It was getting pretty regimented by the time I got "in" the Corps Excie. The regimentation part was a little bit of a surprise but it wasn't out of hand at that point, but it headed in the wrong direction. Some of it seemed lame, but a lot of it was reasonable and seemed to serve the idea of developing a person's skills that would be useful to minister in a small to mid-sized group of people, like several fellowships. But I fell into a different pattern. When Way Productions got going under Ted, it was January of our first year, we'd been in the regular "program" for only 4 months. We still participated as much as we could but we were doing a lot of things on our own. Looking back that was good and the only way it would have worked out for my wife and I.
Looking back it reflected the people that were in it in many ways. In our time, experience was limited, although we didn't perceive it that way. Most of the people had only been around for 5-6-7 years tops back then. 10 years background in the Way was a long time then.
By the time Emporia got going - it was too much way too soon. Way too soon, impossible to manage with any maturity or experience.
Nothing's changed for me, then or since then. My Christian faith, my marriage, my desires and interests have grown but I don't feel like I was or became a different person. There's many different sides to my story and it's not really worth retelling. Mostly, I've loved my wife and raised a family and known some truly honorable and wonderful people and had the opportunity to do some things that were hopefully useful, they were valuable to me I know that. Many great people known and worked with while in the Way Corps. In turn I've been loved in ways I don't deserve and can't adequately put into words. So - I guess that's that. :)
I was in 4th Corp and I went in because I believed that is where I could get the best training to be a good leader. My initial reason was because my husband wanted to go in. God taught me wonderful things in the Corps. And the things I learned in the Corps held me in good stead throughout all the rest of my life, especially in my jobs and the responsibilities that came after I left the ministry. Since then I have been in leadership positions and teaching positions all my life and the foundational lessons I learned in the Corps is what gave me the confidence and courage to do anything I wanted to attempt, ever did and still do to this day. I've never been sorry I went through it. And mine was a 4 year program. [/font]
I didn't get along with alot of the leaders because I felt like being a parent came before being a Corps person. I had to fight for all the time I spent with my son and learn to fight is exactly what I did. I bucked leadership and many meetings with them but I didn't care if they kicked me out or not - I was still going to be with my son as much as I could. They didn't seem to understand that you can't raise a child on one hour a day. I learned that what you aren't afraid of losing can't control you so I didn't care if they kicked me out or not. They never did though.
I laughed the day I got my "Inactive Corps" status. Like CM and gang could take away everything God taught me and gave me and grew me up to be during that time. I thought they were pretty arrogant. I thought if people went in to get out of it what God wanted them to learn they would do fine and the ones who were in out of ego wouldn't.
I loved the Corps. I ran with the kids from California and New York and they were a law unto themselves. We shared everything - cars, food, ciggys, clothes, money - it was the closest I've ever lived to having all things in common and the truest taste of what life will be like someday and I've never forgotten it and my heart still yearns for a world like that. I'm very thankful for my time then.
Socks - did we know each other???? I was one of the 8 who was in 4th Corps who stayed at HDQ instead of going out on the field. How cool if we did know each other. I don't hear very much from any of the "oldies" here at Grease Spot. Anyway, howdy.
I laughed the day I got my "Inactive Corps" status. Like CM and gang could take away everything God taught me and gave me and grew me up to be during that time. I thought they were pretty arrogant. I thought if people went in to get out of it what God wanted them to learn they would do fine and the ones who were in out of ego wouldn't.
That's how I felt when I became "DFAC." I absolutely believed no one could take away what I'd learned or my commitment to God (not to twi). And you know what? 25+ years after graduation, they still haven't managed to take any of it away from me!
Also, you've hit on a big key, I think (the part I've put in bold). There were people who looked at the Corps as if it were the next rung on the corporate ladder. Me, I was a little hippie Christian girl fresh out of California--that kind of thinking had never even occurred to me. I just wanted to help people, and I heard I could learn how to do that better in the Corps. That's why I signed up for the Family Corps.
I really believe that if you ask God for bread, He won't give you a stone, so I was able to learn a lot despite people's imperfections and the imperfections in the program. Sometimes the program was really hard, and probably harder on my son than I realized, but I see in him the benefits of it, too.
By the way, I was in FC V with Danny & Irish Eyes and with Oldiesman's sister Ginger, and with the wife of another regular poster here (but I don't know if she wants that revealed so zipping my lip). We were a small, tightly knit bunch and I'd give a lot to see them all again! Hell, I'd give a lot if they'd just set their walkers aside long enough to post in the Family Corps V thread!!
I highly admired the early Corps having first fellowshipped with the grads of 6th and 7th Corps. Frankly, despite legalistic teachings coming down, all but one was very loving, helpful and a great source of learning the Word. I thoroughly enjoyed the Way Corps up until about the 12th Corps. After that they seemed to come out promoting regulation more than love and the Word. The difference may have been martindale taking over, not sure. I'm not giving kudos to Wierwille but it may be he ran the Corps a lot better. After POP the Corps really turned mean. There were exceptions, but for the most part mean. Even I was drilled on "correcting people" and finding fault rather than finding the good and working with that, this by the 23rd Corps I had entered. I quit after my Apprentice year, the constant mean looks, back-biting, turning one another in for infractions not normally infractions in the real world, and more. At least I didn't snitch on other people. I was lousy to my Twig members, and I felt horrible for that, but at least I didn't go behind someone's back and turn them in. I guess I drew a line on that. But I never saw any of the meaness from the early Corps. The one exception I noted wasn't mean, just always trying to cast out devil spirits for almost everything. She was a rare one and most of the early Corps I knew weren't thinking that way, like everything was a devil spirit.
There's a lot of thanks to the early Corps, especially 6-12, where I had nothing but good to say about them. If I had a church, I would have ordained almost every one of them. They had such good common sense. I say kudos to Corps 6-12. And any other Corps grad that walked in love.
How funny Eagle - you think Corps 6-12 are the "early" years. That must make 1-5 the "ancient" years!!! I don't know by experience how bad it really got but I have read about how bad the later Corps were. I'm thankful I left at the beginning when it was just starting to go mean. I wouldn't have lasted long at all - I never was good at taking abuse.
I left the first time Craig was screaming in my face flinging spittle everywhere telling me I was dividing the family of God. I told him I thought he and all the other leaders were doing a mighty fine job of it all by themselves and I hardly thought I was the problem. He shut up at that one and I left and never looked back. I had taken many witnesses to talk to him about a leader who was openly teaching it was ok to have sex in the Way home and at the fellowships. Well NOW I understand why he didn't do anything.
I'm glad I got in when I did and I'm glad I left when I did. You can take the girl out of the Way Corps but you can't take the Way Corps out of the girl
(((((LInda Z)))))) Hello, it's so good to see you again too. It's been a long time since I've been on and I'm thankful Mr. Computer still recognized my name and let me in. I'll have to visit more often. Thanks for the hello.
Good Lord, Edi! You mean to say that there was active teachings about it being okay to have not only pre-marital sex but have it in the Way home? This on top of the BOT sexual escapades?
I never heard one of those but I'm glad you told me.
I wasn't in the corps in the early years or even a part of the Way in those days. I took the class in 1981 and went in the 15th corps in residence in 1984. Because of my military background, I had no problem with the discipline foisted on us. I was on staff my interim year when VP died. The people I was with at the time were very loving and I really enjoyed my interim year. That all changed my last year in residence. I was at HQ after POP and really began to see the evil that had become The Way. I also chose to go in the corps believing that it would enable me to really serve God and His people. When I became aware of all the bs going on behind the scenes I was heartbroken. I still serve God and His people, I just do so from a different path. I'm thankful for what truth I was able to glean from my time in the WAY, but I'm thankful too that I had the guts to leave before I graduated from the corps.
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socks
It was getting pretty regimented by the time I got "in" the Corps Excie. The regimentation part was a little bit of a surprise but it wasn't out of hand at that point, but it headed in the wrong direction. Some of it seemed lame, but a lot of it was reasonable and seemed to serve the idea of developing a person's skills that would be useful to minister in a small to mid-sized group of people, like several fellowships. But I fell into a different pattern. When Way Productions got going under Ted, it was January of our first year, we'd been in the regular "program" for only 4 months. We still participated as much as we could but we were doing a lot of things on our own. Looking back that was good and the only way it would have worked out for my wife and I.
Looking back it reflected the people that were in it in many ways. In our time, experience was limited, although we didn't perceive it that way. Most of the people had only been around for 5-6-7 years tops back then. 10 years background in the Way was a long time then.
By the time Emporia got going - it was too much way too soon. Way too soon, impossible to manage with any maturity or experience.
Nothing's changed for me, then or since then. My Christian faith, my marriage, my desires and interests have grown but I don't feel like I was or became a different person. There's many different sides to my story and it's not really worth retelling. Mostly, I've loved my wife and raised a family and known some truly honorable and wonderful people and had the opportunity to do some things that were hopefully useful, they were valuable to me I know that. Many great people known and worked with while in the Way Corps. In turn I've been loved in ways I don't deserve and can't adequately put into words. So - I guess that's that. :)
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Tom Strange
and you've always got that ASM thing my brother from the sock drawer... you've always got that...
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Edi
I was in 4th Corp and I went in because I believed that is where I could get the best training to be a good leader. My initial reason was because my husband wanted to go in. God taught me wonderful things in the Corps. And the things I learned in the Corps held me in good stead throughout all the rest of my life, especially in my jobs and the responsibilities that came after I left the ministry. Since then I have been in leadership positions and teaching positions all my life and the foundational lessons I learned in the Corps is what gave me the confidence and courage to do anything I wanted to attempt, ever did and still do to this day. I've never been sorry I went through it. And mine was a 4 year program. [/font]
I didn't get along with alot of the leaders because I felt like being a parent came before being a Corps person. I had to fight for all the time I spent with my son and learn to fight is exactly what I did. I bucked leadership and many meetings with them but I didn't care if they kicked me out or not - I was still going to be with my son as much as I could. They didn't seem to understand that you can't raise a child on one hour a day. I learned that what you aren't afraid of losing can't control you so I didn't care if they kicked me out or not. They never did though.
I laughed the day I got my "Inactive Corps" status. Like CM and gang could take away everything God taught me and gave me and grew me up to be during that time. I thought they were pretty arrogant. I thought if people went in to get out of it what God wanted them to learn they would do fine and the ones who were in out of ego wouldn't.
I loved the Corps. I ran with the kids from California and New York and they were a law unto themselves. We shared everything - cars, food, ciggys, clothes, money - it was the closest I've ever lived to having all things in common and the truest taste of what life will be like someday and I've never forgotten it and my heart still yearns for a world like that. I'm very thankful for my time then.
Socks - did we know each other???? I was one of the 8 who was in 4th Corps who stayed at HDQ instead of going out on the field. How cool if we did know each other. I don't hear very much from any of the "oldies" here at Grease Spot. Anyway, howdy.
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Linda Z
Hi Edi:
It's great to "see" you here!
I can so relate to what you said:
That's how I felt when I became "DFAC." I absolutely believed no one could take away what I'd learned or my commitment to God (not to twi). And you know what? 25+ years after graduation, they still haven't managed to take any of it away from me!
Also, you've hit on a big key, I think (the part I've put in bold). There were people who looked at the Corps as if it were the next rung on the corporate ladder. Me, I was a little hippie Christian girl fresh out of California--that kind of thinking had never even occurred to me. I just wanted to help people, and I heard I could learn how to do that better in the Corps. That's why I signed up for the Family Corps.
I really believe that if you ask God for bread, He won't give you a stone, so I was able to learn a lot despite people's imperfections and the imperfections in the program. Sometimes the program was really hard, and probably harder on my son than I realized, but I see in him the benefits of it, too.
By the way, I was in FC V with Danny & Irish Eyes and with Oldiesman's sister Ginger, and with the wife of another regular poster here (but I don't know if she wants that revealed so zipping my lip). We were a small, tightly knit bunch and I'd give a lot to see them all again! Hell, I'd give a lot if they'd just set their walkers aside long enough to post in the Family Corps V thread!!
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Eagle
I highly admired the early Corps having first fellowshipped with the grads of 6th and 7th Corps. Frankly, despite legalistic teachings coming down, all but one was very loving, helpful and a great source of learning the Word. I thoroughly enjoyed the Way Corps up until about the 12th Corps. After that they seemed to come out promoting regulation more than love and the Word. The difference may have been martindale taking over, not sure. I'm not giving kudos to Wierwille but it may be he ran the Corps a lot better. After POP the Corps really turned mean. There were exceptions, but for the most part mean. Even I was drilled on "correcting people" and finding fault rather than finding the good and working with that, this by the 23rd Corps I had entered. I quit after my Apprentice year, the constant mean looks, back-biting, turning one another in for infractions not normally infractions in the real world, and more. At least I didn't snitch on other people. I was lousy to my Twig members, and I felt horrible for that, but at least I didn't go behind someone's back and turn them in. I guess I drew a line on that. But I never saw any of the meaness from the early Corps. The one exception I noted wasn't mean, just always trying to cast out devil spirits for almost everything. She was a rare one and most of the early Corps I knew weren't thinking that way, like everything was a devil spirit.
There's a lot of thanks to the early Corps, especially 6-12, where I had nothing but good to say about them. If I had a church, I would have ordained almost every one of them. They had such good common sense. I say kudos to Corps 6-12. And any other Corps grad that walked in love.
Eagle
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Edi
I left the first time Craig was screaming in my face flinging spittle everywhere telling me I was dividing the family of God. I told him I thought he and all the other leaders were doing a mighty fine job of it all by themselves and I hardly thought I was the problem. He shut up at that one and I left and never looked back. I had taken many witnesses to talk to him about a leader who was openly teaching it was ok to have sex in the Way home and at the fellowships. Well NOW I understand why he didn't do anything.
I'm glad I got in when I did and I'm glad I left when I did. You can take the girl out of the Way Corps but you can't take the Way Corps out of the girl
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Eagle
Good Lord, Edi! You mean to say that there was active teachings about it being okay to have not only pre-marital sex but have it in the Way home? This on top of the BOT sexual escapades?
I never heard one of those but I'm glad you told me.
I'm glad you told Craig where to get off!
Eagle
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excathedra
edi and eagle
i don't know how i missed this exchange
i love you both
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oldman
Hi all,
I wasn't in the corps in the early years or even a part of the Way in those days. I took the class in 1981 and went in the 15th corps in residence in 1984. Because of my military background, I had no problem with the discipline foisted on us. I was on staff my interim year when VP died. The people I was with at the time were very loving and I really enjoyed my interim year. That all changed my last year in residence. I was at HQ after POP and really began to see the evil that had become The Way. I also chose to go in the corps believing that it would enable me to really serve God and His people. When I became aware of all the bs going on behind the scenes I was heartbroken. I still serve God and His people, I just do so from a different path. I'm thankful for what truth I was able to glean from my time in the WAY, but I'm thankful too that I had the guts to leave before I graduated from the corps.
-Oldman
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