"It was story after story of emotional and physical abuse—how children suffered, and how parents stood by and let it happen."
Broken Faith: Inside the Word of Faith Fellowship, One of America's Most Dangerous Cults is a well-written and well-researched account of the dangerous Word of Faith Fellowship cult.
At first I wasn't sure I would like this because it's written in the form of personal stories of some of the members and ex-members. Normally I prefer to read facts instead of human interest stories but for this book, it worked. I think the book was better because it was written this way.
We get to know several people and their families who joined this insidious cult, run by the charismatic -and evil- Jane Whaley. Who, once joining, often found themselves stuck inside its clutches.
I was not surprised by anything I read, there being many similarities to the fundamentalist Baptist church I grew up in, which has many cult-like traits itself (though WOFF is inherently worse). Still, it was disturbing to read how people willingly gave over control of not just their lives but also the lives of their children.
I am always fascinated by the sort of person who voluntarily bends to someone else's will, someone else's beliefs. The sort of person who can be so easily manipulated and controlled. And yet, as the author points out, no one sets out to join a cult. Rather, they are taken in by the warmth and friendliness that is at first bestowed upon them, by the feelings of acceptance and their desire to be part of a family of like-minded people. And, as noted by Mr. Weiss, Jane Whaley, offers "them hope in a world full of confusion and heartbreak".
Still. Still I cannot truly understand why this matters so much to anyone. How they can give up their freedom just to feel they belong.
For decades, Children and Youth services has investigated complaints of abuse of children within the church and yet every time, they are allowed to do nothing. Members of this cult are entangled in the conservative politics of their county in North Carolina, and even the sheriff bows to them.
If Children and Youth services receive a complaint involving the church, they have to run it by the county DSS office before doing a thing, "the only child welfare agency in the United States bound to operate under those conditions."
It's not just abuse of children but also of adults. People of every age are subjected to "blasting" a form of punishment where other members throw the victim to the floor, begin beating them "in the name of the Lord", all the while screaming so loud that eardrums are sometimes punctured, to drive out demons. People can be subjected to this form of punishment for no other reason than Whaley claims God told her the person has sin in their heart.
Whaley and other church officials control all aspects of life, from where one works, to whom they marry, even to when they can have sex with their spouse!
Anytime the church is accused of abuse, they do what many evangelicals do in this country -- scream that they are being persecuted for their religious beliefs, that their 1st Amendment freedom of religion rights are being violated. And as is often the case with other churches, they get away with it. Hardly anyone wants to fight religion in the USA, even when children are being abused.
Shame. Shame on us.
As of the writing of this book in 2019, Jane Whaley has not been charged with a single crime, despite years of accusations with a multitude of complaints and proof to back them up.
The Word of Faith Fellowship is not just a danger to those within its fold. They hobnob with Republican politicians in their state in order to be granted special status and influence laws. Some members are also in cahoots with Donald Trump, getting front row seats at all his rallies they attended. One member, Leigh Valentine, claims she's part of a little-known presidential group that promotes religious outreach. She was a featured speaker at a Washington event for Constitutional Millennials, a group working to "restore our country back to its biblical foundations".
This is chilling, despite the fact that this country was not built on any biblical or christian traditions.
Word of Faith Fellowship continues to grow, having thousands of members all over the world. They do not appear to be going away anytime soon. "Even with the arrests, trials, and dirty laundry, the sect seems to thrive."
I recommend Broken Faith to anyone interested in cults and cult-like behavior. To those who, like me, strive to understand the mentality not just of the members but of the leader as well. Why anyone would want to have so much control over other people is beyond me.