The part I bolded (or attempted to from my phone) IS a core value. My experience in the religion I was brought up in was that this value was seen as menacing and dangerous--that my human nature was so predisposed to sin that any dilution any deviation from exactly what was taught was bound to result in the pollution of my soul.

My church seemed to have an incredible fear of the worldly, the secular, (which I now think of as simply human) such that we had to culturally insulate ourselves to keep from being poisoned by seductive ideas to stay pure --to not be unequally yoked. To allow respect for these ideas is the beginning of the seduction, so they must be demeaned for our own safety. The cognitive distortions of psychology were in many ways the basis of the doctrine I grew up with. Try letting go of a distortion when some deep part of yourself still believes doing so will land you in hell. This was my experience, FWIW. I don't know much about your church or if you can relate to any of these feelings.