PONDERINGS... Post cult, I believe everyone is free to believe whatever they want. Everyone needs support for every step of healing they take once they leave a cult. Even the realization of mind control can be radically different depending on each person's personal experience in the walk. Many wise and learned people have pointed out to me that sometimes different views of an individua
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Aardvark - I have found this Forum to be "my safe place" because of Forum rules that Rick Ross and his support people follow quite well. Even so, there have been times when someone's zeal to expose wrongdoing is aimed at the wrong target as I believe happened to you here. My attitude when this has happened to me is to refuse to be shut up or shut down by ANYone ever again. Th
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Fellas - Please make sure to let Aardvark know you're kidding about Alaska or you'll be numbered in the current accusations of cult recruiters. Oy.
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Aardvark - I took no offense at your comments about my credibility but thank you for the apology. I hope you have an opportunity to read earlier posts on this Forum. Valuable insights from many of us who had direct experiences and first hand knowledge like Reepicheep, Onion (me ;-), Changedagain, KByrne, Puddington, Kboy, Bobo, and MANY more. I mentioned that for 9 years I "flew under
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Aardvark - One of my dearest friends and roommates from the very beginning in 70/71 is quite a Biblical scholar deep thinker. She has presented a viewpoint of JRS that stands for the belief that he was many things in his humanity including a seeker of God, speaker of God's word, and a womanizer, etc. Because of my own good experiences under JRS' teaching in the early years, and becaus
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Aardvark - I was in the fellowship (in the Valley, and in the Wordwork) from 1970 until 2016. So don't feel like the lone ranger in having a VERY long period of history to reflect on. But perhaps the last 9 years from 2007 to 2016 when I flew under the radar and did not attend services should not be included in my tally of years. Regardless, I think we will have a lot to discuss and I
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Aardvark - I think it would be very interesting to hear your positive viewpoint.
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I can solve the question about one of the grave markers with all the XXXXX's. When Ray Stanchfield passed away, I helped Inez contact people and let them know Ray had passed and invite them to his memorial that was in L.A. Inez asked me to find out from Marilyn what she would want printed on Ray's grave marker. I gave the answer from Marilyn to Inez in a little note I wrote her wit
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I think a lot of people will be thrilled to finally get their family members out of the Shiloh property. I am.
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Reep and Changed - You're right. And that is where the scheming that was going on in the last months as JRS lay in agony, dying, was so diabolical. No one knew the whole picture (I think I've repeated that like a broken record). One of the insider people who did know everything tried her hardest to expose the truth and she almost paid with her life. Many of the allegations contain
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

There were dozens of people involved in maintaining the home, cleaning, making food, taking calls, answering phones, doing administration, helping care for JRS as he was dying of cancer. It was a nonstop 24/7 hive of activity that would make the Siege at Shiloh sound like a luxury vacation. I know people did things they were talked into and they likely knew it was illegal - such as the man
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Lilith: I do not see a need to post the names of individuals who were tricked and lied to by Gary and Marilyn in order to obtain their participation. The sex hanky panky is not mentioned because of the sex, but because of the charade/performance played on so many about a relationship that was claimed as Godly and that was started years before the charade/performance began. Sexual activity
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

JRS’ first lawyer in his divorce was a nightmare. He only cared about publicity and his own income and never really listened to what JRS had to say or could prove about his income. Looking back, maybe he had it right, that all of the church assets were so closely controlled by JRS that they were his personal property. His second lawyer got it and was a pleasure to work with. He and his wife
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Thanks Changed. It's good to know that while many of us believed what we were told to believe, the greed and double-dealing was transparent to others. When JRS was in his divorce litigation, some of the guys got him hooked up to Marvin Mitchelson as his attorney. What. A. Nightmare. Through the help of one of the girls/women who had been significant in helping with word work and
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Even with all the exposure of lies and misdeeds about Gary Hargrave, Hargrave Ministries, Rick Holbrook, TLW and TLWF, there are still so many untold stories and I find myself being surprised that I am still surprised when things come out from what people went thru in the dangerous, mind-control cult especially under Gary Hargrave and Marilyn. I heard this weekend from a former walk member who
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

So I've been told... Apparently, Gary Hargrave and D. Bruce Larson are busily enjoying life, talking on the phone daily or multiple times daily. Always intriguing to think what they may be planning. They performed a marriage ceremony not long ago along with a rabbi at the animal park connected to San Diego zoo. Bruce is trying to keep his circle of influence alive in the small group th
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

One of the artful (effective) techniques of the TLWF cult was the way they could mold our thinking so that we were isolated from "outside" people, including our families and lifelong friends. It is one of the worst conditionings that was imbedded in our thinking. You had to speak the right lingo. Like the right people. Denounce people you were told were "off" or bad. Th
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Paleface was SO right on! When I first read it, I didn't look at the date. And of course everything predicted is exactly what has been happening! Kudos to Paleface!
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Reepicheep - Your script sounds much more likely. I would add one thing. After JRS and Martha had this late nigh/wee hours of the morning fight, JRS told someone like Marilyn about it and it then became the hard fast rule to have phone trees wake each other up at 3:00 a.m. to pray. Yes, this was enacted by an order from on high thru the office at the Blix House. Calls thru a rotating phone
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

The phone calls between 2 and 4 a.m. were probably (in addition to what you said Changedagain) because JRS said there was a spiritual channel that had something to do with Hawaii and menehunes On this side of the walk deception, it was probably more closely related to JRS' alcohol consumption waking him up after a few hours of sleep. Looking back on that, SHEESH - how many cockeyed scheme
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Memories of Dr. Stevens. I remember being told (by Marilyn) that Martha always wanted him to go by the name "Dr. Stevens" because he had the doctorate in theology, but that JRS felt it was a pride thing that he didn't want because he was humble. Now that so much has been exposed, it is probably more logical that it wasn't a true doctorate and he didn't want to get caugh
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

JimK3 - Welcome. I look forward to your long post! There was a TLWF church in Reynoldsburg, Ohio. I remember a pastor from there was at Shiloh for a while and was getting involved in the finances (I believe this was 1979-ish). He wanted to go over all of the tithing records to use it as a mechanism to measure how well the sheep at Shiloh were doing. I blocked it because I thought it was a l
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

NancyB. I am of the opinion that much of the (rampant) emotional and spiritual blackmail issued from the pulpit as a "Word from God." I was going to do a project of going thru tape catalogs to point out the words I found particularly forceful in keeping us enslaved and always working harder, doing more, trying harder, etc. etc. etc. Most were about discipleship, the voluntary slave
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Walkntalkn - Thanks for the info on D. Bruce Larson. I've heard similar although I also heard (second hand but reliable) he has stated that Craig Haworth and Phyllis Haworth and Gary Hargrave were shepherding him through the steps to take over the Center in Jerusalem which makes me grab for a barf bucket. I understand his attempts to take over started with a visit to Shlomo's death be
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

The man in Brazil who G&M designated as their shepherd (as if they would ever be submissive like they demanded us to be...) was actually pretty severely "potatoed" by G&M when he went to live in Brazil. For those of you unfamiliar with the potato principle, I created that label for what anyone who was working near G&M would experience at various times. They would rave ab
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Just to add some factoids to our review of JRS trysting with Marilyn AND others... He had an apartment very near home (North Hollywood) that he went to on Monday and Tuesday nights every week he was in town. I don't know what facilities he had in Iowa or Hawaii for he and his girlfriend(s) to enjoy. Although Shiloh had a very nifty back stairway that went up to an office that had an entry
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

NancyB - For the sake of people like me who like to know specifics, when you copy an earlier quote, could you please add what date it was posted? That would help my ridiculously fact specific memory know when stuff was going on behind the scenes in relationship to what has been said. Thank you! I don't know anything about people taking a vow of poverty that has to do with their right to
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Pondering again. Apparently some people who are trying to keep some of the local churches alive in a slightly modified structure, have started to reach out in a loving way to those who have left the fellowship. But what could there possibly be to return to in the churches that were built upon a foundation of fraud (on every level) and on sexual abuse? Expressing tender love and faith in the
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Reepicheep posted this link to the news conference re: the lawsuits filed yesterday: ------ Date: May 29, 2019 03:21PM Good job to all involved. You are awesome! ---------------- There have been news trucks outside of CLW in North Hills and outside the San Diego church. There should be a lot more on the news coming up. Mr. Zalkin encouraged everyone (during the news confe
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Go to Facebook - Zalkin Law Firm - live news conference re: lawsuits just filed and served on behalf of some of the abuse victims.
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families