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In Reply to: A few things that will help posted by (repost from Krisi) on April 22, 2002 at 20:15:11:
Bravo! Wonderful post! My sentiments, exactly! The fear of becoming "a systemite" was very real for me, and now that I am one, it seems so silly to have looked at it the way I was. I mean, the family's definition of a systemite is anyone who doesn't kiss Berg's whatever. I have found fulfillment in ministry, raising my kids, using but not abusing McDonalds, and enjoying watching the Mariners play baseball without feelings of guilt and shame that I'm not witnessing with every second of my time. I also recently watched a video that Mike Warren sent me about the original musicians of the Jesus Movement like RAndy Stonehill, Keith Green, 2nd Chapter of Acts, Andrae Crouch, BArry MaGuire, etc., and it really inspired me to see that they are very dedicated, fun loving, Jesus loving people, and they were right in the middle of the spiritual revolution that was happening in the states just like we were. We were taught in the COG that they and their music were just systemites, and churchy imitations, etc., but if you listen to Keith Green's music, you can see that he was anything but a systemite, and was full of the love of God and shared it with everyone he could, in any way he could. His bio is in a book called "No Compromise" written by his wife, Melody Green Sievright, and it is amazing to see the parallels of his journey with the family without the bizarre behaviour and control. Anyway, I really appreciated your post. Folks coming out really need that kind of info. I remember sharing a lot of that with Micah when he came to the states, and he was so thankful just to get a big check back from the IRS at the end of the year. We were so clueless. My wife got a Pell Grant, and they gave her money to live on, besides paying her tuition for college. SHe can do that anytime she wants, and although she had to quit for a while to get a job so we could get approved for a house loan, she can go back anytime. Most of the young people coming out could do well with that kind of info. I'm sure the older ones would like to know about it, too. Marina and Tracy and Miriam all got degrees while raising children by themselves, and I salute them for it. What courage it takes to rebuild your life after so many years in the cult. I loved what you said about introducing them to other groups to show them that the COG wasn't anything "special" or "anointed" per se. They were just another cult. Just another egocentric maniac taking advantage of young people with a desire for change. Once you see that, it's a bitter pill to swallow in a way, but liberating in another. It made me thankful to know that I wasn't "missing anything" or whatever. Just another cult. Sounds like a good line for a song.
Hey, TExas Ray, let's go!
