skyrider

Listing some characteristics of a cult: From where I sit......some corps NO LONGER allow twi to shame them into moving every 3-5 years. The wierwille model of cult mentality has dropped a few notches! No longer. No way. What else explains why more and more corps are NOT moving? What else explains why fewer are signing up to go into the corps? What else explains why advanced class grads are NOT going on staff? Yeah.....it's still a cult, but there is push back. The field corps are putting MORE SPACE between them and twi's directors. Just recently, I heard where an ex-twier went to a corps communion service and thought it was really tender and special. You know.....like the days of old. Simple. Succinct. No strings. No shaming at the twig level. As in any organization or cult, there are slivers of sunshine and safe havens. Yet, the roots of this thing are a toxic mix of poison served with a smile. Rosalie hates it knowing that she can't micromanage every little detail. She doesn't even like Linder having a side job as a realtor. Shame is a big part of controlling others!

1) Maggie was Canadian 2) Wierwille was a plagiarist 3) By definition, a plagiarist is lazy 4) Wierwille was a lazy, lazy plagiarist 5) Couldn't even come up with an American character? 6) Couldn't see how someday his plagiarism would be exposed? 7) Obviously, he didn't make Leonard's class his own 8) In 15 yrs, he couldn't adapt or improvise? Wow! 9) And, this is the guy who harped about "make it your own."

Although wierwille had nearly 15 years to research, readdress, and reposition "his" pfal class from BG Leonard's class, wierwille STILL reiterates Maggie Muggins' presence. She never left. She is still there. Why is she STILL there? Remember, wierwille sat in Leonard's class in Calgary, Alberta Canada in February 1953. According to Mrs. W's book....vpw was thrilled with this knowledge. Then, with Mrs. and Don and two carloads, wierwille returned in June/July 1953 to sit thru the class again. What a commitment and undertaking.....to leave rural Ohio and drive to Calgary, Alberta with a small group. Wierwille had obviously convinced a small few that this class was, indeed, dynamic!! Then......THREE MONTHS LATER, in October (1953) wierwille has signed up a number of class attendees for "his" on the gifts of the holy spirit [i.e. Leonard's class]......presenting the class in Ohio with no syllabus, no class materials. Plus, those who attended the Calgary class were grads of the class and were not charged a registration fee. In other words.....yep, same class. Nearly 15 years later, wierwille films "his" pfal class in 1967. Maggie Muggins is still there in the class. She never left. What does Maggie's presence tell us about wierwille? Maggie Muggins

Yeah, then wierwille and co. are not measured by their IQ........but by their AQ.

Sure, there are lots of abusive and manipulative people in this world. BUT....when a group has a set of buzzwords, inner-circle groupthink, pseudo-holiday traditions (bless & treat, ho ho relo, etc) Maggie Muggins, Henry Balloco, and Snowball Pete introduced to the party from a stolen class, an occult 'law of believing' to undergird the religious movement and the mog's traveling bus entertaining the ladies all the while as a symbol of his dedication to 'move the verd'.........not sure what one would really call such a thing? Abusive Quackiness doesn't pinpoint it either.....

Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all [ye] that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Let not your heart be troubled..... ....but rather, LET YOUR HEART BE INSPIRED. CLICK HERE

BINGO.

WW....yeah, that's a better way to qualify it. Vpw simply feigned the paul or timothy valiant lifestyle. Rather than live it, wierwille liked to be seen of men and teach about it. "Do the word" was a hybrid wow-mobile than needed pfal-charged daily.

With heavy emphasis on dispensationalism, wierwille and co. spent a major portion of its doctrine on the church epistles, the Grace Administration. Yes, Christ was the son of God who fulfilled the Law and was crucified, resurrected, and seated at the right hand of God.......BUT NOW, after pentecost, we live in this age of grace of remission and forgiveness of sins. So, in twi....forgiveness of sins was as simple as a nightly admission to the Father of sins washed away [the big sins, little sins teaching in pfal]. More sins tomorrow? More sexual predation? No problem. Just ask for forgiveness to the Father....NOT TO THE ONE ABUSED.....and voila! Cleansed again....in perpetuity. See, with twi doctrine, you could go thru life willfully and knowingly sinning daily without spiritual consequence or judgment. What a life of indulgence! Drunkenness, covetousness, plagairism, lying, stealing, exploitation, sexual predation.......no big sins, no little sins. No big deal. With drambuie in hand, just go to your little prayer closet and poof.....a new man, again. Now listen.....you can't bring forward those old testament scriptures about 'if one's neighbor's ox is gored, or one's daughter is violated'.....nope. We're not in THAT administration any longer. That was then. This is now. The Santa Claus God always comes bearing gifts of forgiveness and newness of life. YET.....ever notice how wierwille and co. dip into the old testament when it proves THEIR point? SELECTIVE CHERRY PICKING OF SCRIPTURES was the happy orchard of wierwilleville. Still is. And, wierwille was a seasoned cherry-picker when it came to the gospels. Even when Jesus confronted the men to "go and SIN NO MORE......uumm, that doesn't apply to us because its fulfilling the Law Administration. Christians, the world over, will be celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the gift of everlasting life in the coming days. In Egypt (and elsewhere), Christians are being persecuted for their beliefs as the muslim brotherhood ascends to power. Some are hazarding their lives to stand for Christ. With twi.....it was more like "What would the Apostle Paul do? Or Timothy?

Yeah.....and Paul gives an accounting of his "tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews, a Pharisee" credentials outlining how all of this personal gain was but loss for Christ. Clearly, Paul has not forgotten past associations, but rather dismisses its significance when compared to a far, far greater prize and high calling. In common vernacular: So yeah.....I took pfal, went WOW twice, sat at the feet of wierwille in corps program, staff assignments and ordained by wierwille. Another 14 years of corps and clergy meetings, zealous to uphold and conform to twi's dictates and traditions of men. Yet, my soul and spirit yearned for the excellency of Christ Jesus my Lord. And, having suffered the loss of perspective and focus, I count twi's mandates as DUNG and press onward. Is that forgetting the past? <_<

Forgiveness is one of those subjects that has this "spiritually correct" teflon version.....ie the victim is supposed to *forgive* the perpetrator and move on in life. And, in christian circles, a couple of verses on forgiveness or cute one-liners and the victim is on the road to wholeness, again. Oh, that's right......don't want that "root of bitterness" in there to trouble and defile you. How often that verse is used for submission. Uuugh. If some are going to take the scripture route, then why not II Corinthians 7: Confronting Sinners ...1) speaking the truth in love ...2) sinner/perpetrator hears ...3) godly sorrow ...4) repentance (change of heart) ...5) fear and trembling (respect & obedience) ...6) salvation (actions/wholeness) ...7) restored standing in household of faith THEN......they (abusers/sinners) will approve themselves to be clear of this matter (sin). [iI Cor. 7:11] Christians need to STOP sheltering these abuses and abusers!

Nice little phrase.....but, in my opinion, it misses the mark. I know this is not the doctrinal forum.....but a quick search on blueletterbible.com on "forgiveness" is accompanied with forgiveness of sins in all 5 references [after pentecost] and their sin separates them from the lord and savior. Their behavior (sin) is "destroying THEIR heart" -- not mine. .

What ever happened to the "God will tell you FIRST before He lets anyone else know" doctrine? On one hand, they preach pfal.....and then violate it when it suits their agenda. Say it ain't so......mogs and mogettes glory in ruling over others. These placement mtgs give you a brief glance behind the oz curtain. Corps and staff placements were filled with favoritism and lust. A modern-day form of spiritual abuse and slavery. Where region men barked their demands -- "I'll take him!"

This bears repeating..... .....and hopefully linder will get this thread printed and over to rosalie's desk pronto. .

With the martindale lawsuit and ouster.....I think that corps grads on the field got the upper edge as well. Obviously, there was SIN IN TWI'S TRUSTEE-CAMP and the manipulation that was once there vanished. Not only were these corps grads hitting the 50-year old age grouping, they were ensconced in homes, neighborhoods, school districts, and careers that many, if not most, were unwilling to leave. At this stage of life, and especially on the heels of the martindale sex romps/lawsuit/ouster......if push came to shove, corps grads would have willingly given twi the one-finger salute and exited. Thus, corps grads are NOT going to be moving any time soon unless they request it. And, even then, it would be to the benefit of the CORPS GRAD, because of a job change or family needs or the pleasant weather in Tampa. The annual placement meetings facillitate the one-on-one time with region coordinators more than reshuffling the deck of the 'committed.' Window dressing for the young corps to see. Besides......what else is twi doing with that $54 Million? They might as well spend a few bucks and fly the region coordinators in for a week. Micro-managing doesn't work all that well if rosie can't manage the micro-details in her policies.

Without getting into the geer power-grab fiasco, the trustees and corps leadership had been sending mixed messages for years. In 1978, the corps numbers were swelling at a remarkable rate from the 6th corps thru 9th corps [and amassing corps signatures for another five years]....and corps leadership began to highlight that the corps program was twofold: 1)Training corps to be future twig coordinators and 2)Teaching spiritual men and women to go forth into their communities and business and give back to twi. Remember, within a couple of years, twi had FIVE corps locations with the family/children focus at the Indiana campus AND the trunk office was gearing up for Military Outreach and Medical Outreach. IMO.....the whole structure and twi system was inadequate and unable to adapt. A thesis paper could be written to encompass the number of variables that caused the weight of this system to come crashing down upon itself, starting with wierwille and trustees. The corps program was not designed to raise men and women for spiritual leadership....but rather, *pfal-class instructors.* You see, the buzzspeak of twi was "the word moves when pfal classes were running." The more drones there were, the more "THE WORD" (pfal) would move over the world. For years, class instructors were not corps.....but hey, with the corps program, more discipline equated to more dedicatation. But what wierwille and co. failed to recognize was THE WIERWILLE MYSTIQUE WAS FADING. As advanced class grads and corps grew older, the "old model" of roa tent camping and communes was dissipating. With each passing year, the concerns for good employment, careers, advancements, educations, families, etc. were seeping into the conscience of even the lowly dullard. It wasn't brain surgery.....it was simple reality! Where were the signs, miracles or wonders of God? Those corps weeks and rock of ages times were fun times of REUNITING WITH OLD FRIENDS......not the power of God in manifestation!!! And really, all those military analogies fall flat when one gets past basic calisthenics. The way corps was filled with zealous volunteers, mostly, wanting to help people and serve God. Two years of inresidence and aerobic points does NOT make for an elite fight force or whatever. What a pile of bull-hooie. And, after graduation, volunteer corps were paying their own way to move year after year to different locations. I would venture to say that nearly 90% of all corps were 'on their own'.......no salary, no compensation, no healthcare, no retirement package. Even church ministers, who are shuffled every 5 years [an apples to oranges comparison] have a church location, congregants, already in place. They are not given this nebulous set of directives.......to organize witnessing nights, public ex's, find locations and run pfal classes. Okay, now I got a headache. That's enough. :asdf:/> .

Rosalie to region/corps leadership: "If we string the chairs, they will come."

And....how offshoots tell you how to "forget the past, but embrace the good and stop being bitter" wherein they desire to plug your giving, your money to their outfit BEFORE YOU'VE STEPPED BACK LONG ENOUGH TO CONNECT THE DOTS.

The old model was WIERWILLE'S MODEL. That's what astounds me when people claim wierwille was some sort of visionary for the corps program and spiritual growth. Moving again and again......moving to another city on your own dime, scoping out city maps and neighborhoods for rental homes and schools, finding employment, corps grads and twig coordinators meetings, etc, etc.......and wierwille wonders why corps are not committed to this for a lifetime? What about finding a new dentist? another doctor? prenatal care? With kids in tow, each passing year added exponential family concerns. Anyone with average brain cells rubbing together could see the coming trainwreck. Why couldn't wierwille see this? He had five kids and knew, somewhat, of the challenges of a growing family.....didn't he? Of course, he didn't move more than some 60 miles from his dad's homestead, but surely he could contemplate what challenges corps grads would face when their kids were in high school and prepping for college? Life? Finances? Colleges? Grandchildren? Retirement? All of this was SO OBVIOUS. Anyone with a modicum of observation and empathy for people could see that corps servitude, and moving every 3-5 years, wasn't going to work. This could NOT be God's will......a edict set in twi-stone that all corps grads would heed. How assinine! How narcisstic! Good for thee, but not for me! Talk about use and abuse. And, if wierwille was too narcisstic to see it.....where were the "multitude of counsellors in the church" to confront this? Martindale, Lynn, Finneg-n, Reah-rd, Cvmmins, ---- no one could see this??? IMO....without confronting this glaring issue, corps grads were left with two choices: 1) Climb the twi corporate ladder and get on full-time payroll status or 2) Continue to make preparations for one's own life, family and future. And, the further a corps grad was assigned from hq, the more obvious was this plan of action. And, who would blame them? It was THEIR life. I always had great respect for those california corps who, after assigned out west, never seemed to come back (haha). So, staffers like Rivenbark or Linder, who got on payroll after their corps graduation....NEVER LEAVE. Nice gig with creature-comfort perks and NO MOVING, EVAH......buy home, stay put, look how spiritual they are.

Does twi still have those Annual Placement Meetings (ie. CABAL) in mid-March? You know, the ones where the directors, corps and region leaders, and a select few gather in the BRC to discuss policy, procedure, purpose and pronounce verdicts of sending the underling corps forth? cabal -- 1) a small group of persons joined in a secret, 2) the intrigues of such a group, plot In the early to mid-80s, these meetings were backed with revered fervor as the top dogs gathered at hq to handle some 2,400 corps assignments. Prior to this event, all active corps had to meet with their immediate corps leadership to be interviewed and evaluated of "spiritual performance." Each year, the list of questions grew longer and the scrutiny intensified......until the fog years, and the chains of bondage were broken. With nearly an 80% corps exodus, the corps placement meetings were stripped of their former glory. Less corps, less power over peoples' lives......it was that simple. Besides the lower numbers, the corps were unable to move every three years like before. With kids in school and families to feed, the corps were unable and unwilling to just pick up and move at the cabal......er, leaders' beckoning. It infuriated martindale as more and more corps moved from 'active corps' to 'corps alumni.' See, even the corps designation had to change for corps who were taken off twi-payroll but still participating in ministry activity. Anyways, it does make me wonder what the status of these meetings are today. I mean, with SO FEW CORPS NUMBERS....and pathetic enrollment into corps training, do they even have these meetings anymore? Besides, low numbers.......there are corps in my city who've been here for nearly 15 years and are still 'active corps' for twi. So, does the corps ever move anymore? Or, is Rosie and company unable to extract much movement after the lawsuit? Heck, with secular employment and weekly bible fellowships, its starting to look like twi has slipped a few notches in cult fame.......and are just your everyday religion, except for their super-duper manifestations in play.

Only you, Eagle, know of a "bitterness or hatred" that you've held in your heart against twi. For me, I come at this from a totally different perspective. In telling one's story and life experiences, the journey speaks for itself. Books of this genre are invaluable for understanding the dark shadows of deception, exploitation and destruction.......and setting the captives free. Book story -- Click Here .

Ummm......could it be that wierwille's CP#1 was a mind-reading, bewitching from following truth? [Gal. 3:1] The false teacher wierwille was perverting the gospel. I'm shocked, I tell you. Shocked.

Wierwille structured twi's BOD for exactly that reason......NO ACCOUNTABILITY. Even in pfal, wierwille scoffs at those directors in his first pastorate who told him not preach on tithing. What did wierwille do? He did it anyways! He defied their directives and was not going to be beholden to their counsel. Several examples are right there "hiding in plain sight" in pfal. Wierwille mocks biblical scholars and, supposedly, takes 3,000 (??) volumes of commentary to the local dump. And, he shows contempt for those spiritual men at the Oral Roberts Convention who, according to wierwille, couldn't help him speak in tongues. When wierwille told his stories, one is left with heaping judgement on directors, church leaders, scholars and siding with the "humble man" who simply was forging ahead to get answers. After leaving Van Wert's church payroll in 1957, wierwille had a running start to incorporate The Way, Inc. Fifteen years of church boards was enough! Now, the 40-year old wierwille was going to run things HIS WAY......and boy did he ever! His first "board of directors" consists of a brother, a soft-spoken friend, and himself. This board seemed to have had very little function except non-profit legalize accountability and fund solicitations. By 1978, the second set of directors is wierwille's son, Don, and longtime right-hand man, Howard. See the alpha male pattern of board selections? It is so obvious.....its outright laughable. But, in my opinion, it wasn't the board of directors that was so destructive......it was the way corps program. Year after year, the grooming and indoctrination of "corporals, sergeants and lieutenants" amassed the formidable power of perception. Not real power, but the power of perception. Each one marching toward spiritual maturity......an ambiguous, fraudulent concept defined by "spiritual marine corps' hierarchy." The perception of involvement, the perception of advancement......and yet, what was one accomplishing? Why were they consistently moving the goal posts? The advanced class wasn't the end, but merely the beginning? The inrez corps program wasn't the end of training, but a lifetime of servitude to twi? Corps grads were to attend weekly corps meetings, report back and on a choke collar to leaderships' liking? Is there any wonder why statistics bear the fact that even church clergy step aside from authoritarian rule after 12-15 years? Whereas, twi was far more confining and restrictive. What does one discover after 15-20 years in the wierwille camp? BETRAYAL. Wierwille deceived himself and was deceiving others. He was a traitor to spiritual growth and advancement. Things like "the way tree" and "the renewed mind" and "the law of believing" were used (and still are) to tweak the scriptures ever-so-slightly to divert one's path. The renewed mind renewing of one's mind to scriptural truths is perpetual growth. Not some petrified fixation on pfal. Deception, fraud, lies, plagairism, idolatry, etc........wierwille's legacy. Twi's vice presidents have always been JUST ANOTHER FOLLOWER of the leader. Like sled dogs, if you are not the leader.......every view is the same.

Decades ago, twi was this unsuspecting, tangible bible group that had a class "to unlock the biblical keys to scripture." * With classes, programs and indoctrinated leadership, control measures were mandated in all aspects of life. * Decisions on life, education, dating, spouse eligibility, pregnancy, abortion, family, etc. -- "to live the word." * Incremental indoctrination -- so subtle, so calculating, so destructive, so deadly. Environmental issues are being taught to elementary, middle school, high school and college students. * Is the national and world environment of extreme, utmost importance in a balanced, healthy society? Yes. * Are there EPA regulations and extremes so bizarre that defy common sense and logic. Yes. * Do big corporations, greedy loggers, animal poachers, etc. need to be guarded with laws, regs and stiff penalties. Yes. * Could environmental issues be used as a subtle, calculating, imprisoning of healthy life. Yes. Of course, there are extreme environmental groups out there who want to issue turtle passageways to save every little turtle. And, there are abortion rights group out there who could care less that 50 MILLION have been aborted since Roe v Wade (1973). The pendulum is always swinging. Who wants life dictated by overlords and mandates? Yet, can man ever live in moderate his self-governance? Cults in religion, politics, environment, commercial......what a world!

Well.....since we're broadening the reach and scope of cults where "replacing a healthy society with a little army of robots, robot-thinking and response, and denial of self all for the goals of the cult"..... Would the cult of SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT be included? * Where new power grids and smart-technology dictate every homeowners' mandated usage? * Where water-rationing controls will be monitored by central command centers? * Where gas and water and propane meters have automatic shut-off limits? * Where U.N. globalists have been infiltrating American communities via ICLEI since 1990? Would mandating a "healthy society" be considered an ENVIRONMENTAL CULT?