A few questions...

[angelamorrissey]

Hi there everyone,

So far I have found this site incredibly interesting. My family was involved with the Way International for a significant portion of my childhood. I remember some things that always seemed just plain wrong to me, and other things that were just confusing. Anyway, my questions are relatively benign, given some of the topics I have read but they are mostly just out of curiosity. First of all... my sister confirmed what I thought to be imaginary, there was a train at the headquarters? Does anyone have a picture of this I can see? I have looked and cannot find anything. I believe my sister but this is such an early memory that I just want to see it with my own eyes. Also, that newsletter/ magazine the Way publishes... does anyone have back issues? I am just wondering about this because one of them featured my family... I think the story would have been mostly about my little sister, her birth, and her medical problems. I know for a fact this existed because the picture they took of us that was on the newsletter was something I saw often in my childhood. However, I would be very interested in reading the actual article, as an adult. Although my parents were "dismissed" from the Way, they will never really talk about anything on this topic. (They don't offer up information, anyway.) And then based on how they do not speak about it makes it an uncomfortable topic to approach. To be honest, there is very little talk in my family about history of anything, so it always seems like something was wrong. In regards to the Way, specifically, they say that they were asked to leave because the branch leaders (or limb leaders, I am not sure) claimed that they were not giving them all of the money they collected. While I am certainly glad they did not continue as a part of this organization I can say one thing about our fellowship at home that my father led and about the people who attended... we were all very poor. I suppose they expected these people to starve their children to death so that they could properly tithe? Regardless, I am one of seven children. And all of the people who attended our fellowships were, more or less, in the same boat financially. Anyway, that is the story I have always been told... that it was about the money. I am glad they left because even at a very young age I was pretty skeptical of the doctrine. So, anyone else out there who is late-twenties/ early-thirties who remembers this stuff as a part of their childhood? I would be very interested in conversing. I am from the Cincinnati area and have a lot more questions about specific individuals in this area. (i.e. Where are they now? Were they as wrong as I remember? et cetera...)

[angelamorrissey]

Oh, yeah... and the song book. Does that still exist? Anyone have a copy? It's how I learned to sing. Then, on a more interesting note... how I learned to lie? SIT and prophesy. I was little and still forced to do this. WITH A STRAIGHT FACE! Do you understand how difficult this is for an eight year old? Let me tell you, it was incredibly hard. Though, to be honest, it sounds just as comical and ridiculous to me today as it did back then. The difference? No one is forcing me to do it now.