During this season of my recovery from cult involvement, I am in the middle of reading several books. Today, I just opened the cover of another book that will be different from any I am reading or have read. “The Mother of God” by Luna Tarlo is “A mother’s account of her experience as a disciple of her own son, a well-known American guru, and of her struggle to free herself from his control.” (copyright © 1997 by Luna Tarlo, Plover Press) Such an inviting topic!

    Within the first few pages of this book is this quote from yet another book that I will read this year. “Adulation… has an addictive quality difficult to resist. Being the focus of such attention would activate the excitation levels of any sentient being on the receiving end of it. Whether for a guru or a rock star, this can be a more powerful experience than the strongest drug. It is also one of the greatest seductions of power.” This is from The Guru Papers– Masks of Authoritarian Power – by Joel Kramer and Diana Alstad.

    Understandably, after several years being under the teachings of Jane Whaley at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) in Spindale, NC, I get caught up in the who said, who did, why did they, why did I, we should have, we could have – stage of sorting out the whole mess of WOFF and its goings, doings, sayings, and culture. Many hours I have spent replaying the events, writing about the events and talking about the events of those years. There are times when the question of why seems so large and then an even larger question- What will bring changes? As mentioned before, there are more questions than answers at this point.

 When questions about cult leaders come up, I only have personal knowledge about one. I read and learn about others, but right now, my observations and most detailed knowledge can only be about one cult leader and that is Jane Whaley. I spent years being caught up in the aura of Jane Whaley as it played itself out within the WOFF culture. One of the starkest aspects of life at WOFF is the degree of praise for and adulation of Jane that oozes from the members toward her. We have referred to it in previous posts as Jane-worship. This link is to a post titled; Balanced Respect, Inordinate Admiration or Worship? – http://religiouscultsinfo.com/?p=3702 .

     First, in order for Jane to stay in power, she has to be the only source of power. She is the top of the organizational pyramid structure of WOFF. She is it. So many times, I heard different members get up in front of the congregation and spout their praises for Jane and their love for Jane and their dependence on Jane. They say how grateful they are to be at WOFF, how grateful they are that Jane and Sam laid down their life and have done the work God called them to do. Many times, these praises and adulations were repeated over and over as member after member would go to the podium and “tell what God had done from them”. Did God really put the praise of Jane in their mouth? Does that sound like God to share His glory with any one person that is still here on earth? Should people who call themselves Christian and a “Protestant, non-denominational church…( as defined by classical Christianity) with traditional, evangelical doctrines”; engage in the praises of their leader with such endearing love, ardent enthusiasm, fervent excitement, repetition, admiration and expressive “worship”? Can any member, present or former deny that this happened/happens at WOFF? Do I need to call names of the ones that lead the way in the excursion into Jane-worship?  Certainly, I was not the only one who noticed how much Jane seemed to love being the center of attention and seemed to glean strength from deeply emotional and overt adulations that her members would give her. Right?

   So the questions come, how could this be in a Christian church where the members are to worship God and express their love for Jesus? What is the purpose and why does it continue seemingly unchecked, unregulated and at times, come at a torrential pace? In my opinion, Jane allows it because she NEEDS it. As the above quote says… Adulation and praise is better and produces a bigger high than any drug could for Jane. Jane NEEDS to be the center of WOFF. She would be lost, if her members did not claim to be lost without her. Yes, like bookends, some folks may put a phrase like; Jesus showed me on one end and a thank you, Jesus on the other. But, the center of worship at WOFF is undeniably – Jane. Jane is so caught up in it, it seems perfectly normal to her; just like an addict thinks getting high is normal. Jane gets high on the praises of her people that are aimed at her. She does not even know this is happening; it is just the way things have to be in order for Jane to be the leader of WOFF.

   Here is a quote from another website which explains about the “Destructive Group Leader’s Personality”- this is taken from a list of traits:

   “ 4.  Requires excessive admiration, adulation, attention and affirmation – or, failing that, wishes to be feared and to be notorious (Narcissistic Supply);     “A common error is to think that ‘narcissistic supply’ consists only of admiration, adulation and positive feedback.  Actually, being feared or derided is also supply.  The main element is ATTENTION.”    “He(she) feeds off other people, who hurl back at him(her) an image that he(she) projects to them.  This is their sole function in his(her) world: to reflect, to admire, to admire, to applaud, to detest – in a word, to assure him(her) that he(she) exists.”    “In short: the group must magnify the narcissist, echo and amplify his(her) life, his(her) views, his(her) knowledge, his(her) history…” (Feminine pronouns added)

Here is the source link- http://www.neirr.org/psychissues/Personality_Disorders.htm

(We may use more from this link in future posts… Great resource!)

    For sure, I do not understand fully what “Narcissistic Supply” means, but, there seems to be PLENTY of it at WOFF. Not only does Jane receive worship, she is FEARED by members and non-members alike. This FEEDS her addiction to herself. Fear of her only FEEDS/SUPPLIES her need to be the center of her WOFF universe. She seems to get her “energy” from the worship of her and fear that others have of her. As the quote explains, it all boils down to ATTENTION. For those who have been in WOFF, does this make sense? If there was no Narcissistic Supply at WOFF, Jane would go elsewhere. When the supply seems to wane for a brief moment, Jane can go to Brazil for a “fix”. The act of sending feeds of the services over the Internet to Brazil and Africa, is one thing that FEEDS Jane. It magnifies the adulation, as now the SUPPLY becomes international!     

      Also from The Guru Papers–“The need to appear right when presenting oneself as a spiritual knower is greater than in any other arena because knowing is what makes one essentially different from seekers. Admitting any fallibility not only removes one from that exalted place, but makes it difficult to compete with other presumed knowers who do claim infallibility.”(p.47) found here- http://www.ex-premie.org/papers/gp_quotes.htm  

   This helps explain why Jane never sins in her eyes. She has to be right, because then in her eyes, she is above her members. She is perfect in her eyes, so she lives in a higher place with God (exalted place) than her members. As the quote helps us understand, this is also why she cannot share her pulpit with anyone else from another group that might claim to be as perfect or right, as she thinks she is. Then the attention would be off of her and on the other “guru” and she would be in a state of lack. Her supply of adulation could/would wane and she would go through withdrawal and emotional turmoil, if for any period of time, her members did not worship her. So, it appears that the adulation of her members is Jane’s drug of choice. (with a hit of FEAR thrown in, for good measure…) Now, we know.  

  Thank you, for taking time to visit and read this blog. Please, consume the information on this site responsibly. The author is not a licensed mental health professional and encourages those that need professional help to seek it. The intent of the material is to inform and be a resource. Be sure to tell every member that you know at WOFF about this blog. There are readers at WOFF. Comments are invited from all readers, including present or former members. Polls are not scientific and no private information is gathered.

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    (Please, take time to read the Terms of Use for this personal blog. As mentioned, the information about WOFF is from my memories and recollections as perfect as that may be or not be. ) Scripture references are Amplified Version unless otherwise noted. (Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation ) This is post number 264.