Category Archives: Uncategorized

Books, Resources, Uncategorized

The Weekend in North Myrtle Beach, SC

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   This past weekend I visited my mother in North Myrtle Beach, SC. It was a weekend full of celebrations, meeting new friends and enjoying life. My Mom, Darlene Eichler has published a new book, “Satan’s Best Friend” (copyright ©2011 Darlene Eichler, Published by Bookstand Publishing, ISBN 978-1-589209-914-2). She held a book signing this past Saturday at her church, St Stephen’s Episcopal Church in North Myrtle Beach, SC. The book signing was in conjunction with a fund raiser for North Strand Helping Hand, a group that provides food to the needy of the surrounding area. In addition to selling books, the event raised around $500 for North Strand Helping Hand. This was great considering the time of year and competing events in town. I met several new people and spent time with friends made during previous visits. It was good to be among those interested in helping others.

    One man I spent time talking with was Curtis. He is 96 and a native from SC. He grew up on a mill village. His life’s work was in furniture manufacturing. Over the years, he has been in his words “blessed” beyond what he could imagine. He is retired and enjoys spending time with his friend, Alice. I have known Alice for some time now. She is always pleasant and cheerful. She is several years younger than Curtis, but they enjoy each other’s company, which counts for a lot. Curtis put together a short autobiography of sorts which I have read and enjoyed tremendously. He came from poverty and worked his way to a much better lifestyle. Here is a picture of the car Curtis drives- at 96!

Mercedes Curtis drives..
Curtis' Mercedes

  

Continue reading The Weekend in North Myrtle Beach, SC →

Books, Resources, Criteria for Cults, Uncategorized

Signs of Abuse in a Church

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  In the previous post, we looked at the work of Dr. Steven Lambert. He gave some insight into the shepherding movement. We compared a few of his insights into what I witnessed at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF) from 1992 until 2008. The resource material for that post can be found here: Chapter 2 of “Charismatic Captivation” by Steve Lambert, ThD. (Publisher: Real Truth Publications, ISBN 1-887915-00-1 / 308pp.) Chapter 2 can be found here: http://www.slm.org/pubs/samples/ccbook2.html . Again, by using material form Dr. Lambert’s website, I am not giving a blanket endorsement to all his work. I have not read all his work and caution each reader to judge for themselves what he writes.

   That being said, I did find an article from Dr. Lambert in which he lists signs of abuse within a church. This is the link to the article titled, “33 Signs of Spiritual Abuse”. I will quote several of these signs here and tell whether or not I found them to be in WOFF.  The article begins, “There are at least thirty-three readily identifiable signs of spiritual abuse, or hyper-authoritarianism, practiced by many Charismatic churches. Being able to readily identify the signs and symptoms of authoritarian abuse and psychological enslavement that is rampant among church groups today is absolutely essential for every believer in their quest to know and be personally related to the Great Shepherd, who is the Prince of Peace and the true “Guardian of our souls”.  Lambert implies that these abusive practices will hinder a person from knowing “the Great Shepherd”. I most wholeheartedly agree. It is not possible to review the entire text from Lambert here. I recommend each reader to review the article on their own by clicking the title above. We move on.

–  Apotheosis of the leadership — exalting them to God-like status in and over the group.  Well, have we covered that before on this blog? When I left WOFF, one of the thoughts that helped was seeing that the members were more afraid of Jane Whaley than God. So, is she “God-like”?

  Continue reading Signs of Abuse in a Church →

Books, Resources, Uncategorized

Do WOFF Practices Reflect the Shepherding Movement?

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   For many reading this post the term “shepherding movement” will be new or unfamiliar. During May of 2008, while still inside Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF), I had the thought to look up the term and find out more. As I did I could see that it appeared that what was going on at WOFF under the leadership of Jane Whaley looked a lot like the reported abuses during the shepherding movement of years ago. I kept the findings to myself for awhile until the first week of June of 2008. Two hours after telling my thoughts to LB, I was advised through her that Jane Whaley said I was “out of the church”. No, Jane did not call and find out what I had learned or why I thought the WOFF practices were like those of the shepherding movement of years gone by. Why did I not get asked? I am not certain.

   In the blog series which tells the events around my exit from WOFF, the scenario is explained in this post: What Thoughts Helped Me Leave WOFF – Part 3 – found here: https://religiouscultsinfo.com/?p=1841 . “Part 3” contains two links which explain in brief about the term – shepherding movement. The movement has also been referred to as the “Discipleship Movement”. Before I proceed, let me just acknowledge that my reading on this subject has not made me an expert. Any “expertise” of mine comes from living through my experiences at WOFF and comparing them in light of what the material shows and reports about the practices within the shepherding movement. When I have lived through it, I believe it gives me some right to comment on what I saw and observed. Also, I will be quoting from sources found on websites which contain more material than I can read right now. My quoting of the sources DOES NOT imply a blanket endorsement for all of the material found in these resources. Further reading from these quoted sources is a choice you must make on your own. I have read enough to feel comfortable quoting from the material.   

   As a very brief recap, there was a group of ministers in Florida called the Fort Lauderdale Five. This group included, Bob Mumford, Charles Simpson, Don Basham, Derrick Prince and Ern Baxter. Some sources add John Poole to the group. The founding events are reported differently in different sources. Let it be said that from some event, whether a moral failure or a perceived lack of accountability of the church members, this group set out to form a structure to help those who needed help in various ways.

    Continue reading Do WOFF Practices Reflect the Shepherding Movement? →

Books, Resources, Criteria for Cults, Cult Leader News, Uncategorized

Update on Black Hebrews Cult and More

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   In April of this year, we reported on a religious cult in Durham, NC. The group is called the “Black Hebrews” and their leader is Peter Lucas Moses, Jr. The original post is found here: “Search for Missing Members of Black Hebrews Cult in Durham, NC” resource link- https://religiouscultsinfo.com/?p=4018 . A few days ago, there was an update in the case. The title is:  “Seven Charged in Alleged Cult Murder of Woman, Child in North Carolina” the link is here- http://abcnews.go.com/US/charged-bodies-found-north-carolina-cult-murder-case/story?id=13811420

   A short quote:

By CHRISTINA NG and JESSICA HOPPER    June 10, 2011

“The leader of an alleged cult appeared in court today to answer charges in the deaths of a woman and child found buried in the backyard of a house in Durham, N.C. Six other people who police say are members of the alleged cult were also charged with murder.

Pete Lucas Moses, Jr., 27, is believed to be the leader of a cult called the “Black Hebrew Israelites,” ABC affiliate WTVD in Durham reported. He was charged with the murders of Antoinetta McKoy, 28, and 5-year-old Jadon Higganbothan. McKoy was reported missing in February and was last seen in December 2010. Higganbothan had been missing since October.”

Continue reading Update on Black Hebrews Cult and More →

Uncategorized, WOFF Updates

Revealing Incident at the Great Wall

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   Since the following series of events happened on Tuesday evening, I have been debating whether or not to spend time on this blog recounting them. Finally, I decided the readers not familiar with such things needed to know that stuff like this happens in Rutherford County. This post will not be reciting from a book or drawing conclusions from experts on cults. I will retell certain events that took place at the Great Wall restaurant in Rutherfordton. First, let me acknowledge that the workers probably had no idea what was being said or why there were loud words being uttered in their restaurant. After the events were over, the lady behind the counter acted so polite and tried to carry on as if nothing had happened. For that, I was shocked and very grateful.

    From time to time, I drive another former member around town for him to run some errands. He does not drive or have his own car. After I retell this evening’s events, I will relate what he has told me about his time at Word of Faith Fellowship (WOFF). From what I can tell, Jane Whaley is very aware of this former member named Tony. His story is his story, but, in reality the results are not much different from other former members. I will explain as we go along.

     Tony decided he wanted to eat at the Great Wall restaurant. He likes the food and often takes his leftovers home to eat for a second meal. We had eaten there before and the last time we were there we encountered a present WOFF member who was very friendly. This evening was much different. I let Tony out in front and he went in as I parked the car. As I opened the front door, I immediately recognized a present WOFF member who I had known since 1992.  Her family was one of the first we met when my family arrived at the Greenville church. She had her back to me as she was chatting with Tony. I stepped in behind her and then backed up realizing she would turn and run into me. I also noticed to my left, her father. We had called him –Vadi. I think that is a Swedish(?) term for Papa. As this WOFF member, LB, turned to leave, she met my eyes, her countenance changed and she took on a very deadpan look. For more background, she was the one who accompanied my then wife to my front door on or about February 16, 2010 and told me I was “telling lies” on this blog. (see link here: https://religiouscultsinfo.com/?p=572 ) My first contact with her after I left had been the summer of 2009. I had met her family in Charleston and actually enjoyed a meal with them and my family. That is a story for another day. Going back further she was the one who on June 6, 2008 passed on from Jane Whaley the news that I was “out of the church” and to not come back on the property. So, yes, we go way back.

  Continue reading Revealing Incident at the Great Wall →

Criteria for Cults, Uncategorized

Predatory Religion – by Definition is Deception

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    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..  https://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 →

Criteria for Cults, Uncategorized, WOFF Updates

Predatory Religion?

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    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? →