The word “cult” describes many groups, including not only certain churches, but other groups as well. Just being removed from the group does not automatically solve all the problems associated with group practices or beliefs. “Undoing beliefs is a slow process.” So says Janis Hutchinson in “Out of the Cults and Into the Church”(copyright 1994, page 51) Janis is an ex-Mormon who has taken on the task of helping others make the transition from cult groups to the Christian church. She helps “walk-aways”, who leave cults on their own. Her work does not attempt “de-programming” cult members. She was in Mormonism for 36 years before her exit. Her main work has been with ex-Mormons. While reading the first part of this book, I have been so shocked in some ways that ex-Mormons would have the same struggles as ex-WOFFers!
While in Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF), I would be aware at times, of the sub-culture world that is WOFF. While at WOFF, your entire schedule consists of working around WOFF members, living with WOFF members and spending time at church- of course with WOFF members. The job I had did put me in contact with non-WOFFers, who were fellow workers. But, these folks wanted the job they had and very few ever mentioned their questions about the church and what they saw in WOFF members. The weeks, month and years at WOFF became packed with WOFF centered activities and relationships. If a WOFF member wanted to remember what they were doing on a certain day; the two qualifying questions would be: 1. What day of the week was it? and 2. What was going on at the church? (WOFF) While in the midst of that lifestyle it is easy to lose the magnitude of such an intense WOFF centered life. In many cases, the far reaching effects are not truly known until a person leaves and begins the transition into American culture.
As mentioned before, Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) members led by Jane Whaley, don’t celebrate Easter, Christmas or other holidays. While at WOFF, we were told about the background of the holidays. Easter was linked to certain pagan origins. (see link here.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easter ) Therefore, it was not celebrated. It remains hard for any truth-seeking Christian to justify with scriptures the Easter bunny, dying eggs, Easter baskets and other secular traditions. However, many Christians take the time before the celebration of Easter to remind themselves and others of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. The Resurrection of Jesus is no doubt a vital part of the fabric of faith for Christians. Also, this time is set aside for many folks to visit family.
Many times, not celebrating holidays revealed the contrarian nature of Jane Whaley and WOFF members. There was a preached mandate and example set for members, to do something opposite of the accepted traditions in order to show – what? I am not sure. I practiced “opposites” to holidays and traditions for years at WOFF, for what reason or benefit? To make me as a WOFF member feel superior to those who practice certain holidays and traditions? To show that the “world” has no hold on a WOFF member? To show God how much I “loved” Him and deserved His “favor”?
Ceretainly in this country, we would not want compulsory or mandatory celebration of any holiday- religious or secular. The right to choose your individual preference in religious matters is as much of a right in the country as the right to vote, choose your residence and place of employment. We enjoy many freedoms in this country that most folks take for granted.
The reality of membership at WOFF is in order to continue with the members of WOFF; you are compelled to give up the individual freedom of choice that our Constitution makes very plain and clear. Members must do and not do a LONG list of things. The list is ever growing and changing. ( see link here..WOFF Don’t list 03 10 ) Many of which you are not told about at the time of joining. The “don’t list” is revealed on a situational basis, in many cases. (I know because very rarely did we “overload” a new member or one who showed interest in WOFF, with information that they would learn in due time…) When you needed to know, you were told.
Why do many of the locals and those from outside the county who interact with WOFF members not see the religious mind control cult activities? Let’s address the folks who know WOFF members; maybe work with them or play sports with them… This is just the point: the outsiders are not SUPPOSED to see the mind control that is going on at WOFF! You have to be an accepted member to have that kind of “love” shown to you! In order for a visitor to see the loud prayer or blasting; Jane had to “have ahold of it”, so the person would hopefully not reject what they were seeing, hearing or feeling. I do not ever remember this being on the very first visit. Visitors would never see another member openly rebuked or blasted in the congregation. That is not to say Jane never got angry around new folks. But, it was all explained away as the “anger of God.”
Those who don’t want to consider the evidence about WOFF may say these things to themselves. Cover up statements and questions…. Can’t we just all get along? Members of WOFF dress so nice – all the time… The children seem so polite. They have not done anything to hurt me… My children are not affected…. They all seem so mannerly! There is no perfect church… I met Jane once at a funeral and she seemed so sweet… If you have these thoughts or have heard them expressed by others.. Keep reading. Also, read some of the books on the Resource page and visit some of the links listed on the right side of the page. Read the confirming testimonies of those who exited before me. (here. http://www.rickross.com/groups/wordoffaith.html
WOFF members are polite and cordial and well mannered, so says a former policeman from the area. WOFFers were taught that outsiders were to be treated with the utmost respect. Jane Whaley’s reputation depends on it. The politeness and cordial manners can be a cover up for the doubts, hurts and confusion that resides in many WOFF members. The very premise and basis of relationship is skewed between members. Each member is “responsible” to watch out for others so they all can “serve God together”. An outsider would not see this because the control between members is just that- between Jane Whaley, leadership and members. Since the level of mind control is on a continuum, the strength of it ebbs and flows. Not all members would feel the same strength of the control at the same time, unless it came directly from the top- Jane Whaley. The idea that when you “sin”, you compromise the group’s (and Jane Whaley’s) reputation is a strong deterrent to allowing outsiders to see the control measures being used.
Remember, Rutherford county is Jane’s county! (see link-Your sin affects Me! https://religiouscultsinfo.com/?p=143 ..) Prospective members or those in civil authority are treated lovely. Former members are for the most part treated like dirt. (see link. https://religiouscultsinfo.com/?p=498 ..) Some former members who still exhibit the characteristics that Jane considers may bring them back into the fold; she may go from nice, to enraged, to nice again, with these folks… looking for any place to get “back in their heart”!
This is the sixth post in a series on my personal experience with “loud prayer, blasting and deliverance” as practiced at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) in Spindale, NC. WOFF was started by Jane and Sam Whaley about 1979. Jane began to teach loud prayer and deliverance to those at WOFF and others around the world. The first post in this series has two video links that show more about the prayer as practiced at WOFF.
There is not enough room in this series to cover the full scope of my experiences during times of loud prayer at WOFF. The group behavior dynamics often intrigued me. Peer pressure and group-think are powerful forces in shaping the decisions of any one particular individual. For example, this type of prayer seemed to have a special effect on children or youth that considered their purpose was to “pray for each other and make sure each one had a breakthrough”. The direction this would take could be varied. Often young men would be drawn into a “scrum” type pile in an effort to get one of their group a “breakthrough”. The person getting prayer was on the bottom of the pile. In these cases, a “breakthrough” could be an improved confession about themselves or God’s plan or His will in that person’s life. It could mean a time of “blasting the heavens” with the friends in the group. A “breakthrough” could take many forms. It could be an improved attitude about Jane, WOFF leadership or other situations in that person’s life. Many times a person in leadership would be called over to confirm the breakthrough and permission to stop praying for that person.
This is the fifth post in a series about my personal experience and observations of loud prayer, blasting and deliverance. These observations are from the entire 16 year span of meetings in Greenville, SC and at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF). The blasting and deliverance were the signature practices of WOFF during my years there. Please, read the previous posts in order to have a background understanding to this material.
At times, people would be grouped for “deliverance” prayer for a certain purpose. Children could be grouped to pray against rebellion, back-talking or unclean thoughts. Adults could be grouped to pray against fear of death, unclean thoughts, perversion. If you participated in Free Masons, Eastern Star, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Amway, witchcraft, karate or martial arts of any type – you could be in a deliverance group for that. In order to set-up these groups, the chairs in the sanctuary may be stacked or moved to the side to make room for the deliverance circles. Most of the time leadership would take to the stage to oversee the groups and who was getting prayer for what. If someone in leadership needed prayer, then that group would include those who were “carrying that person’s life.”
During the set-up for the prayer, there was the need to supply folks with paper products for coughing and nose blowing. Paper towels, facial tissue or toilet paper were the acceptable sources for this need. Some folks would prepare a stack of paper towels to hand out to the person getting prayer or to others in the group as needed. The set-up of the prayer groups could take several minutes.
Some observations during these group prayer times. LOUD. I wore earplugs during the later years and could hear the prayer- just fine. I found tissue paper in the ears a lot less effective that ear plugs rated for at least 30 decibels of protection. I usually carried them with me when I was headed to church and having loud prayer was a possibility.
This series of posts will be my personal experiences and reflections on my involvement with “loud prayer”, “blasting” and “deliverance”. These practices of loud prayer, blasting and deliverance are no doubt considered the signature practices of Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF). This group has received more public scrutiny because of “loud prayer”, “blasting” and “deliverance” than any other activity. Though a person could pray loud and receive deliverance if praying by themselves; most every time this activity involved other folks in small or large groups. My desire is not impugn or attack in anyway other members who participated alongside me in these activities and prayer meetings. I will not suppose to assess the sincerity or insincerity of others as I do share my personal reflections in a very sincere manner. WOFF members who read this or have it read to them, may no doubt at first feel shocked and maybe offended with the observations I will share. That is not my intent. I desire to answer the questions of many who have never been a part of loud prayer or deliverance by sharing my unique perspective. By holding back, keeping secrets or not sharing the details, I would do a disservice to my readers.
The practice of hiding what went on in WOFF services or closed door meetings is the very thing that allows Jane Whaley to keep much of her power over members. The hiding of what went on at WOFF also furthers the deceptive facade that keeps the surrounding community ignorant and feeding on the pablum put out by Jane and her leadership.
What is “loud prayer” or “blasting”? What is “deliverance”? How did it start at WOFF? Is it practiced other places? What scriptures are used as the basis for these practices- if any? Why would one submit themselves to these activities? Who would participate? How long were the meetings of prayer and deliverance? Did the children participate? These are some of the questions I will attempt to answer. Remember also, my perspective is one of attending meetings for 10 years from an hour away and then being inside the group for six years until July 2008. I do not practice loud prayer or deliverance now, nor do I know of any ex-WOFF members that do. One ex-member expressed his hesitation in telling others that he participated in this kind of prayer. It brought many questions he was not comfortable in answering. I welcome the questions. As I write these words, I also face the risk of further separating myself from some that I love dearly. To them, I ask for grace in hopes that one day understanding will come.
A fellow from Inside Edition® came into WOFF and taped some of the prayer meetings. Here is a link to watch what he filmed… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPpbmDDRm8M The prayer groups depicted in this video were actual folks in loud prayer or “blasting” sessions. I recognize many of them. I will not comment on the young lady in the video, at this time. Needless to say this caused no smal stir at WOFF.
Another video surfaced on YouTube.com® from years ago of Jane Whaley at a church in Sweden. This is from a time in the late 80’s… Jane is talking about deliverance, groanings and “getting devils out of you”… Here is the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mipon05dGks
In future posts in this series, I will explain more about the terms “blasting”, “deliverance” and “loud prayer”. Also, I will answer the questions listed above while sharing some of the reasonings presented and my personal account of what happened to me during these sessions. I will share my thoughts and the physical effects felt during these sessions. Before I finish, I will give observations made of others who were in these groups and the group behavior dynamics that appeared to be working during these sessions. My experience is no more special or unique than others who have been at WOFF. But, they are my experiences and I believe by sharing them, it will be a help to others.
Please, consume the information on this site responsibly. Be sure to tell every member that you know at WOFF about this blog. It could very well save their life. There are readers at WOFF. Comments are invited from present or former members.
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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. )
Here is a picture that hopefully will remind us all that we live in the best country in the world…
Recently, while in a conversation with a co-worker, I realized some things that I have learned since leaving WOFF. This will not be a complete list, as the learning is ongoing. This co-worker made mention that they were considering joining the Jehovah Witnesses (JW). The comment came after we talked about birthdays and the fact they did not celebrate theirs. I had asked them why, thinking maybe it was said in jest. But, they mentioned they had a relative in the JW group and he had approached them a couple of times with reading material. This person had visited the local Kingdom Hall – but was not 100% convinced. They asked, “What do you think?” This person was very sincere.
First, I mentioned William Coburn’s book “The Spanking Room” (copyright 2008), and his fair treatment of the Jehovah Witness movement. Fair in that he recounted his views and observations as a child trying to learn the doctrine and ways to survive in the Kingdom Hall. (see link here… williamcoburn.com) Mr. Coburn had doubts early, especially the more he read the Bible. His book is a good read; especially, the account of “Knocking on Doors” and the fear it brought in him.
Next, after I realized that giving someone else’s testimony about the Jehovah Witnesses was not what this person had asked. They wanted to know my thoughts. So, I recounted some of the things I found out while at WOFF. When it came time to explain to anybody about the WOFF beliefs on not celebrating holidays, the first thing most folks would ask, “Are you a Jehovah Witness?” At first, it was cute or funny. A few times while in services at WOFF, others mentioned to Jane Whaley about getting the same question. Jane Whaley seemed to make light of the question. For the most part it was ignored.
I told this person I did not celebrate Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving or birthdays for years. That had become the order of things at WOFF. For years, I spent very little time with family and other relatives. The co-worker asked, “Was the only way to get together with family a holiday?” That is when most folks are off work. Jane Whaley herself gave that reason for having her seminars during weeks around holidays. Skipping seminars to visit family was a general “no-no” at WOFF. What was missed by not gathering with family was the love and togetherness that comes during those shared family times. There are still many questions and struggles for me with the WOFF doctrine and prohibitions against holidays. But, for sure I now want to take advantage when I can, of family gathering times.
From here, I could not recommend membership in the Jehovah Witnesses. It would be WOFF with a twist. But, becoming a control freak and shouting to this person that they should not join the JW’s, would not serve them well. That much I did know! So, I shared something learned after my exit from WOFF. I looked at this person and told them that whatever church group they joined; they must be able to at times, to voice their dissent or have a way for their opinions to be heard. If there was no room for a dissenting voice, then that group is not for them. (or me!) I said, “Don’t waste a chunk of your life in a group that you disagree with their beliefs or practices and have no way to change or at least be heard.” This person had read some of my blog and could understand a little about where I was coming from. They knew I had made that mistake. We had to decide to pick-up the conversation another time.
Actually, being heard is not the only requirement. Is there a way to be heard AND affect changes? At WOFF, you may have a moment to voice your insight to Jane or you may not. It depended on the subject and how the change would affect the present power structure. As a member, there were times when questions were brought up in “family meetings” and the outcome was the same. What ever Jane Whaley wanted was the order of the day.
