waysider

I would have to say that your experience was a good deal out of the ordinary. It seems like the farther away you got from being a "mere" twiggie(leaf), the more demands were exacted on your commitment. In FLO, we lived in a commune of about 50 with 6 or 7 per apartment. We were required to work 40 hours a week at a secular job(which we were supposed to use to witness and promote "the class"), ABS, sponsor a Corps person, pay into a rent fund, pay into (and work at) a food co-op, pay into a household fund (for the individual apartment utilities, etc.) and spend just about any time we weren't at our jobs doing FLO requirements such as working in the garden, painting, cleaning the BRC, etc. There was a 5am fellowship every morning followed by a short mile run before you got ready for work. There was also a half hour fellowship every night between the required work time at limb hq and the midnight "lights out". You had to request special permission just to go into town on a Saturday morning to go to the post office or bank. And, since there were 49 other people who were not being granted that luxury, you didn't ask for it often lest you rendered envy. Of course, we did get Sunday afternoon off. Doing laundry together on Sunday was like a FLO "date". :(

At least the shipping is free.

Doesn't ring a bell.

When was logic ever part of how these things were decided? <_< I remember it was taught in the AC that people who really "made it" in music and the arts only did so because they sold out to the adversary. Maybe Wierwille spent too much time studying the legend of Tommy Johnson selling his soul to the devil at the crossroads in exchange for musical skills.

I used to witness to Phil Keaggy(Glass Harp) and try to get him in the class. It wasn't too hard to do since he lived and gigged nearby. He was always completely committed to the work he was already involved with. He is not a household name but certainly one of the Christian Music genre's earliest and most influential pioneers. It was really just another example of "trophy mentality" on my part. Here's Phil tearin' it up almost 40 years ago.

"Trophy Mentality" And then there was this an old sales schtick, too. "Look Mrs. Jones, your neighbor down the block just bought three of these and you know how discerning a shopper she is."

Skip M3squ!te (tenor sax) and David G@rab@ld!(drums and percussion) of Tower Of Power and Cold Blood, were both very active in The Way at one time. Here is some very early T.O.P. Not sure but I think DG is pounding the skins on this one.

Wierwille was obsessed with finding devil spirits in everything. He taught in the AC that alcoholism was caused by a ds yet he lived his life in a constant drunken stupor, squandering the ABS on gallon upon gallon of Drambuie. He taught in the AC that cancer was caused by devil possession yet he, himself, succumbed to it. Here's the death certificate. http://www.greasespotcafe.com/main2/waydal...sented.....html We had to sing Roll Away after dinner EVERY night in Fellow Laborers. Thank goodness we didn't practice any "rituals". :blink:

I'm pretty sure Bozo The Clown has passed the screen test. ;)

TWI was and is a cult. Belonging to a cult, be it TWI or any other cult, will not foster sanity. Maybe one of the first things to do would be to chuck their dangerous "law of believing" doctrine in the weeds. They conditioned us to believe there was no safety or sanity outside the "household". It's simply a control tactic they and many other cults employ.

I don't recognize this one at all.

We cherish too, the Poppy red That grows on fields where valor led. It seems to signal to the skies That blood of heroes never dies. http://www.greatwar.co.uk/poems/faith.htm http://www.usmemorialday.org/backgrnd.html

I'm not sure what that's about. I just now "clicked" it and it went straight to the site. :blink:

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=htt...ficial%26sa%3DG

Q. "How do you think he does it?" A. "I don't know."

97.327% of all statistics are just made up numbers.

I think there was often a "trophy mentality" that surrounded disabled folks. "Geeze! If we could only get Suzie healed of that withered hand, we would have people BEGGING us to take the class." It had nothing to do with compassion for Suzie and everything to do with selling "the class'.

I found a mention of compassion in the Christian Counseling syllabus. Again, I don't know the authorship. Page 19 4. Do not become so emotionally involved you allow emotion to cloud your judgment. Involved, yes, but never to an extreme. Sympathy is one big counterfeit. Nobody needs it; nobody wants it. Compassion, yes, sympathy, no. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Well, that sounds pretty good but if you aren't supposed to be "unequally yoked" with unbelievers, who else except the believers can you become emotionally involved with?

Taurus--------Spirit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ogTFdlbup24

Sex outside of marriage? Oh, my! HeeHee The Whole World's Fightin' About The Same Thing. Always has been. Here's a clip that addresses that very subject.

In the class, Christian Counseling, compassion was replaced by confrontation and an insistence that "renewed mind"(to TWI doctrine) is the answer to life's problems. Here is an excerpt: ---------------------------------------------------- "If something happens to upset me, for example,; and I start dwelling on it, and I get more and more upset, then I just got myself into a whole lot of trouble. However, if I catch myself; and I say, "Wait a minute! I have got a meeting coming up. I am going to put a smile on my face . I am going to act happy if it kills me!" Do you know what I start feeling like pretty soon? Happy. It is available because I can control that smile. I can control whether I do my ironing, etc., If I make up my mind I am going to do it; and so can the people you will be counseling with." ------------------------------------------------- And there is much more in the class that deals with our "duty" to confront our brothers and sisters who are "off The Word". In other words, we were supposed to deny ourself the ability to understand our emotions and the emotions of others. We were, instead, to self-delude ourselves under the guise of "renewed mind". There's not much room left in there for compassion and sympathetic listening. Disclaimer: If the person who wrote this class is a member of this board, I apologize for singling this out. I am guilty myself because I bought into this stuff hook, line and sinker.

Rhino I agree with you that something "strange" may have been going on in that house. I don't personally believe that people "just know" they are homosexual at 5 or 6 years old any more than I believe a person "just knows" they are heterosexual at that age. In other words, I don't believe a person is born homosexual. Much of what is defined as sexuality comes to us via learned behavior and role play. However, that's strictly my personal opinion based on the anecdotal evidence that every gay person I have ever known has related a story to me referencing childhood sexual abuse. If someone had something scientific to show a genetic propensity I would certainly reassess that opinion. Sometimes, however, a single, brief event can be so traumatizing it will shape the way that a young impressionable mind develops and have a lasting impact on how they consequently think and act as adults. But, the question I ponder is why, we, as a society, feel we must deny them the same equal rights that are freely enjoyed by their heterosexual counterparts simply because they may have been the victims of a traumatizing event that was beyond their control? Putting the sexual aspect on the back burner, take a look at benefits. This being Memorial Day weekend, I will use that as one simple example. There are 125 national cemeteries in this country. More are currently expected to be built. An average of 1,800 veterans die every day. Of that number, 10 percent are buried in these cemeteries. This year alone, it is expected the number of interments will set a record at a projected figure of 107,000 veterans and dependents. As best I understand, non-legally married spouses do not qualify for interment. Here is a link that discusses qualification requirements---http://www.cem.va.gov/ To put it simply, a legally binding marriage contract is required for participation in this very meaningful benefit. --------------------------------------------------------------------- The statistics above are from an AP article written by Joe Milicia (05/25/2008) edited: Sorry, I couldn't get the link to work so you will have to type it in(or google National Cemeteries) and then look for "eligibility".

Amen, Linda SURF OHIO!!

My heart goes out to you "kids", Nicholas. As an adult, I made a conscious choice to take the class and follow TWI. You guys, however, were conscripted into a life by someone else's choosing. I hope you spend some time snooping around this place and find some answers you're looking for. Welcome to GSC, Nick. It's nice to have you here. I'm sure you can bring a unique perspective that will be enlightening for all.

Does anyone remember who wrote/taught Christian Counseling?