ?

Reply
Gina
10/11/2014 04:58:16 pm

Nope.

In truth, I stopped checking a long, LONG time ago, though, so who knows?

In the months after this happened, they said absolutely NOTHING. Never retracted, never apologized, never even said, "Maybe we could've worded that better."

Nope. They actually went and reiterated their stance and tried to tell those of us who were offended that eventually we'd see the truth.

*Shakes head*

Haven't ordered from them since.

Reply
Carine Axelius
7/18/2017 02:11:28 am

I read your post today, because of a not so nice answer to one of my Facebook posts from the founder of Garlands Ministry, I wanted to know a little more about them. I'm sad because I don't understand all the hate I sense from Christian people. Hate towards Obama, hate towards Muslims, hate towards refugees and now even hate towards other christians just because they don't believe in the same way. I have also been accused of not being a real christian by other christians.

I just want to say I'm sorry they didn't apologise. Im also sorry she has to carry the burdens of all the catholics (must be heavy:) )

Im not a catholic, I belong to a nondenominational church, but I do respect Catholics. I love the new Pope! I also come to respect Muslims since I have many Muslim friends. I believe instead of hating each other we need to learn how to embrace diversities and understand we are all humans. Understanding each other and come together, were we meet common ground, to make the world a more open and loving place.

I think your post to them was written in a loving way were you expressed how you felt without attacking them.

Hugs!
Carine

Gavi
11/13/2014 03:00:37 am

Hah, I wonder how they would react if they knew how many of their patrons are Jewish...

I'm a little shocked, and mostly disappointed, since it's petty crap like that which pulls us apart, but I also stopped following their Instagram when they kept posting political pictures, so I'm not overly concerned.

I'll still buy from them, because I like their products, but it makes me want to make a disclaimer every time I promote them...

Reply
Alle
9/14/2019 05:33:30 pm

I get the feeling they'd have something cruel to say to them as well. I don't think the sisters who run this company are as kind as they make themselves out to be.

Reply



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