8/9/11 – What we think about the Warren Jeffs Conviction
Paradise Recovered
Andie Redwine and Storme Wood
Augusst 9, 2011
What we think about Warren Jeffs Conviction
“If the world knew what I was doing, they would hang me from the highest tree.”
— Warren Jeffs, in a note seized from his Texas ranch.
We believe in freedom.
A 52 year old man instructing a group of 12 – 14 year old girls on how to please him sexually is not freedom. It is criminal.
It is even more criminal if such a thing is done in the name of God.
It is yet even more criminal if that group of 12 – 14 year old girls are told that if they fail to please this 52 year old man sexually, they will be rejected by God.
We are thankful today that Warren Jeffs will lose his freedom permanently.
We are thinking about the 10,000+ members of the FLDS Church who are probably wondering what to do now.
We are sobered in thinking about the 4,000 other Warren Jeffs who are leading the 4,000 spiritually abusive groups in the United States alone. Some groups are larger, and some are smaller. But they are all quite real and quite dangerous.
Why are they dangerous? Because they steal freedom. And they do so in the name of God.
They make demands that God never makes. And they make people believe that these demands are biblical and worthy of their absolute and complete allegiance.
And they threaten them with hell if they do not comply.
This should outrage everyone. Especially people who love God.
Locking up Warren Jeffs today is a win for all of us, but the job is far from over.
How we put these guys permanently out of business is to educate people about how people submit their will to someone like Warren Jeffs in the first place.
It’s similar to the dynamic of an abusive spouse. Often a perpetrator like Jeffs will spend years grooming people, getting them to trust slowly while closing them off from their family and friends.
Over time, there is no context to understand information except through the eyes of the perpetrator.
That isn’t freedom.
God’s name being invoked doesn’t necessarily mean that God has given a stamp of approval.
In fact, it might mean exactly the opposite.
If you would like to learn more about the phenomenon that is spiritual abuse, or if you need help for yourself or a loved one, here are three places we believe can help.
Wellspring Retreat and Resource Center
The International Cultic Studies Association
Freedom of Mind Center
Take good care.
Andie Redwine and Storme Wood