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In Reply to: Re: forgiveness, accountability and responsibility posted by goth88 on December 08, 2002 at 22:15:49:
Your observations are helpful to me. In the analogy, and I by no means feel it is an airtight one, but rather there are some similar dynamics at play. It spoke to me, precisely how I cannot define. But loosely speaking, I see FGAs as Germans and in many cases Nazis, depending on what they did in the group. And yes, I do see SGAs largely as Jews.
I must admit, I have it seared into my psyche that there is a huge difference between the SGA experience and that of FGAs. Yes, many FGas were victims to varying degrees, but all of us, every one of us made a conscious choice to join. And while many of were trapped, all of the SGAs were. The whole system that we built, financed and enforced, conspired to oppress and abuse them horribly for many years.
But back to the excerpt. The point I feel is important is that we can't just walk away from our involvement. We have to at least take responsibility for being part of it. Maybe I'm preaching to the converted here, I sense I am.
As for current adult Family members, I still feel that they are becoming increasingly accountable for their continued involvement in the group. So much has been published by the group.
Apart from the many pledges of unquestioning loyalty and fealty they have had to make, they have read many rebuttals to allegations of child abuse and other atrocities over the last few years. Look at all the rebuttals to the Penn material -- hundreds of pages that they all had to read, and which skirted the basic issues.
Then we have the stuff C pubbed last year, on the Movingon board -- main page. Maria speaks, I think it is. SGAs in the group asked pointed questions to Zerby, and she publicly refused to answer. Then a guy Daniel wrote another thing that provoked the letter "Professionals", again obviously covering things up.
Then Vandari, and then a video rant against her own son, who told the truth. And then a reading month of reading same old same old.
I deeply feel that Family members, through repeated exposure to all these issues in their own publications, have decided to say, "Well I know it happened and I don't care." or "I don't want to know anything, I'll block my ears and eyes." Events have conspired to make all the horrendous past impossible to ignore for the average Family member. Ignorance of what went on is no longer a defence.
So at what point do they become accountable? Never?
Well, sorry for the rant again, as I know much of it is rehash. I feel sorry for many of the adults who are in the group and have been so horribly beaten down. But I feel even more sorry for the children growing up in the group that are having their minds and spirits manipulated big time, and who will doubtless enter the real world woefully unprepared. This is a group that tells people it is against God's will to send your kid to school. Or work for money, or compromise with the churches.
Well, I better shut up. But I feel at the very least ex-members should consider doing is work to out Family members, to show them that many people feel it is intolerable for them to pretend to be pristine Christians when they are deliberately misleading and lieing to the public, and raising funds in the process. If they are going to be in the Family, then be so openly and have a degree of transparency and accountability.
That's all I ask. I'm not against religious freedom. Far from it. But if you are going to proselytise and raise money in the name of your religious group, then the public has a right to know who that group is, the nature of its beliefs, practices, organisation and history, so they can make informed decisions. If Family members did this, it would solve a lot of problems.
