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The Rules of running PFAL Classes


T-Bone
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What's the rules for running a PFAL Class? You can mention the obvious ones we were supposed to enforce - or the unspoken...I'm going with the unspoken - . Why couldn't well-seasoned grads teach the class live?

So, PFAL rule # 1: No one else is allowed to teach the class - you can only play VPW's class.

Edited by T-Bone
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Good on ya Galen, bless you ! Our foundational class we rehashed and condensed down to 7 segments, each one about 2 hours long, that seems to be long enough for some ! I've taught it live and it's on video and dvd format. I guess I've 'plagierised', that which was 'plagierised' !!

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There was amountain of rules--the last class i ran i was given a booklet called the Class Instructors Guide or some such thing, which pretty much told you exactly what had to be done every step of the way, How to dress, how to act,what to say, what to have for props, the lighting and appearance of the space...How not to answer any questions, how long the break was...pretty much every move..

yea-- they sure thought us how to think for ourselves...

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Maybe you should have specified that you were talking about running PFAL classes while still in The Way, then perhaps Galen wouldn't be so amazed that there were "rules". :rolleyes:

Of course if you're running a bootleg class you can do whatever you want, but Twi had plenty of rules and expectations involved in running PFAL classes

Edited by Oakspear
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Are you still running VPW's PFAL class or were you being facetious?

This topic has been discussed here on GS manytimes previously.

Bless you.

:)

Mstar is correct Galen there has been an instructors guide and also a class instructors training guide since the video's. I can't remember if the old 16mm film classes came with one or not. I suppose you get on fine without it though.

I am sure that there is one, I was simply stating that while we were 'in' and running classes as an active part of TWI, from 1978 until 1997, we had a Twig Coordinator's syllabus, but no PFAL class syllabus.

I did not mean to imply shock that such a syllabus existed, sorry about the confusion.

:)

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Maybe you should have specified that you were talking about running PFAL classes while still in The Way, then perhaps Galen wouldn't be so amazed that there were "rules". :rolleyes:

Of course if you're running a bootleg class you can do whatever you want, but Twi had plenty of rules and expectations involved in running PFAL classes

We really have not changed the format or 'flavour' of how we have ran PFAL classes. From the first ones that we ran in our Twigs starting in the late 70s, through 80s, 90s, etc.

I understand that on the rare occasion when WC were around, trying to poke their noses into what happened in our fellowship, it always got uncomfortable. The brow-beating, ugliness, and power-struggles, ick. We have been truly fortunate to have had very little dealings with WC overall. As I have explained previously.

Since the Limb of California gave us a copy of PFAL in 1985, overall we enjoyed far less direct dealing with WC anyway.

We have not been 'in' since 1997, the last time that we were thrown 'out'. But that has not changed our lifestyle so much, nor what we do.

Worshipping G-d, studying His Word, living life, and ministering to people's needs.

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I think the worst part of running a class was the fsking cleaning orgy that had to be performed on the location before and during the class. The females seemed to bear the brunt of it, but nobody was immune. Attitude and non-cooperation were swiftly dealt with by accusations of "not wanting the best for God's people". Running classes really seemed to sift through the local believers, identifying potential corps material by their zeal for disciple and "attention to detail".

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Yup, there were lots of rules which led to lots of pressure on everyone. It had to be perfect.

Once, in a tape class, I was responsible for queing up the cassette tapes and I accidently misqued one. That got me a good butt chewing, but even worse -- I also got that ominous glare from the local leader that said, "you let Satan in here to disrupt this class."

Yup, the old bird and his gang always showed up at PFAL classes -- trying to misque tapes, influence folks to ask questions ( or answer them), unline the chairs, or possess the new students with a "spirit of slumber".

See, if he can get someone to sleep through one of VP's jokes, or delay a session for 15 seconds while a tape is being requeued, or short out a coffeepot -- the whole class would fall to pieces. God knows what would have happend if someone had actually answered a question. -- I shudder at the thought.

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The instructor's guide that I remember only contained basic guidelines... I really don't remember it being very "bulky" (yes, I do have CRS but I don't think it applies here), this was back in the 70's...

I don't really remember even using an instructor's guide most of the time, why would one need to? ...most of us stood in the back lip-syncing along with veepee anyway...

...of course we never used chairs that were too comfortable and we always vacuumed and such...

Maybe it had to do with where you were or who you were "under"... back then...

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There was an Instructor's Guide...It instructed you how to instruct the class,whatever that meant....Some of the things I remember from it:

After sessions,4,8 and 12 take,---oops,I mean 'receive' an abundant sharing....

After session 4 pass around the photo in the Companion Bible of the painting of the five crosses(others crucified with Jesus)....If you didn't have a companion Bible,I guess you had to buy one...

Around session 7,start having manifestations before class,as long as they weren't faith,healing or casting out devils...

Session 5 or so you would start promo'ing the way bookstore..

Around session 10,you'd mention camps,advances,WOW programs...

Somewhere in there you were to either hand out or sell "Christians Should be Prosperous"...

After session 11 you were to bring in a real estate agent to help people sell there homes and get out of debt....(Not really)...

Have a good assistant....Preferably a woman,so if Monday Night Football went into overtime,she could go over the "listening with a porpoise" questions with the students,close with prayer and send them home....She could also introduce new fruit into the blessings of backrubbing---sort of the way's version of the hottub....

Have a bet with your assistant to see which student will be the last one to open their eyes and realize that they're the only one still speaking in tongues long after the video in session 12 ended....

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Yup, the old bird and his gang always showed up at PFAL classes

You got that right. There was nothing like a class running to turn a branch twig leader's meeting into a scene from "The Crucible".

Edited by Jim
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While I was a "WOW" in Wyoming, I had the responsibility for running the tapes for the foundational class.

During the class i kept each tape cued up for the next segment of the class, PLUS running music (mostly the WAY pre-recorded tapes).

Everything was running smoothly, UNTILL.................................I happened to put in the "PFAL '77" audio tape, thinking that it would be nice to hear the songs and music on the tape.

:blink: :blink: :blink: :blink:

BOY WAS I WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The WAY CORP leader of the 2 families came charging into the room and TOLD me to turn of the tape, saying that it wasn't cosher to play it cause it would cause confusion with the students and had too much early information on later segments of the class.

OH WELL. after that i had to keep playing the same old 4 to 5 WAY tapes of regular music that the members of the families had.

Needless to say, everybody pretty well knew all of the songs that were on the song and music tapes by the end of the class.

This was in 1979 or early 1980.

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There really was a PFAL class coordinators guide. Saw it on the WOW field. Had one up until about a year ago. Nice full size binder (it was green of course) with somewhere between 50-100 pages. I never got to use it myself since twi changed to WAP class. darn :evildenk:

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How about the minimum number of people to run a class? I'm sure that in some areas there were enough people regularly signing up that it wasn't a problem, but in some areas, coming up with seven people was tough.

During the last year that there was a WOW program there was a rule that WOWs and non-WOWs couldn't mix, other than at special Limb functions. There were 4 WOW families in our city and we hardly ever saw them.

Anyway, part of this rule was that if you had less than 7 signed up for a class, and the WOWs also had less than 7, you couldn't combine them into one class! One of my kids had been sign ed up for a year for PFAL and was not allowed to take the class at the WOWs that was less than a mile from our home.

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God first

Beloved All

God loves you all

How about some of the unwritten laws for the class PFAL

"Let the class answer the questions some may have"

"Do five hail Mary's before giving the class"

now which one have I heard and which one is a joke

thank you

with love and a holy kiss blowing your way Roy

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