Local news investigating fundie mega-church (Nashville).

[johnaries]

Newschannel5 Investigates (which won a Peabody award earlier this year - not a fake O'Reilly Peabody, a real one) began reporting tonight on their investigation of the Bethel World Outreach Center (link: http://www.bwoc.org/ )based in Brentwood (I pass this place on my way to work daily).

This fundie church sponsors 70 "Victory" programs nationwide (13 locally) that meet in schools. One of the students they interviewed said the church members "forced" her to learn to speak in tongues, but not to tell her parents because they wouldn't understand and would "persecute" her and the church. They also reported another student became mentally ill and was diagnosed by a psychiatrist with "Religious Indoctrination". Another student tried to commit suicide as a result of her indoctrination.

Tomorrow night, they will report on how several students were forced to do something that injured one and almost killed all of them. They will also report on several pending lawsuits against the center.

Since it's a continuing report, they don't have it on their website yet. I'll post a link as soon as they do.

Finally, the fundies are being exposed for the fanatics they are!

:woohoo:

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. I second that woohoo!

[Carolab]

2. Jeez. I lived in Brentwood in the late 60s.

It was nothing then--just a few shanties and some farms plus a new development (we had the first new house). The "downtown" was a Foodland, a drugstore/post office, gas station and not much else. Eddy Arnold "owned" the town.

[johnaries]

4. You should see it now.

All the "new rich" in Nashville live there now (since the "old rich" in Belle Meade wouldn't let them in). Lots of gated communities and developments full of multi-million dollar mansions. I work in Maryland Farms, which is probably the biggest business complex community in Mid-Tn. Also a couple of very elite private schools.

Brentwood and Franklin have made Williamson county the richest county in TN. Also the county with the propert taxes (have to kep the riff-raff out, you know).

[Carolab]

5. So I've heard.

I graduated from Franklin High (my last two years were mis-spent there). The FFA jackets were everywhere. The standard of education was so low I actually knew more than my teachers in some cases (we moved there from MN).

The kids found their kicks going to the confederate cemetary and getting drunk or driving around Shoney's Big Boy and displaying the booze in their trunks. On Sadie Hawkin's Day, my mother actually confiscated a jug of moonshine from a classmate and emptied it on the lawn (it was a dry state then). The mayor of Franklin had a still.

[johnaries]

6. Cruisin' Shoney's! That brings back memories.

I cruised the Shoney's in Madison a couple of times, back when they still had drive-ins.

Crap, now I'm showing my age!

[Carolab]

8. I remember Hank Williams Jr. had a house nearby.

It had a big black musical note on the front.

I remember risking my life driving down Wilson Pike when it was two lanes and flying down Hardscrabble Road in my girlfriend's boyfriend's Plymouth Cyclone.

[cry baby]

18. Most of Wilson Pike is still 2 lanes...

It's pretty out there, that's about 2 miles from where I live.

[cry baby]

19. I'm in Franklin...

:hi:
The education is much better now, I'm happy to say.

[paineinthearse]

3. keep the updates coming

[chalky]

7. Recommended, bookmarked, and

kicked!

[givemebackmycountry]

9. Holy Shit...

I know where this place is.

I used to drive past it.
I lived in Brentwood, Tennessee for about four years.
All things considered, I loved living in Tennessee.
It was beautiful.

YES, they had a lot of whack-jobs down there, and I'm from NYC so I had my issues with the locals, but they were cool...

But this is way bizarre.

I used to drive past this place and think "who the fuck would want to hole up in a place like this"...

Now we know.

[FreedomAngel82]

10. That's great!

I'm glad to hear this. :) These churches should be exposed especially if they are doing things like they are with that young girl.

[Syncronaut Seven]

11. Cult, Cult, Cult

That'll get them some death threats. Hope NC5 sticks by their guns!

[Miss Chybil]

12. So, which tongue did they force her to learn?

Spanish? French? Russian?

No? Oh... those tongues. The ones the Lord wags for them. What's to learn?

I hope these kids nail these people. Running around crying persecution when they're the ones doing the persecuting. Typical right-wing bullshit. Like the "liberal" media, Christian persecution doesn't exist. Not yet, anyway...

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

13. I've attended services there

back when it was still just Bethel Chapel. I have a friend that is quite probably still involved-- he was on staff there when I was living in Nashville.

All I know about the place is it was just a more or less typical Charismatic group when I visited. I had no idea the place had expanded so much.

[Nothing Without Hope]

14. Excellent! The neocons and their Fristian enablers are after our children

Think: Hitler Youth. The neocons are fascists and they have long-range plans.

They are also intruding into the education and lives of the young people at the Air Force Academy:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=1762771#1763754
Thread title: WaPo: Air Force Academy religious bias probe – FUNDIE INFILTRATION?
And what about the OTHER military academies? Where will the loyalty of the future millitary officers lie? And how will they behave when they face non-Christians?

[leftofthedial]

15. fundamentalism is mental illness

pure and simple. it's a deadly disease that destroys individuals and even entire cultures.

[LeftyMom]

16. How hard is it to learn to babble?

They taught her to speak in tongues? How hard is it to make up a little hummina bummina shummina? Babies manage that sort of babble without any prompting!

The only church I've ever been to that believed in such things didn't instruct people in it, they believed people would be possessed by the holy spirit and it would speak in language nobody understood. Well for a while, somebody would be possessed to translate, but I guess that went out of style or God got sick of tying up two lines or something. (The possession and the universal translator guy seemed a bit like a bad Star Trek episode to me, but I made a really crappy Christian because of all that skepticism and critical thinking.)

Edited to fix repetition

[oneighty]

24. My nephew

attended a bible school where he learned to speak in tongues.

FWIIW

180

[cry baby]

17. Hey, Franklin-ite here. I know the place -

Thanks for the heads up - I'll watch the news tomorrow night.

[Name removed]

20. Deleted message

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[newyawker99]

21. Hi The Middle West!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[Name removed]

22. Deleted message

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[Ysolde]

23. Keep us updated!

I need to believe they will get what's coming to them for abusing kids and exploiting religion.

Thanks for giving me hope!

:woohoo: