Assembly Cult Characteristics
These errors form the foundation for the development of the Assembly into a cult.
• The Bible was used to intimidate and condemn people and induce fear.
• People were taught to constantly look
inward with self criticism, and to perceive God as a harsh judge.
• Christians who are not "overcomers"
would not be part of the Bride of Christ, would be hurt of the
second death and cast into outer darkness.
•
Leaving the Assembly was synonymous with leaving Christ.
• Authority was vested in leaders who were not
accountable to the church, but to one man, who was completely
unaccountable to anyone.
• Leaders were taught to view themselves as superior and to
view the members as ignorant immature children. The members were made dependent on
the leaders for major and minor life decisions.
• Leaders exercised a high degree of
authoritarian control over many aspects of people's private lives; legalistic
rules, covered everything from dating to earrings to which car
to buy.
• The pyramid structure required
"the sheep" to be subject to those above them, to imitate
them, and to serve them as service offered to the Lord.
•
Intimidation
and coercion insured compliance: "consequences", loss of privileges, labeling, public
character assassination, shunning, threat of eternal loss.
• As noted in a totalistic life-style consumed
members' entire lives.
• An
elitist
and suspicious stance toward other Christians except those long dead,
resulting in isolation from the wider body of Christ.
• Isolation from relatives and
friends who are not in the group, and from society.
• Isolation from outside ideas
and information -- television, unapproved books and websites,
contact with former members.