I have been warning for some time of the danger of the rise of 'polycults' or polygamist cultists arising amongst us though I did not expect to see its rise quite so fast. But ever since I wrote my article, Cultic Leader-Control Tendencies in the Christian Polygamy Movement, I knew it wouldn't be long until at least one of the largest 'Christian' polygamy ministries started mutating into a fully fledged Koresh-like cult.
There have always been the crackpots, perverts and power-mongers out there, and they are truly as ravenous wolves looking for potential victims ... usually women, of course ... to devour. For the most part they are loners because they lack the charisma to organise, but they are no less dangerous. Sometimes they seek 'accreditation' or 'acceptance' from the larger ministries such as ours because they know women will not be duped unless they have some sort of recognition from a well-established poly ministry. We spot these men all the time. Unfortunately, they are multiplying in numbers, luring the unwary and posing as 'great ones'. Some are more harmful than others to be sure - from casual pot-smokers to psychopaths, and sexual perverts to the violent abusers. They're all out there and using the label 'Christian' or 'Messianic' to hide under. Whatever you do (especially if you are a woman), make sure you thoroughly check them out before you make contact, befriend or visit them. And do not rush into any marriage. Give it time. If they want to marry you on the spot, RUN!
But what do you do when a whole ministry descends into blatant cultism yet continues to present itself as a harmless lamb? We knew it was coming, but now that it is fast ripening in iniquity, the time is coming where a full exposé may, regrettably, be necessary, before the Patriarchy movement as a whole is thoroughly discredited, as it will be if the leader of this ministry does not soon repent.
We now have in our midst a cult of ultra-patriarchy which is willing to spiritually abuse and physically oppress women in order to cover up the sins of its men. It's not something new. I knew about the phenomenon in Mormonism where the cover-up of sexual abuse by Mormon priesthood leaders is extensive and where the abused have been shunted to the side and told to be quiet. It happens in the fundamentalist (polygamous) Mormon community too where women are traded like cattle in the marriage market and have little or no say in whom they will marry. And though not all Mormon fundamtentalist groups are guilty of this, the trend and potential for mischief has always been there because of the nature of their priesthood system. Some recent exposés in the media in the USA have highlightened this problem and mobilised the antipolygamists once more. But now we have an almost mirror-image 'Christian' Patriarchy/Polygamy Church/Ministry which in spirit is little different from some of the more extreme Mormom fundamentalists and which has likely been infected by that cult's spiritual air.
The first signs of cultism in any kind of polygamous fraternity are:
- (a) Great unhappiness amongst the polygamous wives; and
- (b) A haughty, arrogant and overbearing attitude in the husbands.
Injustice finds a breeding ground in such a milieu, communication between husbands and wives breaks down, and communion is replaced by the arbitrary rule of tyrannical law. The whole rotten edifice is held up by naked force and love is banished.
The ministry I am speaking of here is plummeting down to self-destruction though its leader is probably completely blind to his plight. What is particularly alarming is that this leader - this man - is training up a whole generation of other men to oppress and destroy their own women, multiplying misery wherever they go. Seduced by power and sex, but heavily concealed under a garb of charged religion, we are witnessing the rise of a towering menace in our midst which not only (indirectly and surreptitiously) claims, like the Mormons in their sphere, sole authority to lead the Christian polygamy movement, but which has consistently tried to manipulate and marginalise all other Christian polygamy ministries that will not bow their heads and kiss the papal ring. It's leader is consumed with power-lust and at one time even openly told me to my face in threating tones that he would never permit anyone or anything to come between him and his perceived divine calling. He is not accountable to anyone but himself and his 'God'. Megalomania has long since seized him and some of his closest friends.
I have not come out as directly as this before because before now there was no evidence that this ministry was deliberately concealing physical, psychological and spiritual abuse of women, and therefore indirectly promoting such in the name of 'patriarchal authority'. What does one conclude about a man who wants to preserve a man's supremacy in the home at the expense of truth and the spiritual safety of women by getting the women who are abused to APOLOGISE for their husbands' own tyranny instead of rebuking the husbands for their crimes and ensuring that they receive the proper counsel and help?
There can be no doubt that such a man is a partner of evil. Patriarchal authority in the home can NEVER be at the expense of virtue. When that state of affairs arises, you no longer have Christian/Messianic Patriarchy but totalitarianism. Now I hope that no one will misunderstand me. I am squarely for patriarchy - male headship - because that is what Elohim's (God's) Word unambiguously teaches. But I am definitely totally opposed to any kind of unrighteous dominion. And when such unrighteous dominion descends into criminality by condoning and covering up abuse, then nothing less than a loud cry of protest and condemnation is called for. Such a time has come. For it is the mandate of every believer to "judge with righteous judgment" (John 7:24, KJV).
Whenever a person deviates from the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit), love dies and cold, heartless tyranny bursts out like an angry boil. As the posion multiplies, so the boils start multiplying until the whole becomes an ugly, seathing mass of putrifaction. The ability to make sound judgment disappears and the man who was once humane and loving becomes cold and hard. He may, throughout this time, believe that he is walking with Elohim (God) and in His truth and think he is behaving in a loving manner. Many who are gripped by this demonic spirit and who still wear the label 'Christian' sincerely believe nothing is wrong. They will, in the process of time, invent every possible sort of self-justification, a typical one of which is by shifting the blame elsewhere. The spirit of untruth never accepts responsibility for its sins. And you will never or rarely find them discussing their weaknesses and mistakes openly with anyone except their innermost circle because they will take this as a sign of 'patriarchal weakness' likely to inspire a lack of confidence in their womenfolk. It reminds me of some swaggering teenagers trying to put on a tough, bold outer face, only this is a little more refined and is the work of physical adults who are a bit more worldly-wise and sophisticated.
A friend of mine the other day reminded me that one of the first things that happens when a ministry starts turning into a cult is that the more educated amongst them begin to see what is going on and leave. Such may have been the strongest supporters in the beginning and received leadership positions. Once the educated and more discerning have departed, the cult is left with a core of relatively uneducated and passive people who will simply 'follow-the-leader'. A Jehovah's Witness-like mentality invariably follows. It is a truism (though there are exceptions) that the more highly developed the reasoning powers of individuals are, the less likelihood there is of them being drawn into a cult, or remaining in one for very long. What is particularly dangerous, though, is where an intelligent man leaves such a cult and, thinking that he is delivered of its mentality, ends up creating one of his own. In my experience, excising the spirit of cultism, even in intelligent men, takes considerable time. The brains of cultists are literally 'rewired' and demonic blocks insert themselves into key thinking and feeling processes.
A tell-tale sign of a spirit of cultism is when a man thus under its thraldom finds it increasingly difficult to relate to people and to be understood by them. He begins to feel that no one understands him any more and that he is on a 'higher plane' above your average mortal. The fruit of the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit), however, is the exact, diametric opposite: the closer you draw to Yahweh our Father in Heaven, the deeper you are able to understand the human condition and relate to it, and as a result ordinary people can understand you better. When a person begins to believe that he is so close to Yahweh that he is in a totally different spiritual dimension to everyone else, what has happened, in fact, is that he has drawn away from Yahweh and has become afflicted by a guru-spirit that seeks to be adulated, which is a demonic counterfeit. It's not long before this guru is demanding, perhaps subconsciously in some, worship. Without a doubt he will crave an exalted position and start thinking along the lines of the first (spiritually immature) apostles who wanted the privilege of sitting on Yah'shua's (Jesus') right hand side on His throne.
The guru-spirit, whilst paying lip-service to Christ, is in fact drawing attention to itself. And just because such a person teaches and preaches Christ vigorously does not mean that he is in the right spirit. For what happens in such a case is that the one thus afflicted with delusions of self-grandeur actually comes to confuse himself with Christ by a series of small, almost imperceptible, increments, until when he is talking about 'Christ' he is actually talking about himself.
In Mormonism, which suffers from a major priestcraft issue, its 'priesthood' is greater than Christ in spirit if not in name. Having or not having the 'priesthood' means everything to them. Mormons talk about their 'priesthood' in much the same way that Christians talk about Christ or Messianics about Torah, at least in spirit. And those 'Christian' ministers who are afflicted by a similar spirit often up talking about their 'anointing' or 'calling' in the same kind of way until it becomes an instrument of idolatrous suppression. The guru-spirit is, ultimately, 'authority' and 'control' and is the male equivalent of the Jezebel-spirit which I call the Ahab-spirit. Not surprisingly, since men rule the patriarchy movement, this sinful tendency doesn't get nearly half as much coverage as the female opposite, and as a result tends to fester unaddressed and unchecked. Any patriarchy ministry worth its salt will be devoting not just 'equal time' to this malaise but proportionately more since until it is properly dealt with there will always be a spirit of cultism in patriarchy. It is for the men to get their own houses in order first before pointing the accusing finger at all the Jezebels (real, projected, or imagined).
What actually is needed is a time of serious spiritual evaluation by all the patriarchs in the Christian Patriarchy movement of themselves. Some are slowly beginning to realise that they were never called into polygamy in the first place but only after they have wrecked destruction on the lives of women and children. But this is no way to learn that one was in error ... not when other lives are involved and may be destroyed. The time to learn the lessons of true patriarchy are even before one marries at all, and if one is already married monogamously, long before polygamy is even entertained as an option. There are thousands of men interested in polygamy who in spiritual rank are GIs who think that overnight they can become Generals. What is needed - and this is a ministry that was once provided by us - is that men and their wives receive joint training in how to profoundly love as Christ loves and to mutually submit to Christ. But even this is not enough - there has to be a spiritual preparedness that would enable both the husband and wife in a monogamous relationship to walk alone in Christ and have no need of polygamy first, in spite of all its obvious benefits when lived properly. But this is the point - you can't live it properly until you are spiritually able to walk alone in Christ and be satisfied. For most men polygamy becomes a kind of carnal substitute for a failed relationship with a first wife and (often) a failed relationship with Christ. As such, then, it is merely a titillation - something new and exciting offering a number of carnal benefits to distract one from the more important need to getting right with Yahweh and getting one's first marriage to work. People who view polygamy this way are in grave spiritual danger for polygamy is not at all what they think it is.
What, then, ought to be a patriarch's and potential polygamist's goal before he starts contemplating polygamy? He must have reached a spiritual point where he doesn't actually need or want polygamy but desires, above all else, to be, first, right with Christ and walking comfortably and peaceably in His Spirit but is willing to enter it; and, second, have found peace and satisfaction in his first wife, for only then is Yahweh ever likely to call him into polygamy. Now it is true that in some cases that a first wife is 'literally on the way out' because of rebellion, sin, a lack of faith, etc., because she will not repent; but to assume that this is her destiny or fate simply because she is opposing polygamy at any particular point of time is a dangerous and destructive fallacy. It may simply be the wrong moment for her and/or the husband. And it is always safer to assume the latter and to work out from that premise rather than impute evil on a woman who may simply not be ready for such a huge move or (and this must never be forgotten) nor (along with her husband) be called into polygamy.
A prophetic word received through the Chavurat Bekorot pretty well summarises the kind of spiritual preparedness that is required of a man before he is ready to enter polygamy:
"Be ye revolted by sin, My children, that your hearts no longer desire to retain a single one of them, for such shall be saved. Many there are who suppose that they may retain parts of their old {pre-Christian} life when they come unto Me, but this is impossible, saith Yah'shua (Jesus), for I cannot dwell in unholy tabernacles {bodies}. Therefore could Israel not dwell amongst a defiled people. Be ye circumcised in your hearts, everyone, disdaining not the shame nor the suffering thereof, for He who will not share My shame and suffering is not worthy of My salvation.
"Put all pride to death; [spiritually] crucify the fallen man. And behold, if ye will do this willingly, ye shall receive a full salvation, and obtain an everlasting inheritance which cannot pass away.
"He who hath been redeemed no longer habitually walketh in sin but is free, and returneth not unto the sins of his old life. Therefore if any habitually sin, let him renounce that sin and come unto Me, the living Saviour, that the old man [of sin] might be crucified {put to death}, and the new {Messiah} enter in. He who overcometh shall receive the Kingdom; but he who overcometh not must return from whence he came, to be numbered amongst the Canaanites and receive a true judgement.
"He who judgeth My works judgeth Me, saith Yah'shua (Jesus), and [in consequence] must perish as pertaining unto salvation. Therefore woe unto them who judge My judgments, who reject any part of My Word, for they judge amiss and verily love their sins more than their Elohim (God). And behold, they would justify themselves by appealing unto their oen standards of goodness, which are after the thoughts and imaginations of men. And behold, they remain in their sins"
(PWNC 990826A:24-36).
The reason that cultism finds a fertile breeding ground in patriarchy and polygamy is because men are presumptuously calling themselves into it lacking the necessary spiritual tools and keys to live it righteously. That is not itself an indictment of polygamy but a warning that this lifestyle is not an open house for all and sundry but only those who are prepared for it properly. And I make little distinction here between 'prepared' and 'called' for the latter word has been horrendously abused to also mean 'lusted after'. Considering that probably 95-98 out of every 100 men living Christian polygamy were never called into it (judging by the appalling failure rates), it is little wonder that the movement has fallen upon evil days and stands in disrepute. And now we have predators going around terrorising divorced and widowed women saying that they are sinning for being single and that they are under a command to marry polygamous men like themselves (and they are not beneath claiming 'revelation' that orders these widows to marry them -- another wicked cultic spirit).
The 'other voices' have had their season in this movement and proven their spiritual bankruptcy. That is not, of course, to say that we at at this ministry don't have things to learn or that there still isn't any cleaning up to do in our own ministry. What it does mean is that a pretty horrendous cleansing fire is being sent by Yahweh to hit the Christian polygamy movement that is going to leave it decimated and reeling, and the survivors will be those who are walking this path in the way they should be. The result will be that you will find very, very few men called to live this principle, and nearly all of them with ministerial leadership credentials, for in truth only such are likely to be equippped.
You're probably going to see one of the biggest poly ministries come crashing down in flames in the near future or mutate into a fundamentalist Mormon look-alike and be rejected by Christians as having anything to do with Christianity ... which it will likely take as a sign of its divinely appointed place and heavenly approbation. By that time you will not need me to name names. Time will soon tell. But sadly when a stubborn man under the control of a delusional spirit is at the helm, be it of a marriage or a ministry (or both), the usual end is violent destruction. Only massive intercessory prayer may save him. (It did eventually collapse which is the best thing that could have happened for everyone concerned, and I have commented about this in earlier articles).
Author: SBSK
