While some of the things you hear from the NAR is new (and certifiably crazy and not even close to the Bible, which they used to claim was the final and ultimate authority), much of the spiritual warfare/demonology stuff was common in this area in the late 70s and maybe even into the mid 70s.  The authority stuff was also getting started when  I walked - cell churches were already quite active and being spread to other denominations.  The thing is, they were deliberately working to export the ideology even then.

I've said it before, and it bears repeating... when I was in that cult, I hung out with the "ministry students" being taught in their ersatz "University" (back then it was a "Bible College").  The ones I was around the most were being trained specifically to invade churches from certain denominations... two would be trained, for instance, for Southern Baptist.  Two more would be trained for Episcopal.  Still others for Methodist, Presbyterian, you name it.  They were being taught what to say and what not to say, and how to gain a "position" within the churches so as to start "encouraging" them towards dominionism ("Leading them back to Christ" was how it was put).

I recently talked with a friend of mine (who was a AoG ministry student for a few years) who indicated that that sort of training was still going on a few years ago.  They were also training people how to interfere with other churches... to the point of how to approach booths and tables set up in public areas in order to block access without getting caught.  Things like training them to work in teams (pairs or multiples of two back when I was in the cult) was part of the package and based on their interpretation of scriptures.

I also found out (in the last year) that a lot of the Baptist minister-wannabe's in the earlier years had gone to that "Bible College" (even though it was Pentecostal), and I've also wondered how much that had to do with the steeplejacking of the denomination.  Much of the recent problems we've experienced can be traced to that school in one way or another, and I have had a feeling for some time that's where the denomination experimented with new thought control techniques and test new proselytizing tools (I'm pretty sure I was the guinea pig in some of their experiments).

The hatred for Gays and using that to stir up "five minute hates" in church members was already strong by the time I got hoodwinked into joining.  Obedience to authority... the rich deserving their wealth and taxing them is the dread "SOCIALISM!"... all of these memes were quite ubiquitous.  We were specifically taught that rich people had earned their wealth and that liberals (and Democrats) were trying to steal it - and if they didn't resist us we'd take their money too.  The US government as the big bad bogyman going to take away your freedom to be Christian, put you in concentration camps to be killed if you didn't reject Jesus, and take all of your possessions away to give to unworthy scumbag lazy good-for-nothing bums... very much a common theme.

They even preached against quite innocent things... I remember one vitriolic sermon saying that Santa Claus was the Devil, and came from the Devil (many believed that Saint Nicholas was a myth).  The preacher sounded like he was getting close to denouncing Christmas, but backed off.  He did insist that the season should be spent in church and prayer and trying to "Spread the Gospel"... proselytizing.  Funny, but he arranged to have Christmas with HIS family.

I wonder if the present structure and ideology we see is a combination of different sources all mixed together.  It would make sense to me.


by ArchaeoBob on Wed May 30, 2012 at 07:04:25 PM EST