- Topic
There was a segment on the Today Show exposing the Wms and how they tear families apart. If you missed it you can go to their website and watch it, I believe. It was posted on Facebook as well.
No wonder they have a big PR campaign going at this time to counter this claim. Like Momsix said, they are trying to change some things. Well I see that as exactly what it is, an attempt to establish plausible deniability. They actually let some of their members go home for Christmas this year. My son hasn't been home for Christmas for SEVEN years!
Jellybean, I’m sure that Rebecca is a nice and loving person, but as a member of this cult and under mind control, she has 2 different sides to her. Inside she has a job to do and wants to do everything she can to honor her position, please the leaders and make mother proud. Therefore, she will do whatever she needs to do to accomplish that. Here is what we learned from the episode:
After she was recruited, she didn’t come home for Christmas (which is hurtful to the family).
She didn’t come to her brother’s wedding.
She will not return her parent’s calls.
She ridiculed her parents when they said they drove all the way from Michigan to see her.
She refused to give her mother a hug.
She married a Korean man that was arranged for her to marry. (She said she wasn’t forced – but she didn’t deny the arrangement).
We know that her parents raised her well and she had a good family.
So based on those facts, we know that she had a normal life until she was recruited into the church and her life now does not involve her family.
I’m going to make an assumption here and say that she probably doesn’t have very many relationships outside the church. Do you still see her? Does she call you to go get coffee? Do you go to movies? Do you buy each other gifts for birthdays or holidays? Shopping trips, pedicures? Since you are no longer a member I’m assuming she has turned her back on you. And therein lies the problem.
Members are treated with love and respect and non-members or ex-members are not.
My child was recruited and dropped out of college, moved in with other members, and broke off communication with us. Like Rebecca’s brother, my child missed their sibling’s wedding (and not on a Saturday). Like this family we drove to the church on our child’s birthday and when she saw us she ran inside. We have been called snakes, Satan and told we are nothing to her. So Rebecca’s story is not an uncommon one. Instead of the church being loving and accepting, they file lawsuits against ex-members, have members sign non-disclosure agreements, and create videos to try and discredit people who speak out against them. They promote freedom of religion, but they don’t support freedom of speech when the speech is against them.
You are a former member and have experiences on the inside that I don’t have. But I have the experience of being a mother who has lost a child to this group and I can speak to the devastation to my family when my child walked away under the WMS spell. As a parent you pour your love, time, money and passion into a child for 20 years. You want to see them fulfill their dreams, enjoy college, fall in love, have a wedding surrounded by their friends and family and start a family of their own. But my child was taken from me and filled with hatred for the family that loves them unconditionally.
Does the church love Rebecca unconditionally? If she were to leave her husband and the church, would the mother and her pastor still stay in touch with her because they love her?
Ms Freedom wrote:
I'm going to make an assumption here and say that she probably doesn't have very many relationships outside the church…
… My child was recruited and dropped out of college, moved in with other members, and broke off communication with us. Like Rebecca's brother, my child missed their sibling's wedding (and not on a Saturday). Like this family we drove to the church on our child's birthday and when she saw us she ran inside.
.. But I have the experience of being a mother who has lost a child to this group and I can speak to the devastation to my family when my child walked away under the WMS spell. As a parent you pour your love, time, money and passion into a child for 20 years. You want to see them fulfill their dreams, enjoy college, fall in love, have a wedding surrounded by their friends and family and start a family of their own. But my child was taken from me and filled with hatred for the family that loves them unconditionally.
Wow. Almost an exact replay of our experience. We have some contact, however, and an occasional meeting or shopping trip. Everyone is on edge … some times these encounters have ended badly. Hassan's coaching and advice on how to behave with your cult family member is very valuable but very hard to follow through on because of all the built up emotions ….
The parents come across as narcisistic; they act like they own their daughter. Parents like these are going to keep her in longer. Good for publicity against the WMSCOG though, huh?
family/cult member interaction contrasted with:
David Clark assists this mother / twin sister in meeting a family member involved in a New Mexico based group: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7AcDdfPP-k
I'm of the opinion that when the group has the power, we err on the side of the member and allow them to do what is comfortable for them, so that they feel comfortable with us. Please, bang on my car window….
I posted a link on youtube of the today show, and clearly the members of this cult is missing the point. I showed this to my sister here where i live and you know the response, “Oh, that’s Rebecca. I like her teachings. She must have dyed her hair back, this is a very good video.” I looked at her crazy and my mom and i said, “In what way?” She couldnt give us an answer. Guess playing us ignorant.
@Felicia Im sorry to say, but thats the effects of the brainwashing. I remember watching the video WMS did trying to explain “Problems with the womens veil”.. i remember members being in Awe about the video. I remember feeling confused watching it, because the WMS logic of the video would prove ASH couldnt be God because he lied. It blew me away.
@Mountainmom Exactly. I’ve seen the arrogance of their leadership. My ex-elder was on their, “Cult research” team, which I think now is just a bunch of Overseers who watch exmembers and try to think of new ways to make WMS look normal. But, in all their efforts, they fail miserably. Especially in the area of race and ethnic relations. They beleive they as Koreans are elite, and then at times they treat other races or ethnicities better or worse. I was reading an older forum post, where an older member stated they preached to a “zion” with many members of color, that “Whites were arrogant”. Ive heard from other members that they preached that Blacks werent good prospects and were arrogant as well. WMS, Keep getting in your own way, so that your demise will come quickly.
Yawn… it sure is late…
Hasn't the cog come overseas to rule over the people? Control us, dictate what we are to think, shelter us, divide us from our families, show us how to act, and take all of our time and much of our money. And if we don't agree with them, we are quickly labelled as arrogant? How is that fair?
@mayor That sounds about right. One thing I know from having a Korean Overseer; they do think we don’t know how to act. But there lies the problem with “righteousness”, its often in the eye of the beholder.
What a brilliant and amazing expose on the cult. And like Abigail has mentioned the power of the cult and mind control lies primarily in suggestive means, they show you some irrelevant verse about how cashing out your retirement and aggreing to an arranged marriage will lead to greater "blesssing"- whatever that means. And so memebers do all they can to earn their self-worth through this belief, regardless of how false it is.
At it's core the methods used to control memebers truly do play on their fears and are meant to induce a lot of guilt thats to say wanting to gain more "blessings" and praise from their master the more devoted they are to the "gospel." I honestly don't think that mamaz arranges any of these marriages, she's just the figure that they use to control memebers when its most probably the pastors/ leaders own doing.
And just as a side note John has really gotten fat! I mean wow! I actually met him about 8 years ago and he had such a youthful radiant glow to him. He actually looks kinda stressed and worn out. The cult truly does milk members for all that their worth. And to think he's only 29 but he looks OLD AF!
And he's losing his hair. He'll have to resort to a comb over soon, he has to keep that part going. Fat? must be all that korean food he's being fed.
Azula, don't tell the cog, but I also think that mama z is under the control of the General Pastor, something I saw when I was in Korea.
So, you give all your time to the cog, your hard work, and lots of your money, but in return you get what? "Blessings" and praise from your master? So in other words you get nothing in return?
@ UntouchableJ, no, it's the Koreans who don't know how to act. My overseer was doing a lot of sneaking around behind my back to see how I do things and then he would act out what I would do. My overseer was following me. He could say, "I follow Mayor and Mike"
Being God must be in the eye of the beholder too. Lol.
I don't know if I should feel happy or sad, but all I can is that i'm glad this is finally catching up to the mass media. Right now my love one doesn't even wanna talk to me, she's been ignoring my calls, my text, and any kind of approach i want to make, I few times i have thought of taking that drive to where she lives and seeing her face to face, but i feel that I would get the same response this girl in the video gave to their parents. "I don't want any relationship with you" After watching this video and seeing those parents suffering, for the first time in my life I truly felt weak and helpless. Needless to say, all members of this forum please keep spreading the word. The best cure to this cancer, it's prevention and the more we educate people about it, the best chance they will have of not being trap in this ordeal.
Jesus_will_set_u_free wrote:
After watching this video and seeing those parents suffering,
the story did nothing to address what the parents did that drove their child further in.
instead of working on what the daughter truly wants or needs, mom was just banging on her car window.
As much as I am now against WMSCOG all I can say is this: If D. Rebecca wants to live her life that way – she should be allowed to and shouldn't be criticized for it. If she doesn't want to have a relationship with her mom thats her choice (kind of goes againts the whole Mother's love mantra they preach – but then again it would be fulfilling Bible prophecy 'I will turn daughter against mother…etc'). However on record not seen in this video D. Rebecca thought she was being set up – past experiences with being locked in a hotel room by her family (apparently she was the member that was locked in the hotel room by her family i've heard so much about since I joined years ago), and the cars following her out of the parking lot…you know if she wants to live her life like that she should.
I will say this though – The WMSCOG wants your time, money, and labor…I experienced first had. I remember I had contributed a large sum of money to help keep the church "open" (considering all that I tithe and offer I find it hard to believe I need to contribute more to keep it open); then I'm busy doing construction work and another brother team leader comes up to me with a grin and says "…Soooo, I heard you like getting blessing! We need to purchase this important media device in preparation for Passover"….yeah I am completely wiped out – its always constant. I remember we were giving a fragrance and one of the leaders directed towards me "Thank Father and Mother for blessing brother ____ with a good job!" and everyone in the room looked at me and smiled. Its the pressure is what got to me. Everyone in the church talks about sacrifice and how its such a blessing…Well when you have to question whether to eat 1 meal a day or whether you should spend your lunch break to catch up on sleep because you only get an average of 4-5 hours of sleep a night it really starts wearing you down. Compounded by the fact everyone takes advantage of my car like its a free taxi service. My car is relatively new and in a matter of a few years its so beat up and another member crashed into my car causing almost $1000 in damage…the deductable im paying $500….I simply cannot afford this.
When i was relatively new to the church my dad said I should be careful. He even said "Do you think any of these people in your church are going to help pay for your car even though you use it so much?" Certainly not; ive used it so much yet hardly any member helps. Then the church goes on to say "Don't grumble! Its a sin! Though others do not work we should do our work with the mind of a master!". Im sorry but I've had a bad experience with this church because the members took advantage of my kindness.
I will also conclude by saying D. Rebecca never answered the question about arranged marriage. the reporter asked if the marriage was arranged not did she feel forced. The marriage was arranged – thats how they do it in the WMSCOG. The overseer/church leader will ask the individuals if they are interested in each other and would they consider marriage. Of course an individual member who asks about marrying another member more than likely will be rebuked and the overseer/church leader will think that person is in zion for the wrong reasons. Only the overseer/church leader can give the approval as to who can marry who in the church. Is it forced? No – but you certainly cannot marry anyone you want – its arranged.
@John I remember the Overseer did something similar to a young woman. She had been in the churxh for about a year and a half. She was a nurse and was making pretty good money. The elder said during a fragrance… “Sister just got a nice, new, BIG apartment…why dont you let the brothers and sister driving all the way from house church stay with you. Right?” She was stuck in awe, half way between shock and anger. I noticed also how convienet it was that some of the members who did professional construction as a career, would use work equipment and there was never a refusal from the Overseer. A person can get fired for bringing company equipment off site.
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