During one service at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) Sam Whaley was up in front receiving the offering. He began to tell about God dealing with him and about his work before starting WOFF. He said it was all worthless; “well some of it was good”. I suppose he was talking about his many trips to other countries for Rhema Ministries under Kenneth Hagin. Later in the service, Jane spoke up to correct him. She told him that all he had done before getting deliverance and getting truly born again was WICKED! Everything he did before “knowing Jesus” was pure wickedness. Of course, he said “You are right, Jane.” This event seemed to pass as one of the many times that Jane had rebuked Sam publically. It was “normal” at WOFF. No one except Jane “heard God at such a high level.”
While reading Janis Hutchinson’s “Out of the Cults and Into the Church” (copyright 1994 Kregel Resources) I found her insights very helpful. In chapter 5, she explains how ex-cultists may seem disoriented as when they come out; they lose “their roots, their story, and their identity”. It should be obvious; you can’t lose something you never had. In order to lose a “cult identity” it had to be created in that person. She explains how a cult member needs the roots and stories to arrive at the new identity.
I will not attempt to recite all that she gives as reasons for sharing these observations. In short, she explains “roots, spiritual or physical, tell an individual or a group where they came from, why they’re here, how they started, why they do the things they do, and why they are who they are.” (pg 98) Cults or other groups use myths or sacred stories to give its members roots.
She goes on: “Stories are three kinds. First myths and history of a culture’s heritage…these confirm and perpetuate the roots…. Secondly, there is the story of individual community itself- how members relate to that culture with their common problems and how they overcome them… Thirdly, there is one’s own individual story within the culture. This generally consists of accumulated childhood experiences containing the negative and positive, the triumphs and tragedies. It also includes a vast array of input from people, places and situations.” (page 98)
And finishing her explanation: “Identity, on the other hand, is the assurance individuals, culture, or nations gain as a result of having both roots and story. .. It promotes self-esteem and a positive self-image, collectively or individually. Without it, individuals are strangers to themselves and to others.” (page 98) Her work deals with folks after they leave cults.
