Comments on: blogathon: leaving a cult

By: Carol

Carol — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 14:42:33 +0000

Thank you Isabella for directing me to this blog entry.

I too was in The Way and in The Way Corps the same time as Kristen. I also recommend her book as an excellent source to observe how the power play of cultic relationships develop.

I was in The Way for a long time, 28 years. I got involved in latter 1977 at 18 years old and left in latter 2005 at 46 years old. Some my wonder how a person stays so long with a totalistic system. The answers for that, of course, can vary with different people.

You, or others, may be interested in the following link. It is a transcription of a journal from when I was in The Way Corps, the leadership training program of The Way. It was a good exercise (and not an easy one) to transcribe the journal. In transcribing, I saw the soul murder of a young woman whose heart’s desire was simply to love God and serve.
http://soulfeet.wordpress.com/journal-entries-index/

(note: I was in The Way Corps twice. The transcribed journal is my second attempt at The Way Corps and is three years after Kristen’s final year of Way Corps training.)

One result of suppressing my own emotions and thoughts was physical illness. Four years into The Way, I developed asthma. That was in 1981. It was in 2000 before I began to see that at least part of the cause (and I think a large part) of the illnesses was due to suppressed emotion. It took until the past few years to see how the indoctrination and internalization from Way beliefs was a (the?) major player in that suppression.

Well, apologies for the long ramble. There’s a lot more I could say. But that’s one reason I blog. Ha!

To life and hope!
~carol welch

By: kristen

kristen — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 21:20:22 +0000

thank you, Isabella, for reading my book and for your sensitive handling of same. I never thought I’d be able to set foot in a church ever again, much less have a relationship with a “Higher Power” (e.g. God, Jesus, etc.). It has taken years of therapy and love from friends and family to help me get to the point of trust, but it has happened! I’m now thankful for the pain I went through in The Way because it has made me a more compassionate person and a more thankful one. One never can taste the heights of heaven without having known the depths of Hell. (who said that? Dante?) I truly believe that and so appreciate your support in my healing and the healing of others. take care always…..

By: Donna D

Donna D — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 13:49:01 +0000

though i left a cult some 20 years ago, reading this post makes me realize how fresh the wounds still are. i have discovered that leaving physically is so much easier to do than to leave the mental and emotional chains behind. i have found that you can’t escape the years of brainwashing simply by dissassociating yourself , or in my case by putting thousands of miles of distance between myself and the “church” that for so many years of my life i gave body, soul and spirit to . it has been like a cancer to me, eating away at my ability to experience true joy and happiness. i fear i will never be able to trust religion again, or worst, never be able to trust myself to recognize what is true religion, and what is not.

By: isabella mori

isabella mori — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 22:13:26 +0000

CC – interesting what you say about possible mental illness of cult leaders. that would be a topic to investigate …

yes, our hurts and painfully unmet needs drive us to do things that are unthinkable.

and let’s not forget – cults are not at all linked to religion. these christian cults are mirrored by the moons, by muslim suicide bombers, by survivalists; this is not tied to any single religion, it’s tied to human frailty.

By: ClinicallyClueless

ClinicallyClueless — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 11:40:28 +0000

This is so sad and it probably does not blatantly like a cult to others. But, there are key elements her need for affirmation, inappropriate boundaried, secrets, focus on the person and not God, and all “bad” things come from the devil. It makes me angry, yet I know some very intelligent people and very strong Christians who due to their own hurts and subsequent needs have found themselves in cults and left. Unfortunately, some of the damage to the psyche still lingers some 30 years later. I often think that cult leaders definitely have a mental illness of some personality disorder and mood disorder.

By: isabella mori

isabella mori — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 19:23:38 +0000

i love the phrase, “follower of christ”! following christ, the great liberator …

By: marja

marja — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 19:40:39 +0000

What a horrific story! A story like this is what gives Christianity a bad name and I hope people don't judge the whole religion by this. Though I know that many Christians have forgotten what Jesus stood for and that is really sad. For that reason I often don't call myself a Christian, preferring the phrase "follower of Christ." marja's last blog post..Such happiness!

By: Nancy

Nancy — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 19:29:24 +0000

tears are in my eyes, too, Isabella, and Kristen. And if I understand Jesus at all, he always comes to us in utter vulnerability and humility … and offers liberation from many, many things that clutch at us.

Nancy’s last blog post..Guest Post: ditching plastic bags – why didn?t MSN Money readers jump on board