Crisis of faith
The experience of having one's religious or spiritual faith shaken, damaged, or destroyed by a life experience - particularly a relationship or trauma. Distinct from general doubt; the crisis is precipitated by a specific event that makes the speaker unable to maintain the faith they previously held. In Taylor's writing this appears when a relationship replaces or destroys the speaker's connection to God or religious practice.
Appears in 1 song
Angela & Uncle Jerry identify this as the crux of the song. Angela reads it as a literal crisis of Christian faith, that God would allow this to happen, while Uncle Jerry expands it to encompass a crisis of faith in herself, her ability to self-govern, her image of womanhood, and the cult of virginity. They discuss at length whether the relationship caused her to lose her religious innocence, her emotional purity, or her trust in God, concluding it operates on all these levels simultaneously. Angela connects it back to 'if you never touched me, I would have gone along with the righteous' as evidence that the crisis is specifically about being unable to maintain a righteous, holy life after the relationship.