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Word of Faith Fellowship, NC


Jasmar

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I’d never heard of this group before seeing this article. The abuse has been going on for so long, I’m kind of surprised not to have run across this group earlier. Does anyone know anything about them?

(trigger warning for infant abuse)

https://www.npr.org/2020/02/17/806052660/word-of-faiths-pattern-of-abuse-got-worse-over-time-says-broken-faith-author

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11 minutes ago, Jasmar said:

I’d never heard of this group before seeing this article. The abuse has been going on for so long, I’m kind of surprised not to have run across this group earlier. Does anyone know anything about them?

(trigger warning for infant abuse)

https://www.npr.org/2020/02/17/806052660/word-of-faiths-pattern-of-abuse-got-worse-over-time-says-broken-faith-author

I've heard of this.  The surprise to me is that they've had cases against them dismissed.  One of the church's ministers was sent to jail but, so far, Jane Whaley (who is the main pastor) is still walking free.  They've assaulted and abused adults and children and have had different scams going.  Here's a list of Word of Faith Fellowship's 145 rules:

Article on Matthew Fenner, who escaped:  

Warning, the accompanying video could be upsetting.

 

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@Xan, thanks for sharing the links. The list of rules in insane! How do they still have followers? The “do’s” alone would run me off.
 

“You will be required to attend every service.”

“You will be required to tithe...and give offerings...Jane will check your records...”

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As a Jane, if I had this kind of power, I certainly wouldn’t use it for this shizz.

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I think anyone attending this mess is pretty much a write off.  I would burn the church down on my way out. ? What kind of people sign up for this abuse?  It boggles my mind and enrages me.

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12 minutes ago, Giraffe said:

@Xan, thanks for sharing the links. The list of rules in insane! How do they still have followers? The “do’s” alone would run me off.
 

“You will be required to attend every service.”

“You will be required to tithe...and give offerings...Jane will check your records...”

How do people get involved with stuff like this after reading the 145 ridiculous rules?  What is going on with people who willingly put up with this kind of thing?  Are they the most insecure people ever, or what?  I get how cults slowly pull people in, but these people make the rules obvious from the start.  

 

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If you are not allowed to do literally anything at all without checking with the leader first, you are in a cult. 

If your leader dictates which way the toilet paper in your house must hang, you are in a cult.

If this is one of your rules:

Don’t read your Bible, too much.

 you are definitely in a cult.

How the heck does this Jane woman have time for all this? Can you imagine having to approve an entire congregation's every life choice? How does she have time to check out this family's house they want to buy, do the decorating in this other person's house, check out this person's potential date, notify that person that their tag has expired on their car, call up this other person to remind them that it's against the rules to use non-enclosed urinals, vet the family members whose wedding this other person wants to go to, check out the job this other person was just offered, and decide whether this other person is allowed to take a class or not.

My fave rule might be this one:

108. Don’t play with regular playing cards.

I take that to mean Tarot cards are A-OK!

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6 minutes ago, Alisamer said:

If you are not allowed to do literally anything at all without checking with the leader first, you are in a cult. 

If your leader dictates which way the toilet paper in your house must hang, you are in a cult.

If this is one of your rules:

Don’t read your Bible, too much.

 you are definitely in a cult.

How the heck does this Jane woman have time for all this? Can you imagine having to approve an entire congregation's every life choice? How does she have time to check out this family's house they want to buy, do the decorating in this other person's house, check out this person's potential date, notify that person that their tag has expired on their car, call up this other person to remind them that it's against the rules to use non-enclosed urinals, vet the family members whose wedding this other person wants to go to, check out the job this other person was just offered, and decide whether this other person is allowed to take a class or not.

My fave rule might be this one:

108. Don’t play with regular playing cards.

I take that to mean Tarot cards are A-OK!

She does it by grooming them to snitch on one another.  

Honestly, I don't understand this either.  You've either got to be emotionally unbalanced or dumb as dirt to sign on to this kind of abuse.  I think there are some religions that appeal to people who want to be told what to do but having someone dictate how your toilet paper hangs is beyond the pale.

(An aside:  Paula White, the president's personal spiritual adviser, has been telling her congregation to send her the money they'd use to pay their power bills because they should "love God more than they love the power company".  I paraphrased the word salad she uses.)

Edited by Xan
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Rules 75 (aways wear sunscreen) and 138 (toilet paper rolls must be placed the proper way - with the paper going over the top) are the only two rules that are acceptable. The rest are nothing but cult blabber. I can't believe anyone would join this bunch of Looney tunes!

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I don't imagine that when people first start attending this church they altogether know what is taught , and what is expected of members .  In this group , as in all groups that might be considered to be cults , the prospect is fed the "milk " of the doctrine , before eventually having the " meat" disclosed to them . This is called dividing information into  insider vs. outsider doctrine . 

Quote

Levels of Information

Often, and necessarily so within cults, information is compartmentalized. That is, only certain top-notch members are privy to exactly what is happening in the leadership and with the group as a whole. Information pertaining to the group doctrine is fed in small, digestable spoonfuls to new recruits for a reason — so that they remain ignorant for the time being of the workings of the system. Leaders are seen as possessing what Lifton called "sacred science," or having the ability to decipher and interpret doctrines, philosophies, etc, in a way that no one else has ever done or could ever do.

Information is not freely accessible

Information varies at different levels and missions within pyramid

Leadership decides who "needs to know" what

https://www.orange-papers.info/orange-cultinfo.html  So , for instance , instead of these teachings being presented in publically attended services , it is brought up instead within private membership classes . 

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@Marmion, that's how $cientology operates:  don't tell new recruits everything right off the bat and let them get way too involved before you get to the really crazy shit.

@Alisamer,  in addition to Tarot, I wonder if Pinochle or Mus would be OK.  Pinochle and Mus use different non-52 card decks.  

I have heard of this cult before as they are just up the road a piece in Spindale.  

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That NPR article mentioned the intense love bombing that happens to suck people in. I’ve never been in a cult, but have been in an abusive marriage, so I kind of get it, to an extent. But for me, anything that threatened or harmed my kids was always enough to speak up, pull back, or get out. I was a creaky wheel in the homeschooling community, at a couple of the churches we attended, and at the Christian youth theater group over the years. When I finally divorced, my reputation as troublemaker was cemented. 

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6 hours ago, Jasmar said:

I’d never heard of this group before seeing this article. The abuse has been going on for so long, I’m kind of surprised not to have run across this group earlier. Does anyone know anything about them?

(trigger warning for infant abuse)

https://www.npr.org/2020/02/17/806052660/word-of-faiths-pattern-of-abuse-got-worse-over-time-says-broken-faith-author

The book is being released tomorrow.  I'm going to buy it and I'll let you all know how it is.  (I'm about 4 books behind on my e-reader so it might take a while.)  

Other articles have pointed out that the sheriff's office and the courthouse have Word of Faith members employed there and that's why the complaints haven't gotten much traction.

Recent article from Raleigh, NC paper.   https://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/article239990763.html

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5 hours ago, Queen Of Hearts said:

Rules 75 (aways wear sunscreen) and 138 (toilet paper rolls must be placed the proper way - with the paper going over the top) are the only two rules that are acceptable.

Just saw this the other day:

412015292_Bearsnmullets.thumb.jpg.4b69303d553ad54ea869ea5b8040c664.jpg

 

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8 hours ago, hoipolloi said:

Just saw this the other day:

412015292_Bearsnmullets.thumb.jpg.4b69303d553ad54ea869ea5b8040c664.jpg

 

I will say that when I had cats, the roll was always hung the "mullet" way. The last time we hung it the other way the ENTIRE ROLL ended up unrolled and then stuffed into their litter box. (Smart kitties knew what it was for, I guess!) The mullet way they can roll it around, but it's somewhat less likely to be unrolled.

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@Alisamer,  maybe it's because where my toilet paper holder is situated, but my none of my cats have ever unspooled the TP even though it's hung the beard way.  Not Daisy. Not Snorpi. Not Bianca. Not Adagio. Not Sylvester. Not Ling Ling. Not Heidi. And neither Molly I or Molly II.  Maybe all the cats, save Daisy who is still with us, are happily playing with the TP at the Rainbow Bridge.

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41 minutes ago, PennySycamore said:

@Alisamer,  maybe it's because where my toilet paper holder is situated, but my none of my cats have ever unspooled the TP even though it's hung the beard way.  Not Daisy. Not Snorpi. Not Bianca. Not Adagio. Not Sylvester. Not Ling Ling. Not Heidi. And neither Molly I or Molly II.  Maybe all the cats, save Daisy who is still with us, are happily playing with the TP at the Rainbow Bridge.

I do think it depends on the cat! The ones we had as children didn't unroll the TP. The two my sister and I had when we lived together? LOVED to TP the whole bathroom. Only the downstairs bathroom, however? Cats are strange. Wonderful and adorable, but strange.

(Also, cat people, if you've not watched Kitten Academy on youtube, now's a good time to check it out - there are some super playful zoomy kittens with a calico mom AND a set of 10-day-old tinies. One of whom has a charlie chaplin mustache and a receding hairline - and is a girl named Foghorn. The other two are tuxies. Too cute!)

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15 hours ago, Scrappinmac said:

Pretend Radio podcast has several episodes about Word of Faith- http://pretendradio.org/the-prophet-part-1/ There's a couple episodes in season 1, and then all of season 3 is about the church. It's very informative and interesting!

From the article linked in the quote above , 

Quote

John Cooper: Then almost instantaneously they were like, ‘You have unclean in your life. You’re giving to the unclean.’ You’re doing something wrong. Of course they didn’t know anything. They were like, ‘Something is going on between ya’ll.’ So they grabbed me and dragged me out of the chair and threw me on the floor. And then at some point it all becomes a blur because there’s 40-50 people mobbing you and they’re all yelling at you saying you have sin and unclean in your life

This is the " word of knowledge " , that tends to accompany the " word of faith" , in such Charismatic sects .  Like what might happen is that someone in the group will want to bully you , for whatever reason . So as a cover , he or she will claim to have received a word of knowledge that you're gay or lesbian . And then the people will take it on faith to be the truth , even without any substantiatable evidence to back it up . I had encountered this sort of thing in different congregations I had attended growing up , Nazarene , and Christian & Missionary Alliance alike .  From what I have later learned , " word of knowledge " is simply a cold reading , and " word of faith " is what is known to new agers as the " law of attraction " , just dressed up with a Christian veneer .  

 

Plus , on top of all of this , from the time of the Azusa Street Revival , Pentecostalism has been associated with the occult .  { http://www.redgage.com/blogs/andrewsegawa/azusa-street-revival-the-muddled-history-of-pentecostalism.html?rf=/blogs/andrewsegawa/azusa-street-revival-the-muddled-history-of-pentecostalism.html , https://settingcaptivesfree.me/2012/03/25/the-day-of-pentecost-vs-azusa-street-part-2/ } I have cited these sources from Christians , particularly  for the sake of any Word of Faith adherents whom might come across this thread .  I just want to leave you all by saying that their can be a dark side to certain spiritual trends , such as this , no matter how initially unintended it might have been .  

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23 hours ago, Xan said:

Here's a list of Word of Faith Fellowship's 145 rules:

Before they scrub their page...here is a list of the rules - (Because it was in a pdf, I was only able to copy and paste it so it isn't the best readable copy.)

Spoiler

Welcome To Word of Faith Fellowship 1 Let us take this opportunity to thank you for considering membership in Word of Faith Fellowship. Jane Whaley approved of your membership and asked that you be given this “New Member Handout”. In this handout, we will list a few of the very important rules- “do’s” and “don’ts”. Your enjoyment of your time with us will mainly be determined on how well you can keep these rules. Do’s1. You will be required to attend every service. If for some reason unforeseen at this time, you miss a service; you will be required to listen to the tape at the church. (Death, severe illness and surgery may be considered excused absences.) 2. You will be required to tithe (10% of your gross earnings) and give offerings. Jane will check your records from time to time. 3. You will be required to smile on command. This is called “keeping your happy face”. 4. You will be required to participate in group work projects. Enjoy it. We have need of many skills. 5. After each service, you will be required to clean the church and fellowship hall on a rotating basis. Don’ts – (this is a partial “living” list… at times, it takes on a life of its own, continuing to grow..) 1. Don’t drink alcohol. (includes beer, wine or liquor) 2. Don’t cook with alcohol. 3. Don’t eat at places that serve alcohol. 4. Don’t drink “Root beer”. 5. Don’t drink Cheerwine®. 6. Don’t drink diet Cheerwine®. 7. Don’t drink ginger ale. 8. Don’t smoke cigarettes. 9. Don’t dip snuff. 10. Don’t use chew tobacco. 11. Don’t associate willingly with those that do use tobacco. 12. Don’t watch movies. (Unless Jane gives approval.) 13. Don’t watch videos in your cars! 14. Don’t enter a movie theater- (unless Jane gives approval.) 15. Don’t read newspapers. Not even the headlines. 16. Don’t listen to the radio. 17. Don’t read or handle magazines. Welcome To Word of Faith Fellowship 2 18. Don’t watch television. (except when allowed at church) 19. Don’t read books that are not approved by leadership. 20. Don’t read your Bible, too much. (Amplified version is acceptable) 21. Don’t take notes during the services. Only record scripture references. 22. Don’t forget to go to bathroom before the service. 23. Don’t get up to go to bathroom during a service. 24. Don’t bring knives of ANY type on church property. 25. Don’t be late for a service of function. 26. Don’t park alongside the left side of the sanctuary unless you are approved. 27. Don’t park in the spaces closest to the back steps. Those are reserved for parents with infants. 28. Don’t park in the first spot along the front sidewalk. That is reserved for those on watch. 29. Don’t park along the street. Use the field only when not raining. 30. Don’t park on the drive to the school. (unless approved for that service.) 31. Don’t park in the first handicap space unless approved. 32. Don’t park under the awning and leave your car running. 33. Don’t speed when driving around the church. 34. Don’t go opposite to the accepted traffic flow of counter-clockwise. It causes confusion. 35. Don’t be on your cell phone when approaching the school. 36. Don’t drive your car with expired tags. You will be reminded. 37. Men: Don’t wear a color of dress shirt except white or light blue. 38. Women: Don’t get your heart set on a dress until you check with others to see of anyone else has that dress. You may need to return yours. 39. Don’t “check out” during the singing. 40. Don’t look around at others when you are supposed to be singing. 41. Don’t close your eyes when singing. You could give over to a “religious devil”. 42. Don’t stare at visitors. 43. Don’t bring your cell phone into a service. Exceptions are rare and you will be told when you can bring your phone into the service. 44. Don’t take pictures during a regular service. 45. Don’t make your own recording of a service. 46. Don’t bring visitors unless you tell someone in the office so they can tell Jane. 47. Don’t take pictures of Jane of other members unless you are given permission. 48. Don’t be loose with your camera at any time. 49. Don’t put large amounts of cash in the offering unless it is in an envelope. 50. Don’t complain when the offering plates are passed more than once. 51. Don’t allow your toddlers to eat in the sanctuary. 52. Don’t bring snacks of dark drinks or chocolate. Welcome To Word of Faith Fellowship 3 53. Don’t chew gum in the sanctuary. 54. Don’t fall asleep during the services. If you get tired, take your Bible and stand –up in the back of the sanctuary. 55. Don’t wear muddy shoes or boots into the sanctuary, leave them at the door-outside. 56. Don’t leave your tissues after services. Place them in the trash. 57. Don’t leave coats, Bibles or personal belongings in the sanctuary. It gets locked after each service. 58. Don’t touch the thermostats in the church unless you are approved. 59. Don’t wear jeans. (exception may be for construction work..maybe..) 60. Don’t wear shorts. 61. Don’t wear sleeveless dresses or tops. 62. Don’t wear dresses above the knees. 63. Don’t wear a bathing suit without having it covered with long shorts (below the knees) and a dark t-shirt. 64. Don’t wear cargo pants. 65. Don’t wear or own anything with Nike® on it. Nothing. 66. Don’t wear black tennis shoes. 67. Don’t wear high-cut, boot-like tennis shoes. 68. Men: don’t wear solid white tennis shoes. 69. Don’t wear a baseball cap sideways or backwards. 70. Don’t wear t-shirts with slogans or pictures. 71. Don’t wear “muscle t-shirts”. 72. Men: Don’t leave the house without a white t-shirt on under your top shirt. 73. Don’t go swimming with boys and girls together. 74. Don’t leave the pools toy out when you are done using the pool. 75. Don’t go outside without sunscreen. (daily) 76. Men: Don’t allow facial hair to grow. No beards, of any type. No “pork chop” sideburns. 77. Men: Don’t let your hair get long or unkempt. 78. Don’t interview for a job unless it is “under authority”. 79. Don’t accept a job unless you check it out with authority. 80. Don’t make plans for college unless you have Jane check it out. 81. Don’t sign-up for classes unless Jane Whaley or leadership checks out your schedule. 82. Don’t buy a house unless Jane Whaley can check it out. 83. Don’t even make an offer on a house unless Jane can “checkout” and “get a feel” for the neighborhood. 84. Don’t decorate your house unless Jane or her helper can help you. 85. Don’t buy a car without checking with Sam first. 86. Don’t sell a car or truck without checking with Sam first. Welcome To Word of Faith Fellowship 4 87. Don’t get major repairs done without checking with Sam. 88. Don’t buy insurance without checking with the approved church source person for insurance. 89. Don’t plan a vacation or time away with your family unless you check-it out with Jane. 90. Don’t assume you can go to the funeral or a wedding of a family member without checking it out and/or someone from the church going with you. 91. Don’t celebrate Christmas. 92. Don’t give gifts to others unless you are “under authority”. 93. Don’t celebrate Easter. 94. Don’t celebrate other holidays. 95. Don’t eat turkey on Thanksgiving. 96. Don’t celebrate your birthday or others in your family or group of friends or co-workers. 97. Don’t celebrate wedding anniversaries. 98. Don’t go hunting. 99. Don’t go fishing. (well unless it is on an approved “ministry” trip) 100. Don’t hunt or fish just for sport. 101. Don’t have bumper stickers on your car. (Political season is an exception.) 102. Don’t have “dingle dangles” hanging from your rearview mirror. 103. Don’t have a slogan license plate on the front of your car. 104. Don’t buy or drive a “race car” looking car. 105. Don’t play games on your computer. Erase/delete the games. 106. Don’t play games on your cell phone. Erase/delete them. 107. Don’t own or use a “game boy” or other hand held electronic game device. 108. Don’t play with regular playing cards. 109. Don’t play “hide and go seek”. 110. Don’t play Monoploy®. 111. Don’t play football. 112. Don’t ride in the back of a pick-up truck. 113. Don’t play ping pong. 114. Don’t play pool. 115. Don’t play or imitate an “air guitar”. 116. Don’t play music without singing the words. 117. Don’t whistle. 118. Don’t let WOFF children play with children outside of WOFF. 119. Don’t let children make animal sounds. (maybe,,) 120. Don’t let children play toy musical instruments. (maybe…) 121. Don’t forget to read your Bible before you go to bed. 122. Don’t let children play with camping toys. Welcome To Word of Faith Fellowship 5 123. Don’t let children play with “play tools”. 124. Don’t let children have Bibles with stories and pictures of Jesus. (maybe..) 125. Don’t be late for anything. Be early. 126. Don’t iron double creases in your pants. 127. Men: Don’t use urinals that are not enclosed. 128. Don’t store personal garments unless they are folded neatly in the drawer. 129. Don’t go to tanning beds. 130. Don’t ride motorcycles. 131. Don’t ride ATV’s or dirt bikes. 132. Men: African American- Don’t shave your head bald. 133. Don’t start a relationship without checking it out with Jane Whaley. 134. Don’t decide who you will marry without checking it out with Jane. 135. Don’t talk to the other person who you are in relationship with unless someone is listening and “guarding the conversation”. 136. Don’t talk loose and joke around. Don’t be foolish. 137. Don’t complain about the list of “don’ts”. 138. Don’t place the toilet paper on the roll unless it rolls over the top. 139. Don’t speak to those who have left unless you ask Jane. 140. Don’t ask anyone but Jane about those who have not been seen lately in services. 141. Don’t go in the sanctuary with “sin in your heart”, deal with it before service. 142. Don’t expect someone else to clean-up your mess. 143. Don’t back-talk or give excuses for your sin. 144. Don’t attack those in authority. 145. Don’t question Jane’s authority to run WOFF. We hope you will be with us for many years to come. Don’t worry about memorizing this list. When you violate a “don’t”, you will be told-“We don’t do that”.

What is "Cheerwine" (R)? and now I want some. 

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6 minutes ago, quiversR4hunting said:

What is "Cheerwine" (R)? and now I want some. 

It's a cherry soda. Rather tasty as an occasional drink.

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