Bruce Hales is a different kind of Exclusive Brethren leader than all those before. Not gifted as an orator, not particularly learned, apparently a shy and retiring man who is reportedly scared of media attention and that ‘someone may attack him‘. As a result, sightings are rare and Bruce Hales travels secretly and normally with a contingent of bodyguards. No other Exclusive Brethren leader has ever acted this way.

Even the Exclusive Brethren recognize the differences between Bruce Hales and his predecessors. The varied spokesmen now publicly decry the use of the term ‘Elect Vessel’ and ‘Man of God’ which is both an admission of the lack of quality doctrine and teaching involved in BDH ‘ministry’ but is perhaps also an unusually realistic assessment of his spiritual stature. It has been noticeable that there has been a recent increase in the travel and use of other more gifted teachers within the Exclusive Brethren community.

This should not to be viewed as a sign of weak leadership however! ‘Mr Bruce’ is very much in control and is adulated by most Exclusive Brethren. Expressions like “Mr. Bruce will look after us” or “Mr Bruce is filling our storehouses for the coming famine” are frequently heard and these speak to the new position that Bruce Hales has carved for himself. Playing off the ‘End Times’ forecasts of doom and panic that have been the main doctrinal heritage provided by many EB writers and teachers, Bruce is placing himself in a role of ‘Joseph’, the biblical son of Jacob who became the savior of both his family and Eygpt. One obvious difference of course, is that Joseph didn’t keep most of it for himself …

His role has been carefully transformed from being a Spiritual Leader to a Corporate Executive. It is certainly a role that far better suits BDH’s abilities. It is interesting to note in some of his published ‘ministry’ how his most dynamic and well-spoken moments surround anything relating to Business. On that topic, Bruce Hales is surely in charge, the corporate CEO of ‘Exclusive Brethren Inc.’.

The financial structures that his father put in place have become the international business framework of a vast and astonishingly wealthy organization that uses any tax exemption route possible in the holding, transfer and reporting of funds. The best example of the manner in which this organization operates is to take the model of a giant corporation with in excess of 40,000 employees. When viewed in that light, the organization of the Exclusive Brethren becomes far clearer and the similarities are dramatic:

- A Board of Directors
- A President/CEO firmly in control
- A professional Public Relations firm on retainer
- At least one full-time professional lawyer (Wiseman) on staff
- A variety of legal firms and lawyers on retainer around the world
- Country, Regional and Local Managers
- Vastly diversified but inter-connected business areas
- International Distribution channels
- Revenue routes for both for-profit and for ‘corporate contribution’
- World-wide real estate holdings
- All real estate (Meeting Rooms) are tax-exempt
- A captive work-force with specially defined roles for women / men
- All managers are men – there are no female managers at any level
- Internal financing for business start-ups and property mortgages
- Their own Medical Insurance Plan
- Their own Superannuation Pension Plan
- There is no Life Insurance as it is not needed (they look after their own)
- No restriction to doing business (retail) with non-Brethren
- A world-wide electronic network with limited (censored) Internet access / Email
- EB OEM computer hardware with specially crippled operating systems
- It is mandatory to purchase an EB OEM computer if computing is needed
- EB OEM cell phones with limited capabilities and with mandatory GSP tracking installed
- EB OEM digital cameras with limited software provision
- Electronic Business Management Services via central electronic HQ
- Comprehensive Business Training classes (a BDH specialty and expensive!)
- Children trained-to-serve in their own growing separatist school system
- A minimum of outside recruitment for any internal roles
- A code of secrecy fueled by carefully manufactured paranoia

If any internal event of the last 12 months was to be highlighted, it would be the forced withdrawal of Bruce Hales from the political arena.

Many will recall that he burst upon the international political scene in 2003 with a well-funded advertising campaign drawn from mandatory donations at local assembly level throughout the USA and Europe. Not anticipating the enforced transparency of government funding laws, the complete list of all donors was easily available with many personal names and EB business names comprising the annual report of the ‘Thanksgiving 2004 Committee’. Quotes like “we prefer to fly under the radar” by the arrogant and untrained alerted the media that EB political involvement was worth watching – and indeed it proved to be so.

Everything BDH touched politically was a disaster. It was a case of blunder after blunder and as a result two things happened: the Exclusive Brethren were quickly seen as operating at the dirtiest end of politics and the more they lied, the more it became clear that they were operating as a cohesive force – and second, the media watched, documented and investigated. Just the media archives for the past 5 years tell the story – hundreds of articles and within a matter of months, the Exclusive Brethren were exposed to the world as a political hot-potato. Any politician seen to be in contact with them was doomed. The leader of the New Zealand National Party – the then incumbent Prime Minister of Australia …

It took the total political failure of the Exclusive Brethren in Australia to allow the obvious message to sink home and then the world-wide edict went out – “Stop!”. Information from Exclusive Brethren Regional Political Campaign Managers and Organizers (despite their claims to the contrary, the EB had a very comprehensive organization in each EB country) show that work stopped immediately and completely. The Exclusive Brethren had withdrawn from their forte of ‘smear campaign’ politics. Although the media will miss the easy target the Exclusive Brethren represented, the political world is probably breathing a sigh of relief!

We saw the brief and rather ridiculous use of Bruce’s older brother Daniel Hales as official EB Spokesman. It was an event that was carefully orchestrated by the new EB PR gurus, complete with an impressive portfolio of photographs taken of Daniel at home, in his armchairs, smiling, sitting with his wife and daughters in their palatial home … the visual epitome of success. The several interviews were unsuccessful. The untruths were blatant and the attempted fatherly persona, unconvincing – Daniel came across as arrogant, unsubstantial and it appears that he has since been relegated.

The highlight of the year must be Michael Bachelard’s book – ‘Behind The Exclusive Brethren’. It ranks as one of the best researched and clearly accurate accounts of behind-the-scenes Exclusive Brethren that has yet been written. It was universally well-received by both a fascinated ex-Exclusive Brethren community and by an equally enthralled public. Sales were high in Australia and New Zealand with reports of Exclusive Brethren attempting to buy up complete stocks from bookshops – not for cult consumption of course – Bruce banned the book even before he read it!

So as we move into another year with Bruce Hales as Corporate Leader, what might we expect to be the main headlines and changes to come? The short answer is that you never know and the Exclusive Brethren even have a term for it – “The Lord turning a corner”. It is a very convenient method of ensuring that the flock know who is in charge and to be ready for anything – a classic cult tactic.

The ‘Lord’ has turned so many corners with Bruce Hales since 2003 that the sand is filled with spirals: faxes … radio-controlled devices … computers … internet …. email … cell phones … digital cameras … medical insurance … all the items once soberly condemned by the “unbroken line of divinely accredited leaders” have been made clean (as long as you buy the OEM Exclusive Brethren model).

We anticipate that Television may well soon become a further legal addition to EB homes – many already have a set or two hidden away. We are aware of some conversations that are in progress with filtered cable/satellite companies. The EB have remote-education facilities in some of their schools where use of closed-circuit TV is viewed as being ‘separate’ from the pipelines of filth.

Their extraordinary ability to persuade lawmakers to invest public tax dollars in their separatist school systems will doubtlessly continue until the public truly grasp the way in which they are being forced to help indoctrinate yet another generation of Brethren who will offer nothing to their local communities.

We anticipate that the message might become stronger in towns and municipalities as a backlash is surely growing in momentum as to why the Exclusive Brethren should enjoy tax exemption for their fortress-style windowless Meeting Rooms. There is a growing number of contacts being made with local organizers of community groups who are attempting to block new schools and meeting rooms.

We hope that the impact of media education will grow in helping local authorities distinguish between the mild and evangelical Open Plymouth Brethren in their Gospel Halls and Chapels – and to be able to see that when the Exclusive Brethren make an application and call their Meeting Rooms ‘gospel halls’ and themselves ‘christian or plymouth brethren’, that they are intentionally obfuscating the application process.

We expect at least one more publication in 2009 and this one will be a shocker. We send our best wishes to the writer – his story is horrendous and the telling is as agonizing to record as it will be to read.

One aspect of the Exclusive Brethren we do not anticipate changing is their reliance upon their malformed doctrine of ‘Separation from evil’. Although it can be simple to show why this 150 year old doctrine is wrong, it is the glue that holds the work force together. Separation is another term for the Control that the Exclusive Brethren exert upon their flock and without it, the leadership know they will lose their young. And this is why the EB school system is so important to them.

A married man with an EB job and an EB mortgage and an EB wife is a fairly secure member of the workforce. A single man or single woman has options. All EB know the impact of leaving. They must leave everything behind and they will take nothing with them – including job references, superannuation, visitation rights, spiritual hope or family access. A person leaving the Exclusive Brethren becomes an immediate refugee in their own town.

We anticipate helping more Refugees in 2009 and so does the ex-Exclusive Brethren Community which recently swelled the world-wide number of Helpers to over 120.

Although the Exclusive Brethren are attempting to close down this web site through prolonged litigation and with more suits in progress, we know that this work will continue – because it must.

Happy New Year to you all and especially to those who are considering leaving the Exclusive Brethren. It can be done and there are hundreds of us out here who wish you nothing but good and will help you in any way we can.

Blessings!

Peebs.Net Team