T-Bone

So true Chockfull and Waysider! I think wierwille/TWI tended to stifle…maybe…strangle the creative life out of their musicians by trying to establish TWI’s own unique genre of homogenized-PFAL-eulogized-The-Rightly-Divided-Word-in-music style. I will always treasure the people who introduced me to great music: My Dad: he had a great selection of big bands, movie soundtracks, classical, Jazz, Sinatra, Tony Bennett, and some pop. I now have a lot of that in the form of CDs and on my iPhone. My brother: he gave me his old monaural portable record player and three albums: The Beatles’ Sgt. Peppers, The Four Tops Greatest Hits and The Mothers of Invention Freak Out. (regarding the record player - I later retrofitted it with a headphone jack with an external speaker-on/off toggle switch – it was my first SUCCESSFUL tech project; after that I retrofitted a similar setup on my Dad’s stereo console…(surprised I didn’t blow the headphone speakers…and it wasn’t until years later I learned about attenuating circuits ). There’s a scene in the movie Almost Famous that always gets a lot of fond memories to well up inside – where young William Miller watches his older sister leave home and then he goes and gets her album collection and starts playing them. I left a You Tube link below of that scene – at about the 1:44 mark is when it starts…this is one of my all-time favorite movies. My friend Jimi: my best friend in high school and a great drummer. He turned me onto Jimi Hendrix (that’s when my friend James starting spelling his first name like JH) , The Cream, Jethro Tull, Led Zeppelin, Vanilla Fudge…My first concert – was me and Jimi going to see Jimi H., Janis Joplin, Chambers Brothers and Soft Machine – what a line up! FYI – listening to The Cream I so wanted to play the guitar…my brother got me a cheapy electric guitar and amp. But I couldn’t figure out how to make Eric’s chords (for some reason getting lessons or finding how-to books never crossed my mind) – then I realized I could easily identify and isolate Jack’s bass lines – a lot easier task since it’s usually one note at a time – so I removed the skinnier B and E strings – re-notched the nut to spreadout the remaining 4 strings – and voila – I had the $hittiest sounding rinky dink eunuch bass ever ! And the rest is history of sonic-misery. My wife Tonto: (also, my best friend ) My list of influencers is actually a lot bigger – but I trimmed it down to these top 4 (Dad, brother, Jimi and wife) for the sake of brevity using the one criterion of those who were the BIGGEST guides/mentors to deeply affect my taste, preferences and ultimately what musicians and singer/songwriters would inspire me…anyway, marriage is such an interesting commingling of the experiences, backgrounds, tastes, etc. of two people don’t you think? She also liked The Beatles (and is a much bigger fan than I was) and also got me into The Rolling Stones, Eagles, Commander Cody, Asleep at the Wheel, southern rock, country, western, Bonnie Raitt, Lyle Lovett, Robert Earl Keen, The Band, John Prine, James McMurtry, Joni Mitchell, CSN&Y, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, and many, many more interesting singers/songwriters…Of these top 4 influencers, Tonto is the one that got me to really APPRECIATE THE LYRICS of songs. That’s not to dis the other 3 folks – cuz the music itself has always been a big deal to me – but my wife clued me in to a whole other fascinating dimension that I’ve been ignoring. It’s as if the words themselves have something to say. …anyway…here’s to all you influencers out there – thank you for being the vanguards of vinyl…8 tracks…cassettes…CDs…MP3s…can you hum a few bars?

Yes, we are all sinners – but it’s also alarming that some of the greatest errors that the epistle of I John confronts such as Gnosticism and antinomianism have also been one of best kept secrets in way-world today! The gnostic idea that matter is evil and only spirit is good leads to diametrically opposed extremes. One extreme was asceticism – where adherents would withdraw from the world, renounce material possessions, physical pleasures, and comforts - Colossians 2: 21 – 23 speaks to that error. At the opposite end of the practical spectrum was antinomianism – that was the thinking that sin committed in the body had no connection or effect on one’s spirit. That opened the floodgates of immorality since sin committed in the physical body did not matter…to indulge in sinfulness was permissible, one could even deny sin existed - I John confronts that error: If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us. I John 1: 8-10 The general public of TWI are not aware of this double standard. But those who’ve been through the way corps program are all too familiar with the hypocrisy of wierwille and certain other top leadership – as evidenced in Kristen Skedgell’s book Losing the Way: A Memoir of Spiritual Longing, Manipulation, Abuse, and Escape … (on another thread - here - I mention a few sordid details from her book.) The new and improved formula for wierwille’s brand of antinomianism has great biblical-sounding one-liners like “I’ve so renewed my mind that things like _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ (fill in the blank for the indulgence of your choice) does not bother me.” License to do anything was decreed by wierwille’s proclamation “anything done in the love of God is okay.” And as a preemptive countermeasure to anyone who might be offended, shocked, or upset by wierwille’s behavior he would say stuff like “The love of God thinketh no evil.” I have mentioned many times on Grease Spot one particular meeting in the Family Corps where I witnessed wierwille in all his sanctimonious glory spewing out these salacious indulgences – see here Mike said: “My take on VPW's First Session is that we all commit the greatest sin, and often.” I think that may be echoing the same mistake that wierwille made in that first session of PFAL; If I remember correctly wierwille’s monologue gets into asking what’s the greatest sin a person can commit? He refers to Matthew 22: 34-40 where Jesus talks about the greatest commandment…wierwille then answers his own question saying by sheer logic breaking this greatest commandment is the greatest sin. But I don’t think Jesus was using the superlative adjective “greatest” to specify or describe the absolute worst sin. Let’s look at it in the NIV (you can click on the pull down tab to see other translations once you click on the hyperlink to Matt. 22 ): Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law? “Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” Matthew 22: 34 - 37 Or, as the NLT translation has verse 40, “The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments” Matthew 22:40 Since Jesus brings the entire Old Testament into the conversation it seems more likely he’s using the superlative adjective “greatest” to mean that the principle (the ethical or legal code) to love God and neighbor is SO BIG, it encapsulates the entire Hebrew Bible. In other words, there’s nothing more important than that...to love God and neighbor is comprehensive...all-encompassing. I think wierwille’s teachings on sin tended to water down the seriousness of sin as well as its consequences – by teaching that all sin is the same. He also used the term “broken fellowship” like a mild euphemism to blunt the harsh unpleasant reality of sin and its consequences. I remember in that same PFAL session wierwille muddied the topic even more by saying as long as you love God and neighbor you can do as you full well please. That could be advantageous to situation ethics. With such an ambiguous tenet one could make a moral decision that it’s okay to have a sexual encounter with the neighbor’s wife. for example I could reason that I love God, she attends our Twig, so I know she loves God too…we’re both believers so we love each other…I have a need…she has a need…our spouses are both at work – and what they don’t know won’t hurt them. All sin is the same? I don’t think so. The Bible, the secular laws of the land, and even common sense will tell you not all sin (or crimes) are the same. The Old Testament had a compensatory code that was extensive covering all kinds of crimes and offenses – but most folks are familiar with the “eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth” idea. In The New Testament even Jesus makes distinctions on degrees of punishment appropriate to the sin: Matthew 10:15 Luke 17:2 ...And elsewhere Scripture notes the correlation of sin and consequences Romans 6 Romans 7 I Corinthians 3 I Corinthians 5 I Corinthians 6:9,10 Galatians 5: 19-21 Galatians 6:7, 8 Ephesians 4:17-32 I Thessalonians 4 I Timothy 4:1, 2 I Timothy 6 Hebrews 12: 1-29 I Peter 2:11 Revelation 21:8 ...Be aware that most of these passages address the impact of sin AFTER salvation...the ramifications of our behavior is not just in the here and now - but as we head into eternity. Most states and civilized countries set up codes/laws/penalties along a similar line of a “punishment to fit the crime”. That’s where you see delineations of felonies, misdemeanors, jail time, fines, etc. Crime is crime – true but not all crime is the same in terms of consequences. The statement “My take on VPW's First Session is that we all commit the greatest sin, and often” can be boiled down to one of the typical logical fallacies that big wierwille-fans use to validate and promote PFAL. It’s along the lines of an appeal to hypocrisy also known as tu quoqe (a Latin term for 'you too', meaning a counter-accusation). It focuses on the supposed hypocrisy of a critic. The tu quoque fallacy deflects criticism away from PFAL by accusing the critic of the same problem or something comparable. The fallacy usually occurs when one tries to neutralize criticism and distract from the issue. It’s the slippery idea that we-are-all-sinners-so-who-are-you-to-judge-wierwille counteraccusation. Of course, that has nothing to do in a discussion about “the law of believing”, or the ridiculousness of saying "scripture interprets itself" but who cares. (I’ve exposed this logical fallacy on another thread -here ). Now what was the issue Mike was attempting to divert our attention from? Waysider asked “Mike Correct me if I'm wrong. Did he not also say, in the PFAL class, that the law of believing "works for saint and sinner alike."? "Why, if I were a bettin' man, I'd wager"... you'll find a way to reconcile these contradictions.” See here . Mike’s response which is quoted above, manages double-duty - by dodging the question and perpetuating another wierwille lie, that all sin is the same. Mike’s typical ploy is to attack the critic of PFAL instead of debating the issue of PFAL. He has expressed here many times that PFAL is God-breathed and supports the lies documented on pages 178 and 209 of the TWI-authorized book The Way Living in Love which records wierwille’s admission of plagiarism under the guise of being authorized by God to steal the intellectual property of others: “I was praying. And I told Father outright that He could have the whole thing, unless there were real genuine answers that I wouldn't ever have to back up on. And that's when He spoke to me audibly, just like I'm talking to you now. He said He would teach me the Word as it had not been known since the first century if I would teach it to others. Well, I nearly flew off my chair. I couldn't believe that God would talk to me… …“Lots of the stuff I teach is not original. Putting it all together so that it fit – that was the original work. I learned wherever I could, and then worked that with the Scriptures. What was right on with the Scriptures, I kept; but what wasn’t, I dropped.” As amazingly simple as this may sound - PFAL has a lot wrong with it because it is an eclectic mix of dubious ideologies cobbled together by an incompetent plagiarist. That’s besides the fact that “the teacher” was an unabashed plagiarist, exhibited strong addictions to nicotine, alcohol and sex – and he was also delusional.

Splitting (also called black-and-white thinking or all-or-nothing thinking) is the failure in a person's thinking to bring together the dichotomy of both perceived positive and negative qualities of something into a cohesive, realistic whole. It is a common defense mechanism wherein the individual tends to think in extremes (e.g., an individual's actions and motivations are all good or all bad with no middle ground). This kind of dichotomous interpretation is contrasted by an acknowledgement of certain nuances known as "shades of gray" From Wikipedia - splitting ~ ~ ~ ~ The official psychological term for black and white thinking is “splitting.” At its extremes, splitting can be a symptom of mental illness like Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). In everyday settings, it can simply hold us back from experiencing some of the richness of our lives and relationships. Of course, the world is not an either/or place: Our lives are full of shades of gray. By seeing the world in black and white — rather than the complex rainbow it actually is — we may initially make it easier for ourselves to separate out good from bad, right from wrong, and beautiful from ugly. But this kind of thinking can be exhausting, sending us through constant ups and downs. And on a deep level, simplifying things into easy, binary terms robs us of much of the complexity that makes life and relationships so rich… …All of us have wondered if we’re “bad people” or “good people.” In reality, most of us are somewhere in between, with both bad and good qualities. When you think in black and white terms, however, you risk being overly self-critical or refusing to see your faults…. …Like all aspects of life, work will have good days and bad days, and many days that are somewhere in between…When we acknowledge that our professional lives, like every other aspect of life, are complex and may have pluses and minuses, we enable ourselves to learn and grow toward success… Excerpts From 5 Ways Black and White Thinking Poisons Your Perspective ~ ~ ~ ~ In my humble opinion “everyone's experience is different" is valid and necessary for me to get the bigger picture of what happened…if a cult-leader deceives a lot of people – there will always be various responses to that…some on Grease Spot say he was a good man gone bad…some say God spoke to him and taught him “The Word”…some may paint him up as the devil incarnate…I have found it’s more helpful to judge wierwille’s ACTIONS and WORDS witnessed to by many including myself whether it was through the EXPERIENCE of sitting through classes, in public settings, personal direct interaction, or written works. I feel confident that it is my duty to judge ACTIONS and WORDS per the numerous passages throughout the Bible that call those of the Christian faith to form an opinion based on a simple understanding of Scripture, logic and the golden rule – i.e., the ultimate, all-encompassing rule of morality promoted by every religion and ethical system…of course experiences, observations, comments, criticisms and arguments from Scripture and logic are debatable…and it should all be expressed to give one the bigger picture…But what is NOT debatable is anything wierwille wrote, said or did – because it’s documented in books, magazines, newsletters, recorded on tape in teachings or witnessed by those present. What is always up for argument is trying to guess at his motivation, analyze his use of Scripture to justify an action or to surmise any unintended consequences from what he wrote, said or did. Rather than think of wierwille as the devil himself, TWI as being hell on earth or PFAL as being all bad – I prefer to look at things taking into account we’re all human…to me, PFAL was simply wierwille’s manifesto… ...besides wierwille being an unabashed plagiarist, exhibiting strong addictions to nicotine, alcohol and sex - he was also delusional. That might put a lot of this stuff in a different perspective...for a time I let myself get sucked into his delusion...Like the character Cooper in the movie Interstellar going into the black hole Interstellar - entering the black hole ...Cooper's trip through the black hole was a totally unique experience - and in the story that did give him quite a different perspective of space and time...there's no way I can wipe out my memories/TWI-experience...so I sometimes find myself peering through different "self-reflective lenses" and draw upon things I learned, what needs fixing, and trying to be more empathetic to others with similar experiences. concerning the incident you mentioned "An elephant walks in front of two people standing together. They look at each other and one says, "I didn't see anything, that was my experience". " Assuming the elephant actually did walk in front of the two people standing together - I would want to talk with the person who said he or she didn't see anything. I would be very curious as to why. ...Some people on Grease Spot have a hard time separating the man from the myths, legends, words and works (whether good or bad). But as reality goes…as life goes – there’s lots of stuff that gets thrown into the mix. I can note good and bad things in wierwille, TWI, PFAL. Unfortunately, the bad outweighs the good in my opinion. But exercising discernment is a wise and healthy thing as far as recovering from a cult. I tend to think of my own time in TWI as a weird symbiotic experience - involving interaction between two different “organisms” living in close physical association…there was me as well as other well-meaning Christians having a godly effect on each other but that was intertwined with the manipulative and exploitative tendencies of a harmful and controlling organization that we belonged to. In symbiotic relationships there are "benefits" to both parties…What did I get out of it? Maybe some sense of belonging to a group that I thought was special…and working for a cause that was bigger than myself. At its best I got to exercise my faith, hope, and love with others...otherwise sometimes it was just playing church - when The Way got in the way of the spirit .... ... What TWI got out of it was some of my money, talents, resources, and time to facilitate running more PFAL classes and other nonsensical time-wasters. In summary: I like Grease Spot Café for the chance to share my experience...also some of the experiences that other Grease Spotters share resonates with me. It continues to reveal a bigger picture of The Way International and even more so the human condition!

Some leaders pushed for doing anything and everything - hosting the Rock, The Hard Place and other solid venues – leaving no stone unturned in order to bring folks together… (hey, wait up…I’ve shown myself out many times and would appreciate some company)

maybe a little This topic – and particularly this section got me as a parent to reflect on how much I relinquished to The Way International. Parents are the first authority figure in a child’s life and set the stage and draft a partial script for the kid’s journey. Loving parents usually have good intentions and high hopes that their kids will grow up to be able to fend for themselves. Ultimately that means independence from parental authority. It’s fascinating to observe how cults can insinuate their authority into one’s life. Harmful and manipulative cults subtly worm their way into rewriting your personal “script”. They become the new authority figure. When I joined TWI in 1974, I had that counterculture-I’m-doing-my-own-thing attitude – I was single and didn’t have kids. During this “romance” phase of my TWI-involvement – at first I acquiesced to the force of their influence, figuring they had the bead on truth so I might as well get into it. Eventually I was wholeheartedly on board. By the time I got married and had kids, self-determination was subjugated to the preferences and priories of TWI. In a weird-hive-mind process, it was almost like TWI by proxy became the authority figure for my family. That’s why I said earlier as a parent I was reflecting on how much I relinquished to The Way International. But - If you are a parent in TWI – don’t freak out! You can change and inspire your kids to grow up strong and independent. All you gotta do is plan your exit from TWI * - and check out these excerpts from a Psychology Today article: • It's tempting for parents to indoctrinate rather than to educate. • That's especially likely around religion, politics, and the "right" balance of work, play, and family. • Parents can encourage their children to become more thoughtful by exposing them to multiple perspectives, not just their own. "Do not indoctrinate your children. Teach them how to think for themselves, how to evaluate evidence, and how to disagree with you." Richard Dawkins Fairly present differing views. In the aforementioned three areas as well as others, make the best-case, not a straw-man case, for opposing views. Ask your child which is most persuasive and why. When s/he disagrees with your position, it’s tempting to jump in and defend it. But, situation by situation, ask yourself whether that is wise or to remain silent, acknowledge the legitimacy of their perspective, or ask a question that might lead to more nuanced thinking. Expose your child to diversity of viewpoint. For example, with older children, read the front page or op-eds in the New York Times and Wall Street Journal. Ask your child what differences s/he notices and what s/he thinks about them? Acknowledge your doubts. Here's an example: “Some days, I feel like redistribution is the answer. How can a humane society allow a huge gap between the haves and have-nots? On other days, I believe in meritocracy, that the world, net, most improves when we allocate resources to people with greater potential to improve the lives of humankind. Dear child, I’m wishy-washy about such issues. What do you think?” end of excerpts - From: Psychology Today – Beware the Temptation to Indoctrinate Your Children ~ ~ ~ ~ *Note I was trying to be funny about how simple it is to leave a harmful and controlling cult. It is not! But if you value freedom and truly desire for your kids to have the best chances for success and fulfillment (whatever that may mean) you might want to really think about the ideas in the Psychology Today article.

Yeah, I fell for that too…I think wierwille was a good huckster by getting me to “see” the promise of wealth and control in Scripture …and he and TWI were instrumental in maintaining my interest – i.e., stringing me along indefinitely…with the busy-work of mastering PFAL and building my believing to the point I could finally tap into that power. …that appealed to our baser instincts…subconscious urges, behaviors, or intuition directed by primeval, animalistic, self-serving, or ignoble motivations. Greed and selfishness are unfortunately two of the base instincts. I still have an old PFAL promo flier from New York circa 1974 and there’s one phrase in big bold letters that stands out from the rest of the text: “You can have whatever you want.” wierwille used his “signature intuition” to squeeze a promise out of any verse. Didn’t matter if it was in the Old or New Testament – he’d always figure out some way – even if it contradicted some other part of his “theology” – with sneaky trump cards that could out rank anything in his way…”that was under the law – but we’re under grace”… ...”technically all the women in the kingdom belonged to the king”… “I’ve so renewed my mind that it’s not sin to me”. Like promoting “the principle of giving and receiving”. Here is a notion held by followers of TWI, like in so many other money-oriented “ministries” that the sign of God's favor is physical health and material prosperity which is available to all who really and truly believe AND of course operate “the principle of giving and receiving” - which as I remember it from wierwille's teachings was some sort of a disproportionate reciprocal operation – we were to think of it as giving to God (via God's ministry of course) and in return God would bless us many times over since no one can out-give God. We were expected to “abundantly share” of whatever we have to TWI.... wierwille defined “abundantly share” as going beyond the tithe of ten percent . (The tithing system described in the Bible was designed specifically to meet the needs of the religious, economic, and political system of ancient Israel.) In his small booklet “Christians Should Be Prosperous” wierwille taught that as Christians, no longer under the law of the Old Testament, we should go above the tithe and thereby reap even greater blessings than Old Testament believers – his text to support that claim was Malachi 3:10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. ...If wierwille's claims were true – then we, the faithful, giving more than 10 percent of all we had, should have been the healthiest and wealthiest people around bar none...but alas such was not the case... ...Usually an abundant sharing offering was received at every fellowship meeting...and there were those friendly reminders in The Way Magazine, “Remember The Way in your will”... ...it’s all about the money. Contrary to what you may like to think, wierwille used the Bible like an unscrupulous huckster sells snake oil… "The Word ( meaning PFAL of course) and the magic of believing will solve all your problems." Do we find any passages in the New Testament that show the disciples went around promoting Jesus Christ as a remedy for all diseases, poverty, and misfortunes? And while you’re looking for those verses, also look for the fair market value of their “foundational class” in the 1st century economy...I mean, what did they charge for "the class"?...and what translation did they use in the class? did they have to make their own syllabus out of papyrus? was the Orange Scroll like the PFAL book?…on second thought, don’t waste your time looking for something that isn’t there…if someone was looking for fame, fortune, power, or pleasure I’d tell them to look elsewhere. What if all that real Christianity has to offer is Jesus Christ…I guess for some that’s not enough. I find it hard to understand how someone can ignore the red flags and warning signs of a harmful and controlling cult-leader like wierwille…I mean it’s mentioned in the Bible…but then again, I was once blinded too…taking off those PFAL-colored glasses is a big first step toward freedom. You see, we are not like the many hucksters who preach for personal profit. We preach the word of God with sincerity and with Christ’s authority, knowing that God is watching us. II Corinthians 2:17 NLT But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their depraved conduct and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories… Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you. With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they are experts in greed—an accursed brood! They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Bezer, who loved the wages of wickedness. II Peter 2: 1 – 3, 13 – 15 NIV Here is a trustworthy saying: Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task. Now the overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full respect. (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?) He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap. I Timothy 3: 1- 7 NIV

Yeah and that could get into a whole other topic about the inconsistency in fundamentalism…If they were truly unwavering in their conviction – we could easily spot a true believer – just look for someone with one eye, one hand and one foot. If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell. Matthew 18: 8, 9

It seems like most of the time in the About the Way forum, arguments with certain PFAL fans over what wierwille taught become a greatly extended chase around rabbit holes with the PFAL fan dodging and distracting from the topic and with plenty of references to long lost posts and threads – darn this modern technology. Usually, this one particular PFAL fan assumes that he is the only authorized interpreter of what wierwille actually said or meant…That’s hilarious…why not let wierwille interpret himself? Just kidding. Any law-of-believing-fans who are antsy to prove there’s a law of believing by using logic and Scripture should check out your thread in doctrinal - Law of Believing

you make it sound like wierwille’s promotion of the law of believing was subservient to the Word of God especially in identifying and correctly interpreting what promises he found in the Bible. Nothing could be further from the truth! ...wierwille had a knack for twisting Scripture to fit his agenda. period. end of story. In the opening session of PFAL, wierwille uses John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. as the proof-text to establish his materialistic theory of why Jesus Christ came. If you don’t think wierwille was excessively concerned with material possessions or was money-oriented than you must have fallen asleep (zzzzZZZZZ ZZzzzz) during that part of the class where he talks about seeing unbelievers in the community manifesting a more abundant life than many Christians. It seems pretty evident to me that wierwille had the prosperity and material possessions of unbelievers in mind to make this observation. In that regard, it makes Jesus Christ superfluous – since it appears one can have prosperity and lots of material possessions without Jesus Christ…seems like this has more to do with envy. lampooning the avarice-infused nature of PFAL was the whole idea of my post about Power For Materialistic Living Today .... Suffice it to say wierwille’s rather broad, all-encompassing, convenient interpretation of what is promised in the Bible is equivalent to writing a hot check... pseudo-Christian cult-leaders dole those out in exchange for the loyalty of those who buy into pipe dreams…this exploitation and deception using Scripture is parroted and regurgitated from the top down…years ago I was in a business conference in Florida – a conference run by TWI-believers. One leader was getting everyone psyched-up to make a lot of money by quoting Matthew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. TWI even had the gimmicky mountain top checkbook – just fill in the blank for what you want. …OldSkool and Penworks mentioned historical and cultural differences of westerners and oriental folks… and just in general I tend to think western civilizations might be more prone to focus on the external and physical things rather than the internal or spiritual aspects…was that a factor in how wierwille interpreted John 10:10? I don’t know…and I’m not one to guess at another person’s motives or the basis for their viewpoint. wierwille may have had the best of intentions, BUT a misinterpretation / misapplication of Scripture could have unintended consequences… …whatever wierwille’s intentions were his actions created a bait-and-switch form of fraud. Candidates of the PFAL class are "baited" by wierwille and grads advertising how to tap into power for the more abundant life…increasing prosperity…more harmony in the home…able to separate truth from error…learn how to pray effectively…blah, blah, blah. But after completing the class it is critical to “customer retention” that leadership and standing grads string along the new grad who may still wonder about all those fantastic beneficial claims of PFAL…here’s where the “switch” comes in handy. Substituted for the “advertised goods” is the encouragement to settle for the next best thing – growing/developing your knowledge and believing of the Bible. Oh and get yourself in the next PFAL class as soon as possible…and review, review, review all the PFAL material…absorb…absorb…absorb…receive…retain…regurgitate. If John Lynn was promoting the book The Seduction of Christianity by Dave Hunt & T.A. McMahon that was actually a good thing! My opinion of John Lynn grows even better, God rest his soul…After I left TWI, I read that book first – but Dave Hunt came out with another book Beyond Seduction: A Return to Biblical Christianity that is extremely laser focused on exposing the errors of the health and wealth gospel, confession of belief = receipt of confession, and the law of believing. I highly recommend that book to any disenchanted PFAL grad.

Those tactics along with another typical response that goes along the lines of " we're-all-sinners-here-so-what-gives-you-the-right-to-judge" brings to mind several logical fallacies used to derail a thoughtful discussion and distract from the main points of a dialog: 1. An appeal to hypocrisy also known as tu quoqe (a Latin term for 'you too', meaning a counter-accusation). Focuses on the hypocrisy of an opponent. The tu quoque fallacy deflects criticism away from oneself by accusing the other person of the same problem or something comparable. The tu quoque fallacy is an attempt to divert blame. The fallacy usually occurs when the arguer uses apparent hypocrisy to neutralize criticism and distract from the issue. From: 15 logical fallacies and Wikipedia – Tu quoque 2. Whataboutism – from a logical and argumentative point of view it is considered a variant of the Tu-quoque pattern, which is a subtype of the Ad-hominem argument. Whataboutism or whataboutery (as in "what about…?") denotes in a pejorative sense a procedure in which a critical question or argument is not answered or discussed but retorted with a critical counter-question which expresses a counter-accusation. The communication intent here is often to distract from the content of a topic (red herring). The goal may also be to question the justification for criticism, the legitimacy, integrity, and fairness of the critic, which can take on the character of discrediting the criticism, which may or may not be justified. Common accusations include double standards, and hypocrisy. From Wiki - whataboutism 3. Ad-hominem - (Latin for 'to the person'), short for argumentum ad hominem (Latin for 'argument to the person'), refers to several types of arguments, some but not all of which are fallacious. Typically, this term refers to a rhetorical strategy where the speaker attacks the character, motive, or some other attribute of the person making an argument rather than attacking the substance of the argument itself. The most common form of ad hominem is "A makes a claim x, B asserts that A holds a property that is unwelcome, and hence B concludes that argument x is wrong". From Wiki - Ad hominem

“What's the point of a CLASS?” Bolshevik, great question! And that’s the $64,000 question! And it’s a crucial question to an important issue…but the answer may vary depending on who you ask: What’s the point of PFAL? Loyal TWI-follower: PFAL teaches how to tap into power for abundant living. Disenchanted TWI-follower: Why did I have to pay for an infomercial on the Bible? TWI-cult survivor: PFAL is The Way International’s entry-level indoctrination program. There are no clues or hidden messages to help one delve even deeper into tapping “the power for abundant living”. But there are subtle manipulative and controlling tactics in PFAL that most new students are not aware of. Besides all the Scripture twisting, logical fallacies, interpolations, pontificating, fabricated/embellished anecdotes throughout PFAL there’s also the delicate social pressure of the class body – the degrees of influence exerted by the grads and even other new students are also a subliminal call for conformity to the group.

I feel the same way – and there’s arguably a multifold rationale to my thought process: 1. wierwille wrongly taught each believer can operate all nine of the manifestations but that does not jive with I Corinthians 12:11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills. NKJV 2. Due to the lack of documented evidence - besides the meager anecdotal evidence offered up by some – I lean toward a cessationism theology (which is the view that the miraculous gifts of the Spirit, such as healing, tongues, and prophetic revelation, pertained to the apostolic era only, served a purpose that was unique to establishing the early church, and passed away before the canon of Scripture was closed (comp. 1 Cor. 13:8-12 with Heb. 2:3-4) …Although I am not one to assume I can squeeze God into a tight-fitting theological box…so I think these things can still happen – but in light of my #1 reason – it would be as the Spirit distributes them individually…and I should add speaking just from my own experiences I haven’t witnessed anything that would fall into the biblical definition of genuine manifestations during my 12 years of involvement with The Way International. 3. Nowhere in Scripture are there passages that suggest the need for “excellor sessions” for the utterance manifestations. “Excellor sessions” seem more likely an attempt to train people to become proficient at mimicking an “ecstatic language” – something that has been noted in various religions for a long time. It is interesting to note that in I Corinthians 14 in certain passages Paul's usage of “tongue” in the singular...several commentaries have observed that being in the singular form it’s probably referring to the gibberish of pagan ecstatic speech – since by any acceptable linguistic definition there would not be a variety of unintelligible meaningless languages. Gibberish is gibberish. 4. And furthermore, since Paul observes the obvious purpose of every language is to communicate (I Corinthians 14: 10,11) and edify some commentaries suggest Paul continues to use the singular “tongue” to speak sarcastically in verses 14 – 17 to illustrate the foolishness and pointlessness of speaking in gibberish - the speaker himself or herself could not understand it. What benefit is there to pray to God or to praise Him without understanding what is said? No one could say “amen” to such nonsense. In verse 18 of I Cor. 14, Paul returns to using the plural “tongues” to indicate the genuine gift… 5. To put the dubious practice taught in PFAL and reinforced by “excellor sessions” in modern terms it seems more like a learned behavior to me. But that’s just my opinion.

since we’ve gotten into speaking in tongues with interpretation - this is a follow up post to my previous one, talking about my second Twig... here’s something I said on an old Speaking in Tongues thread way back in June of 2006 in reference to that same Twig: “I remember my twig leader's wife always saying the same five or six words in a tongue but the interpretation was at least two or three sentences long. I never gave this linguistic oddity much thought until I brought my friend Steve to Twig – and he pointed that out to me. Every week, the same five or six words – with a different interpretation each time. Maybe each word had multiple meanings and functions – a diagram of the sentence would probably look like a complicated map of the NY Subway System.” funny - I can still hear her SIT words, something like "Ahkadahanda kahanda Ahkadahanda mikanda kahanda" - something like that... ...not sure of the spelling so I just tried spelling it phonetically Here is the link to my old post > Speaking in Tongues thread T-Bone's comment on the same five words having a variety of interpretations

I do think there’s a lot of folks who have a kind of escapist mentality when it comes to the rapture…From my own experience in The Way International I have a lot of anecdotal evidence of TWI-leaders promoting a live-like-there’s-no-tomorrow philosophy. One such incident was in the early 80s, during a big ministry event out-of-town. The branch coordinator and his wife (both way corps) rode there and back in our vehicle – I don’t remember them helping out with gas money. But I do remember our conversation at the restaurant. I happened to mention a concern for the cost of this whole trip and the branch coordinator - with the finesse of a used-car salesman – started talking about living life with the hope of the return of Christ, that it could happen at any time. Once again, I fell into the manipulative trap of put-your-money-where-your-believing-is and so I wound up paying for the restaurant meal. The Bradlee Dean article does bring up a good point regarding the erroneous escapist mentality…However, I do think his article may be conflating several different ideas concerning the rapture and dispensationalism: “If there is one reoccurring issue with the heretics in the Church of America today it is that of the rapture. This is the doctrine that is promoted that puts the people’s hope of being raptured from responsibility (Proverbs 13:13). As if the Lord is going to raise up an army only to rapture them from the war that they have been called to wage (Psalm 78:9). Occupy until He comes, the Bible tells us (Psalm 94:16; Luke 19:13). The rapture of which they speak, of course, does not scripturally or historically exist. Enoch, Elijah and, upon His resurrection, Jesus were translated (Hebrew 11:5; 2 Kings 2:11; Acts 1:11). If anyone deserved to be raptured it would have been that of the Christ and the 11 disciples that were martyred. Yet, somehow or another, and in their heretical minds through adding to Scripture, these structuralists attempt to justify that which is unjustifiable. Matthew 24:36 tells us: “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.” In John 17:15 tells us: “I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.” Friends, the rapture is NOT a Biblical doctrine, period. This is a doctrine that was invented in the 19th century in Ireland by James Darby. James used to indoctrinate, through his Bible studies, his rich and nobles in Powerscourt where the rapture doctrine was developed (Galatians 1:6). It is not a doctrine affirmed historically by any of the great confessions of the Christian faith. It is based upon a misinterpretation of certain passages found within Scripture.” End of quoting B. Dean’s article ~ ~ ~ ~ I don’t intend to derail this thread with a tangent about the differences in subtopics of the rapture – pre-trib, mid-trib, post-trib, and other eschatological subjects like the variations of dispensationalism: covenant theology, classic or traditional, revised, progressive etc. Personally, I do believe the events of I Thessalonians 4:15-18 will happen but I’m not sure of when and how... ...And when and how seems to be debatable with a lot of theologians…so I'm remaining flexible - I could go any which way …I’ve expressed on Grease Spot how much of my belief system is in a state of flux, that I’m not even really sure if I’m saved – perhaps that doubt is what keeps me humble and always reaching for Jesus Christ. I happen to agree with Dean’s sentiment of keeping up the good fight. Sometimes I have this nagging thought in the back of my mind that the reason I’m fascinated with the book of Revelation and Bible prophecy in general is because I’m either already living in it or will be at some point. I like to think I’m spiritually strong – especially after escaping from a harmful and controlling cult like TWI. I pray…study…live to make my Lord proud and hope if the worst is yet to come, I’ll be a good soldier until the end...part of my personal philosophy is that the best way to prepare for future challenges is by developing good habits and moral courage now. That news with views website looks interesting and like anything else I check out the info with a grain of salt. I read some other articles on the website and looked over the contributors – among several dubious authors I noticed Roger Stone was listed…I’m not a fan of some of that - but hey that’s just me.

Excellent points to think about, WordWolf! In my opinion those visible changes reflected a tightening up of the PFAL support system (aka the Twig fellowships). I noticed a distinct difference in the two fellowships I was involved with my first year in the ministry (1974 New York). The girl I was dating took me to her Twig on Long Island run by Sammy P. It was very lively, loving, engaging, and inspiring. But after I took the class the branch coordinator Donald L. talked to me about a new Twig starting up in Queens closer to my home and said they could use my help. That second Twig was run by the book. And when I say it was run by the book, I mean by strict adherence to the PFAL book. Fellowship usual felt more mechanical and perfunctory. When I went into the Family corps in 1984 it was disappointingly reminiscent of that second Twig. The curriculum revolved around PFAL. The unvarnished truth is that ministry-wide PFAL was considered the touchstone of truth (FYI that’s a metaphor for any physical or intellectual measure by which the validity or merit of a concept can be tested – similar to saying “acid test” or “litmus test”…and btw, I didn’t make up that idea – I actually read it in a Way Mag !). Your statements: “And the people that grew twi were generally quality Christians. Once they were gone, there was the twi that you knew- mechanistic and controlling” – speak to me of TWI’s ever-encroaching nature – that would stifle inspiration and thoughtful reflection. The restrictive mindset that PFAL encouraged…promoted tended to pigeonhole a grad as a PFAL-loop – continuing a certain process…the end of which is connected to the beginning – now as a grad, you go out there and get another person in the class…each one reach one. Similar to the secret message decoded in the movie A Christmas Story fyi boys and girls using the Grease Spot Secret Decoder Ring you’ll find out the hidden message in PFAL is "Take More PFAL". I have no doubt there were many genuine, loving, inspiring Christians in TWI. But I also believe there was a symbiotic relationship involving interaction between two different entities – perhaps neither one fully realizing that…I think it’s possible for a genuine Christian to be deceived by a pseudo-Christian cult-leader and in some Bizarro way the relationship is mutually “beneficial”. The Christian gets to play church and feel special and needed and the cult reaps the benefits of their time, money, talents, resources. To be honest, I never pictured myself as a leader in TWI – but I dutifully followed the TWI-playbook: go WOW, go in the corps, run PFAL classes, teach PFAL stuff, until death do us part. Sorry slipped into my old TWI-marriage vows…yes, it’s true – I married TWI…but as of 1986 I am officially divorced…and to the Twig coordinator of my second Twig I bear no animosity – I kind of identify with him in some ways. Pushed into doing something unfamiliar…uninteresting…unfulfilling because that’s the way we do it in The Way.

Maybe not for him…but if he offered Lois Lane a Brazilian…I mean a Kryptonian Bikini waxing…Yikes! Cue Bruno Mars' song: I'm too hot (hot damn), uh Called a police and a fireman I'm too hot (hot damn) Make a dragon wanna retire, man

Imagine Horshack wanting to give his interpretation of a Rorschach test… FYI: this video clip could also be used for a Welcome Back PFAL episode when Horshack was so excited to answer a Listening with a Purpose question.

Removal of agency – it almost sounds like we’re circling back to Scripture interprets itself…splatter the paint, allow materials to fall and be placed according to chance…paintings paint themselves…that’s the greatest secret in the art world today…what do you think his palette looked like? Doesn’t matter, he wasn’t involved.

I agree… …there’s also a rumor Salvador Dali took the class…and it’s been said that one of his most famous paintings was originally titled The Persistence of Retemories Allow me to provide the Greasy Tour Guide interpretation: It’s obvious the demise of the Way Tree is due to it being rooted on top of “the teacher’s desk” from the PFAL class. The melting clocks symbolize how much of your time and life disappear unobtrusively during your involvement in The Way International. Camp Gunnison is featured way in the background and has the appearance of being a mirage – an experiential illusion of you living on a mountain top… vicariously of course, through the cult-leader… or perhaps the mirage is a reference to The Mirage Hotel and Casino in Vegas representing the PFAL promises of glitz and glamour that beckons one to gamble away their soul. And lastly, the face-melting central to the picture depicts all that is left after the constant exposure to TWI-leadership’s frequent reproofs, hissy fits, diatribes…the melted clock on the melted face also symbolizes how much of your time and life disappear unobtrusively during your involvement in The Way International. It is believed Dali captured the essence of the persistence of retemorizing Bible verses and by extension the obstinate continuance of the TWI-mindset which ultimately render one’s time and life easily accessible for cult abuse in the near future.

Makes me think of Picasso’s blue period…I heard he almost took the class.

Coincidentally we’ve seen that happening on a high shelf on our back porch – it has become the birthing center for dove…makes us nervous when they start trying their wings – and we have to keep the dogs at bay.

Leave it to pseudo-Christian cult-leaders to turn a sacred cow into a cash cow.

Maybe they just think it’s regurgitatable

I’ll read the minutes from our last meeting: Various analyses of the Kool-Aid, Waysider proposed a permanent ban on stretched-coffee, motion put forward to designate a driver for the steering committee for the thread So, what's the best way to store moonshine? , a petition was started to take violence, sexual abuse, and money laundering off the big screen and put it back in the cults where it belongs, and there was a tie on the voting to allow posters to use emoji to interject a personal insult during a heated discussion. ( – if you ask me, I think whoever suggested that is an idiot).