Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 15, No. 2, 1998, page 24
neither were many of the other young people who were involved at that same time.
Fundamentally, those associated with our coffeehouse were recruited into this conspiracy
theory mindset. Our ages, for the most part, were in the upper teens and early twenties,
and we just did not have the sophistication to deal with what we were being subjected to.
But since the group emphasized the end times, its members emphasized certain priorities,
including separating from family and friends because they were considered to be of ―the
world.‖
There also was a certain mindset that was developed in the writings of Watchman Nee in his
book called The Spiritual Man Series, which discussed the body, soul, and spirit. This was a
way of breaking down the levels of relationship --there were spiritual relationships, there
were soul-issue relationships, and there were physical relationships. And in the context of
Eros there was sexuality. So by the breakdown we were given, I eventually perceived that
it was spiritually harmful for me to be open with my family because of the group‘s misuse of
passages such as ―don‘t cast your pearls before swine.‖ ―Dead man‘s bones and whited
sepulchers‖ was the attitude that was expressed toward seminary professors, for example.
As is the case with other cults, we became very judgmental, taking Bible verses out of
context and projecting motives onto other people without actually knowing them. Later,
when I went to school, I learned how Bible verses had been grossly misinterpreted and that
seminary professors included some of the godliest people that I had ever met.
Influence Processes
Being isolated from the outside and from our past was a characteristic of our group
members. It wasn‘t just that I was changing as an individual it was a group dynamic that
was typical of other members as well. Those who consider this matter seriously should
understand the nature of that kind of personality change --the cloning factor. Although
shared counter-cultural feelings might have initially attracted many of us to the group, the
anti-family sentiment we developed resulted from influence processes that occurred after
we joined.
Now I would like to touch on how some Biblical passages relate to the selectivity I perceived
in my experience in The Walk. There was a selective focus on repetitive themes that had a
centering effect on my thinking and cut me off from previous church and life options. For
example, there was a constant preoccupation with restoration of the divine pyramidal order.
This cut us off from any other church order whatsoever, and our past was denigrated. We
would constantly sing, ―we shall war against the lie of Babylon.‖ Here were some of the
selective texts we used repeatedly, Ephesians 4:11 related to the divine order, Hebrews
13:17, ―Obey them that have rule over you,‖ applying to group leaders. With regard to the
family, there was Matthew 10:37, ―He that loveth Father or Mother more than me is not
worthy of me,‖ and Matthew 12:50, ―For whosoever shall do the will of my father which is in
heaven, the same is my brother and sister and mother.‖ This of course meant that
members of the group became our true family.
The Walk taught me a way of looking at the Bible that supported Brother Stevens‘s claim to
be an apostle, which supported the authority structure of the group. If someone from the
group said, ―Do you find any New Testament prophets in the church today?‖ I would
respond, ―Well, I can‘t really think of any.‖ The Lutheran Church didn‘t talk about that, and
neither did the Methodists. And the people around the corner or down the street couldn‘t
tell me. But Walk leaders could say, ―Well, look, who Agabus was. What do you know
about Agabus?‖ I didn‘t know about Agabus, who was a New Testament prophet. And
while The Walk still didn‘t clarify the apostle qualification issue, I was nevertheless shown
passage after passage after passage in the New Testament in a selective context that gave
me the impression that the Restoration of Apostles was part of the restoring of the church.
neither were many of the other young people who were involved at that same time.
Fundamentally, those associated with our coffeehouse were recruited into this conspiracy
theory mindset. Our ages, for the most part, were in the upper teens and early twenties,
and we just did not have the sophistication to deal with what we were being subjected to.
But since the group emphasized the end times, its members emphasized certain priorities,
including separating from family and friends because they were considered to be of ―the
world.‖
There also was a certain mindset that was developed in the writings of Watchman Nee in his
book called The Spiritual Man Series, which discussed the body, soul, and spirit. This was a
way of breaking down the levels of relationship --there were spiritual relationships, there
were soul-issue relationships, and there were physical relationships. And in the context of
Eros there was sexuality. So by the breakdown we were given, I eventually perceived that
it was spiritually harmful for me to be open with my family because of the group‘s misuse of
passages such as ―don‘t cast your pearls before swine.‖ ―Dead man‘s bones and whited
sepulchers‖ was the attitude that was expressed toward seminary professors, for example.
As is the case with other cults, we became very judgmental, taking Bible verses out of
context and projecting motives onto other people without actually knowing them. Later,
when I went to school, I learned how Bible verses had been grossly misinterpreted and that
seminary professors included some of the godliest people that I had ever met.
Influence Processes
Being isolated from the outside and from our past was a characteristic of our group
members. It wasn‘t just that I was changing as an individual it was a group dynamic that
was typical of other members as well. Those who consider this matter seriously should
understand the nature of that kind of personality change --the cloning factor. Although
shared counter-cultural feelings might have initially attracted many of us to the group, the
anti-family sentiment we developed resulted from influence processes that occurred after
we joined.
Now I would like to touch on how some Biblical passages relate to the selectivity I perceived
in my experience in The Walk. There was a selective focus on repetitive themes that had a
centering effect on my thinking and cut me off from previous church and life options. For
example, there was a constant preoccupation with restoration of the divine pyramidal order.
This cut us off from any other church order whatsoever, and our past was denigrated. We
would constantly sing, ―we shall war against the lie of Babylon.‖ Here were some of the
selective texts we used repeatedly, Ephesians 4:11 related to the divine order, Hebrews
13:17, ―Obey them that have rule over you,‖ applying to group leaders. With regard to the
family, there was Matthew 10:37, ―He that loveth Father or Mother more than me is not
worthy of me,‖ and Matthew 12:50, ―For whosoever shall do the will of my father which is in
heaven, the same is my brother and sister and mother.‖ This of course meant that
members of the group became our true family.
The Walk taught me a way of looking at the Bible that supported Brother Stevens‘s claim to
be an apostle, which supported the authority structure of the group. If someone from the
group said, ―Do you find any New Testament prophets in the church today?‖ I would
respond, ―Well, I can‘t really think of any.‖ The Lutheran Church didn‘t talk about that, and
neither did the Methodists. And the people around the corner or down the street couldn‘t
tell me. But Walk leaders could say, ―Well, look, who Agabus was. What do you know
about Agabus?‖ I didn‘t know about Agabus, who was a New Testament prophet. And
while The Walk still didn‘t clarify the apostle qualification issue, I was nevertheless shown
passage after passage after passage in the New Testament in a selective context that gave
me the impression that the Restoration of Apostles was part of the restoring of the church.
