In a few weeks a blogger is releasing a book titled Schizophrenic Christianity. Already the predictable is occurring in online independent fundamentalist baptist circles; ‘verdict by degree, not verdict from conclusion.’
Jerri Massi spend 17 years in US independent fundamentalist baptist circles and left in the early 1990’s. She began to track misconduct and sexual abuse, taking her concerns online at Blog on the Lilypad.
Away from the noise and immediacy of the internet she has laid out what IFB believes, thinks, reacts to and why.
“Intervening is not part of the morality of IFB. Their goal is to separate, to leave, to exit the scene. IFB pastors will get behind the pulpit and call down fire on pedophiles in the Roman Catholic priesthood, about the danger of the homosexual nightclub down the street, about the scandal of child porn instantly available through the internet. They will blame the Pope, the President, the prominent Democrats, the ACLU, etc. But when the exact same sins appear in IFB churches and a fallen, perverted pastor skates merrily away, on probation, or gets off scot-free because a traumatized child could not testify about no IFB pastor makes a move to protect Christendom. Nobody says saything…” page 37
She takes her reader briskly through basic foundations: apocalyptic, separated, highly authoritarian, and the inevitable trend toward oversimplification.
There is a quick history lesson ending at the four branches of US Baptist fundamentalism: Bob Jones University, Jerry Falwell, Jack Hyles Legacy Fundamentalism, The Minnesota/extreme North stratum. (Jeri is a Bob Jone U grad) Readers are encouraged to look skeptically past the four main stratas of US independent baptist fundamentalism, given the constant conflict within the groups that most of us see played out in media.
She explains how IFB churches and their affinity groups allow such egregious behavior by leadership, and lays out why churches are so susceptible to abuses.
The shared values and shared trusts (particularly in religious groups) tend to leave the group vulnerable to the desires of deviants. What is known is that many people who enter groups to separate themselves from their culture or ‘worldliness’ do not know or trust the research of the academic disciplines that study these behaviors and so on more than an emotional level, people remain trapped.
As she points out more than once a key problem with IFB is simplistic thinking, a bond that keeps various groups cohesive and helps prevent cognitive dissonance but does little for the community of people trapped in the spiraling cycles of disclosure/denial and abuse/shunning.
Jeri takes us through the abuses of IFB leadership, the skills used to grab and hold unto power that are common to any dysfunctional (and functional) groups using such examples as what churches need, and what years of sociopathic behavior in leadership has given IFB: the perfect pastor, too good to be true, first impressions, bonding with common ground, the need to secure control.
She explains the bargaining and transaction theology inherent in the fundamentalist understanding of repentance and how minimisation is encouraged.
The reader catches glimpses of the meanings of some of the inside sub-language of IFB. In this group world words are infused with religious meaning any of us on the outside would find immediately abusive. While we certainly see abusive language in other religious groups, IFB is notorious for it’s language of control and diminishment.
“Independent Baptist Fundamentalism has created its own set of extra-biblical descriptors and slogans for dealing with their walking wounded, and not one of their slogans involves kindly language designed to listen and reach reconciliation. In spite of good churches that still exist within it, it’s a cut and dry religion. And once you are cut off, you may as well just dry up.” page 83
17 years inside helped Massi be extremely sensitive to the fears of those who attend these churches. She breaks down how IFB leadership exploits members fears, which will make this a useful book for anyone attending an IFB church or institution.
She explains how IFB institutions use rule based behaviors and expectations to numb the conscience of individuals, and how fear/shame has been effective tools in the hands of IFB leadership, as in any sect or cult.
Jeri returns to her own story in chapter nine.
In 2001 she started posting her documentations of abuse on an IFB forum (Fighting Fundamentalist forums) believing church goers would see the same needs for justice, accountability and change as she did.
She willingly acknowledges how naive her belief was.
As an online outsider who has not been desensitized to the verbal garbage rampant in IFB, reading attacks on Jerri Massi (and others who have spoken up) has been as shocking as the cases of local physical and sexual abuse she has carefully tracked.
The book gives a glimpse into the closed and frankly sick religious system which is deliberately primed to retaliate, depersonalize and eliminate.
“I would like to write that I forgave my mockers and prayed for wisdom. But the truth is, I mocked them right back, threw the hard facts at them, and told them that they were stupid. But I was still new enough at all of this to be genuinely shocked and upset at the barrage of accusations that came my way. People called me ugly, a lesbian, an alcoholic, a drug abuser, an idiot. I was told that web pages ridiculing me and accusing me of gross sins were put up, and links to these alleged web pages were sent to me, though I never followed them up.
Instead, I fought right back with the facts. I was inappropriately angry, but I did have the facts on my side. Some of the readers protested on the forum about the harsh treatment I had received simply for stating the truth as I saw it. I well remember Evangelist Tim Lee, responding to another person’s comment along this line, saying that I deserved such treatment if I was going to run with the big boys. What kind of an evaluation is that, coming from an Evangelist? Is Tim Lee a sociopath? No, of course not. But the Fundamentalist morality of getting the obstacle out of the way by any means was displayed in his words.
In 2003, as I continued to engage Fundamentalist pastors on the internet in open (and often scornful) debate, Pastor Marty Braemer of Ford’s Bush, New York, eventually recruited others to create a screen character called “Over It” who called me a lesbian and many other unkind words with the same meaning. This screen character eventually suggested, based on somebody else’s accusation that I was a witch, that a witch must not be allowed to live. When that happened, I went to the police.”
Jeri has been posting at the Fighting Fundamentalist Forums as Bassenco.
The verbal abuse on the forum escalating over this book releases gives outsiders a sense of how people (not ideas) are viciously treated.
While this book is useful to those of us who want to understand why people are so willing to join a rules based authoritarian group I think it’s real worth will be to members of IFB churches who want to understand how and why abusers are able to hide openly.
In rightfully pointing out that abuse and sexual molestation in IFB churches is really about control, Jeri Massi may be able to reach congregants who simply cannot trust those of us who have not joined their ranks. She keeps an empathic understanding of the extreme trust pounded into congregants, and a realistic and sober assessment of how long it takes IFB victims to theologically, emotionally and socially deconstruct their time in the church.
The book ends in somewhat hopefully, without minimizing or excessive spiritualizing. Jeri Massi will continue to document abuse. In doing so she has begun to reach out to others who document abuse and assist victims in their denominations.
She has started a conference for IFB victims, (Conference of the Lambs) and pulling in resources independent fundamentalist baptists are not aware exist for them.
My only beef is in the title (schizophrenic seen as delusional) being tied in with the sociopathic leadership model. Schizophrenics are not sociopaths, a distinction that will be lost on some of her less informed readers.
There is an occasional chuckle, the illustration of the 15 minute demon or skin cancer analogies are well placed. She remembers her early years fondly, before taking her dead aim at unaccountable leadership.
Finally Massi offers up sound leadership and structural changes that need to take place and makes a good case for the interdependence of the the universal church (not a concept accepted in IFB churches).
Like many walkaways from other sects or from cults she is very clear that exposing gross misconduct in IFB must continue.
Massi is also very clear victims of IFB abuse be given safety along with the educational, theological and social tools to heal. She keeps them front and centre. She is clear they need to hear they are not alone. Many have been left alone too long and most will never see justice.
I find it interesting Schizophrenic Christianity is coming out in a few weeks after the raid on the FLDS ranch in Texas. That event will still be fresh in the minds of congregants of IFB churches and potential readers of this book. If IFB congregants take time to read Schizophrenic Christianity they may begin to glimpse their destructive embrace of some of the authoritianism prevalent in their personal church circles.
IFB is not a healthy belief system and not one that will self-correct.
IFB readers may begin to grasp ‘outsiders’ are not different than their own group.
IFB leadership has used the same control techniques of the FLDS, even down to limiting people’s coming and going. No one can walk away from this book without some understanding of how sick IFB has become.
As I was writing this a well known Canadian independent Baptist was on TV being interviewed about some legislation (he comes from our Falwell branch of fundamentalism - read the book:^) I have a much clearer understanding of how lies can be spouted with a straight face having just read this manuscript.
Schizophrenic Christianity: How Christian Fundamentalism Attracts and Protects Sociopaths, Abusive Pastors and Child Molestors Jeri Massi Juniper Rising Books
ISBN: 978-0-9814718-0-8
Release date: April 28, 2008
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I attended an IFB church. While there abuse from the deacon came to light. He is currently in prison. He had no where to hide, the pastor did NOT protect him.
It is a big broadbrush that Miss Massi uses.
Hi Dawn, thank you for pointing out my lack of clarity.
The case you are familiar with with may well be in Schizophrenic Christianity or at Blog on the Lilypad.
The big broadbrush is mine, I’m familar with the Criminal Code of Canada, less with US state and federal law.
Holding an author accountable for oversight in an international review would be unfortunate.
Massi has documented cases that have been through US courts.
When that deacon gets out of jail, he can go join any IFB church he likes, and nobody will stop him. There will probably be no follow-up from the church from which he came, to warn any other churches in the area when he is released. The church he wants to join will not ask for a letter of recommendation from his previous church (and IFB churches used to do that, but many no longer do). And there is no central documentation of public record in the IFB to maintain a list of church officers who have grossly sin and abused their office.
Cooperating with a police investigation is something a church HAS to do. Assuring that a man who violates his office is biblically rebuked, removed from office (with public acknowledgment), and discipled in order to be properly restored is grossly ignored in the IFB.
Once again Miss Massi has failed to check her facts out. She has no idea what the name of the church is and she is already getting her broadbrush out. This church sends out letters when its members go to another church. The clerk is very prompt with that.
When I switched churches the clerk at my new IFB church wanted to get a letter of transfer from my former church. This man had to go before the church and go under church discipline.
So you can not lump all IFB church’s together.
OK, just tell me who the deacon is, if your story is true. I mean, the man is in prison, a criminal, so who is he? What church are you talking about? No, I frankly do not believe you. And I will add that I name the churches and the pastors and the pedophiles in my book, but you attack me here without naming one person as proof. So go ahead, prove I am using a broad brush. Tell me what wonderful IFB church this is that helped put a criminal deacon in jail and will follow up to make sure future churches are warned about him.
But then you would have to explain how they can track him when so many other IFB churches will take him as a member, no questions asked. And you’d also have to explain how he would fail to lie his way out of having to own up about his past when there is no database of offenders or publicizing of offender names in the IFB, in spite of the fact that Paul says to keep a record of those who walk unworthy of the calling of Christ.
Go ahead, I’d like to read your response.
Jeri Massi is 100% correct. As a Christian radio broadcaster in a large Midwest city, I am personally familiar with specific cases of IFB pastors involved in sexual deviancy and immorality and in these specific cases, the pastors got off free and one of them is back in ministry again. He destroyed families across the country in the churches he pastored with his serial seduction of young women and had a stash of porn in his office three feet high. When he finally left, the pervert pastor loyalists caused a split among the remaining members because they still wanted to offer his “valuable teaching tapes” in their church video library. Two deacons actually came to blows in the parking lot over the matter. It’s a complete farce/cult, all in the name of “Bab-tist” churchianity. The other pastor was caught in a lewd act in my public library where my young children spent so much time. He was publicly masturbating while watching an attractive woman across the room and got caught by two library employees. Guess what? He found out one of the women witnesses was Roman Catholic and told his church that he was the victim of a Satanic plot to destroy his ministry. They all believed him. It really made him something of a hero to be part targeted by Satan himself. He’s been back in the pulpit several years now endangering his members and bringing further shame on Christ. These people didn’t care about the truth, they wanted their idol in the pulpit and they got him, public masturbation and all. It makes me want to vomit. Jeri has done the church a great service and I hope she’ll be doing interviews when the book comes out.
It is unfortunate, but now-a-days it is not uncommon to hear about abuses in churches regardless of denomination. That does not change the fact that such abuses are wrong and a shame to the gospel of Christ.
Yet, somehow it seems wrong to say that all IFB churches are the same and have the same problems. The only truly common denominator (denomination-wise) among Independent Fundamental Baptist churches is that they are INDEPENDENT, meaning that each is unique. I have heard it expressed that Baptist churches are like Heinz ketchup — there are 57 varieties or more. However, I would like to submit to you that there is one other common denominator — all churches are made up of sinners saved by God’s grace. And as sinners, people will always fail us. Is that an excuse for gross misconduct? No, as the Apostle Paul puts it, “God forbid.”
Perhaps my opinions seem naive, or it appears that I want to see everything through rose-coloured glasses. This is not the case. I grew up in and continue to attend IFB churches, and every single one of them has some sort of blot on its past. However, this is hardly a reason to write off these churches. To paraphrase the Bible, “A rigtheous man falls down seven times, but he still gets up again and moves foreward.”
The church that I attended until I left for Bible college went through a great shock while I was a teenager. The director of the children’s ministry was discovered molesting several of the children. The pastor immediately called the police and turned in the molester. It was a very difficult time for our church as you can imagine, but most especially for those of us that were teenagers. You see we teenagers took turns helping in children’s church; we saw how the director interacted with the children. There were some times that he did things that made us uncomfortable, but even looking back on it now — what we saw him do could not be construed as wrong. It was more intuition than cold hard facts. That is probably why those of us that helped out felt so responsible after everything came to light. “We should have guessed… we should have payed closer attention… we should have talked to the children more… should have…should have…should have.” — this was what our conversations were like for nearly a year.
However, our pastor did not just sit on his hands and go “woe is me!” He took decisive action to make sure that nothing like that ever happened again. He had large windows cut in the Sunday School room doors. There are now always two adults in every Sunday School class, and there are now two extra adults working in the children’s church. He also set up protocol’s to make sure that no adult was ever alone with any child — whether it be to pick them up or drop them off for church, in a class, or any possible situation. Also, all workers must undergo a criminal record check.
Yes, this hurt the church terribly, but we recovered. And we took steps to prevent such things from happening again. If you wish to confirm this story, the children’s director was Curtis Spitzburgeon. It happened at Berean Baptist Church in Elberta, Alabama in 1995. The pastor of our church at the time was Jimmy Robinson. I know the names of the five children that were molested, but I do not think it appropriate to post them on a public forum.
In this church as well as the other churches that I have attended, when something like this happened it was swiftly and fairly dealt with. Whether it was a case of child molestation (which I have already told you about), or an affair by the pastor, or a case of embezillment by the pastor — none of these situations were tolerated or even “winked” at. Surely, it was hoped that these people would repent and get right with God, but it was clearly understood that they would never be given any kind of responsibility again and that they would always be closely watched.
While I understand that there are some churches where things are not properly dealt with, there are also some who do things as they should. While Jeri Massi’s idea of a database for offenders is a good one, it is much easier said than done. There are many churches who do not affiliate with any of the four IFB groups that she detailed before — and have no desire to affiliate with them. Also many people will point out that most states already have a sexual offender website — so why should we make another one?
While I think that the book will be very helpful to some, may I suggest that for the next book focus more on how to help churches to avoid these situation instead of looking only at the problems?
I grew up reading Jeri Massi’s books and I know that she has an excellent way with words. I am sure that she can make a great impact on helping these churches to set up guidelines as my church did as well as emphasizing the need to get back to the Bible. If people are submerged in God’s Word as they need to be, then they will more easily recognize situations that could become abusive and as a church congregation deal with them. “The people die from lack of knowledge,” as the saying goes — in this case knowledge of the Bible.
All of the above is my humble opinion. I still have a great deal to learn and do not presume to know more than any of you. However, upon reading several of the comments on this website I felt a need to express a slightly different point of view. I hope that it will help you as much as your opinions have helped me and given me much to think on. God bless.
Let’s consider those 57 ingredients in Heinz. If only one is poison, the whole bottle is bad.
The problem with corruption is that it spreads. The “schizophrenia” of Fundamentalism is that it confronts the worlds over sin and ignores the exact same sins in Fundamentalism.
Sorry, but nobody is allowed to be THAT independent in God’s name. Paul writes that we are members one of another. He excommuni cated and rebuked across church boundaries, as did John.
In the instance of Fundamentalism, the good churches are actually lending credibility to the bad churches. And again, the independence, which is a radical, unbiblical autonomy that guarantees the pastor immunity from any type of accountability or church rule, is not the Biblical model of church government. It is foolish, and it assures one thing. No matter how good your church is NOW, eventually it will fall just like First Baptist of Hammond has fallen, Calvary Baptist of Culpeper has fallen, and Trinity Baptist of Jacksonville has fallen.
But, again, Fundamentalism is mere hypocritical quackery, because it will rebuke a gay bar full of unbelievers but look the other way when a Fundamentalist minister uses his pulpit to mask a homosexual affair. It will criticize unsaved men for looking at pornography, but nobody ever got in the pulpit and rebuked Dave Hyles for MAKING pornography with church women. And the idea that this double standard is somehow OK with God’s impartial justice, or that Fundamentalism, relying on such hypocrisy, is going to accomplish ANYTHING for Christ, is Schizophrenic. Or delusional. Either word works.