Myths About Spiritual Abuse

Previously I picked up a used copy of a book on the subject of rape (Telling by Patricia Weaver Francisco). It is a first hand account of a woman who was violated. Something she wrote in the prologue caught my attention, as similar can be said about spiritual abuse. Here is what she wrote:

“Myths,” said Cassandra Thomas in talking about rape, “keep us from doing the work we need to do based on truth.” And one of the myths we live by is that rape doesn’t exist. Not really. Not like baseball and heart attacks and love affairs and taxes. Not like the things we talk about together in the evening and feel the need to understand. We don’t talk about rape partly because we are bound by superstition. I couldn’t survive it. I might feel differently about sex. These myths keep women and men from having the conversations that might save our lives, our loves.

Substitute ‘spiritual abuse’ for ‘rape’ and see if you don’t see the similarity. There are definitely myths and misconceptions about spiritual abuse and it occurs with more frequency than many realize.

What are some myths and misconceptions about spiritual abuse that come to mind? One that I quickly thought of is those saying that people upset about the color of the paint or carpeting in a church are crying abuse, in an attempt to make the thought of abuse in church appear ridiculous and frivolous. While some misguided individual might proclaim this, in over two decades I have never had anyone contact me because they felt abused when the pastor had a church wall painted a color they didn’t want or like.

Another is that spiritual abuse is about people who are upset they didn’t get to do something, like teach Sunday School or sing in the choir. Or that it is some personal grudge about a matter. Again, the attempt is to make spiritual abuse seem frivolous and therefore discredit it, making people who have been abused to appear to be a bunch of whiners and complainers.

Mock United Pentecostal Debate- Mark McNeal & Marvin Hicks

Just under two hours, this is a mock debate between Mark McNeil (former United Pentecostal Church, 1990 Texas Bible college graduate & valedictorian) and Marvin Hicks, a Oneness Pentecostal minister. The first 11 plus minutes explain why this is a mock debate. It revolves around the Godhead issue, covering Oneness vs. Trinity.


Video on the United Pentecostal Church- Mark McNeal & Bob Ross

Just under 60 minutes, this is an interview with Bob Ross and Mark McNeil about the United Pentecostal Church. Mark was a UPCer, graduated from Texas Bible College, and was the valedictorian. This again addresses the subject of the Godhead (Oneness vs. Trinity). It also touches on David Bernard’s The Oneness of God book.

Video on the United Pentecostal Church

Just under 30 minutes, this is a video on the United Pentecostal Church from Christian Answers, featuring Steve Morrison and Larry Wessels. It covers the Godhead issue and some on David Bernard’s book, The Oneness of God. They touch on what they believe to be false assumptions and false facts given by Bernard.

The Movie The Wave And Spiritual Abuse

In October I posted a video of a made-for-TV movie based on the book, The Wave. In more recent years, it was made into a feature length film in Germany. It is based on an incident that happened in the 1960s in a school in California. People who have been in unhealthy churches should be able to relate and maybe learn something from it.

I was able to watch the re-make. They updated the story, having it take place in modern times and the ending was changed. The endings in each version are moving.

In doing some research afterward, though not in depth, I found that the made-for-TV version is closest to what actually happened. I also found that a documentary was put together about it, including interviews with some participants and the teacher. The name of that is Lesson Plan. In fact, the teacher has a bit part in the German remake and there is a brief interview with him in the bonus section.

As previously mentioned, the movies are based on an actual event from 1967 at a high school in California. It was a class experiment that got out of hand. It was the first year of teaching for Ron Jones, who three years later lost his fight for tenure (it appears to do with political activism).

There is a short story that Ron Jones wrote about the incident. See if you notice anything similar with what happens in unhealthy churches. I encourage you to watch either the 2008 film or the 1981 TV version that is found on YouTube.

Here is a quote from Ron Jones from the interview on the re-make DVD: “…you’re looking at ‘The Wave,’ trying to understand why do we give up our freedom for the thought of being better than everyone else. And it’s a lesson that we all need to see and hear and talk about.”

Another quote from the DVD, in speaking about one of the students crossing over an invisible line that was a simulation and became something real: “And I realized that I was crossing over that same line. I was no longer just teaching about this thing called fascism, I was enjoying- enjoying- being a leader and that was frightening.”

Some of the similarities from this incident and being in an unhealthy church are:

  • Blind obedience to authority
  • A gradual process of influence and indoctrination
  • Rigid rules
  • Conformity
  • Peer pressure
  • Giving up yourself to be part of something great
  • Tattling on the disobedient

In further research on the incident, there are some who do not believe the events happened quite as Mr. Jones states. It is not my desire to get into all of that as it does appear that there was a class experiment. Regardless of what is accurate or not, the movies are thought provoking and a possible way to help people since the subject matter is not spiritual abuse, yet people caught up in unhealthy churches can relate to it. It is similar to having them watch The Village.

Click to access the login or register cheese
YouTube
YouTube
Set Youtube Channel ID
x  Powerful Protection for WordPress, from Shield Security
This Site Is Protected By
ShieldPRO