Rocky

holy crap

The rumors of that situation far predate GSC. I can't imagine she would not have known of the legend whether it happened as rumored or not.

Yep. A couple of reflections on my part. 1) I agree w/WW that THEY believe this is an accurate account. 2) Human recollection in times of crisis is not very reliably accurate. (for example, we can remember things that didn't even happen) "As time goes on, it can be difficult to know how accurate our memories of an event are – indeed for many of our childhood memories, it can be hard to know for certain whether we’re remembering the firsthand event itself, or are simply recalling a story as told by our parents and from photos or home videos from the time. "But this concept has a far scarier implication which has been studied by psychologists. In an experiment, interviewers were able convince 70% of people they had committed a crime, when in reality they had not." ----- This is such a thing as near death experiences. I would put those in the category of now we know in part, but someday we'll get the fuller picture. Bottom-line? The experience of Gary Laude doesn't prove anything about being raised from the dead. But I hope he's thankful for the medical care he got and for what he saw during his NDE.

That was barely the tip of the iceberg. The Way Tree structure of the organization, where everyone was supposed to cater to the "needs" of the "Man of God" was central to it.

It's worth noting again that this is not unique to twi. The social mores of the organization allowed it. The self-justifying interpretations of several aspects of scripture dictated it.

I looked at the linked websites. Apparently now, the enrollment cost is just shy of $800. They apparently also claim that it's a $5000.00 value. Now THAT is bovine scatology.

Oh brother! Thanks for the warning. I think.

More power to you, as they say.

JJ, do you have any scriptural basis for any of that? You said, "Am I allowed to do that?" Well, whatever it is you are doing, is there anyone or anything that is prohibiting or preventing you from doing it? (rhetorical question) To me, it seems the real question isn't whether you're "allowed to do that," but rather "what is it that you are actually doing?" Can it hurt you to record something you feel inspired to say out loud? I doubt it. Is it reasonable to label the practice "interpretation of tongues" or "prophecy?" I don't know that anyone can stop you from doing so whether what you are doing/describing matches anything that might fit a biblical definition of either of those things. That said, even if (though) I think you're likely off your rocker, who am I to judge you if you're not hurting anyone? Otherwise, I'm inclined to agree with Waysider.

Anybody can tell a story. BTW, even if you don't have a scanner, it's likely your local public library does. I did an internet search for Herald-Advocate and found this website from Hardee County, Florida. I then searched that site for Gary Laude and came up with NO article search results. It's possible that Raf was thinking of bovine scatology when he cited horse manure.

Indeed!

I understand. And looking back, I now believe many of their teachings are weird.

You nailed it! Yes, that's what Wierwille often did.

Well, another explanation might be that they never learned anywhere that they needed to honor personal boundaries of other people. I hope I'm inferring correctly that you are female. And given that you've been an adult for quite a few years, you probably realize that many men are just very horny. Combine the two (lack of understanding of personal boundaries along with horniness) and it too often, in many different situations throughout the world, leads to sexual misconduct and abuse. In TWI, the self-justifying social culture generated by selective interpretation of scriptures led many women, especially young adult women, to be subjected to such abuse. That you successfully asserted your boundaries is a very good thing. The power imbalance in relationships is often highly problematic. Of course, it wasn't exclusive to TWI. And it's not exclusive to religious organizations. Just last night I heard the story of a German former Catholic nun named Doris Wagner.

And EVERY human is weak and gullible at one time or another in their life.

Weren't there some of us who, while others suggested the group wasn't interested in followers' money, that it was indeed the nature of the beast?

Whatever parts of your story you're ready to tell.

You could ask Volchic who referenced the group in her post in the New Members forum.

Okay then. I look forward to more when you're ready to say more.

There have been a few threads in the About the Way forum about the Revival and Restoration thing. I linked to one of the threads above (in Red) when you mentioned it. I applaud you for being open and available in your Dad's last days. I'm sure it meant a lot to him. Being a grandfather now, I can safely say that it must have provided him with great joy and comfort to have gotten to be with your children when they were very young. Your descriptions of events certainly fit with what we've known. Please don't feel like you need to apologize for how you say things or what you say about your experiences in TWI. I'm also confident you will find a lot of validation here if you share more of what you went through.

Welcome Volchic! I'm sure you can get others to talk with here. Glad you made it. I'm also confident that plenty of people will be interested in your perspective on what has taken place over the nearly 30 years since you first got involved with TWI.

Yes, if you can get a link to that, I'm sure folks here would find it intriguing. But... If a guy was dead for two weeks and is now living, THAT is newsworthy. If not, then it can fairly be characterized as gobbledygook.

Wow... 40 years ago. When the 9th corpse was in its first year in rez at Emporia.

Links to news articles where the information was reported publicly.

I didn't imply that you did suggest following those people and I apologize if it came across that way. But I still don't believe that the Bible necessarily contains all of the guidance or information we need to live a Godly life. I'm not interested in proving anything (to you or anyone else), just stating my belief.