Jump to content
IGNORED

John Shrader Part 11 - God's Grifter Falling Apart


Coconut Flan

Recommended Posts

Continued from here:

John is showing more and more signs of mental decline and lack of ability to function as a missionary and possibly as a husband and father.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 661
  • Created
  • Last Reply

@Coconut Flan, I would have said instead that John's multiple mistakes in judgement may be coming back to haunt him, his converts are rebelling, and his (metaphorical) chickens are coming home to roost.  John has always had these huge mood swings and loves drama.  The difference is that this time abasing himself to his donors and asking for God to break him doesn't seem to be working as well as usual.

I truly hope he is not headed for a psychotic break, but he's had a lot of feckless fun in the time he has been in  Zambia converting Christians to Christianity.  Also, goodness only knows how much of his donors' money has been spent keeping him in the manner to which he would like to become accustomed.

Bringing this quote from the last thread:

1 hour ago, DarkAnts said:

I think Esther and the children have a better life in Africa. They were living in a pop up camper when in the states. Yes, John is unstable but they don't have to worry about where they are going to sleep or what they are going to eat.

They probably do have a better quality of life in Zambia compared to when John was dragging them all over the US in the pop-up camper on deputation.  At least they wake up in the same beds every day.  Before the deputation malarky they lived in a house, but I think Grandpa Rick helped out with the bills even then.

Unfortunately in Zambia they are far from the support of family and friends if John should actually decompensate.  They are also still completely dependent on donations for everything - and if John's "mission" goes belly up that money will also go away.  To say nothing of the fact that John's cultural insensitivity and total lack of respect for Zambian laws and regulations could get him beaten up, deported or jailed at any time.

It is a miracle that none of the children appear to have become really ill given that they are probably still unvaccinated and John's idea of healthcare is chucking colloidal silver at them.

The kids will be much safer back in the States, living in a house not a pop-trailer, and with family close by to bail them out when (not if) John's next grandiose fantasy doesn't pan out.  The Zambia "mission" is the longest lived of his bad ideas but is probably the one that put Esther and the children at most risk.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, after the deserved hand slap and deletion of my inappropriate posts, let me PARAPHRASE for anyone who didn't see the information:

1.  John is losing it with the men in his church.

2.  He has driven off several of his disciples because of sin in their lives.  Knowing John, it could have meant they were listening to a Top 40 radio station, they were working outside without shirts on, they disagreed with John, they laughed at or questioned him, or they didn't help pass out propaganda at a stranger's funeral.

3. Arcade is back in Burundi because John ran him off.  Jolis wonders why someone claiming to have the Holy Spirit would act like John.  John kicked Roderick out of the Timothy house and changed the lock.

4.  John is adamant that the church members do what he tells them to.  If they don't, he lays on a guilt trip, reminding them of all he's done for them.

5.  John is a total douche bag.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

28 minutes ago, Palimpsest said:

I would have said instead that John's multiple mistakes in judgement may be coming back to haunt him, his converts are rebelling, and his (metaphorical) chickens are coming home to roost.  John has always had these huge mood swings and loves drama.  The difference is that this time abasing himself to his donors and asking for God to break him doesn't seem to be working as well as usual.

I could be misreading John, but he seems worse this time to me.  I think he may be having a true get me out of here reaction or he could be having a longer low than usual for him.  This one seems protracted.  I can hope I'm wrong. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, Coconut Flan said:

I think he may be having a true get me out of here reaction or he could be having a longer low than usual for him.  This one seems protracted.  I can hope I'm wrong. 

I think this one is longer than usual.  I hope Daddy does finally see sense and pulls him out of there this time.  Soon.

Whether mentally ill or not, John's arrogance and greed results in a path of destruction in his wake. He puts his family at risk.  He is not needed in Zambia.  He does nothing of worth there - all he does is make people question their faith.  He is potentially damaging to people in Zambia - like Roderick, Handia, and poor Arcade, who he picked up in Burundi and whose time he has wasted.

I blame his enablers - and that means his father and the naive idiots who throw money, planes, cars and pianos at him.  Enough is enough.  Get him out of there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have not been following John all that long but I see him as a garden variety narcissist.  Everything is about him, he rarely mentions his family and when he mentions other people it is those he has brought to Christ.  I think he's a master manipulator who, when his manipulations don't work, goes to bed and blames it on a satanic attack. 

I don't see bi-polar.  I see selfish, angry and lazy.  JMO.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 minutes ago, Carol said:

I see selfish, angry and lazy.

Selfish, angry and lazy, manipulative, and arrogant, greedy and impulsive, with a habit of spinning the truth until it screams for mercy.  

He also makes grandiose plans, is very impulsive, and seems to have huge mood swings.  When he is on an upswing he sounds positively high.  When he is down he sounds in the depths of despair.  That's what makes me think bipolar.  Rufus knows ...

Of course, he could just be a spoiled brat and pouting like a narcissistic toddler (or Donald Trump) when things don't go his way.  I really pity Esther and the children.  He must be hell to live with, either way

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've always thought that John was both a narcissist and had another mental disorder.  Unfortunately, there's no law of nature that restricts people to only having one mental disorder at a time.  I could make a joke of saying that John's so greedy that of course he wouldn't stop at one, but it would be in poor taste considering the people he's harming on a daily basis.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

Before the deputation malarky they lived in a house, but I think Grandpa Rick helped out with the bills even then.

They lived in a very old camper for a bit while John was attempting to be a pastor. He then got the house that people helped pay for. John has never been able to support his family. When he inevitable ends up back here I have no idea how Daddy Shrader is going to support John and his large family. 

1 hour ago, Coconut Flan said:

seems worse this time to me.

Does to me too. Typically he has a "woe is me" period quickly followed by a "grand idea" period. This time not even getting out of Kafue is cheering him up. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I really can't muster any sympathy for John.  He's been shitting on the locals ever since he got there so if they are leaving in droves he is getting his just desserts.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If anyone else out there is like me, I have no idea what a lot of the terms evangelicals/fundamentalists etc. mean.  Planting, seeding, deputation, sending, etc. are confusing to me.  Here is a website that has helped me to understand deputation and how to go about it the best way if anyone wants to read it.

https://independentbaptistar.com/deputation-helps/

I never could, and still can't, understand why churches compete against each other for which denomination will hit the heavenly jackpot.  It is the antithesis of everything Jesus was.  I'll probably never understand it and I suspect I make fun of it because of the hypocrisy of it's adherents. 

Just act like Jesus as best as you can.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I just caught up on the end of the last thread. WAY TO GO, HANDIA on calling out John! I wish I could high-five him, but I would need reeeeeeeeeally long arms.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Everything happens for a reason, and sometimes that reason is that you're a jackass and make poor choices. 

John is having a Raskolnikov moment. Is he unwell? Perhaps. But I see this as distinct from most mental illness, which develops unprovoked, and rather as a result of the pressures of the fall out of his series of determinedly poor choices. 

Most mental illness is the brain being a fucking liar. I don't think John's brain is lying.  I think johns brain is telling him the truth, but the truth of what he's gotten himself into is just that bad.

John's recovery starts with accountability, which is EXACTLY what he is running from.

I hope Esther and the kids are OK. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sadly it's nearly always the wife and children who suffer most when the family headship loses it. In normal life as well as fundie life.

Esther and the children need to travel back ASAP before John is arrested for disturbing the peace. The police will listen to the locals If they decide to report him for something (not saying that they will/have done). If he carries on in his usual manner it's not without the realm of possibility. UNLESS the locals are taking deep breaths for the sake of Esther and the children.

I really hope that Esther has true support among the local ladies who have seen through John from the beginning. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Carol said:

Here is a website that has helped me to understand deputation and how to go about it the best way if anyone wants to read it.

https://independentbaptistar.com/deputation-helps/

Very good find.  Thanks.   I spent a whole lot of time trying to understand IFB deputation.  

As a former Medical Missionary Kid, my parents "deputation" consisted of getting medical training (MD, FRCSE, doing Trop Med, and getting SRN, midwifery training.) Then signing up with a legit Mission and going for months of training to be a missionary and language training prior to being sent to the field.

IFB "Missionaries" will always bother me.  Also note that John neglected even weird IFB "rules" as he geared up to his misbegotten "mission."

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No way did John follow half of those rules!!!!! Surely not. He is PROUD that he pontificates for hours at a time!! 

He isn't able to use one word when three will do!!

His kids are cute and I can imagine Esther fulfilling her role well. 

No wonder his donating churches dropped him. That makes total sense. 

Has he written a recent newsletter that anyone who can still access his FB has seen?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Gobsmacked said:

Sadly it's nearly always the wife and children who suffer most when the family headship loses it. In normal life as well as fundie life.

Esther and the children need to travel back ASAP before John is arrested for disturbing the peace. The police will listen to the locals If they decide to report him for something (not saying that they will/have done). If he carries on in his usual manner it's not without the realm of possibility. UNLESS the locals are taking deep breaths for the sake of Esther and the children.

I really hope that Esther has true support among the local ladies who have seen through John from the beginning. 

It'll be difficult to get Esther to take all the kids and leave.  She's totally subservient to John.  Blame her parents for that.  Their Kool-aid didn't work on all of their kids, but it sure worked on her.  She won't go unless John tells her to go, and I think he's too dependant on her to send her and the kids away.  She's his right hand, but not in a second-in-command sort of way.  

John sees Esther as his appendage.  She's his right hand, under his control to use.  Hell, if he wants sex, I think he 'masturbates' by using Esther as a vessel to get off.

But more than that, John depends on Esther to take care of things when he's off on one of his flights of fancy, or has taken to his bed in despair.  She's had his children, and I'm sure does the bulk of raising them while he strokes his ego because he's managed to get another blessing out of God.  Whether he admits it to himself or not, he depends on Esther and the children.  They're needed to be a buffer from people who might turn him away when he needs help, or to keep people from confronting him directly when they have figured out what he is.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

David Rea seems to be alienating people too. He posted an anti-gay marriage post and the only responses were people correcting his grammar. Then he posted what he thought was going to be an amusing story about how they watched children torture a cat and his kids laughed and laughed. All the responses are horror and wonder why his children think that torturing animals is not only okay, but find it amusing. They also wanted to know why he and his wife didn't do the responsible thing and stop these children from torturing an animal. He gets snippy in his responses. 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, Flossie said:

It'll be difficult to get Esther to take all the kids and leave.  She's totally subservient to John.  Blame her parents for that.

Indeed.  But at what point are we going to hold Esther responsible (speaking for myself too)?  She has 10 children. 

She cannot bury her head in the sand forever.  Rebekah, Daniel, and Suze rejected Keller teachings.  When will Esther come to her senses?

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hopefully Esther will wake up properly BEFORE John becomes completely unhinged.

Hopefully the Keller parents will wake up properly BEFORE John does something EVEN MORE stupid than he has done already.

Hopefully Esther's siblings are following the whole sad tale and can convince their grinning idiot parents act BEFORE John gets himself arrested, deported or worse.

Hopefully Daddy Shrader will take some action BEFORE his grandchildren find themselves stranded in Zambia with a tired disillusioned mother and an AWOL father. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Do the babies born in Zambia have passports? I was born abroad too and my parents pretty much started the process on the way home from the hospital. I don't see John doing this. Hopefully Esther did it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 minutes ago, Grimalkin said:

Do the babies born in Zambia have passports? I was born abroad too and my parents pretty much started the process on the way home from the hospital. I don't see John doing this. Hopefully Esther did it.

My first thought was Esther's baby born with a passport taped to it's chest and a letter from Jesus telling her to get the heck out of there and he hopes this small gesture makes her departure a bit easier.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Rea parents sound totally insane. When is the torture of any living thing ok? And to stand and laugh? Totally off the scale despicable. 

Hope their supporting churches drop them ASAP.

sub - human monsters 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The Kellers are not going to intervene. Esther will probably have sibling support should she leave and still be welcome at family gatherings with her parents. But look at how the Kellers responded to Joshgate. By saying we knew before and we encouraged our kid to marry him. There will be no intervention from those parents and any attempt by rebel siblings, will be rebuffed because rebels who are going to hell. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Shooting all sorts of evils at Rea for letting that poor cat get tormented. I hope all his parishioners become Episcopalians and leave him penniless!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • FundieFarmer locked this topic

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.



×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.