AP Exclusive: Ex-congregants reveal years of ungodly abuse (evangelical church) [View all]

[octoberlib]

By MITCH WEISS

SPINDALE, N.C. (AP) — From all over the world, they flocked to this tiny town in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, lured by promises of inner peace and eternal life. What many found instead: years of terror — waged in the name of the Lord.

Congregants of the Word of Faith Fellowship were regularly punched, smacked, choked, slammed to the floor or thrown through walls in a violent form of deliverance meant to "purify" sinners by beating out devils, 43 former members told The Associated Press in separate, exclusive interviews.

Victims of the violence included pre-teens and toddlers — even crying babies, who were vigorously shaken, screamed at and sometimes smacked to banish demons."I saw so many people beaten over the years. Little kids punched in the face, called Satanists," said Katherine Fetachu, 27, who spent nearly 17 years in the church.

Word of Faith Fellowship, an evangelical church with hundreds of members in North Carolina and branches in other countries, also subjected members to a practice called "blasting" — an ear-piercing verbal onslaught often conducted in hours-long sessions meant to cast out devils.


http://abc11.com/religion/broken-faith-years-of-ungodly-abuse-at-western-nc-church/1771463/


Long article but worth the read. This church is a cult. Congregants aren't allowed to get married, have sex or have children without the permission of pastor Jane Whaley. Children are separated from their parents and passed around from minister to minister. Congregants live on a compound and the church provides K-12 schooling where kids are smacked for smiling or daydreaming because doing either activity proves they are possessed by the devil.