skyrider

Drive that milk truck......or else you'll be slandered as a cop-out. Then......corps grads hit the field with the same delivery system that wierwille demanded. And, it didn't work. Most people, when not isolated and constrained by peer pressure and cultish indoctrination, have plenty of leverage to process critical thinking and decide what is in THEIR best interest. Year after year of bad performance, the milk truck [corps program] ran over twi's COW [class, roa, structure]......and took a major public relations hit. MILK TRUCK DRIVER HITS COW......and the farm was never the same again.

It seems to me......The corps "milk truck" ran over twi's "cash cow." In 1967, Wierwille taught and filmed a foundational class that had a certain appeal to those searching for biblical truths at a time of national conscience. The Jesus Movement and commune culture, drugs and sex and Haight-Ashbury, peace not war, my sweet lord song.....and cha-ching, a bible class in your town or community. The film class NEEDED instructors.....not just a j0hnnie t0wnsend here or there, but EVERYWHERE. Wierwille had spent 14 years [1953-1967] teaching this material.....and still, there was hardly a 70 faithful followers in the whole bunch. And besides....wierwille had put in his dues and aspired to two things: 1) sunday teachings and 2) biblical "research." Through the years, wierwille had assigned people to outreach areas that fizzled shortly after he left town. Even with all vpw's boasting of his India itinerary, Dr. Williams had NO intention of stedfastly following wierwille's brand of pseudo-christianity. The branch work in Troy came screeching to a halt over wierwille's decision to locate from Van Wert to the wierwille farm near New Knoxville. Seemingly, twi "needed" a training program that would thrust youthful volunteers into a regimented, discipline, never-quit, program.....with the dedication of marines in battle. Despite the facts: 1) Spiritual training does not equate to military conflict 2) The command center and structure was deeply flawed 3) Twi's service "enlistment" was FOR LIFE.....without pay 4) No provisions, no merit system, no pension, no retirement 5) Ruled with heavy hand of fear, guilt, shaming and condemnation 6) Any one who dissents received character assassination and public ridicule 7) Other than that......what could go wrong? And, here's the irony........it had all the makings of a dysfunctional farm. Did ole wierwille see his corps program as the delivery service for his paying customers.... those taking classes, buying books and bi-monthly magazine, and throwing their weekly tithe into twi's coffers by simply coercing a volunteer force to go forth and serve with a smile, add promptness, efficiency, scheduling, doorstep delivery, etc.? How many years would someone WILLINGLY drive the milk truck? For like 14 years [1971-1985]....wierwille NEVER altered his position, his stance. Yet, for 14 years [1953-1967]....wierwille NEVER could sustain a faithful result. The corps were NOT going to do this volunteer two-step dance a lifetime. Get real. Obviously......wierwille NEVER did. "The old model was WIERWILLE'S model."........Click Here

"Yeah.....in our youth, many of us didn't quite know the essence of our true identity BUT some of us recognized we were being manipulated to places that we didn't want to go." Add this thread to the discussion........Reclaiming Identity.....one word at a time

"That's quite possible with Eddie and Donna, as well as Ray and Vera. Truly good people, all of them." I know, I know.....and the SAME could be said of lots of twi-people in the 1970s. One of the most deceptive aspects about religious-MLM outfits.......is the intermediary relationship that enablers play in the propagandized perception and promotion of the product. How many of these "truly good people" spent the last 20-30 years of their lives giving their support to a charismatic cult leader and organization that would turn belly up TWO YEARS AFTER HIS PASSING? Even though women like Dr. EE H!ggins and R!nker are keynoted.....they quickly disappeared. Why? What did they see, or not see, that convinced them to move on? What about the dozens and dozens of folks who took those classes from 1960-1967? After they took pfal, did they say..."meh" and slip back into their local church pew? Seems like the "old guard" [ie Ermal, Dorothy, Mal, Jan, George, Bernita, Eddie, Donna, Ray, Vera, etc] hung in there out of dedication, loyalty and support......just like a wave of NEW GUARD came along and carried the torch for 15-20 years!! Years ago, I read an article about ex-clergymen and the consistent length of involvement was 15 years.....by then, one sees behind the closed-door meetings, has dealt with the back-stabbing politics of colleagues, and moves up the ranks or out. Lots of good-hearted people move OUT. The ones who stay are considered "pillars of the church." Of course, they are.

Perhaps, one could look at these people......Owens, Jess, George, and even Doers@m as the inner-sanctum of supporters (ie inner circle before the new breed, zealous, sex lock-box, inner circle of the early 70s). Yea, these men [husbands and wives] were wholesome in an era 1953-1960 that was commonplace in church-going communities in the midwest. And, wierwille was busy plagairizing...er, studying scripture to elevate his stature, sermons and outreach. Clearly, there was a stretch of anemic support and growth for those 16 years [1956-1972] as these couples faithfully supported their minister, vpw, and his teachings. George Jess was a faithful congregant in Piqua, Ohio who had applied to Moody Bible Institute during this time of taking wierwille's 1956 pfal class. Might it be fair to say that these couples were searching, and transitioning, from the monotone church sermons to something different just like the generation after them? And, just maybe.....wierwille never let his mask slip in front of any of them. Years later, when wierwille had a motor coach, more freedom, more seclusion, campuses far away, young women adulation, AND all the pieces in place to summon corps women to his lair.....that Dr. Jekyll was, indeed, Mr. Hyde? From all the eulogizing of these "spiritual pillars".....I seriously doubt that any of them ever realized wierwille's deep-seated, lust-filled, and narcissistic pathologies that were interwoven in his agendas.

Oh, yeah.....I, too, pondered this several times thru the years. Imo....this tends to come down to three things: 1) Ermal had the skill sets and construction background for practical management 2) Ermal AND Dorothy were at that stage of life for maximum opportunity to twi [no kids] 3) Ermal was soft spoken, loyal, and malleable According to Mrs. M's book, BATS.....[p.100] "Dr. Wierwille had met a couple by the names of Ermal and Dorothy Owens a year earlier [1952] when they had invited him to be a guest speaker at their church in Lynn Grove, Indiana, for a week of inspirational meetings. At that time Ermal and Dorothy had a deep interest in learning more of God's Word and were regulars at our meetings. After taking the first class, they were continuously faithful in The Way Ministry." SEE....they took vp's first class, were faithful and voila!!.....promoted to higher office. Right place, right time sort-a-thing.....and besides, wierwille needed someone to play the organ and accompany the pianist, Rhoda. IMO.....Ermal falls into the same category as Ge0rge Jess and, possibly M@l George. Same age bracket, same temperament and lockstep loyalty. Clearly, Mr. Owens was NOT going to ever fill the position of twi's president....even though he was slotted as vice prez. Much the same way as Mr. Jess....he never REALLY was the first corps director. Wierwille was an opportunist.....and these men came across vpw's path at that time. It's as simple as that. .edit typos

Kind of like a "literal translation according to cat grave digging."

"Probably, when our cat snickers is buried this coming Thursday.....I will think of Ermal, too. But then.....with spade in hand, I will be filling the grave with excavated dirt." But then.....this coming Thursday with spade in hand......after our cat snickers is in grave filling.........as opposed to digging/excavating the grave.......cat grave with excavated dirt.....that I dug out this morning grave/dirt/spade.....will remind me, again, of digging Ermal's grave .

This morning, I had the somber duty to dig a grave for our beloved cat snickers. In five days, we are going to have him euthanized to bring a peaceful end to his long, endearing existence. While digging, I was reminded that the last time I dug a grave was in 1981....for Ermal L. Owens. It was in July 1981 when Mr. Owens passed away....and wierwille instructed way builders coordinator, M0nty R@y H0bbs to oversee this hand-dug grave. At the Garden of Living Waters, surrounded by the maple trees.....wierwille did not want heavy-duty machinery in there and wreak havoc on the manicured grass and surrounding area. Thus, the order came down to have the grave dug by manual labor. If I recall correctly, this was a Saturday evening.....and the way builder men, a department that had upwards of 75-90 strong men [and a few women], were the bulk of the labor force. Perhaps, a few in the Grounds Department helped as well. The digging started around 7pm.....and there was an outdoor function commemorating Ermal's life of service on the blacktop near the wierwille home. A few people took to the microphone to speak about Ermal, way productions played songs for about 90 minutes....while everyone milled around conversing and hamburgers were being grilled near the upper room shed. Anyways.....there I was, toward the end of the event and decided to walk over to the fountain area to see the progress of the grave-digging. The men who had taken shifts digging were sweaty and exhausted. Looking down into the grave, the edges were crisp and cornered.....and nearing eight-feet deep. Actually, it was quite impressive....to see what had been accomplished in less than three hours. But....my bystander status changed in an instant when Monty Ray looked over at me and say...."hey skyrider, get down there and take your turn at digging." [Like Simon, a Cyrenian pulled from the crowd to carry the cross for Jesus.....this task, too, was thrust upon me.] Of course, having been a way builder on my interim year, I dutifully responded.....and they pulled the sweaty guy out, and lowered me down. With spade in hand, I filled several buckets that were hoisted and hauled away....and I cornered the edges nice to perfection. Twenty minutes or so and it was finished.....I was the last one to dig ermal owens' gravesite. Probably, when our cat snickers is buried this coming Thursday.....I will think of Ermal, too. But then.....with spade in hand, I will be filling the grave with excavated dirt. .

The subject of Self-Identity is one that twi has deliberately, and selectively, put on the "back burner" since like 1977.......and going forward, sees it as anathema in twi's transformation of renewed-mind loyalist. Even though wierwille projected this persona of an overbearing, arrogant authoritarian.....I remember a time in twi [1974-1977] when agape love, heart, compassion, tender-hearted, etc. were qualities to aspire to and elevate in teaching. I remember when Ephesians and its truths were touchstones of truth in one's spiritual walk....ie walk in love, walk in light, walk circumspectly. It was THAT model and mindset that I longed to embrace and emulate to others. Believe it or not.....there was a time in twi when states had men's and women's advances [retreats] and much time was spent on practical teachings on the husband's duties in the marriage relationship. Other books and reference material was highlighted to drive the message. One book, Man of Steel and Velvet was delved into.... both sides of male development. BUT.....THAT twi disappeared from view around 1978 and I deeply suspect that wierwille's corps program was the major factor in this transformation. IMO, seemingly.....wierwille's pathological perversions and narcissistic longing for a legacy of consequence gained substantial momentum, and a tipping point, as indoctrinating corps went forth to leaven the whole of twi. Twig coordinators were replaced by arrogant corps; department staff at hq were being infiltrated by corps grads. Twi BECAME a two-tier system: corps versus non-corps. Those who were corps were perceived as "more spiritual." And, wierwille's *vote* was the ONLY ONE THAT MATTERED. The conflict and trauma of these disturbing, mixed messages has been reverberating throughout the whole of twi for FOUR DECADES.....ie Peter J. W@de exiting [1975]. Those closest to wierwille, those with integrity of heart ......detected where this was headed and cut ties. After the filming of the 1967 pfal class, where wierwille heavily plagiarized wholesale......the pathological perversions and narcissism came storming thru the door as vpw launched his "zero corps" program into twi. Undaunted by his ineptness and failures, wierwille continued to drive his passions and lusts into his "training program." Wierwille canonized his corps program to go forth as the successive voices of his plagiarized legacy, a subtle delineation from leonard/stiles/bullinger that would give credit to wierwille and solidify his stature for the generations to follow. .

Yeah....this kind of stuff happens a lot on this forum. 1) Talking about totally different time periods, locations, and circumstances. 2) Someone comes along and states that...."matters and accusations would come in fellowships and laughed off." 3) This big, wide brushstroke that implicates everyone SHOULD KNOW. 4) Totally devoid of reality....and ALL the moving parts of twi involvement 5) And.....grew up in twi and "saw what was going on" Even in 1986, when geer's paper came on the horizon, inrez corps and corps grads alike grappled with the details of "what really was going on." This serial predatory stuff was NOT coming up in fellowships and laughed off....it was A DEAD SERIOUS ACCUSATION THAT, USUALLY, ENGENDERED CONFRONTATION. Sure.....martindale vehemently addressed the homo-infiltration stuff, but that was like 1994. This implication that accusations came up and were laughed off is preposterous......certainly, not in any fellowship that I ever attended. If it, indeed, ever happened.....it had to have been a very isolated instance. But if someone wants to add more SPECIFICS to this claim.....and elucidate on what they saw, what was going on, why leadership laughed it off.....it would help bolster such a claim.

The only time ever given to inrez corps was "self-structured." Note to self: THAT should have been a red flag of things to come.

Victurd's "brew" of leadership training, ie the corps program, was an in-your-face indoctrination camp. And....it's totally appropriate that THIS subject is being addressed in "your identity" thread. BUT....as most all here know, the twisting pathologies in vic's demented world gained a worldview platform after he hijacked b.g. leonard's class in 1953.....and launched into this "holy spirit" bonanza to gain a foothold in the psyche of the young, naïve, searching, transient souls looking for solid ground to stand on. In preparation for to learn the mysteries and mystique contained within vic's "advanced class".....one had to submit to pseudo-doctrine on way tree, renewed mind, adversary attacks, and his crotch-grabbing sex class. Looking back at all this sick perversion is gut-wrenching. Time and time again, I was this-close to walking out......my gut instincts kept telling me to walk. And, the advanced class....with all those tangents on the illuminati, Marxist minstrels, the myth of the six million, the thirteenth tribe, etc. had subliminal messaging that had deep, strategic agendas other than "spiritual learning." And, seemingly.....wierwille's pathological perversions and narcissistic longing for a legacy of consequence gained a foothold thru indoctrinating corps who went forth to leaven the whole of twi.

....in twi, the husband gave deference to the next higher mog on the rung. Of course, the husband-wife relationship [in twi] had multiple variable affecting this depending on local/state leadership and one's place of ranking in the cult command chain.

Yeah.....that's a better description than what I quipped as "...lorded over by the cult command."

Yeah....and let me give you a corps-man's perspective on this. We, too, were under that dastardly whammy to submit......every week, every corps meeting [corps phone hook-ups] nearly half of the 3-hour "teaching" was ordering us around, what to do, what not to do, study this, report back, etc. The "man of gawd" was the one LEADING.....and to us corps husbands, it didn't matter one whit in the marriage relationship. The chain of command.....hq, region, limb --- we had enough on our plate without hardly a decision to make ourselves. Week after week, I was on the phone with a region coordinator telling me what I needed to do to better run things. He wanted me to always report back. He kept wanting to insert himself into my limb responsibilities. Faxes and more faxes. Quite often I would tell my wife.... be thankful that you don't have to deal with this crap every week. And, for us too......it took some time to get a NORMAL husband-wife relationship after exiting twi than being lorded over by the cult command. .

The whole corps indoctrination was information-overload....and yeah, very little time for introspection. Within the first couple of weeks, we were sitting thru pfal rehash, dale carnegie stuff, corps retemories, class on thessalonians, corps night on romans, Christian ediquette, 16 keys to walking by the spirit, challenged to learn all 325 corps names, renew mind class, dealing with the adversary class...... Basically, 4-hrs of work in the morning....and 4-hrs of class/study in the afternoons. Lunchtimes could go for 80-90 minutes easily.....evolving into ANOTHER teaching. Groups would be called out after lunch to meet in the Sonlight Room BEFORE heading to work or class. With 325 in the 9th corps......another 160 in the 7th corps.....and College Division ON CAMPUS.... THE PLACE WAS AN UTTER BUZZFEST OF ACTIVITY. Wait in line here, there and everywhere. The corps coordinators [and assistants] were like a tag-team of drill sergeants barking orders to do this, get that done, stay vigilant, keep your room clean, help your corps sister, study more, etc. The insanity of it all.......... And then......years later, we find out that wierwille, martindale, lynn, etc. were serial sex predators banging the girls while we were in class....or on the field....or wherever. Maybe, in the earlier years it was harder for the big-wigs to stay secluded and all.....but for the larger corps, 7th corps-16th corps, there were 500-600 people on campus. And, quite often it was the women who were assigned to close contact with mogs.....ie head table, back room, greenroom, teacher's aide, house cleaners at lynn's apt in emporia, guests on vp's motor coach, etc. etc. Obviously, those who SAW/EXPOSED and WERE APPALLED by sexual abuse.....were given the bums' rush. .

George.....the corps indoctrination...er, program was channeled and segregated at multiple levels. In-residence corps were subjected to a work/study program that gave hardly 20-30 free-time without having to be heading to the next meeting. Imagine alarm clocks going off at 4:15am, some hitting snooze-buttons for another 10 minutes of sleep, another alarm clock going off.....and then, getting up at 4:50am and heading over to top floor wierwille library....and IN YOUR SEAT by 5:20am [at least twice a week]. Add....aerobic points charts, floss charts, roll call, monthly household responsibilities [chair stringing?], corps night meetings [nearly 3 hrs], meetings after corps meeting, 4-hr bless patrol shifts, corps twigs assigned to prayer vigil shifts [1am-2am], fire alarm drills [3am?].....and if you were called out to do extra, then it totally consumed your week. Need I say more? None of this is difficult to understand, really. The whole program was segregated. Think of that movie, Dirty Dancing....and the juxtaposed exposure of "happy vacationers" as opposed to the sex romps in the housing units of the staffers.

This sex club had all the makings of a blackmail club! Vic, donnie, howeird, marty, do-nana, rosa-lie.......no one will EVER break silence of all the banging going on, BECAUSE it implicates the whole lot of 'em and crumbles the empire. And, not just the sex club.....but the aura of "spirituality" that was bequeathed to each subsequent president of da-way. Well, it sure came crashing down shortly after wierwille rode out in faux-glory on his twig-hopper and straight to cancer treatment. So, vpee dies of a debbil spirit [cancer]..... don dies [age 60] shortly after craiggers is ousted by twi-lawyers for serial sexcapades, rosie lies in a court deposition regarding lcm's preying on women starting in 1995, donna doesn't follow her husband to Toledo [nor is she removed from active corps status THE STANDARD FOR SOME 25 YEARS].... and widow wanda marries howard to become mrs. howard the f...duck Don't ya just love a happy ending to wierwille's serial-sex-blackmail-elite-evil club?

Speaks volumes for the destruction of evil that so many experienced via wierwille's serial "scam-us-try" and how rosa-lie climbed the ranks. And....the offshoot-guys who double-down on vic's plagiarist works for filthy lucre.

As the layers of this "onion" are peeled away.....the stench becomes stronger. Seems like wierwille and geer were playing "3-dimensional, pathological chess" whereas martindale, lynn, cumm!ns, rivenbark, etc. thought, they too, were in the game.

I see it.

DWBH......I stand corrected. lol Thanks for "aiming for the fences" and telling us how vpw/twi WAS.

penworks.....the RISK FACTOR in opening our homes to complete strangers is a brilliant point! Yet, twi schooled us on "negative believing" and just get out there knocking on doors and running twigs, WHEREAS wierwille and geer were layered in security with glock-totting bodyguards, attack dogs, security patrol units and a whole network of nametag staffers who were told to be vigilant when they'd "see something, say something." SO.....could I ask the question, "Where in the he-ll was wierwille's BELIEVING???" We were out there year after year in less-than-average neighborhoods inviting complete strangers into our homes......and wierwille is multi-layered in scores of security measures. Indeed, wierwille was this sociopathic narcissist who dwelled on his own safety and couldn't summon any fiber of empathy or compassion to see how we were AT RISK. Same deal with hitchhiking to LEAD. Hey, twi.....you know what you can do with that $64 MILLION? Stick it up your.......

Charlene.....enjoyed reading your blog and thanks for starting this thread. This whole subject of self-identity, and the onslaughts via twi to subvert one's identity..... is one that has arrested my attention for nearly 37 years. In October/November 1978 as I sat in a corps meeting in Emporia, I will never forget the churning confusion that I experienced when wierwille was publically castigating corps grads that were dissenting and exiting twi. As I sat there, I refused to accept wierwille's outrage over this. With DontWorry's fine post, I have looked a little deeper into identity formation and the subcategories that comprise the whole of identity......namely, cultural, ethnic, national, religious (collective), and gender identity. And, with involvement in twi it's got to have a hyper-collective (cult) category for those of us in this forum. lol Your comment..."I think those of us in The Corps were probably changed more and in worse ways than anyone associated with TWI. Ever. ....has a lot of merit to it. One of the ways in which wierwille was able to deceive and seduce the unsuspecting followers and corps was that he rode in on the coattails of fundamental Christianity and tweaked it, ever-so-slightly. By simply skewing biblical definitions like "meekness" or "spiritual maturity" or "apostle" or "man of God"......we were led astray by this incremental deception. Wierwille's teachings were NO guarantee for truth!! And....wierwille's entourage of bodyguards and private coach hyped his mystique. When he descended on the Emporia campus, he was treated with Rock Star status. The corps indoctrination....er, program had all the markings of seduction [ie isolation, peer pressure, collective belonging/mindset, buzzspeak, elite training, lord over others, etc.]. And, anyone who was paying attention realized that wierwille was promoting his corps program as the pinnacle of all spiritual achievement that twi had to offer. At headquarters, the corps graduates were replacing the "old guard" as department coordinators....and, on the field, corps were replacing branch coordinators and soon, twig coordinators. The message? If you want to be INvolved.....you've got to go corps. Individuality was quickly squashed the minute you arrived at the corps campus and got your room assignment. In Owens Hall at Emporia, we were assigned to 18-men per room....a bunk, small closet and a couple of dresser drawers to put your stuff in. All music instruments were stored away at Kenyan Hall storage for 3 months. The message was immediately clear......you are insignificant, group identity is supreme! Having been in college recently with all kinds of freedoms, and having grown up in rural America.....I nearly left the corps after the first month. Uugh. This is it? But I wasn't a quitter and decided to stay until Christmas. Slowly and ever-so-incremental.....I began to accept the corps-slog. Clearly, the young women outnumbered us men.....and it probably played into my decision to stay. lol But from a clear, logical standpoint.....I detested the smugness, the spiritual "protocol" and all the pampering that was given wierwille from day one. It reeked of hypocrisy. And further, as the years passed....I couldn't help but notice vpw's "good words and fair speeches" and zilch, NO power. Self-identity, in twi, only exists at the upper mog/mogette levels. Group identity is for the "little people." .