Tag: Scientology

A culture of fear built on a thousand little lies

November 5, 2009

by dogemperor My story of how I walked away from Joel’s Army–and joined the survivor community–started, quite ironically enough, with (of all things) Christian heavy metal…because, interestingly enough, it was my first major experience in how coercive groups operate by telling their members a thousand little lies to create a culture of fear. To make a long story short, when I was eleven both the Sunday school I attended (at an Assemblies of God megachurch which I would eventually discover some 24 years later was one of the fifteen most influential churches in the United Full post …

Christian Dominionism ~ Part 3: Bill Gothard and the Ties that Bind Extremist Politics to Christian Patriarchy

November 4, 2009

by km Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 You will never meet a homeschooler in North America who hasn’t heard of Bill Gothard.  Gothard has become a rich man from peddling his homeschooling program—Advanced Training Institute of America (ATIA)—and his self help seminars—the Institute in Basic Life Principles, the Advanced Seminar, the Anger Resolution Seminar, the Children’s Institute, and the Total Health Seminar.  There is something very surreal about attending any Gothard event for the first time.  In return for the $60 price of admission, you get to watch videos Full post …