The organizations at UC Davis who have been accused of heresy and abuse
By NEVAEH KARRAKER — nakarraker@ucdavis.edu
“That’s a cult.”
When an anonymous UC Davis student was in her first year, this was what her Davis Christian Fellowship (DCF) Bible study leader told her about a fellow UC Davis campus-based Christian ministry, Grace Alive. The leader recollected how a trusted friend allegedly became deeply — and wrongly — rooted in this organization and refused to return to the truth.
The student was intrigued by the claim, as she was considering attending Grace Alive, which was part of Grace Valley Christian Center. When she attended the following Sunday, she asked about DCF, which was part of Chi Alpha, after brief interactions with students and inquiries about their core values.
“It’s a cult,” seemed to be the consensus among the Grace Valley community.
“I think it’s definitely confusing,” the student said. “Each ministry accused one another of being cults, when really, I think it’s just because they have different cultural norms in their church. It’s not reflective or accurate at all.”
It’s rare that people hear of the good that comes from religiously affiliated organizations, whereas the failures — sexual assault, financial exploitation and mental abuse — are widely publicized.
Discourse between former dissatisfied members often snowballs into negative connotations, extreme assumptions and labeling Christian fellowship groups as “cults.” This term has been largely misconstrued by society: so, let’s break down what a cult is and isn’t.
Kenneth J. Garrett discusses his experience in an abusive church in his novel “In the House of Friends.” He provides three main definitions of a cult: one by the media (a group that deviates from societal norm or connotes weirdness), one by those religiously affiliated (a group that commits heresy) and one by mental health professionals (a group using manipulative tactics to subdue members to a leader).
The term “cult” blurs the line between blatant pagan ritual sacrifice and subtle manipulation; a more accurate description would be that a group exhibits cultish tendencies in the form of abuse.
Garrett goes on to identify seven main behaviors that fulfill the definition he gave: deception, loss, isolation, elitism, fear, disclosure and trauma. The common thread between all these is the leader or pastor — one who seeks to gain profit and glorification from members through speech, their most powerful weapon.
It’s important to acknowledge that people don’t willingly join cults (or abusive groups); they are recruited. Today, college students are the most susceptible for recruitment — in particular freshmen and international students — who passionately seek to find community and growth as they explore a new life stage.
On-campus organizations often promise that students will acquire these things if they join, or that they would please God by making certain decisions — spiritual gaslighting, if you will. And for a while, it seems true — until questionable behaviors reveal this was simply a deceptive tactic. Receiving daily texts is one such example: the initial excitement to be immersed in a like-minded community slowly evolves into an expectation of constant participation.
The time, money, friendships or opportunities one gives up to participate is the second aspect — always giving to the group and never the group giving to its members. These abusive groups discourage friendships with non-members, which heavily isolates members. If the community is close-knit, it becomes much harder to leave; walking away would mean leaving everything and everyone behind.
Part of this derives from elitism — the idea that this group and its leader are superior — which leads members to actively derogate other groups.
As a result, a fear settles among the members about displeasing their leaders. This fear can also be associated with disclosure or forced confession, especially pressuring members to reveal secrets or sins.
These six previous points, as laid out by Garrett, equate to trauma when someone eventually decides to leave. They become so emotionally and spiritually involved, only to be abused to the point of unrecognition. Group participation shouldn’t result in repression of our authentic selves.
Now, some people who were raised in these abusive churches see nothing wrong with these familiar behaviors. The accessibility of the personal denomination they align with — like calvinistic or charismatic — seems like an exclusive offer. However, the way campus ministries have begun to change evangelism to advertisement — unintentionally or not — waves a huge red flag.
Taking all of this into consideration, joining any group (religious or not) seems terrifying. So, what are some proactive ways to discern whether one is abusive or healthy? The main way is to look at the fruits the group and members produce: Are they fulfilling their promises and displaying healthy practices of honesty, independent thinking and respect for other groups as well as members’ time?
Communities are a human necessity, but they have powerful influence over us, so it’s imperative to do background research before committing. This can include talking with former members, looking into what corporations they’re affiliated with and analyzing their stance on financial support and time commitment. Since humans aren’t perfect, neither are affiliations; groups will make mistakes. We just need to be open-minded to the process of finding a healthy one and develop discernment to do that.
Written by: Nevaeh Karraker—nakarraker@ucdavis.edu
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by individual columnists belong to the columnists alone and do not necessarily indicate the views and opinions held by The California Aggie.
