From my childhood to young adulthood, reading was my number one passion. But while I was in the church, I didn’t read anything but the church’s books out of fear of sinning.
The church published its own books of sermons, teachings, and stories. All other books were considered worldly, the teachings of men, or fantasies to bewitch the mind and draw people away from God.
We were encouraged to read the church’s books over and over and forbidden to read secular books.
We weren’t supposed to watch shows and movies either unless they were on the church’s list of approved media.
This was a way to limit influences on our minds and plant indoctrination deep in our psyches, like in certain authoritarian regimes.
In my last couple of years, though, I started reading fanfiction online. Reading and writing became my escape, and what finally gave me the willpower to leave.