Showing posts with label #Church of God. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #Church of God. Show all posts

Monday, September 30, 2024

Apostate Sisters Interview Dawna On How The Church Protected Predators And How She Reclaimed Her Life

 


Life Reclaiming After Cult Survival: Dawna's Harrowing Journey - In this powerful and emotional episode, we sit down with Dawna, a survivor who endured unimaginable hardships within the Worldwide Church of God (WCG). From her childhood being stolen by manipulative cult tactics to fleeing for her life from an abusive partner, Dawna's story is one of resilience and strength. She was even pushed to the brink, planning to kill her own mother to save her from a doomsday that never came. 

Dawna opens up about how the church protected the very predators who groomed and harmed her, leaving her vulnerable to further abuse. But despite these horrors, she has reclaimed her life with incredible courage. This episode shines a light on the most hidden parts of cult survival and the incredible strength it takes to rebuild a life afterward. 
šŸ” Key Points: 

  • The manipulation tactics that left Dawna vulnerable to abuse. 
  • How the WCG protected criminals while ignoring victims. 
  • Dawna's journey of reclaiming her life after fleeing for her survival. 
  • Join us for this intense and inspiring conversation that underscores the resilience of those who survive cult abuse.

Thursday, September 26, 2024

The Sunk Cost Fallacy and the Church of God

 



Too Much Invested in This

Over the 38 years plus since Herbert Armstrong’s death, many of us have written a number of posts analyzing why folks continue to associate themselves with one of the successors of the now defunct Worldwide Church of God. Why? Because of all of the numerous books, articles, and now podcasts that have been written/produced which have definitively refuted so much of Armstrong’s theology, many of us continue to wonder how anyone could still be supportive of it! Our bewilderment is also augmented by the fact that the history of the movement since Herbert’s death has forced almost universal recognition of the fact that horrendous mistakes were made in the administration of the “church” (even among the membership of ALL of the splinters). Hence, it is reasonable for us to wonder: “What could possibly motivate a person to ignore so much evidence of failure and continue in it?”

I have a friend who joined the Worldwide Church of God as a young man and remained a part of it until the Tkach regime started making their changes. Then he joined one of the splinters and has been faithful to it ever since. Throughout those years, this person had a good job and tithed on his gross income. He faithfully attended weekly Sabbath services, the festivals, and many of the other gatherings and activities organized by the church.

Now, my friend is very intelligent, and he readily acknowledges many of the abuses that existed in the parent organization. He knows that people were hurt and bullied. He acknowledges that the Worldwide Church was poorly governed, and that the organization’s resources were often squandered and used to benefit and enrich folks who did not contribute very much to the church’s teachings or mission. Even so, this intelligent, kind, and sincere individual continues to attend with the splinter he joined and still contributes a significant portion of his income to their “work.”

Yet, when I ask him about his continuing loyalty in the face of what he has witnessed and experienced, he answers that he “still believes in the core teachings” of the church. Now, I know that many of the folks who will read this post have heard that same phrase from their friends and family who remain within the ranks of one of the many splinters who claim to have inherited Armstrong’s mantle. Nevertheless, if we actually got into the weeds of those teachings, I’m sure that just about all of these folks would have a different answer about what constitutes those “core doctrines.” At any rate, however they choose to define the “core doctrines” of Armstrongism, this appears to be one of the most common justifications given for a person’s continued association with one of the Armstrong Churches of God.

Now, I know that what I’m about to say will provoke denials from many quarters, but I really believe that what is really motivating these folks has more to do with protecting their own investment in a choice that most of them made many years ago! In other words, they simply have too much time, energy, resources, self-denial, and familiarity invested in Armstrongism to turn their backs on it now! Think about it. After spending 30, 40, 50, 60, or even 70 years, sacrificing jobs, relationships, various opportunities, and thousands upon thousands of dollars to maintain their association with like-minded folks, to admit failure now would mean acknowledging that they have wasted a good part of their lives. More importantly, it would mean admitting that their original decision to embrace Herbert Armstrong’s teachings and church had been wrong! In short, for many of these folks, acknowledging the failure of Armstrongism would be tantamount to acknowledging their own failure! It is such a part of their story and identity now, that the thought of chucking it poses an existential threat to them. Who would they be without this?

Of course, for many of us who have left Armstrongism behind, we rejoice in whatever time, resources and effort have been saved. For many of us, we feel like we have escaped a sinking ship and have saved ourselves from drowning and certain death. For many of us, we have removed the knife and staunched the bleeding. We have started thinking for ourselves again and employing our time and resources in more promising ventures. Yes, we have had to admit that we were wrong – that we made mistakes – that we made a big error in judgment and have paid a huge price for it. Even so, some of us have also experienced the joy of rediscovering Jesus and having our own personal relationship with the Divine. Moreover, a few of us have even discovered that we wouldn’t be in the good place that we are now without having experienced the delusions, disappointments, and hardships of Armstrongism! So, I would remind those of you who are still a part of that system of the old axiom that it is never too late, and that letting go of your ego and admitting failure doesn’t have to be a dead end!


Lonnie Hendrix/Miller Jones

Sunday, September 1, 2024

Why Do They Stay?: Ten Reasons Why People Fail to Leave a Toxic Church and, in this case, David C Pack

 

That has always become the question with Apostle/Elijah to come/Joshua the High Priest/Messenger of the Covenant/ and over all Jesus incarnate to come, David C Pack and his Restored Church of God. 




https://www.readingremy.com/blog/ten-reasons-why-people-fail-to-leave-a-toxic-church

Ten Reasons Why People Fail to Leave A Toxic Church:

1. You don’t want to be accused of being rebellious. 

Spiritually abusive leaders make you feel like disagreeing with them is equal to questioning God. And we all know that bad things happen to people who question God, right? At least that’s what they want you to think. You don’t want to be labeled a rebel, or having a “rebellious spirit.” 

2. You are full of self-doubt. 

Abusive leaders make you feel like YOU are the problem. They say things like,

 “The reason you disagree with me is because you aren’t as spiritually mature as I am. You need to trust my leadership and submit to my authority like the Bible tells you to do.” 

They flip the discussion upside down and before you know it, you are asking for their forgiveness when it should be the other way around.

3. You fear losing your circle of friends. 

Sometimes we tolerate an unhealthy community simply because that’s where our friends and family are. The peer pressure to stay can be overwhelming. 

When given the choice of speaking the truth and losing your community, or staying quiet but keeping your community, the community often wins out.

4. You don’t want to lose your equity investment. 

What I mean is that you’ve invested so much time and energy into your church through the years that you don’t want to lose that investment. It feels like wasted time. 

So you stay a little longer, hoping it will eventually work.  

5. You like to be liked and needed. 

A legalistic system can be very rewarding. You might feed off of the praise you get for performing well. Or maybe you simply can’t handle the thought of people not liking you if you leave the community. Your low self-worth and need to please keep you trapped. 

6. You fear being wrong and losing your salvation. 

You might think that your group is spiritually off track and even abusive, but what if you're wrong? You fear that YOU might be the problem like they say you are. You’re not sure it’s worth the risk. This self-doubt causes you to do nothing about your concerns. 

7. You fear exposure, humiliation, and physical harm

You know that, if you leave, members of the congregation will trash your name and reputation. Sometimes even worse. You’ve seen it happen to others who left, and you don’t want it to happen to you.  

8. You fear not making it on your own.

Even though you know your spiritual leaders are wrong, you fear falling away from God without their strong input into your life. You’re not sure you can make it on your own. 

9. You lack boundaries. 

Maybe you were raised to believe that people had the right to impose their thoughts, beliefs, and will upon you. You don’t feel like it’s your right to question others or resist their power. You're used to being violated in this way. You feel powerless, and so you let the abuse continue. 

And the final reason you might not confront abusive leaders or leave an abusive church is because…

10. You believe God met you in that church.

There was a moment or moments when you KNOW that God showed up in a sermon, the music, a prayer, or a counseling session. This is strong proof to you that God is in your church and/or leadership. So how can you leave? The leaders will even remind you of this.

I don’t doubt that you may have had a God moment in an abusive church, but don’t take that as a justification to stay. Rather, see it as God’s grace and goodness showing up in the middle of abuse. He wanted to show you that he loves you and he’s with you. But that doesn’t mean that you should stay. It doesn’t excuse the abuse.

Please Do Something

If you see yourself in any of these ten reasons, just realize that you are not alone. These are common reasons why people stay in toxic churches and abusive relationships. My hope in pointing out these reasons is that you’ll find the courage to fight against your natural tendency to stay and be quiet. 

I want to encourage you to DO something. 

FYI… I created two videos that cover this topic. I posted them below.

If you’d like to learn more about how to recover from a spiritually abusive church be sure to check out my book Broken Trust. A recent reader said this about the book, 

I highly recommend this book to anyone who has experienced any type of spiritual abuse or church hurt. The book is excellent from beginning to end …Broken Trust deals with all of the issues along with solutions on how to go through the healing process. You can read almost 200 reviews on Amazon.com

You can read over 200 reviews of Broken Trust on Amazon.com, available on Kindle, paperback and audiobook.