Mirmac, I'm maybe missing the completely obvious, but I'm not aware of the person you're talking about and the dastardly deeds that have been taking place in the shadows. (I'm not defending anyone btw, I'm just oblivious to it). If someone has revealed themselves, in confidence, to someone else and they've then gone on to reveal that to others, that's abso
Forum: Destructive Churches

Amazing grace Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Re attending other churches, Petitor and Liz > > Liz said > ‘There was an expectation that church attendance, > if someone was returning to their home or student > town say, must be somewhere he had had a > connection.’ > > It wasn’t just Mr Black, Mary Black was the same > an
Forum: Destructive Churches

Mirmac: I can't imagine that the date for the documentary has been released to anyone on this forum. Personally, I'll be taking that info with a shovel of salt. Writing about so-called 'spiritual warfare' is akin to writing about fairies. It's a world where one can simply dream up all sorts of nonsense and present it as fact. (The gullible eat that stuff up in large he
Forum: Destructive Churches

I really enjoyed the story about the 'territorial sprits'. I wonder if they're a bit like the Territorial Army - kinda like standby spirits in case things get really bad. The haunted church is a nice addition too. Thank goodness a couple of folks were on hand to wander about muttering a few words and make the 'baddies' go away. Absolute fantasy-land material.
Forum: Destructive Churches

Mirmac Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Clearly you have an issue with content. We also > felt that about some earlier content from posts, > how interesting, mmmm! Thought the whole point of > the forum was for views to be shared? Surely we > are not all meant to be clones agreeing about > everything, if so we would be sitting under a >
Forum: Destructive Churches

Mulberry Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Does anyone know when the BBC documentary on SMC > is due to air? Not heard anything concrete for a while. I can't imagine they've been harvesting much useful info from the forum lately :-)
Forum: Destructive Churches

I didn't get any such reference to the RC Church either. If anything, I found the post somewhat depressing, reminding me of how easy it is to get tied up in knots over what's 'theologically correct'. Absolutely mind-rotting stuff.
Forum: Destructive Churches

I pop out for a few hours and this is what I come back to? Where to even begin! Have really enjoyed catching up. Sorry to see big-jack-in-a-box get banned. That was top entertainment for sure. Absolutely loved the OTT writing style - well done whoever you are, best laugh I've had on here in ages. (I don't believe for a single minute you're part of SMC - LOL). Hippo - almost a
Forum: Destructive Churches

Al Duff: I'm absolutely not saying you're soft in the head. I'm disagreeing with your previous assertions that ET is any kind of Seer or Oracle. Furthermore, I'd like to reiterate that it's precisely this kind of thinking that helped create the very SMC environment that this forum has sought to address. Specifically, what I mean by this is: the elevation of undeserving, c
Forum: Destructive Churches

Al Duff: "But Miss Taylor cannot be compared to an astrologer or a madwoman". She absolutely can and she should. This is evidenced by her behaviour and treatment of others not to mention apparent self-delusion in describing herself as "the mouth-piece of the holy spirit". I cannot understand how you can hold seer / oracle in one hand together with manipulation and control i
Forum: Destructive Churches

WestofEast - I do think you might be onto something here around mental illness. It's not my area of expertise but I do think we would perhaps frame a lot of beahviour in a different way now. That said, I absolutely agree with the spirit of what RedRoad has said in terms of people being accountable for their behavior. Redroad and others who have commented on other churches as having only a
Forum: Destructive Churches

I've been giving a lot of thought to this idea recently: What makes otherwise intelligent, sound-minded people subject themselves to the will of others? I've gathered some information that I thought might be helpful to others in understanding this destructive behavior: This kind of authoritarian religious control follows well-documented psychological and sociological patterns. Even i
Forum: Destructive Churches

blackwatch : Your patience is legendary and your posts have been informed and entertaining. I've read them all! Long may you continue as a valued contributor. - Thank you A Theist 101 - not sure about the patience part but the sentiment is appreciated. Similarly, you've already made an impact here with your insightful posts :-) Liz25 That encounter is absolutely hideous. It's ab
Forum: Destructive Churches

Lintar - That's sad. I'm sorry you had those things taken away from you. Nowadays my advice to anyone that will listen is this: Do not for one minute allow anyone else to tell you how to live your life. Trust me, they are not qualified and they have no right. Do not empower them. Anyone claiming to know the "will of god for your life" is a fraudster and a charlatan.
Forum: Destructive Churches

Some fantastic ongoing dialogue which makes for fascinating reading! I've previously stated that the success of SMC relies heavily on good, decent people submitting themselves to the twisted will of power-hungry, broken individuals. That is genuinely the people I feel sorry for. I wish for their deliverance and swift transition to a more meaningful and fulfilled life. (Quick aside, I reme
Forum: Destructive Churches

Having followed the forum for close to 15 years now, it always amazes that every now and again, we get a wee surge of life and vigour, even after all this time! Welcome to the new contributors. Thank you for sharing and for helping to make this a place of rich experience and might I say, therapy (at times). I note, with sadness, the passing of Hugh McConnachie. I know the McC's were qu
Forum: Destructive Churches

Hi FalkirkBairn, I'm sorry to hear it's been a bad week for you. Hope things are looking up soon. I'm trying to understand what you're saying. I'm not aware of anyone being 'pressured' or anyone 'pleading' for others to share their story. And you're saying that as a result of that, some folks are 'suffering'? It should be a saf
Forum: Destructive Churches

FriendlyFace, thank you for the update which makes for interesting reading. It's good to see the effort that's being put into holding SMC to account. Your words will, I'm afraid, continue to fall on deaf ears and the horse, no matter how hard it's flogged, will remain dead. This thread has been running for almost 15 years. The opportunity to be gracious, to be kind, to b
Forum: Destructive Churches

Daisy69 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Anyone that says they know peoples sin, by gods > revelations to humiliate them, is a false prophet. > They are happy to insist on tithes, yet keep > people under control by targeted sermons and > public humiliation. > Foxtrot Oscar and out Absolutely spot on. An utter falsehood, a deception and a
Forum: Destructive Churches

Here's what I would love to see: The capitulation / deconstruction and ultimately, the closure of the entire organisation. It's history stained with the filthy stench of unrepentant shame, a track record of failed commercial enterprise and many members and ex-members riddled with psychological damage to varying degrees. Whilst I do have every sympathy for the impact to the children,
Forum: Destructive Churches

FalkirkBairn - thanks for sharing the details of your complaint. I agree with others that have noted the coldness and lack of any real compassion in the reply. That said, it's quite a pivotal moment perhaps that you've received any real meaningful reply at all! And, whilst it perhaps offers little comfort, you have at least received some kind of apology. I agree with you that it wou
Forum: Destructive Churches

Hello FF. Thanks for sharing this. Apart from some strange formatting issues resulting in the inappropriate hyphenation of words, it's very well put together. I particularly like how it deals with their propensity for discrediting the complainant using a variety of cheap, ill-conceived notions. One wonders how it's possible to respond to that type of questioning in any rational way. I g
Forum: Destructive Churches

Some really excellent analysis and comments of late. Petitor said this: "Finally, we have to remember this is not just a bit if advice that is being given, this is preaching from the pulpit. In many churches (including Struthers to some extent) announcements are either before or after that actual service, the reason being that we should not mix the sacred and the mundane - the service
Forum: Destructive Churches

"When there are troubling things happening in the church of Jesus Christ, and the devil is always out to trouble so it's quite usual and quite normal for troubling things to happen, when that happens we need to keep ourselves away from criticism. And we need to keep ourselves in Christ that no poisonous roots of bitterness grows up to trouble you. Because, what happens, is when you begi
Forum: Destructive Churches

FalkirkBairn, I'm appalled to hear that SMC have used your mental health in any way. That is totally inappropriate. I'd like to know more about the context of this: Al Duff, Happy to agree that there's little merit in that particular debate. One final observation that I'd like to make however: You've given your own particular / personal and quite specific view of wh
Forum: Destructive Churches

Some excellent contributions of late. Al Duff - here's some general characteristics of a cult: Charismatic Leader: Cults are typically led by a charismatic leader who commands deep loyalty and devotion. This leader often claims to have special knowledge, authority, or divine appointment, and may not be accountable to any authorities outside the cult. Isolation: Cults often isolate
Forum: Destructive Churches

It's amazing that most local churches have survived (in some cases hundreds of years) without controversy or scandal of any kind. There's always going to be divisions and disagreements - that's human nature. That's not what we're talking about here. This is a church absolutely steeped in controversy and personal tragedy and yet none of it has ever been addressed. Addit
Forum: Destructive Churches

Cedars school confirms it will shut at the of September.
Forum: Destructive Churches

@TheGreek - you make a whole bunch of valid points but your issue is, you're using reason, compassion and logic. I'm sure you know this but you're not ever going to get the same in return. There's an entire historical record that tells us this. In other news: Could the collapse of the school be imminent? I'm told that pupils are leaving in higher than normal numbers. A
Forum: Destructive Churches

All quiet on the western front. How's everyone doing?
Forum: Destructive Churches