My long battle with spiritual authoritarianism
It’s hard to see friends be abused spiritually. But sometimes, our efforts are rewarded
Workers recovering bodies from the Shakahola massacre in Kenya, an extreme case of spiritual authoritarianism. Source: Al Jazeera.
Spiritually authoritarian and abusive churches are all too common. Today, I will tell my personal stories and encourage you to take a stand.
In 1979, as a new Christian, I nearly joined an ecumenical community that had its origins in the Catholic charismatic renewal. In 1981, after hearing many reports that the community was exerting extreme control over the lives of its campus members, I started an independent study project on the group. Within 10 days, its leaders cut off communication with me and threatened to sue me if I published anything.
I was 20 years old, stubborn, and idealistic. I thought that if a Christian group was so worried about me as to threaten litigation, I needed to go public.
In fall 1981, I produced a 100-page book, which you can now find online. It received front-page coverage in both local newspapers. I demonstrated that although the community seemed to embrace Christian theology, it was actually telling people that to be part of the kingdom of God, you needed to join a community like theirs.
Along the way, I discovered that this was only one of many instances of authoritarian “shepherding” groups within the charismatic movement. People joining these groups were required to submit to personal oversight by a leader who frequently controlled nearly all aspects of their lives, including what they studied, whom they dated or married, with whom they socialized, and how they used their money.
Over the next few years, two of the community’s leaders left the group, taking dozens of members with them. One of the former leaders contacted me to apologize. Years later, I learned that the top leader had lost his counseling license due to his sexual abuse of single women in the community.
After I moved to Pittsburgh in 1985, I began hearing similar stories about an independent charismatic congregation that proudly claimed to be a descendant of the Latter Rain movement. Now equipped not just with idealistic boldness but also with background knowledge and experience of authoritarianism, I felt I should investigate. I contacted the pastor, who agreed to have lunch with me. Clearly not excited about having someone study his church, he gave me the typical “touch not God’s anointed” warning but said that if I wanted to visit the church, I could come.
That lasted for five visits, until the pastor interrupted a Sunday evening service, took me outside with a couple intimidatingly large elders, and told me to leave the property and not come back.
I thought the likelihood of a lawsuit was higher this time around, so I didn’t publish anything. Instead, I notified all the Christian leaders I knew around Pittsburgh that I had studied this controversial congregation and would be happy to assist with answering questions or counseling people affected by the church.
Over the next 30 years, I frequently played a supportive role as people harmed by the church—usually ex-members or people with family members inside—were referred to me. I heard many stories of broken families and tried to help victims heal through recognizing how an authoritarian pastor had drawn them into an isolated, deviant world.
In one case, I became acquainted with a former member’s ex-husband, who was still in the church but relatively open-minded and willing to engage in intelligent conversation. I didn’t push him too hard. Usually, when dealing with someone still inside an authoritarian group, I would just gather information and try to plant a few seeds.
About eight years later, this man reached out to me again. He explained that the church’s founding pastor had retired, leaving his son in charge, and that the son had been so openly domineering that the elders finally kicked him out.
We hoped that things would change and that the new leaders would reconnect with the broader body of Christ and come into balance. But that did not happen. Recently, the new leadership adopted a statement of faith that went beyond typical affirmations of Christian orthodoxy and announced that anyone who could not agree completely with the statement should not remain a member.
My friend, who had been part of the church for over 40 years, decided to resign his membership, to the great joy of his children, who had left before him. It has been exciting to see this man discover true freedom in Christ and understand how healthy churches operate.
We can draw many lessons from these and similar examples, but here are a few:
If any church or denomination claims to be the only true church, they are out of line. Avoid them. (Side note: this view may still exist in historic Catholic dogma, but in practice the contemporary Catholic Church respects and recognizes Christians of other affiliations. I am not targeting the Catholic Church here.)
Don’t support any church that lacks proper accountability. To me, proper accountability includes an oversight board for the pastor and staff, plus meaningful connections with other Christians who could intervene if serious problems arise.
We don’t want people to sin, but we can’t create holiness by compulsion. If a church intrudes forcefully in people’s subjective personal decisions, watch out.
If you’re dealing with a situation of this type and think I can help, feel free to reach out to me.