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There are several problems with the Churches of God. Most of the problems relate to the personalities of the leadership. Many of them are either mentally ill or have severe personality problems which result in the particular Church of God being a cult.

The traits of cults can pretty much be found in "The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders IV TSR" by the American Psychiatric Association. Of particular interest are the personality disorders, the chief of which is narcissism, but should also include such gems as personality disorders of the types:

paranoid,

schizoid,

schizotypal,

antisocial,

borderline,

histrionic,

avoidant,

dependent and

obsessive-compulsive.

The definition is that a cult is an organization which deliberately abuses. When we identify a group of people which uses its power to abuse others we have found a cult, whether it is Islam, Enron, country, a Corporation or a Christian religion.

As the movie, "The Corporation" points out, corporations as the legal fiction of a person, are psychopaths: Organizations with no empathy and no conscience. Mostly, the Churches of God are The Church Corporate representing the psychopathic features of having no empathy and no conscience. The social problems within the Churches of God seem to be mostly aggravated by condescension, arrogance and trivialization in a highly politicized hierarchical construct with a clear delineation between the 'haves' and the 'have nots'. There is no differentiation when ethics are involved: What is right is what the organization says it is *and* those with the power to do so violate standards as they please with absolutely no accountability. Underage teenagers are groped, the parents who object are disfellowshipped and everyone protects both the groper and the leadership protecting the groper by refusing to involve the proper authorities, for example. Peoples' consciences are so warped that eventually, in this 'end justifies the means' environment, they completely lose all sense of morals, ethics and the knowledge to discern between right and wrong. They have no idea how to solve the problem, when the solution is simply to obey the law.

The following is the Personality Diagnostic Checklist for a psychopath:

Callous unconcern for the feelings of others

Incapacity to maintain enduring relationships

Reckless disregard for the safety of others

Deceitfulness: Repeated lying and conning others for profit

Incapacity to experience guilt

Failure to conform to social norms with respect to lawful behaviors

Many of you may be able to relate these to the Churches of God.

Two pages which may be of interest involve Narcissism and are not associated with the Missing Dimension All2True Web site.

1. 20 Traits of Malignant Narcissistic Personality Disorder;

2. Projection - A Glimpse into Hell.

These are on groups.msn.com and may not be accessible to some web users.

Avoiding Mr. Wrong Those who want to understand the personalities of the leadership of the Churches of God are highly encouraged to procure the book:

Avoiding Mr. Wrong [and what to do if you didn't]; Ten Men Who Will Ruin Your Life, by Stephen Arterburn and Dr. Meg J. Rinck. Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, Inc, 2000.

Under the chapter titled "The Detached Man":

"Some of these men appear to be missionaries for a great cause. They seem so dedicated; so intent on saving the world; so focused on finding a cure for cancer; so committed to landing that rocket on some distant planet; all for the good of the human race, of course. It is hard to argue with them about the lack of intimacy, the lack of time for the relationship. After all, their work is 'important' (implication: You are not). This is especially difficult for the Christian woman who is married to a detached workaholic who is also a professing Christian, since he will often use God, the Bible, his 'calling,' a vision from God, etc., to justify his time away, his exhaustion, and his lack of intimacy. He may be a genuinely pleasant person in many ways; he is just so obsessed with his call that he is oblivious to the cost you and the family are paying. He holds no ill will toward you or the children. Rather, he is just too absorbed and enthralled to notice you. As mentioned earlier, workaholic detachment is a form of idolatry...".

This is just the first of those you should learn in "Avoiding Minister Wrong"; there is also:

	The control Freak,
	Mr. Wonderful,
	The Cowardly Lion,
	The Angry Man,
	The Mama's Boy,
	The Deceiver,
	The Addict,
	The Eternal Kid, and
	The Ungodly Man.

Any organization or leader may have ALL of these characteristics, and if you want to have joy in your life, you avoid them.

What is the agenda? If the agenda is to provide a leader or leaders with power to control and manipulate members or those even outside the organization, then it is a cult. A person joins an organization gives up personal power to become part of the group. What is the bottom line? What do you gain from being a member of the group?

If you find yourself trivialized constantly, you are in a cult. Leave. If you find you never mattered and you never will, the cost is too high no matter what you are getting out of the relationship. Leave. If you are being lied to, deceived and having things vital to you hidden, leave. If you find rampant hypocrisy, leave. If your very being is being sapped and your life is being drained from you for the 'benefit' of the group or the leader, leave. At the very first failed prophecy, leave: Sincere or not, failed prophecy is a sign of distorted perception--the root of mental illness--it never gets better and it is always trouble.

Also visit http://www.cultabuse.com

Ambassador Watch: www.ambassadorwatch.co.nz

Last Updated: Thursday, June 16, 2005