predatory religion | Religious Cults Info ~ Resources, Answers and Hope

In a previous post, I put forth the comparison of predatory lending to predatory religion. We looked at the definition of predatory lending and showed the essence of it to be “unfair, deceptive, or fraudulent practices”. I shared several correlations between the deception in the definition and my experiences at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF). Therefore, we began explaining my ideas about predatory religion, what it includes and why I believe Jane Whaley practices this at WOFF. One point made the glaring lack of full disclosure to prospective members of WOFF. Prospects are NOT told how far reaching Jane’s power in their lives will be if they become a faithful WOFF member. Before a person becomes a member of WOFF, they are not told the long list of rules for members, changes they will need to make to become a member and how this will affect their relationships to family and friends outside the group. This is all part of the hoodwinking deception.

Does Jane consider this process one of deception? My thought is probably not. She considers it telling folks what they can handle, for in WOFF there are levels of truth that are only revealed the members as they are ready. I did not progress to main leadership level and therefore there were things I was not told because, “I was not walking in that place in God”. Some of these things I have learned after I left. For instance, I learned about the jet skis and the houseboat stored at the house in Isle of Palms, SC for Jane and her leadership – AFTER I left. This would have been hard to reconcile while I was inside. After I left, I learned that Jane has/had at one time, not one, but two satellites for her television viewing pleasures. If I had been told during WOFF days that Sam had a big screen in his bedroom separate from Jane’s bedroom and television, I don’t remember it. I learned after leaving that RF had/has highly sensitive listening equipment to listen to conversations inside the homes of others. I have been told by several that RF has a gun stash, that I have no way to confirm. I learned that at least one woman in leadership struggled with her sexual orientation.

My doubt as to the total transparency of WOFF started in July of 2006. Jayne Caulder came on stage telling folks to NOT read an article in the local paper; it had a bunch of untruth in it. So, I read it and verified at least some of it as truth. (see post here.. http://religiouscultsinfo.com/?p=2639). Somewhere along the way the term “WOFF-spin” began to fit as describing much of what I was told and/or not told. Still today, I hear things and have a hard time believing what I am hearing that went on or goes on at WOFF. Some things I have learned about Jane the actions of her leadership have been totally bizarre.

Continue reading Predatory Religion – by Definition is Deception →

In recent years, a term has come to the forefront in the consumer finance and/or mortgage lending industry. That term is “predatory lending”. What does that term mean? Is it a new practice or a recently discovered term to describe practices that have been in existence for years? A simple search will reveal an explanation for the term. Here are two sources. First, from HUD.gov website link found here: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/housing/sfh/pred/predlend – the short intro reads as follows:

“Over the last several years, our nation has made enormous progress in expanding access to capital for previously under-served borrowers. Despite this progress, however, too many families are suffering today because of a growing incidence of abusive practices in a segment of the mortgage lending market. Predatory mortgage lending practices strip borrowers of home equity and threaten families with foreclosure, destabilizing the very communities that are beginning to enjoy the fruits of our nation’s economic success.”

Next, another source at Wikipedia explains the term as follows:

“Predatory lending describes unfair, deceptive, or fraudulent practices of some lenders during the loan origination process. While there are no legal definitions in the United States for predatory lending, an audit report on predatory lending from the office of inspector general of the FDIC broadly defines predatory lending as “imposing unfair and abusive loan terms on borrowers.”^[1] Though there are laws against many of the specific practices commonly identified as predatory, various federal agencies use the term as a catch-all term for many specific illegal activities in the loan industry… One less contentious definition of the term is “the practice of a lender deceptively convincing borrowers to agree to unfair and abusive loan terms, or systematically violating those terms in ways that make it difficult for the borrower to defend against.”^[2]… Although predatory lenders are most likely to target the less educated, lowest incomes, racial minorities, the elderly, victims of predatory lending are represented across all demographics.^[4][5] (source link- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Predatory_lending )

Since 1982, I have been involved in some segment of the consumer finance industry. There have been many additional regulations enacted to curb abuses, perceived or real, within the industry since 1982. From the definitions above, the major qualifications for “predatory lending” appears to be “unfair, deceptive, or fraudulent practices”. Using the less contentious definition of “the practice of a lender deceptively convincing borrowers to agree to unfair and abusive loan terms, or systematically violating those terms in ways that make it difficult for the borrower to defend against.”; it is not difficult to see the association I have made between this and what I experienced for years at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF). I experienced “predatory religion”. Let me explain.

Continue reading Predatory Religion? →