Ham

I wonder if the participants got what they paid for. Look what it cost:

Cannot own a home. Never mind the policy that says you can own one, just no mortgage. (I have yet to find anyone, believer or unbeliever, that bought a home without one)

$500+ in registration fees, plane fare, hotel and food

Time that could be MUCH more profitably spent with family or friends

Time and labor spent cleaning leaders' houses, cars, etc. just to be enough on their good side to be able to go.

Not only cash for the event, but fifteen percent of their income donated faithfully for how long?

The list could go on and on.

What did they get? Old, rehashed PFAL teaching, a topical bible study that a second rate hack could produce, and a few assorted sharings.

Must have really been worth it.

I remember a long long time ago in a galaxy far far away.. maybe not back that far. In the early 70's I found the leadership approachable. Exceptions were during classes, they seemed a lot less tolerant of questions then. As time went on, they were less approachable or tolerant of questions anytime.

More credibility than it deserves, in my opinion.

I think a lot of the "details" given are used to try to give the document a little more credibility.

I don't know.. may be a little too mild. But I have always been partial to Zombies. Once I too was one of those poor devils, slowly lumbering in to the teaching center to the sound of the mysterious music..

"so that ALL (is it all without exception, or all with distincton), left just as glassy-eyed as when they arrived, many hours previously." Ha ha ha ha.. DMiller, if I die laughing it is your fault!

One of the other zombies slowly straightens himself up. He mumbles back, "sheesh. why did you have to do that? Now they will probably not give any of us brains."

But one of them is shuffling slowly, dragging one foot sideways. He is out of step with the rest.. looking for something. He starts to mumble, "my name-tag, I forgot my naaaame-tag..." Looks like there is going to be some trouble.

Hopefully not coming to a theater near you.

"Play it and they will come" heh heh heh. "The morning of the living dead- thousands of glassy-eyed religious zombies stirred to life by a ghostly, mysterious tune, and they want your brains!"

You'd think he'd come up with something new and original. Even the innies must be tired of hearing "from peas to garden vegetables we always inform our vegetables of what they need to know.. etc.."

Corpse objective #5: "We will practice believing so as to use you to bring material abundance to us and the ministry"

Ex- I hear that is how it is also. That would explain the declining numbers, especially of new folk. I think the old timers that are in allow it because the changes were gradual. A hundred or two small compromises on "insignificant matters" and they really have you eating out of their trough.

But to be fair, they did get a few things right. One of the main things that I find distasteful, is that instead of doing something godly with it, may times, they used it to fortify an "us vs. them" mentality. In my opinion, I think that is why many stayed for as long as they did. Only after a long time did I decide what they had to offer was just not worth the real price.

What they get out of it must be really, really worth it. Just what do they get? "Four Crucified and scriptural buildup" (about the hundreth time) "Eve was a lesbian" (ha!) and a few assorted topics..

Seems to me that an ordinary person would be a little suspiscious if a church requested to freely rifle through their financial affairs to be allowed to participate in some of their functions..

Hey, they oughta hire some of you guys. You can definitely do a better job than ole Rico. He'd try harder, but the three servings of shinola he gets a day must be finally taking its toll.

New horror flick.. "the Loy that ate New Knoxville"

J.M., I found that the love and support that was "freely" offered eventually exacted a price. When I took their intermediate class, I started hearing things like "eventually we should come to the realization that we owe our very lives to the ministry that taught us The Word", and other such nonsense. By that time, my B S meter was dulled. At the time, I had a couple of second thoughts, but dismissed them because of the love I experienced in the local fellowship. I think they use love, group approval and the word as a drug. Looking back, I should have stood up and yelled BS! But my senses were already dulled. It was easy to assign my second thoughts as thinking evil, and ignore them. I hope you remember, you do not owe them a **** thing.

"Lets see. You claim that your bible "ministry" is 60+ years old. How come it took you that long to figure out that adultery and beastiality are wrong?"

Eagle.. heh heh. You get my vote, but I think souls will be a-shiverin in the deepest part of he** before the current crowd would let you implement even a quarter of your reforms!

"Why did your current pres allow the former pres to assault women? After all, she admitted that she had knowledge." No coughing, no spitting or ahems.. I think they would run screaming in the night.

"How many women did your former president have sex with?" "Ahemmm, humm, cough cough spit"

"well, we'll get back to you."

Me. "What do you have to say about greasespot?" Them.. "well, ahem , ahem.."

"What did you do to .... off so many people?" "ahem, cough cough"

Trefor, I did not EVER hear anyone call him Loy. It may have been one of the deep dark secrets, known only to the inner circle!