"The power of her life is not that she escaped from a "cult", but that she
continues to serve as an agent of change. This is not a "she said/he said"
tale of abuse, but rather a self-damning expose of her struggle to survive."
Bruce McLelland, Washington D.C., July 28, 2007. 5 star review
BONSHEA provides incredibility disconcerting insights into the labyrinth of self-proclaimed morally self-righteous communities within our society. No article about Coral's crusade to correct the injustices she has suffered can truly capture the personal strengths which Coral demonstrates on every page of her book. It is very difficult to feel Ms. Theill's pain without actually reading her story, although many of us can empathize with people in abusive relationships.Very little occurs which does not provide insights into other conflicts. Gang violence, the death and destruction Sunnis and Shiites perpetrate upon each other daily around the world, the hate between Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland, are all variations on the "cultism" which has caused Coral so much pain. Without this understanding, some could say Coral is the victim of isolated acts of violence by one person. That is not the case. She is the victim of a morally tainted community within an uncaring broader society. Regardless of the future, nothing will allow Coral to recapture the past. Yes, she can pray for having some of the burden taken from her shoulders, and indeed, she has lost much, but clearly Coral is not saying "stop my suffering" because stopping the pain is something only she alone can do. Ms. Theill is asking for others to understand how she has suffered, and the truth of why she has suffered. The power of her life is not that she escaped from a "cult", but that she continues to serve as an agent of change. This is not a "she said/he said" tale of abuse, but rather a self-damning expose of her struggle to survive. She is not a martyr. She is a victim of the too frequent chasm between a blind adherence to an interpretation of laws and a true understanding of justice.
You may find BONSHEA's an extremely difficult book to find in your public libraries, although it is available for "purchase" or within the halls of academe. When I was first introduced to Ms, Theill's' tome, I found it almost impossible to obtain a copy in the libraries of the "enlightened" politically sensitive communities surrounding our Nation's capital, a condition which has not improved. The question which may be too painful for us to answer.Is religiously justified domestic violence the reality which our society cannot face? Making truths inaccessible does not change the truth.
"BONSHEA pierces through the darkness that hides the legal system's routine
abuse of mothers and children."
Maureen T. Hannah, Ph.D. "Chair, Battered
Mother's Custody Conference, Albany, New York, June 8, 2007.
BONSHEA is a work of immense courage, a true tale of heartbreak and salvation. By exposing what was done to her by the court system, by the religious authorities and by their enabling cronies as she took the moral high ground by leaving an abusive husband, the author gives readers the tremendous gift of her hard-won insight and spiritual awakening.As shocking as it may be, Coral's story resonates with the truth. I hear pleas for help from protective mothers like Coral every day, week after week, year after year--all of them pleading for their very birthright, their greatest right, which is to be a mother.
She pinpoints, with heart-piercing accuracy, the historical hatred of females and of the feminine that has permeated societies, including our present one, for eons. Her personal story of living with and divorcing an abusive "religious" man who was cheered on by the community's religious, governmental, and legal authorities mirrors the persecution of all women who, like Coral, choose to say "no" to male dominance and power. These include Middle Age "witches," midwives, mothers who protect their children from a father's abuse, mothers who dare to have careers and mothers who elect to stay home with their children. Coral also calls out for the only true cure for the dark side of human nature, and that is to live in the light.
Coral's work is a special blessing for me and for my sisters throughout this country. Not a single particle of the wisdom Coral shares misses the mark.