A Spiritual Abuse Testimony

A couple months ago I published the testimony of “Jennifer” in the News & Views. I had heard from Jennifer months before about her struggle to find peace with her past experience of spiritual abuse. I sent her five copies of my Spiritual Abuse Recovery workbook and suggested she write down her story as a form of therapy in her spiritual and emotional recovery.

The workbook is set up with thought provoking questions to facilitate reflection. Later Jennifer sent me her story in print. With her permission I published it in our newsletter. If you want a copy email me at the address on this blog site and I will send it to you.

What I find repeatedly in cases of spiritual abuse is the gradual twisting of one’s perspective on reality. It is seldom a sudden change. Some basic assumptions about the group, its leader, or worldview usually precede the twisting of one’s thinking. To illustrate I have clipped several paragraphs from Jennifer’s testimony and pasted them below.

At this point the leader of this cult told me to quit my job, sell everything I owned, put my house up for sale and leave everyone behind. I was to ex-communicate myself from everyone who was not involved in the cult. He used scripture to back up everything he told me to do – such as “let the dead bury their dead” “ anyone who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of me” etc,…

So I sold everything I had, clothes and all, put my house up for sale, moved to another town and quit my job.

I know as you are reading this you might think how could I have not seen the red flags but all I can tell you was that it was so subtle so gradual and he used the Word to back up everything he did and because I was a baby in the Word I could not discern the half truths. Not to mention the fact that he told us if we left we would go to hell.

Now watch Jennifer tell her story as broadcast on CBN's The 700 Club.

This video illustrates the nature of spiritual abuse. It is a problem in our society that goes far beyond the cults which are by nature legalistic and controlling. Anywhere you have people in a religious setting this kind of abuse can happen. Knowing the way it manifests itself is your first defense against it. In the next issue of the News & Views I will be discussing the characteristics of abusive religion. These characteristics are listed on the back cover of the Spiritual Abuse Recovery workbook. In the next newsletter I describe one of those characteristics. It is that they,...

Provide No Accountability For Leaders

This commonly occurs as a “cult of personality” where the leader allows his adoring followers to elevate him to a pedestal where it is considered rude to question him. Some groups have their leader on such a pedestal as a matter of doctrine, i.e., a prophet of God, or the above described “chain of command”. In either case the leader can impose his will with little resistance because it is considered as coming from God. Frequently he will surround himself with a Board of “Yes men” who will provide him cover from genuine accountability.

If you wish to receive my newsletter you can click on my email address in the upper left of this blog. The subscription is free.

You can also obtain a copy of the Spiritual Abuse Recovery workbook. Send $20 to Watchman Fellowship, PO Box 7681, Columbus, GA 31908 with a written request for the workbook and I will send it to you. I will also send you Jennifer's testimony as printed in the News & Views.

A Mormon Absurdity?

Mormons believe we all existed before this life as ‘spirit children’ of a heavenly father and one of his goddess wives. In Mormon doctrine they expect to progress on to one of the three levels of heaven, for Mormons that is the highest level, the Celestial Kingdom, after this earthly life. But between the pre-existence as ‘spirit children’ and the afterlife comes being born into ‘mortality’ or this earthly existence.

Mormons believe all of humanity pre-existed this life on earth. At this point you are probably wondering why you don’t remember it. Orson Pratt can explain it.

Orson Pratt was one of the original Mormon Twelve Apostles ordained by Joseph Smith in 1835. Though he apostatized in 1842 he was re-baptized in 1843 and reinstated to the Council of the Twelve Apostles. He died in 1881. He made the following Statement that has not been changed in Mormon understanding since 1854.

“When Jesus was born into our world, his previous knowledge was taken from him; this was occasioned by His spiritual body being compressed into a smaller volume than it originally occupied, … when this spirit was compressed, so as to be wholly enclosed in an infant tabernacle, it had a tendency to suspend memory; …So it is with man. When he enters a body of flesh, his spirit is so compressed and contracted in infancy that he forgets his former existence…” (The Seer, February 1853, 1854, p. 21).

When you are in the business of inventing a religion absurdities such as the above will inevitably occur.

Jehovah's Witnesses and Blood

Jehovah’s Witnesses are known for their refusal of blood transfusions. But they also will refuse to eat meat that has not been properly bled, or even to use any product, food or otherwise, that contains blood.

What they fail to understand is that blood as used in the Bible is a symbol; it is not sacred, in and of itself. That which it symbolizes, life and redemption, specifically the life and redeeming blood of Christ, are what are sacred.

God saw to it that Israel gave high respect to blood because it was an essential part of His redemptive work, i.e., the shed blood of Jesus. But when the pharisee types get their hands on what God has said there are some strange “rules” that can result.

An example is the Watchtower Society answer to a question I asked in 1979, back when they sent their answers on their letterhead. I asked about the blood seepage into the mouth when a tooth has been pulled. Their answer was that “…a Christian, while he is conscious, would be able to spit out what blood has accumulated in his mouth…” (letter to me dated January 12, 1979).

Another question I asked them regarded the storage of one’s own blood for use in a future operation. This is called an autologous transfusion. Their reply was that it “would be a violation of the Scriptural principles that govern the handling of blood) (letter to me dated September 5, 1977).

This lead to questions regarding the use of kidney dialysis machines which take the blood out of the body, clean it, and put it back into the body. What is the essential difference between this process and an autologous transfusion? The difference, as I understand it, is that the dialysis machine maintains an unbroken flow of blood from the body to the machine and back into the body again. However, what would they say if a nurse pinched the tube?

The Watchtower (2/15/64, pages 127, 128 and 6/15/82, page 31) said that Christians should not knowingly feed, or allow, blood to be fed to animals over which they have control. If this reasoning is followed does a Jehovah’s Witness allow himself to enjoy his back yard in the summer knowing that mosquitoes are going to drink his blood? And what about Jehovah creating such creatures who don’t drain the blood before they eat the flesh? Or, why did He create bloodsucking critters?

But Jehovah’s Witnesses will be glad to know that now there is a kosher sausage they can eat. An enterprising Spaniard came up with a bloodless sausage according to this report…

http://www.thinkspain.com/news-spain/16813/bloodless-black-sausage-created-for-jehovahs-witnesses

An Attitude Adjustment

When I was in Bible college I heard students talk about coming up with “spiritual gems” to discuss in their class. The professor made that a regular part of her class. It was a practical way of getting students to focus on wisdom and understanding that they would have to draw on when they were in day-to-day ministry later in life. In the mid-1990’s I read Randall Arthur’s book Wisdom Hunter and I found a treasure trove of insights into the dark side of Christianity, legalism and spiritual abuse, the opposite of grace.

Randall Arthur (his real name is Randy Dodd) was sent as a missionary to Norway by a legalistic mission agency. He said his attitude when he arrived was that he and his wife were probably the only Bible believing witness in the whole country. Thirteen years later he returned home a very changed man. He had found Christianity alive and gracious in Norway. His book is fiction but the lessons learned by the leading character, Jason Faircloth, are very real. Randy has written two other books. His second book, Jordan’s Crossing, focuses on the problems with liberal Christianity. His third book, Betrayal, returns to the legalism and abuse theme. I have strongly recommended Randy’s books for people who are exiting legalistic and abusive religion because of their teaching and therapy value.

In all high control religious groups the authority of the leader is emphasized. It is the first characteristic of any high control system. This authority is not the moral authority exemplified by Jesus but is that of controlling authority. To disagree with, or worse, confront such 'authority' is to bring down wrath upon oneself. This is not the kind of spiritual authority described in the New Testament.

In the telling of Jason Faircloth’s story you learn important and practical lessons in wisdom. Wisdom is what Jason is hunting for as a way to make sense of his terrible experiences. His first lesson is that of a Student Attitude vs. Authoritarian Attitude.

He says, “All my Christian life I was taught both directly and indirectly, both professionally and nonprofessionally, that a preacher should be an authority, and that he should clearly, and forcefully if necessary, display the attitude of an authority. ‘No one’, I was told, ‘should ever develop the idea that the preacher is weak or doesn’t know the answers’.

“After having succumbed to that philosophy and being driven by it for fifteen years, I am now convinced that there are few things more counterproductive, self-defeating, and utterly destructive than a mortal preacher with an authoritarian attitude.”

“I realize now that my attitude was the cause of countless and uncalled-for offenses. The number of people who left my ministry because of it was almost equal to the number of people who joined it for other reasons. For the first time I now understand that those who could not tolerate my attitude, and thus decided to leave, were people who had more potential for dynamic Christian growth than those who stayed. The ones who stayed were the simple-minded ‘yes’ people. The ones who left were the ‘thinkers’, the people whose active, creative, and hungry minds were being suffocated by my style of leadership.”

“Never again will I be characterized as one who has an authoritarian attitude. For as long as need be, I will purposely work at suppressing that kind of flagrant attitude and will work at cultivating a student attitude in its place.”

“It’s now clear that I actually know very little. Therefore I’ve resolved to open my mind and let the world be my classroom. So that I don’t swing to the other extreme and become a philosophical anarchist, I’ll let the Bible, objectively interpreted, be the filter that governs what I soak up in my quest for true wisdom, understanding, knowledge, and insight.”

“Though I am no longer in the ministry, and have no desire to be, I am somehow convinced that God takes sides with me and is maybe even the one who helped me learn this lesson. After all, the only group of people whom Jesus could not and would not tolerate were the self-righteous and know-it-all Pharisees. Even Jesus, God-in-the-flesh, could not enlighten them and expose to them their extreme and distorted beliefs. Their authoritarian attitude prevented him from penetrating their minds with the facts. Fed up with their foolish know-it-all attitude, Jesus told them outright that they had discarded knowledge. They had locked up the room where real learning takes place, and thrown away the key. And both they and their followers were on the outside of that room. They had closed their minds to learning because they already ‘knew it all’.”

“Never again will I be pharisaical and lock myself and those I influence out of that room. From this day forward, I will have an open mind and a student attitude” (Wisdom Hunter, pages 130 and 131).

If you have experienced the damaging effects of legalism or spiritual abuse you are probably seeking ways to understand what happened and to sort out your emotions. Seek wisdom from God. Don’t let anger turn to bitterness and cynicism. You will only injure yourself further by it. Because of your injury you may be that one lost sheep that Jesus leaves the ninety and nine to find and return to His safe fold. Think of Him as the Good Shepherd Who is looking for you. Let Him find you by seeking His wisdom as a way to understand your experience and find healing.

My Spiritual Abuse Recovery Workbook is a resource I can offer to you. If you, or someone you know, needs it send me an email (dhenke@watchman.org).

Michael Jackson and Jehovah's Witnesses

Paul Blizard has been a longtime friend of Watchman Fellowship. He is a former third generation ex-Jehovah’s Witness who today preaches the gospel as the pastor of one of West Virginia’s largest churches. His comments on the recent death of Michael Jackson are not only very interesting but also will give you insights into life as a Jehovah’s Witness.


"There but for the Grace of God go I”

This past week a great talent and a giant in the music industry died at fifty years old. What a tragic loss! Yes, I’m talking about Michael Jackson. Like many of you, I grew up with his music that spanned almost forty years. I realize that cable news is giving his death wall-to-wall coverage. But I also have some things to say about him. You may not know this, but those of us who are former Jehovah’s Witnesses have some insight into his life and know why he was so strange. The Jackson children were all taken to the Jehovah’s Witness Kingdom Hall when they were young. As far as I know, only his sisters, Latoya, Janet and Michael became official Jehovah’s Witnesses. If it hadn’t been for their mother Catherine they would not have been exposed to the religion. Their father, Joseph, was not a Jehovah’s Witness and was the driving force who pushed them into the music industry. They were torn between two worlds. Imagine the life. Jehovah’s Witnesses prohibit any kind of lifestyle or career in the arts, yet here they were, totally involved in the music industry. Their lives caused quite a stir in the Jehovah’s Witness religion. In fact, as teenagers we would always point to Michael and the contradictions of his life. On one hand, he claimed to be a Jehovah’s Witness on the other he was doing what we could not do. It was not only hard on the Jehovah’s Witness leaders; it was difficult for every family within the community. Parents were always trying to explain why we could not be recording artists and performers. Yet, Michael was the problem they could not escape from.

The Watchtower officially took no stand because of the notoriety of Michael and of course his money. I remember in the late 1970’s when Michael was a becoming a superstar. I was at the Watchtower headquarters in New York. He and his family came through the headquarters on a tour of the facilities. It was all the buzz. We were ordered not to ask for autographs, but many did. I only saw him from a distance as his group passed through our building. Years later, when I was a guest on the Oprah Winfrey Show, she asked me during the commercial break about some of the things I was saying about the restrictions in the Jehovah’s Witness religion. Oprah asked me, “Paul, I know Michael Jackson, he is a Jehovah’s Witness, he gives birthday gifts and celebrates Christmas. What about that?” I said, “Well, Oprah, I wouldn’t say this on the air, but it has to do with his millions and what he gives to the organization. He lives by a different standard. That’s the hypocrisy of the religion.” As soon as we came back from the break, in front of millions, Oprah put me on the spot by asking me the same question. I framed my answer carefully and made a hand gesture about money rather than directly making that claim. I certainly didn’t want to be sued by the Jacksons. A few months later, Catherine Jackson, Michael’s mother, wrote a book, My Life With The Jacksons, where she made reference to my comments as being false.

The weirdness of Jackson came later. He never did have a childhood because of the religion and his contradictory life in the music business. Not many know this, but being a good Jehovah’s Witness, he would put on disguises and go from door-to-door selling Watchtower magazines and books. He had several outfits he would wear. On the set of “Thriller” he had a Watchtower elder present who would approve of every move. Of course the occult themes were certainly over the top and we protested. The original “Thriller” album had printed warnings stating, “I do not endorse or promote the occult. “ Again, the contradiction. Finally, because of the tremendous pressure, Michael resigned from the Jehovah’s Witness religion. I prayed for him often to find Jesus Christ as Savior, yet it did not happen. Contrary to the rules, he kept in touch with his mother and other family who were Jehovah’s Witnesses, again the hypocrisy. If any of us who have left the religion had contact with our families they would be disfellowshipped (shunned).

I have observed his life and have prayed for him often. Again, the weirdness was due to his involvement with the religion and the constant guilt he lived with. Without Jesus Christ we are empty. He is the only One who gives us fulfillment and peace. Michael did not have it. He gave millions to causes, probably trying to relieve the guilt of trying to please the God of his mother, yet could not. Last year, for whatever reason, he finally converted to Islam.

What would his life been like if he knew Jesus? We can only say he would be in heaven today. He also would not have had to live through the torment of trying to serve a god and a religion, which demands so much. He would have been able to live life knowing that God loved him just the way he was. Jesus makes all the difference.

Yet, we dare not judge…”There but for the Grace of God go I”


Paul’s is the senior pastor of Memorial Baptist Church in Beckley, West Virginia.

http://www.memorialbaptistbeckley.com/

Paul’s testimony and many resources on the subject of Jehovah’s Witnesses can be read at his website. I highly recommend you read his testimony.

http://www.paulblizard.org/

Scientology Getting Bad Press

In the early to mid 90’s Watchman Fellowship ventured into the subject of Scientology and caught the attention of that “church.” Reprinted below is an article outlining the resulting legal skirmishes with them.

Scientology Threatens Watchman with "OT" Lawsuit

In a letter dated 9 February 1996, Helena Kobrin, an attorney representing Scientology's "Religious Technology Center" renewed legal threats against Watchman Fellowship. Kobrin alleges that Watchman is in possession of, and thereby could theoretically distribute copies of, Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard's top-secret Operating Thetan (OT) literature. Thus, Kobrin claims, Watchman is in violation of the US Copyright laws, as well as "trade secret and unfair competition laws."

In her original threat dated 13 June 1995, Kobrin warned of immediate legal action including "damages, an injunction, and impounding of materials and equipment used in perpetrating the infringing acts."

Kobrin's February 9th letter is the latest of six letters written to Watchman Fellowship or attorneys representing our ministry concerning this issue. In one letter dated 29 June 1995, Kobrin gave a detailed description making it appear that Scientologists or agents of the church may have gained access to Watchman Fellowship's Texas office without our knowledge.

Watchman Fellowship has not violated any copyright or trade secret laws - nor do we have any plans to violate such laws. We are not engaged in "unfair competition" with the Church of Scientology or any of its corporate entities. This attack, we believe, is one more example of Scientology's long history of using the legal system to persecute those who disagree with their theology.

Perhaps Scientologists are trying to use this issue as a pretense to search and seize Watchman's files, computers, and confidential counseling correspondence. Or perhaps their motive is found in the words of their founder, L. Ron Hubbard, who said, "...beware of attorneys who tell you not to sue...the purpose of the suit is to harass and discourage rather than to win." (Time, 6 May 1991, p. 38)

Earlier Lawsuits

Scientologists have already sued Watchman Fellowship on two earlier occasions. In 1992, Watchman Fellowship's Southeastern director Craig Branch, the Cult Awareness Network, and several others were named in a $9.5 million lawsuit filed by Sterling Management Systems (SMS). Sterling was named by Time magazine as one of Scientology's "front groups and financial scams." (Ibid., p. 54) Watchman's portion of the suit was quashed by a Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge. Last year, Sterling Management System lost the whole suit. (Cult Awareness Network News, September 1995, p. 1)

Again in 1992 the Los Angeles-based Church of Scientology filed another lawsuit against Watchman Fellowship. Among other claims, the suit accused Watchman Fellowship of involvement in a conspiracy of illegal activities including detaining a client of the Church of Scientology, Glover Rowe, against his will and forcing him to breach his contract with Scientology. Of course, no one at Watchman Fellowship endorses or engages in any form of kidnapping or involuntary "deprogramming." Ironically, Glover Rowe claimed that it was Scientologists, not Watchman Fellowship, that were guilty of falsely imprisoning him and his wife and intentionally inflicting emotional stress on his family. (Cherokee County Herald, 12 December 1990, pp. 1A, 5A)

As far as we know, the two lawsuits in 1992 represent the first time the Church of Scientology or its related businesses have sued a Christian organization.

Scientology's 1992 legal attacks against Watchman Fellowship were reported in Christianity Today. In their article, an attorney defending Watchman, Eric Johnston of the Rutherford Institute, stated, "this kind of case carries significant implications of censorship on the freedom of religion and freedom of speech guaranteed for religious organizations." He explained, "One of the questions is whether Christian organizations have the right...to publicly speak out against groups that are in conflict with their faith and/or who fraudulently represent themselves as compatible with Christianity." (Christianity Today, 24 February 1992, p. 60)

Speaking of lawsuits, here is a link to a segment from Boston Legal that will give you an entertaining explanation of Scientology beliefs.

http://www.wfial.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=resources.scientology

The St. Petersburg Times has published a multi-faceted report of the recent exit of four high-ranking Scientologists. This is perhaps the biggest story to come out on Scientology since Time magazine ran their expose’ in the 90’s. You can read, or view, their stories at this link;

http://www.tampabay.com/specials/2009/reports/project/

Deliverance? Ministries, Not The Movie.

I was asked, “do you believe in deliverance/healing ministry?”

My reply was…

“I think 90% of deliverance ministries are fear based, and devil-centered. Let me explain. Once we become Christians our focus thereafter is always on Christ. We are not given a spirit of fear of the devil, demons, curses, etc. We are to keep our eyes on Christ and keep our life moving toward Him. If we take our eyes off Jesus and start looking for demons and curses we become like Peter when he walked on the water. He took his eyes off Christ and sank.

Christ is our Protector. If we have any sin problem (curse, demonic oppression, etc.) He will address it in our heart through His Spirit and His Word.

Deliverance ministries lead to fear because they are not focused on Jesus. They are focused on the enemy and his ways. That is why Romans 16:19 tells us regarding evil “be simple." We should not be overly interested in the devil or his activities because we are not equipped to fight him. Only Jesus can fight that battle for us and that is why we must stay focused on Him.

I hope I answered your question.”

The emailer wrote back and said,…

This makes all the sense in the world. I have never heard this before. After I was saved 10 years ago, I felt freedom, peace, and joy I had never known. When I got involved in ministry at (church name withheld), my relationship with the Lord subtly changed into one of fear because of this very thing. We were constantly having prayer meetings... binding, rebuking, "casting out", yelling at the devil. I never had a pure feeling about this but was taught it was our "responsibility" and if you were being oppressed it was because you weren't "warfaring" as you should. This brought in a lot of fear and strife. You are right, now I see how much the devil was being glorified over the Lord. My eyes turned to the power of Satan and away from the power of the Christ.

Thanks again for your answer. The Lord has been so good to use your ministry to get me back on track and like Peter, when the Lord restores me, I will turn back and help restore my brother (and sister).

In my reading on the subject I found an article by Bob DeWaay describing the problems with deliverance ministries. Bob was one of them in the past, a deliverance counselor. He had “cast out” many demons from Christians but came to realize that he was addressing the wrong problem. He describes the problem as being one of worldviews. Is your view of spiritual realities one of warfare with evil spirits, or is it that God is sovereign and evil can’t touch you unless it is in God’s sovereign purpose? It makes a world of difference.

DeWaay described his work in deliverance counseling as being knowledgeable and proficient in the "rules" of spiritual warfare. As I read the article I had images in my mind of deliverance counselors being analogous to shamans and witchdoctors. In animist religions the shaman and witchdoctor knows the special rules, incantations, and potions that will fight off the evil spirits. Just as the Liberian children whose parents put the Juju strings around them to protect them, so the deliverance counselor prescribes practices, rules, and prayers that will protect the Christian from evil spirits.

Deliverance ministries teach that we open the door to demonic possession/oppression by our willing contact with evil things. Well, if that is the case what can I say about my library? I have hundreds of books from cultic, occult, and New Age sources. Also, our family brought back lots of souvenirs from Liberia. Among them are African masks which were probably used in animist religion. I saw those masks in my Dad’s back yard years ago and asked him about them. He said he put them out there because he was going to burn them. He said they represented an open door for Satan to attack. I told my Dad what Paul said about idols in 1 Corinthians 8:4, that “As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one.” My Dad said, “Well you take them then.” I’ve been fine ever since.

Here is the link to Bob DeWaay’s article. It is a bit long but worth every minute.

http://www.cicministry.org/commentary/issue78.htm