Remnant Fellowship 21: 53 Standing Ovations and I Move to Brentwood!

[RFsurvivor]

7 minutes ago, Red Hair, Black Dress said:

The wedding colors for the couple getting married Saturday are brown, light brown, and ivory. -- or as I think of them -- mud, dirt, and sand.

Those are the saddest, most depressing wedding colors I've ever heard of.  Now that Gwen is gone who is picking the wedding colors? Were these mandated by Gwen before the crash? 

Is is possible that as we get farther from the crash date, couples will choose their wedding colors themselves?  Crazy thought I know. Can't have people who aren't "under authority" for every single decision in their lives.

 

So previously, the couple would submit color suggestions to the wedding committee and Gwen had the final say. One of the color I wanted was rejected because another wedding a few months prior had a similar color. 

[CRAnn]

20 hours ago, Pathologic Antagonist said:

After a long time of sharing with those who would know, I'm glad the documentary found a former associate of Joe to make clear that his role as middle aged and self made guru dispensing spiritual bon bons was just that .. a role.

Those acting classes were being repurposed through Gwen's coaching and Joe's growing ego contributed as well. He didn't know any more about the Bible and its application than what his Hallmark card dialogue made him seem to grasp.  And for Gwen, lost in her gushing middle age honeymoon crazy, that was fine. All knew who wore the pants in that department.

I honestly don't think they knew how they were going to proceed with his next characterization. They were too busy enjoying Life and letting Zion burn before the fateful crash. One thing Grider DID say that I DID agree with is that she did find another lead for her soap opera there.

Joe truly was that, but the Remnant effort to anoint him as a new David Koresh firebrand (another scruffy musician whose zeal was nourished by his association with the Branch Davidian matriarch before his ascendancy) would likely only have lead to him becoming just an Edward Francis instead. Francis was the one time paramour of cult leader Elizabeth Clare Prophet whose 15 year marriage ended after a "growing apart" ..  Joe just didn't have the depth to sustain that kind of role, but it sure was Fun while he played the Man.

So agree that Joe would not have been able to play his role for long…. there were cracks showing from the beginning.  

Still… partying and laughing  were his favorite things and she wanted to think she was following his lead so party and laugh they did.  And the faithful encouraged it considering her to be past due from her Bula life.  If she had never preached again after marrying him it would have been accepted.  Even in this week’s service the Fisher elder spoke about the importance of dancing for God like David.  So they’ve worked it all in well enough. 

Others have suggested that Gwen’s sudden and unusual interest in the political landscape and efforts to add it to her “message” was all Joe’s contribution.  His interest. Something else I noticed with his arrival was a sudden interest in Jesus.  A YCO about the youth being Ambassadors for Christ, and much more.  And Joe seemed to be attempting to have a much more evangelical position with his comments during their G&J show.  All this has also stuck with the remaining faithful, but was hard to find in her earlier messages and YCOs.  I suspect it was what he thought would help take their “show” viral.

 

 

Edited October 22, 2021 by CRAnn
Yikes, I don’t know how to separate my comments from Pathological Antagonists comments

[thoughtful]

46 minutes ago, Destiny said:

I don't actually remember. I'm thinking it might have come from Raquel's magical penis ferrets somehow (BTW, did y'all know she's a pagan now? Talk about a 180!) possibly combined with @HerNameIsBuffy loving to horrify me with pictures of that horrible attack ferret in a dress.

I think that rescue ferrets may pre-date Raquel's ferret, but I don't know who first came up with it.

It may have been a reference to the fact that ferrets have been used for hunting rabbits, going down rabbit burrows, and we often refer to plunging into reading about a fundie with a long, horrifying past as "going down the rabbit hole."

The image of the orange penis ferret, who says "At your cervix, m'lady" was inspired by Raquel's story. I know this because I made it!

[Destiny]

That may well be correct @thoughtful re: it being older than the penis ferret. It's one of those pieces of FJ lore that has definitely been lost in my head and I couldn't even pinpoint when we started using it if I had to. I know one of the first times it stuck in my head was that horrible image of Buffy's but that doesn't mean much really.

[nelliebelle1197]

1 hour ago, RFsurvivor said:

So previously, the couple would submit color suggestions to the wedding committee and Gwen had the final say. One of the color I wanted was rejected because another wedding a few months prior had a similar color. 

What colors ended up getting approved for you?

[ManyGoats]

I find it so fascinating that in RF a wedding preempts a church service. Wednesday's service was like a wedding shower (without gifts) honoring the couple. And Saturday's service will be the wedding. I wonder what is the reasoning behind that.

[Chocolate Lover]

2 hours ago, ManyGoats said:

I find it so fascinating that in RF a wedding preempts a church service. Wednesday's service was like a wedding shower (without gifts) honoring the couple. And Saturday's service will be the wedding. I wonder what is the reasoning behind that.

A bit of variety after all the Gwen repeats?  Still no one to step up and preach new stuff?  May this latter one never come to fruition, thus speeding up the demise of this ghastly cult.

[ManyGoats]

3 minutes ago, Chocolate Lover said:

A bit of variety after all the Gwen repeats?  Still no one to step up and preach new stuff?  May this latter one never come to fruition, thus speeding up the demise of this ghastly cult.

I think they did that even before Gwen died. 

[WeirdHarold]

On 10/19/2021 at 4:47 PM, ChadelBaj said:

Channel 5 in Nashville did a small special on RF and the TWD. Phil Williams, their investigative reporter has been reporting on Gwen and RF for the past 20 years- he talks about the interview he did with her about the Smith case. His insight is very thoughtful and accurate imo. There is also a heartbreaking call-in from an ex-member.  Worth a watch. 

https://www.newschannel5.com/plus/openline/gwen-shamblin-lara-remnant-fellowship-and-the-docuseries-the-way-down

Thanks!  That was definitely worth watching.  "I was a glue stick child."  The caller sounded legit.

[CRAnn]

4 hours ago, ManyGoats said:

I find it so fascinating that in RF a wedding preempts a church service. Wednesday's service was like a wedding shower (without gifts) honoring the couple. And Saturday's service will be the wedding. I wonder what is the reasoning behind that.

Well they don’t have a pastor for one, and profiling the young adults and the beautiful weddings may seem like a strategy for holding onto their young people.  

[WeirdHarold]

Does anyone know if RF has issued a statement or is writing letters in support of members' religious exemption filings regarding vaccination with employers under the civil rights act?

Edited October 22, 2021 by WeirdHarold
Left out a critical part.

[ManyGoats]

2 hours ago, CRAnn said:

Well they don’t have a pastor for one, and profiling the young adults and the beautiful weddings may seem like a strategy for holding onto their young people.  

I think they did that before Gwen died, though. I've seen those wedding panels before and I'm pretty sure weddings have often replaced a weekly service.

[ChadelBaj]

3 hours ago, CRAnn said:

Well they don’t have a pastor for one, and profiling the young adults and the beautiful weddings may seem like a strategy for holding onto their young people.  

This is exactly what I thought. 

[Hane]

Slightly OT: When I was in Germany visiting relatives in the ‘90s, I went to Mass one Saturday afternoon and was surprised to see that a wedding took place during it. I was told that that was common for church weddings there—that only the rich would have a nuptial Mass strictly for invited guests.

Things that made an impression:

The bride wore a white gown and veil, and the bridesmaids wore dressy but not matching floor-length dresses.  
There were programs in the pews, and I learned that “in sickness and in health” in German is “in Krankheit und Gesundheit.” 
The wedding party held up an arch of beribboned coat hangers for the bride and groom to exit through, representing the department store they both worked for. 
The bride and groom departed in a horse-drawn carriage.

[freefromthin]

Gwen also used to give a sermon at the weddings, so maybe that was part of the reason that they felt OK with replacing a service with a wedding. I think they also sang worship songs, because I've seen some wedding footage of them waving their arms like they often do during a regular worship service. 

Hopefully an ex-Remnant member can provide further clarification.

[Freedbygrace]

2 hours ago, freefromthin said:

Gwen also used to give a sermon at the weddings, so maybe that was part of the reason that they felt OK with replacing a service with a wedding. I think they also sang worship songs, because I've seen some wedding footage of them waving their arms like they often do during a regular worship service. 

Hopefully an ex-Remnant member can provide further clarification.

Your description is correct about the weddings. Gwen did give a sermon at each wedding. There would be a break in the service and the wedding party would sit down and Gwen would start preaching. Sometimes it would relate to the wedding but a lot of the time it was just random. There would also be some singing and arm waving like regular services. I believe Gwen justified everything by throwing some aspects of a normal services while elevating the young couple to think they were very valuable to RF. 
 

One note about the weddings. Shortly after moving to TN there was a wedding of a couple that we did not know so we did not go. Tedd talked to my wife a few days later and chastised her for not attending. She was told that we had skipped church and we should not do it again. 

Another note is that were some weddings that did not make it to Saturday night. These “lesser” couples were ones that couldn’t afford a big service or were older or had some other flaw. This fits in with the regular process of putting on a good show in public and hiding the things that don’t look so good. 

[RFsurvivor]

7 hours ago, freefromthin said:

Gwen also used to give a sermon at the weddings, so maybe that was part of the reason that they felt OK with replacing a service with a wedding. I think they also sang worship songs, because I've seen some wedding footage of them waving their arms like they often do during a regular worship service. 

Hopefully an ex-Remnant member can provide further clarification.

There were a few categories of weddings. The first being a full church wedding in the sanctuary. This replaced the Saturday service and the whole church was invited.
 

Then there were the mid size weddings where it was invitation only which is what mine was. The invitation only was a joke, people I didn’t invite came to my wedding including people I didn’t even know 🤷🏼‍♀️ These are typically in the fellowship hall or at a leaders house. The guest list is like 100-250 if I remember correctly.

The last one would be a private/small wedding. These don’t tend to get that much attention and sometimes were only announced after the wedding had occurred. These would be less than 50 people and were not very common. 

[RFFriend]

On 10/17/2021 at 9:36 AM, Jb003 said:

Why are Elizabeth and Michael so absent from the church? I thought Elizabeth would step right in and take over. This is what she has been 'groomed' for. Instead they are playing old sermons of Gwen's?

I've been gone awhile and just now catching up.....  I have heard that they are laying low due to the intense scrutiny on the church right now and not wanting to give any more footage to the documentary.  So, we may be seeing more of them after the documentary is over.  Or it is a convenient excuse to the members for why they are not there.....

On 10/18/2021 at 6:42 PM, Freedbygrace said:

This seems somewhat unlikely to me because Tedd spent many, many years giving “bad counsel” with no backlash. He was not qualified to counsel with his only training coming from Gwen. I believe you could talk to any ex-RF member and they could tell you their own horror story of counsel from Tedd and the bad results of what he advised. 
 

I have no insights as to why he is out of leadership but theories listed here of some questionable financial dealings or Gwen not being able to afford him seem more likely. I would say it was not because he disagreed with Gwen about Joe because the time when two of the top leaders disagreed with Gwen during the time we were there, they left RF and took some family and friends with them. 

A thought I had when reading your post is that maybe the difference this time was that the bad counsel could have been around Joe?  Maybe Ted wasn't so happy about Joe coming in and usurping his place and said something that got him exiled?

[rabbitholejulie]

2 hours ago, RFFriend said:

I've been gone awhile and just now catching up.....  I have heard that they are laying low due to the intense scrutiny on the church right now and not wanting to give any more footage to the documentary.  So, we may be seeing more of them after the documentary is over.  Or it is a convenient excuse to the members for why they are not there.....

A thought I had when reading your post is that maybe the difference this time was that the bad counsel could have been around Joe?  Maybe Ted wasn't so happy about Joe coming in and usurping his place and said something that got him exiled?

Having the dispute be about Joe makes sense.  One thing no one seems to know is what Joe's salary was and if he still worked for RF after getting married...

[Baxsmom]

I took a look at the wedding tonight.  The Shamblin/Hannah kids were in the wedding party.  They looked good, which is nice to see. It was a pleasant ceremony although the Remnant wedding commercial in the middle was odd (because I am not sure someone would join this church because they have pretty weddings).

 

[Scrappinmac]

32 minutes ago, Baxsmom said:

I took a look at the wedding tonight.  The Shamblin/Hannah kids were in the wedding party.  They looked good, which is nice to see. It was a pleasant ceremony although the Remnant wedding commercial in the middle was odd (because I am not sure someone would join this church because they have pretty weddings).

 

Who performed the ceremony?

 

[Baxsmom]

4 minutes ago, Scrappinmac said:

Who performed the ceremony?

 

Patrick Stites was up there at first but I fast forwarded through and I think it was Joseph Langston. 

[MamaJunebug]

Browsing my HBO menu tonight I noticed that TWD is listed both in the “Documentary” and “Crime” categories. Seemed appropriate. 

[Baxsmom]

 

Headline:  Scariest thing you will see this Halloween. Thanks MSNBC.

https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/hbo-s-way-down-gives-frightening-look-christian-weight-loss-n1282212

Edited October 25, 2021 by Baxsmom

[RFfamANON]

On 10/20/2021 at 6:03 PM, nelliebelle1197 said:

And when Old Dan was thrown on a Journey for calling a minor Shamblin grandchild fat, he took his toys and left.

I am glad he left. I felt like 99% of what Dan said was “just wait I will expose so much.. next time… I have so many secrets to tell you …next time…”