The inside scoop. What I learned as a worker

Wow. Some people want to know what I saw and heard as a worker. I've kinda taken it for granted that people knew these things, but these are the things that I saw in the work.

Obviously these things are not what you would expect from people "professing" to be Christians.

I'm going to throw out some experiences and sort through them later.

If you go into the work, you are required to sell everything and give it to the the workers (if they can get to it first)or your relatives. I'm surprised how many people don't know this. It used to be in the beginning of the cult that they told you that you could not be saved unless you sold everything, gave it to them and because a 2x2 worker.

When you go to conventions, you are required to give all your money to the worker in charge of the convention. If you don't have much money, you may be frowned on. After they've taken all they need for plane tickets, building supplies and "whatever else" , they divide up the money (equally they say) and supposedly give you back what is left. I was told to save up all my money during the year because "conventions are expensive".

Workers may have lunch once or twice a year with workers in adjoining fields to say "Hi" or conduct business such as appointing elders etc. They also talk about people they are having problems with in the field.

Elders are usually determined by a male worker in the field. If sister workers are in the field, they submit their proposal for a worker and get it approved by a nearby brother worker.

When a elder worker is sick, they may actually appoint an elder or former worker to lead a meeting instead of a younger worker. This flies in the face of workers having more authority than elders and confirms the politics.

Younger workers who don't receive much money don't get much help from older workers. Older workers try to keep as much money as they can. Some have bank accounts. They don't give all their money at conventions. Presumably they are saving up for what they expect upon being too old to be of any use for the overseer.

Older workers who are popular speakers may receive a lot of money.

I was told by my older companion and the overseer that that workers shouldn't file income tax returns.

Younger workers who are sick or suffering from depression are dropped off at relatives houses and the relatives are left to care for them. On the workers list they call it "in care of health" or something else.

Older workers who are not popular and who have medical bills are left off the workers list at conventions without explanation. Often, this is how they find out that they are no longer in the work. They are left to fend for themselves with medical bills amidst their bewilderment and confusion as they try to adjust to real life outside the cult ministry.

Workers who are sick at convention, even close to death with food poisoning, may be required to withhold information from the Health Department authorities and kept from visiting the hospital to allow conventions to continue so they "don't cause the convention to be shut down".

Workers who receive money to help friends in poor countries keep the money in bank accounts and do not distribute it to the needy who are sick and sometimes dieing.

Workers who don't like some people in their field may slander them to other workers to gain support in excommunicating them or avoiding them in hopes that they quit coming to meetings. This is done by dropping phrases that imply things that are not true.

Sister workers who are raped or get pregnant by someone in their field or a brother worker or a head workers may be sent to a foreign country to labor (pun intended). After they've had their child and adopted it out, they may be allowed to return to their original country.

Elders may be excommunicated or have the meeting taken out of their homes if these elders believe that other people not of the cult may be saved. Workers in this elders field may go to the head worker and make the accusation. The head worker will ask the workers to ask the elder if it's true. If it is, then the head worker gives the workers permission to remove the meeting or to excommunicate them.

There are large nasty power struggles among older workers to become the head worker. Many things are done for the sake of popularity and to gain power.

Sister workers times to speak at conventions are cut short at the request of popular speakers at conventions. These sister workers may go crying to their quarters (where they sleep at conventions) and are encouraged to believe that they are suffering for Jesus' sake.

Both younger brother and sister workers may suffer intolerable cruelties in trying to remain in the work. If they leave the work due to depression or sickness etc, they may be told by some older workers that the work may "just not be for you". Or statements may be circulated that they "turned back from the plow". Horrible burdens such as these lies are promoted to dissuade people from listening to their hardships and to discourage people from validating what they hear from these younger people.

There are large power struggles to work in the best fields. Best fields are determined by how much money the people give. It is of course in the interest of overseers to keep the most popular workers in the best fields so that they people will be encouraged to give more financial support.

Some cruel workers are apologized for by a few compassionate workers to try to console younger workers who are abused and stepped on. They don't realize that they are just enabling the cruel workers to abuse more people and discouraging these younger workers from confronting the cruel workers with their offenses.

Some people in the field may cry and weep if their name is accidentally left off the field list because they feel like they would go to hell for not being on the list.

Head workers may be consulted as to whose name should be left off or put on the field list.

Mailing addresses were taken off the field lists (except for homes with meetings) in the Pacific Northwest so that exmembers would have more trouble educating cult members about it's origins, knowledge of the cult, knowledge of sound doctrine and "causing doubt".

Sings and youth events are created to keep younger followers away from mixing with "worldly" people and learning about the cult they are being raised in.