VoicesVoices now gone but neer forgotten, Tunes of songs we once were singing, Shouts of bitter accusation, Echoes of phrases unforgiven, 10 Sept 2006 |
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Aberdeen
At length in course of wandering, I came to Aberdeen, The Granite City of the North which ne'er before I'd seen; Yet often I'd heard whispers of dreadful mystery A subject best avoided by little ones like me. And so I hesitated to enter this dread place Which changed the course of history, and savoured of disgrace, But as I stood and pondered this, a voice fell on my ears You seem to be in trouble; please tell me of your fears. This stranger was so friendly, we shared a cup of tea, So gradually I told him my doleful history Of following special leaders, obeying every whim, And how that course had filled me with sorrow to the brim. Away from following Jesus, that Name all names above, Away from Christian joy and peace, and reaching out in love, How now my mind was fettered, uncertain what to do, But wondering whether Aberdeen might somehow hold the clue. The stranger pondered silently, his hand upon his beard, I felt he understood my woes, absorbing every word, Then said You have to make a choice, your friends rejected me. Then suddenly he disappeared, left but his cup with me. I know that Stranger held the clue to all my future life; He was the true Interpreter of all my painful strife; And ever since Ive followed Him, His light has led me on, For I shall see His face in Heavn, Gods well-beloved Son. To all the ex-cult members out there. (Anonymous by request)
Shards
Broken pieces Fragments Potshards The clay-stained hands Of a master potter Gathered them together Unearthing what had been discarded Forgotten in potter's fields False starts Unworkable clay Each flawed pot a shattered dream Broken up Ground down Returned to dust Save for the leftover shards Fractured pieces Left to bake Forever under the sun Until the seasons Wore them back to mere earth Yet this absurd potter sought out shards - Shards! From many potter's fields Chosen for their foibles Selected for their flaws Treasure hunting in the wastelands! Laying them out gently In shapes seen only in his mind How odd to lie comfortably fitted into The fellowship of the broken And then the glue And then the lead Poured in The burning giving way to binding The formless finding unexpected form Scraps of baked earth Assembled anew Pieced together pieces Suddenly transformed Every flaw made beautiful The broken made whole Shards scored like music In the Master's mosaic Redemptive works of grace Displayed in the great hall of God Brian Hupperts, June, 2004 Perhaps you are visiting this web site(*) because you have exited a high-demand group that has left you feeling confused, weary, depressed, angry, and with a host of other roller coaster emotions. This departure could have taken place this morning or 20 years ago; it makes no difference, as the injuries inflicted by cults often leave their victims wandering around hopeless for some time. You may be feeling that you are all alone and that no one, maybe not even the professionals you have turned to, can understand how your cultic involvement impacted your life in such a detrimental way. Maybe you are the parent, sibling, spouse, or friend of a cult member and you are desperate for accurate information about their situation. This could be the first time you ever researched this problem and you feel at a total loss as to where to begin. You are starting to run across a new vocabulary -- exit counselor, walk-away, thought reform, floating, intervention -- and can hardly believe that you are even needing this information to help you reach your loved-one. Your life may be consumed by this pursuit as you struggle to understand how this person you once knew became a stranger, perchance even overnight. Possibly you are on the Internet and feeling a little (or a lot) guilty about even doing a search on the word "cult." Surely your organization, church, or relationship couldn't be cultic! But just the same you are starting to question some inconsistencies, contradictions, and downright lies that you have discovered. Maybe someone has planted a seed of doubt and you are hoping to prove them wrong by finding out information about what a cult is and is not. You might be feeling very scared as the pieces start to fit together and you realize that you have been trapped, deceived, manipulated, and unduly influenced by the group or relationship in question. We understand the problemAs the Cult Survivor Advocate for Wellspring, I take calls from people in all three scenarios above. I have spoken with hundreds of people who have left cults, are wanting to get a loved one out of a cult, or are just discovering that they are themselves in a cult. Sometimes those who call me are suicidal, believing there is no hope for them ever being able to get over the trauma of cultic abuse. Other times I listen to very angry people who are ready to take matters into their own hands and exact retribution on the cult leader. Some of my more challenging calls are from those who are still in the cult and are fearful of severe punishment for making contact with the "outside" world and asking for information and help. Because I speak with cult survivors, the loved ones of cult members, and even the cult members themselves on a daily basis I have very little patience for those who would deem victims of cults as crazy, whacko, products of poor parenting, weak-minded, damaged goods, or some other similar label. I speak with brilliant individuals, some having several advanced degrees, who have had their minds raped by their intellectual inferiors using highly sophisticated mind control techniques. I talk with people who have been model parents only to lose their child to a destructive cult. I get to know talented writers, artists, and musicians who are enslaved to their cult providing menial labor while their creativity withers and dies. I speak with highly skilled professionals who gave up satisfying careers in medicine, law, education, and science to follow the ideals and passions of a group they initially believed in, but eventually discovered to be a parasite and sham. As tempting as it is to blame the cult victim for being stupid, ignorant, lacking in moral character, and therefore inherently responsible for getting themselves in this mess, it just doesn't logically pan out when you consider who joins a cult. After hundreds of calls all I can say is that cults don't play fairly, they play to win, and the stakes are very high...intelligent, creative, productive members of society. Was that you? Could that be someone you know and love? Extracted from http://wellspringretreat.org/
SAUL OR DAVID? The men of Israel clamoured for a universal lead, To be like other nations, telling Samuel of their need, Samuel was a wise man, he sensed this wasnt good But shared all this in prayer to God, as godly prophets should. Then God told Samuel solemnly that trouble lay ahead, The people had grown weary of Gods own perfect lead, So go and warn the people, said God immediately, About the kind of character theyll find this king to be. Because they still insisted that they must have a king, God taught them all a lesson through the troubles this would bring; Saul the son of Kish stood tall, was head and shoulders higher Than any of the people and the fruit of their desire. At first Saul seemed a good king, and Israel all concurred, But soon he showed his arrogance, then disobeyed Gods word. Disaster! God rejected him yet Saul reigned forty years A history full of sadness, injustice, bitter tears. But God had David in reserve, in counsels wise and deep Youngest of Jesses family, content to feed the sheep; He soothed Sauls evil spirit by harping skilfully, Then vanquished giant Goliath, their greatest enemy. Instead of acclamation came bitter jealousy, So David, though Gods chosen king, to exile had to flee. Yet David showed no bitterness, refused attacks on Saul, Content that God would show His hand, His will would govern all. At last Saul died, removed by God, another age would start! The time had come for Davids reign, man after Gods own heart. The men of Israel recognized their God-appointed king And so today its CHRIST, not SAUL must reign in everything. Perhaps, dear friend, you wonder how ever this could be. Can God change peoples hearts? Ah yes, observe this carefully! Because they failed by choosing Saul, it took them forty years To learn through hard experience, tempered by mighty providence, The course Gods purpose steers. (read 2 Samuel 5..1-3) Strictly speaking, movements to be counted as sects are those which constitute "separated believers", that is to say, bodies which, because of differences of doctrine, practice, or organization, are in schism from the mainstream church(es), the broad tradition of which, however, they in large part share. It is this element of sharing, and the diminution over time of the significance of their differences, which permitted some erstwhile sects to graduate to the position of being regarded as denominations. Denominations generally share close parity of esteem one with another. They come to be recognized as such as the issues on which there is tension with the wider society -- such tension being the typical circumstance of movements designated as sects -- come to be resolved or dissipated. Thus, the Baptists, the Disciples of Christ, the Church of the Nazarene, and in some respects, even the Methodists, all exemplify bodies that have traversed the sect-to-denomination process. The gradual acknowledgement of denominational status of particular movements also indicates the growth of toleration in the wider society as, little-by-little, the legal restrictions (in Europe) on these movements and the social opprobrium which they suffered were eventually mitigated. Not all sects evolve into denominations, however, and much depends on their circumstances of origin and the type of orientation towards the world which characterizes their teaching. Sects which, like Jehovah Witnesses and the Christadelphians, make the early second advent the primary focus of their beliefs, are likely to remain in sectarian tension with the wider society, particularly if they pursue a vigorous evangelistic programme. So, too, are sects such as the Exclusive Brethren, who (although also endorsing belief in the early return of Christ) make their central concern withdrawal from the wider society, which is regarded as inherently evil, into their own exclusive community. The tension existing between sects like these and the authorities and, at times, between the sects and the general public has tended to be concentrated not on any issue of the criminal law, but on the sectarians' refusal to participate in the civic responsibilities commonly required of citizens. Thus, they have typically made conscientious objection to military service, or, in the case of some sects, sought exemption from jury service, or from membership of trade unions in countries (Britain and Sweden) where such membership was, in certain industries, actually or virtually obligatory. Over time, in country after country, such rights of conscience have gradually been conceded, as was the right of Jehovah Witnesses in the United States to exemption from saluting the national flag or from participating in singing national anthem in school assemblies or on other public occasions. Christian sects, in these and other instances, have fought and often won their cases in national or, at times, international courts of justice: in doing so they have enlarged the area of religious freedom. But, as with those sects which eventually graduated into denominations, they were, especially in their earliest days as new movements, often subject to persecution, discrimination and harassment.
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