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This is a support forum for those who have left
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Title: Ex-Calvary Chapel
  
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ArmyMom
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(Date Posted:02/04/2006 01:43:05)

Hi,I am a new member to this forum. We are Baby Boomers, members of the hippie generation - as are a majority of Calvary Chapel followers. We left CC in 1995. We went there 13 years, and in that time led Home Fellowships (Bible studies) and helped start a Calvary Chapel in our town. Eventually my husband became an Assistant Pastor, and I was the pastor's wife's prayer partner and helped her teach the Ladies' Bible Study, as well as being one of the worship leaders. Prior to our time at CC, we had belonged to various Pentecostal and Charismatic churches.In the last couple of years there, we became more and more unsettled about two things: the authoritarian leadership, and several of the core Bible interpretations CC holds. To the average member, the leadership would not seem a problem: but to those in the "inner circle" (my words), it was something quite different. The pastor, supposedly "anointed" by God to lead the church, would make final decisions in spite of - and often contrary to - anything the board or my husband had to say. Those of us in leadership had to be at the church every time the doors were open; we had to maintain certain behaviors; we had to follow the CC doctrines to the letter; we had to remain unstained by "the world." To say that these became heavy spiritual burdens would be an understatement. We would then pass on these burdens to the congregation through our teachings - "Watch out for 'The WORLD! Stay in the Spirit, not the flesh! Don't be a carnal Christian! Don't fellowship with unbelievers!" You ex-fundies know the drill.Two things helped us begin to question CC's beliefs: my love of history, and my husband's learning a method of study known as inductive. As I studied church history, I discovered that CC's beliefs were descended from the Fundamentalism of the early 20th century, not from the early church days as we had been led to believe. (CC claims that it follows the pure pattern of the Early Church, using, of course, their own interpretation of the Bible to do so.) Then my husband started to see that CC's way of interpreting things - such as Matthew 24 (return of Christ) - were not necessarily viable. When we started to teach this at our home fellowship, someone "turned us in" and we got a call from the pastor saying,"We don't teach that at CC."Long story short, things like "We're led by the Spirit and have the best take on the Truth" over other Christian groups and denominations, began to rang hollow and we left. It was emotionally devastating, and even terrifying at times - when you're told you'll miss God's calling, or become deceived by The World, or perhaps find out you're not really Saved if you leave - that's hard to get away from.But you all know that.I'm hoping to find other ex-Calvary Chapel-ers, or even ex-Vineyard. We tried that for a while after we left CC.

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"Potentially unsafe groups or leaders "come off very nice at first, they go for vulnerable people who are looking for answers, lonely, what you"d call "normal people." They"re very good at what they do and can get people to believe anything. You might think you"d never get taken in, but don"t bet on it. "

-- Margaret Singer, Ph.D.

Shadowself
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(Date Posted:02/04/2006 02:28:42)

Hi, ArmyMom, and welcome to Walk Away.


I've heard of Calvary Chapel.  I think I read a few books by Chuck Smith in my time as a Christian, and in the late 90's a radio station was started in Northern Indiana that picked up feed from other CC stations and broadcasted different services from CC churches, so I listened to that too.  I seem to remember that they claimed to use a verse by verse teaching method, going straight through a book of the bible.  To me, they looked like a lot of other Charismatic type churches.  They were very rapture oriented also.  A Calvary Chapel, and also a Vineyard congregation have been started in my town within the past 5-10 years, so they are expanding out from the west coast.


Your description of them also reminded me of the churches I used to attend, as (especially when the denomination was originally founded in the 1880's) they also stressed they were following the early church pattern, and were the "true church".  The more modern churches downplayed this part somewhat, but it still floated in the background.  I've come to believe that the majority of American Christianity has not so much to do with any early versions of the faith, but more to do with the national hubris and the development of individualism in this country (for all the talk of unity, look at all the church splits!).  Calvary Chapel and other fundamentalist faiths are more based on teachings that cropped up within the past 100-200 years than with anything that Jesus and his disciples may have taught.

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A big revelation in my professional training was that humans can learn skills for living and relating. We don"t have to be desperate for a miracle of God to make us decent.--Marlene Winell
snakechic
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(Date Posted:02/05/2006 04:33:27)

Hiya...ArmyMom


I haven't heard of the specific CC chruch you are referring to ......but I'm quite familiar with penticostism from researching the web...and a very short personal experience with a very small group in Aust. where my sibling and family still attend. I'm not 'of the spirit' and therefore don't have contact with them......you probably know that set up. ? I recon there are countless self run pastor or so called pastor less groups all over the world who practise similar tenets but different. (sarcasm)..but basically its control & fear..oh and never ever being good enough. ..that's to justify the need to follow the leader?


Yes..and like Shadow says...they are all similar in that these new chruches sell the same idea that they are the 'true' chruch. I've observed that when someone disagrees and becomes disgruntled with this kind of set up (charasmatic/pentie)...but want to proceed with their 'faith'..they either join another pentie or form another new group.(off shoot) same thing but with a difference leader......hence that's how it spreads....


Anyway...even though you may not find someone here at WA who's has direct experience with Calvary Chapel ...you'll find some who can relate to the overall story.


Look forward to reading and responding to more of your posts!

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In exchange for obedience, Christianity promises salvation in an afterlife; but in order to elicit obedience through this promise, Christianity must convince people that they need salvation, that there is something to be saved from. Christianity has nothing to offer a happy person living in a natural, intelligible universe. If Christianity is to gain a motivational foothold, it must declare war on earthly pleasure and happiness, and this, historically, has been its precise course of action. In the eyes of Christianity, woman(man) is sinful and helpless in the face of God, and is potential fuel for the flames of hell. Just as Christianity must destroy reason before it can introduce faith, so it must destroy happiness before it can introduce salvation.

-- George H Smith, Atheism: The Case Against God
imZoe
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(Date Posted:02/05/2006 04:42:22)

Hello ArmyMom,


http://www.rickross.com/reference/calvary/calvary5.html


This is a link to an article I have bookmarked.  Not sure if it will be of any help to you or not.  Might be a major trigger though, so my apologies if it is not what you were looking for.
ArmyMom
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(Date Posted:02/05/2006 18:13:14)

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"Potentially unsafe groups or leaders "come off very nice at first, they go for vulnerable people who are looking for answers, lonely, what you"d call "normal people." They"re very good at what they do and can get people to believe anything. You might think you"d never get taken in, but don"t bet on it. "

-- Margaret Singer, Ph.D.
Shadowself
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(Date Posted:02/12/2006 04:11:27)

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A big revelation in my professional training was that humans can learn skills for living and relating. We don"t have to be desperate for a miracle of God to make us decent.--Marlene Winell
Voltaire
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(Date Posted:02/13/2006 08:30:18)

I'm sure it hurts for her that he did this but I'm willing to bet that once she regains her composure she might realize that anyone who would do something like that isn't very good material for a relationship.

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Zombies, Unicorns, Devils, Sea Monsters, Satyrs, Dragons, Six Winged Angels, Gods, Demons, Witches, Astrologers, A walking & talking snake, Magical fruit, Talking donkeys, human headed six-winged beasts, Ghosts. All that stuff is in the Bible and yet they tell me it"s not mythology?
imZoe
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(Date Posted:02/14/2006 18:12:19)

ArmyMom,


The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse by Johnson & VanVonderen is an excellent resource. 


Thanks for the link. 

Voltaire
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(Date Posted:02/14/2006 19:42:49)


The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse by Johnson & VanVonderen is an excellent resource.





This looks like a good book; thanks for pointing it out.

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Zombies, Unicorns, Devils, Sea Monsters, Satyrs, Dragons, Six Winged Angels, Gods, Demons, Witches, Astrologers, A walking & talking snake, Magical fruit, Talking donkeys, human headed six-winged beasts, Ghosts. All that stuff is in the Bible and yet they tell me it"s not mythology?
ArmyMom
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(Date Posted:02/14/2006 23:06:54)




Hi to All,


Thank you for all of the wonderful feedback! I have tried for several days to reply to you all, but everytime I did, Internet Explorer crashed. I finally found out what was wrong - I had a Malicious Add-on that I needed to disable.


 The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse was a tremendous help to us. See my post, 2-6-06.  It was hard - after being told for 12 years that if you left for another doctrine - even a Christian one - that to WALK AWAY you would be forsaking God's call, took a lot of courage and time to get over.


Thanks for the tips on "triggers." It has helped me understand a lot of the things I am still working out.


Yes, Calvary Chapel is VERY into the End Times doctrine ( Premillennial Dispensational, for those who have Been There Done That ), and link the Second Coming of Christ to the establishment of the Israeli state. Chuck Smith had "prophesied" that it would be in 1988 because the establishment of the nation of Israel is the greatest "sign" of the End Times. ANd Jesus in Matt.24 said "this generation will not pass away until all these [signs] take place." Since the Bible mentions that a generation is about 40 years, so that means after Israel is 40 years, the Rapture will happen. So Chuck SMith is very much into whats happening in Israel and thinks we should blindly support them.


BTW, Calvary Chapels also predicted the end of the world at Y2K. I had old CC friends in town who were actually going door-to-door to tell people about it. Well, we all know how that turned out.


Thanks again for all of your help and tips. Very much appreciated.


Paula

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"Potentially unsafe groups or leaders "come off very nice at first, they go for vulnerable people who are looking for answers, lonely, what you"d call "normal people." They"re very good at what they do and can get people to believe anything. You might think you"d never get taken in, but don"t bet on it. "

-- Margaret Singer, Ph.D.
 Welcome to The Collection of Flashlights!Wolf-eyes ,your eyes break the darkness!
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