| WCG didn't encourage or value
individuality and thought unless it was something members did
for the group as a whole, like singing in the choir, playing a musical
instrument, or performing for the yearly Talent Show. [And many
times, even those things were not appreciated. Read:
My Talent of Music
Was Never Appreciated.] To do otherwise
would have been considered "selfish" or "worldly." I
remember one couple that left our WCG congregation because they wanted
to sing and play their musical instruments outside WCG where they felt
their talents were more respected and where they had a chance to grow.
Everyone in the congregation thought this couple had given themselves over
to worldly activities and signed a pact with the devil--yet it was okay if
they performed in WCG services.
Did you ever wonder why it was
okay to use our talents to do certain things, i. e., make up homemade cards in the WCG and mail them
out to members that were ill? As long as we didn’t make a big deal
about it, nothing was said. The ministers were just glad that we weren’t
mailing out "Christian cards" from the local Christian
bookstore. Most members would have felt the words in those types of
Christian cards were too "syrupy" anyway. What a shame to hide
words about Jesus and His love.
If a woman had a gift in
cooking and baking, their praise mainly came from the large crowds she
invited over to her house on the "Night Much To Be Remembered"
or on Sundays. One minister told one such a woman that she was "the
most hospitable woman he had ever met" and I watched as she worked
that much harder to win his approval.
If a member thought about doing something creative with their inborn
talents, say like writing, that was not encouraged or valued either
(unless the writing was totally focused on the World Tomorrow). I did
know one member who published a book on what he believed the Millennium
would be like and it focused totally on the agricultural part of it. WCG
didn’t even trust a member to write an article for the Good News unless
they were a minister. One lady in a wheelchair used to visit our congregation quite
frequently and was a professional poem writer, even
publishing a few books. If she had become a member, I’m sure that she
would have been pressured into giving up her talents. If members wanted
to be creative, we could do those things at home, but not share them
with anyone. They didn’t want us to get too big of a head and be
"filled with pride." I think most of us would have been
ashamed to show any of our artistic material anyway and felt it wasn't
much to look at. I experienced those feelings when a member accidentally saw some of my art work
up on the wall in my office and wondered why I was drawing what I was;
after all, it wasn't pictures of "the World Tomorrow, HWA, or
Ambassador College," but only of my dog.
I recall one worthwhile man that
was pushed aside a lot by the ministry and by many of the members, as he
wasn't as poised or "Spokesman Club" material as some of the
other men were. His wife wasn't a member, so that was undoubtedly one of the
reasons he was treated as he was. I clearly feel that he had a talent in writing
(he also had a very broad vocabulary); however, when he showed me a
writing that he did, it sadly was only on how broken his life was. All I
mainly remember of it was that it was very well done, but he ended it by
saying he felt "like a horse that was ready for the glue
factory." I felt so sad at those words, but he seemed unable to
accept much encouragement when it came to his talents. [Read
more about this member in "Leaving the WCG is Hard Because..."]
Members were treated like robots and all their wonderful gifts and
talents were quashed. I pray that this man was finally able to break
free of the WCG and that his life has become full of creativity and
opportunities as he discovers who he really is in Christ and how much
God loves him.
By D. W.
Exit & Support Network™
February 6, 2002
Articles For Those Who Were Emotionally and Spiritually Abused
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