Last Monday evening, October 12th, I was privileged to sit among the leadership of Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) and witness the Honorable Judge Martin Reidinger deliver a presentation on the Nuremberg Trials. As mentioned in a previous post, the irony of the whole night was stark and at times overwhelming. Before the Judge began his delivery, Karel Reynolds opened with a few remarks noting the 15th of October 1945 as the day the Nazi party was dissolved. She mentioned two other statements which I have not been able to forget. She mentioned the results of the Holocaust showed us “…what human beings are capable of…” and that education was not the only answer to stopping such atrocities. Hitler had highly educated scientists and engineers working for him.

As proof of that, in preparation for the prosecution of the defendants at the Nuremberg Trials, each was administered intelligence tests and psychiatric evaluations. (here) Karel quoted Hermann Goering, a leading member of the Nazi party, to say, “I have no conscience. Adolf Hitler is my conscience.” Mr. Goering’s intelligence test score was 138. That score is listed as “gifted.” (2.3% of test takers score this range).

What was Karel’s point? I took it to mean that intelligence will not stop a person from selling or giving away control of their conscience. Karel, was I right?

The irony of the line of reasoning was reflected in her membership in WOFF and what that requires. An outsider, noting the behaviors of WOFF could easily say that faithful members of WOFF have given control of their conscience to Jane Whaley. How do we know? EVERY faithful member will at some point bow and submit their conscience decisioning power to Jane or it will not go well for them. No matter the law degree, the medical training, the CPA title or any level of education or intelligence; faithful members give over the power to decide the course of their lives and daily choices to Jane. Will anyone honestly dispute that fact?

Did any of the leadership sitting around me understand that analogy? I am not sure. However, I understand there is a way to buy back partial control of your conscience inside WOFF. Members can do this either by monetary donations, job creation or prestige transfer. Aside from blood relations, leadership in WOFF can buy back control of their life by giving Jane things she needs, money or jobs- which create money, or prestige. Let me explain.

Jane is not a producer of goods. She depends on donations from her members or fund raising of some sorts to satisfy the huge demand for cash required to maintain and advance her kingdom. Ray or Josh or Kent or David or whoever in essence buys back control of their life by supplying cash or jobs. These folks are the producers of goods and services which bring in the money. For Jane, there is another way to buy freedom to make some of your own choices- transfer prestige through close association. Oddly, I think some of the notoriety from Leigh Valentine transfers to Jane and thus Leigh is allowed to carry on regardless of breaking the rules others must follow. Jane also absorbs prestige from rich Jewish people who have supported the Holocaust show in years past. This allows them to come close at times and yet live their own lives. The same could be said about politicians. Jane soaks in their aura and in turn does not recruit them to her subculture. They are free to bask in her “glory” without giving her their conscience.

John, why bring this up? Doesn’t everyone see this anyway? No, I don’t believe the ones inside WOFF from the leadership on down have an understanding how similar they are to Hermann Goering. Goering witnessed the depravity that human beings are able to inflict on their fellow humans. His excuse was he had surrendered his conscience to his leader. Goering was sentenced to hang, but committed suicide instead. Though not to the same degree, I contend that the leadership of WOFF have seen far more than outsiders consider “normal discipline” or “punishment for sin.”

If Gerald and Linda don’t understand this, I doubt if the regular members do either. The process of surrendering your conscience is much easier than taking it back. The suction power of Jane’s high demand authority style results in losing control of your life all the while believing you are living for God and doing the will of God. That is the con Jane runs. She requires supreme, conscience-surrendering loyalty and gives back the charade of holy righteous living, fulfilling the call of God, to the Nations or whatever phrase of the week she is pushing. You can only gain back partial control of your life by supplying what she knows she can’t provide for herself. Ultimately, she still has control of every faithful member until they break free from the vortex and run away.

Why is this understanding so vital right now? Have you heard the reports out of New Hartford, NY? Bruce Leonard and Deborah Leonard, members of Word of Life Christian Church, are charged with manslaughter in the death of their 19 year old son, Lucas. From the witness reports, they were also involved in the beating of their 17 year old son, Christopher who is recovering in the hospital and “cooperating with authorities.” Four other church members are charged with second degree assault. The charges originate from the “counseling session” which began Sunday evening and ended Monday morning about 10:00AM. This is when the ones involved in the beatings realized Lucas was unresponsive. After CPR failed, they transported him by one of their vehicles to the St. Luke’s Hospital.

Differing reports have surfaced as to the purpose of the meeting. One report says Lucas was accused of practicing witchcraft. Another report says he wanted to leave the Church. Witnesses also say the counseling session was arranged by the pastor, Tiffani Irwin. Former members have said the leadership techniques were “tyrannical” and “confrontational.” Is it possible that faithful members were required to give over their conscience decisioning power to the leader(s)? Is this how a father and mother could mercilessly for hours on end beat their sons?

Chief of Police Inserra commenting on the investigation, “Devoted to spiritual leader Traci Irwin and pastor Tiffanie Irwin, members often “wait to be told what to do,” (here) Could the members waiting to be told what to do be because they are afraid of being wrong? What are the consequences for making the wrong decision inside Word of Life Church? That is a fair question, right?

It is not yet clear how many participated, but the dynamics of a mob, hell-bent on cleansing the defiant one leading to a homicide, seems plausible to me. The reports that previous sessions did not include violence make no sense to me. A father does not suddenly accept in his own mind that using fists and feet and a belt or cord, unless he is led to that belief over time. I could be wrong here, but it makes more sense that the group morphed into sessions of severe physical abuse. A group of people who are able to process the individual internal conflicts arising from administering severe physical punishment without stopping it leads me to believe this has happened before and under the direction of a central leader. This leader required supreme, conscience surrendering loyalty and that occurs over time. Will authorities bring in the two leaders for questioning? I believe after statements from Christopher Leonard are processed, it only makes sense to question the church leaders.

Can what happened at Word of Life Church in NY happen in WOFF? All I can say is that the foundation is present for WOFF members to give over their conscience to a strong leader. Once that dynamic is in place, the results are highly unpredictable. I believe many in leadership have already done things that a few years ago, they never thought they would participate in. Where and when will this continuum to disaster end?

I close with this. From the PBS documentary- “Jonestown- The Life and Death of People’s Temple” ©2007- A survivor comments on life inside the group:

Hue Fortson Jr., Peoples Temple Member: “Being in an environment where you’re constantly up, you’re constantly busy, and you’re made to feel guilty if you take too many luxuries like sleeping — you tend to not really think for yourself. And I did allow Jones to think for me because I figured that he had the better plan. I gave my rights up to him. As many others did.”

Season of Changes is upon us. Will this be a cold winter in Spindale?

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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. Jane told me and Josh confirmed it.

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Scripture references are Amplified Version unless otherwise noted. (Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation ) This is post number 547.