Often inspiration for this blog comes from things I see and hear in my everyday life. Other times, I remember events from the past or read books about cults and cult recovery and see subjects that I need to explain and/or explore. Sixteen years of life in and under the teachings of Jane Whaley, the leader of Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF), provides me with plenty of events and revelations to write about. Also, there are listed several books and documentaries that offer some understanding and help to unravel the subject of mind control, cults and cult recovery.

    This evening, I was considering the subject of spousal abuse. My first encounter with this dark subject was in 1992 in Summerville, SC. I was involved in helping a couple who attended the church where my wife and I were in leadership. The man seemed calm in most instances, but in fits of rage would hit his wife. Confusing? Yes, it was. He said many of the “right” things and would be gentle and agreeable during most every counseling session. There were children in the marriage and he had a good income as a self-employed mechanic. His mother was also a church member and was a large financial supporter of the church. The confusing part to me was how could abuse happen inside of a marriage that was meant to be a benefit for the parents and a haven for the children? How could something that started out with such good intentions turn out so bad and hurtful to all parties? How could it go on for so long and not change and get better? The answer was complicated and only led to more questions. Let me explain.

    One of the common misnomers of any abusive relationship is that the abuse would be obvious to those on the outside looking in. That could not be further from the truth.  I would say there is a natural desire in any relationship for the two parties to want to make it work. Why else would they enter into the relationship? Both may have a reason to ignore the dysfunction and go on “hoping” for better days. And when things are not working or seem to be sliding in the wrong direction, sometimes one person who is not to blame will take the blame because it is easier for them to understand. I am not a professional counselor, but I have seen it many times. Just having relationship problems does not mean you automatically know what the solutions were/are for the problems. Many times people need help to make things right inside a relationship. Why? One reason is that the person causing the issues many not want to see their responsibility in the problem and an outsider can help focus and move the relationship in the right direction.

   

     All of these observations began flashing before me and I suddenly realized why many look at WOFF and its members and don’t see the problems inherent with the group. These insights may seem jumbled up, but I will just start and try to sort it out. First, inside WOFF there are families. Some are complete in that the husband and wife are present with children. Others are just parts of a family unit for whatever reason. There may be a husband or wife by themselves with one or both or none of the children from that marriage. There may be only a mother of father left with none of the children or other natural relatives in WOFF. That in itself does not give understanding as to the “relationship-abuse” inside the group. It is only the result you see in many cases. My analogy is this: as with a marriage that was/is intended for the good of the participants, so with a church and its members. The church as a whole provides help for the individual and the individuals and/or families inside the group in turn help support the goals and purposes of the church. The intent from the start, as with a marriage, is an arrangement where both “parties” draw some benefits. Likewise, it is with a church. Where did/do things go wrong?

    With this analogy, I am only speaking in generalities about marriages, because many things can go wrong in individual marriages. But, when one person in the relationship loses sight of the purpose for the marriage and/or either the individual or the church, more specifically- church leadership; loses sight of purpose for the church, then things can and do go awry. As in some cases of spousal abuse the victim in the relationship may get some twisted notion that the abuse is deserved or their fault and continue on in the arrangement to their hurt or detriment. The marriage that was meant for good – goes bad and becomes a tool for the damage of one or both participants.

   My experience inside WOFF was similar. Because of the legalism and teachings of the Jane Whaley, the members are told they are the problems or reason for God’s anger or wrath… The negative factors in the church “relationship” are always because of the members and never the fault of Jane, the leader. Therefore, it is easy for the members to think they deserved the rebukes and the screaming that Jane did/does to them. Why else would the “apostle of God” act that way? She “gets sick at our sin” and brings us the “love of God” with her loud screams and public abuse. Is that twisted or what? In my opinion, I believe Jane has lost the purpose for WOFF. In her mind, the purpose may have been help people and serve God at some point, but it has moved to serving Jane and her desires. Why else would she hide her decisions about the finances and where she spends the money given to WOFF?

    I am reminded of a scene in the documentary “Join Us”. (The film is presented by Interloper Films along with Lusitan and was produced by Ondi Timoner and Vasco Lucas Nunes. (Copyright© Third Floor Productions, LLC 2007). The film has a dedicated website with supporting information. The site is www.joinusthemovie.co . ) At 30 minutes and 40 seconds in the movie, one of the children from the cult is talking about the beatings, “You know how they say they beat children and stuff? That’s what they call love”. She was being sarcastic and obviously did not believe that the abuse was love at all. In this case, what was meant to be a help to the children had gone terribly wrong. Children need discipline and help, but not the kind that damages them physically or mentally. On the other hand, this begs the question, “Could Jane’s rants and tirades actually be love?”  

   In a church, the members ideally need to benefit and as well as in some way contribute to the benefit of the group as a whole. The “religion” that everyone practices is supposed to help all of the parties involved or there can be and often is abuse at some level. The “religion” at WOFF which may have been meant for good turned into a “religion” used to hurt and maim the people who practice it. The “religion” meant to help and heal became a weapon to destroy and hurt those who practice it. How do we know? Let’s review things we know about WOFF taken from my time in the group.

    As with a new relationship or marriage, when a new person joins WOFF, there is a “honeymoon” period. Everything is new and all the benefits of the relationship are emphasized. WOFF (Jane Whaley) can do this for you and do that for you… you get new friends, new clothes, new make-up, new hair-do, maybe a new place to live, a new job or even a new car. All seems right and this is going to be great! Then at some point, the true purpose of the relationship of the WOFF religious dictates became clear. Your life must totally change to fit the WOFF mold. You need to quit this and quit that, stop this relationship and stop going there or listening to that radio or watching that television or stop seeing your family that is not in WOFF. After all, look what you will give up, if you don’t conform. All the benefits of WOFF are now in jeopardy, if you don’t go all the way into WOFFness. Now, this is a process, slower for some and faster for others. Jane has to see where you are “walking in the spirit.” How quickly can you merge into the WOFF religion and become “who God (Jane) meant for you to be?” Ask CF, he wanted to be a doctor and was told he needed to be a lawyer. He was “not hearing God” and had to get married before he headed out to college. When told that CF needed to be married before he went away to college, his brother answered, “We are working on that.” Who has doubts that Jane was/is a relationship engineer?

     Still outsiders looking in or even newer regular members who are not privy to just how intricately Jane dictates the lives of faithful members may not recognize the power of weapon of the WOFF religion. For the new member, your time will come. For the outsider, you may never see the destruction unless you know what to look for. The inner workings of the power of the WOFF religion were/are purposely hidden to the casual observer. As in a marriage going downhill, certain things are kept behind closed doors – at least for a while. During my early days at WOFF, I heard things about strong correction and saw public rebukes, but did not know the power of those weapons until they turned on me. When these weapons were directed my way, reality soon set-in. For a while, there was the tendency to ask myself, what did I do? What had I done to deserve such treatment? I searched and searched and knowing in myself that no one is perfect, came up with some “reasons” for such “blessings”. Now I see how silly it all was. I was no one special. These “blessings” were directed at anyone who showed the least bit of doubt or resistance to giving Jane Whaley total control of their lives. Oh, yes, it was said to be “giving God total control”, but, in reality, it was Jane.

   All that has been shared to this point has brought me to this one vital bit of understanding in the analogy of relationships where the purpose is lost, or a “religion” meant for good that became/becomes a weapon for the destruction of those who participate or who participated. The full destructive abilities of the WOFF religion was/is not felt until you either leave on your own or are forced out. At that point, you who were once a part of a “loving” church become the enemy. Those who leave become a target of the destructive power of the WOFF religion, especially if they talk about what goes on behind closed doors! I expressed doubts about WOFF in a phone conversation on June 6, 2008 to one in leadership. Within two hours, I received a call back stating Jane Whaley said I was “out of the church”. Gone. No exit interview, no effort to dispel my doubts or show me that WOFF was not practicing what was done in the shepherding movement of the 1970’s. (I know now, it was/is far worse!) “You are out”. And beware; if your closet relationships in WOFF, including your blood-kin family relationships become based on adherence to Jane and the WOFF religion, then you lose them when you move out of WOFF. Is that God’s plan? Is His way to destroy relationships or rather making every effort to build relationships in order to share His Love? How much of God’s Love do WOFFers show when they cut-off those who disagree or go another way after being once a part of the WOFF religion? Could one of the reasons that relationships are broken when a person leaves be because that to continue it only increases the fear factor of life within the group? After all, if I talk to one who has left, what will Jane and others think we talked about or maybe I committed a sin while with the one who left WOFF? Will Jane or others doubt my salvation when I talk to or spend time with someone who left WOFF?

   The WOFF religion I practiced for years was/is actually a weapon in the hands of Jane to fashion those who become willing and destroy those who are not willing to submit to its consuming power. When I decided to not submit to Jane and her WOFFness, I lost MANY relationships and have been rejected by those who had known me for MANY years. The message of WOFF was revealed in its true colors- once you are in, you cannot get out and keep your “salvation with God”. Jane Whaley, her leadership and her faithful members have to consider those who leave as “rejecting God” otherwise the value of the WOFF membership would decrease to its actual eternal value- worthless.

   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.

   Look on the right side of any post for the option to subscribe by email for notifications or RSS feeds notifying of new postings. It is a great feature. Also, find more posts by selecting “Categories”.

    (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 274.