Quote:
Originally Posted by OBW
Is it something that can be sort of spelled out, or is it somewhat intangible? What actually happened?
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From a young man's point of view, it was great fun. Like a high school pep rally before the big game. Max had somehow unleashed a kind of euphoria, building upon months of anti-religious fervor, so that there were nearly no boundaries remaining. At one point, brothers used the table, which held the bread and wine, and jumped off into the arms of catchers. After a few jumpers, that table splintered into pieces. TC himself was carried on one brother's shoulders around the front. We sang songs about being rip, roaring drunk in the Spirit. Personally I was a "reserved" observer (
but still standing on my chair yelling and clapping) several rows back, but if someone had started
streaking around the room, they would
not have been out of place.
This happened all weekend long. Then we were all told to come back the following weekend to receive our instructions. Things were a little different by then. Max never made it the second weekend.
Several years ago the forum discussed the events surrounding those weekends. Being so young at the time, I was quite naive to the behind-the-scene dynamics of the leaders. WL used Max to travel around stirring up the pot. Max brought with him a cadre of supporters into Chicago. Max fueled fleshly zeal by using anti-religious sentiments in order to capture the control of young people, undermining their respect to local leaders. Local elders and workers were all blamed for the churches being "stinking religious." The ministry plan was to have all the young people relocate to ministry centers, or to campuses. This had happened in other places around the country.
TC really did preserve the condition of LC's in the GLA. Only he was "man enough" to stand up to Max and company. The elders close to TC refused to resign their position in shameful disgrace, as many had done already. In the aftermath, there was some heated dissension in greater Cleveland by some who felt the church was not faithful to "WL's burden."
After witnessing how WL thru Max had actively tried to destroy LC's, discredited elders, unleashed fleshly zeal, and damaged the faith of so many precious saints, it's hard for me to understand why GLA leaders, mainly TC, did not cut all ties with WL and LSM back then. Each time things would sour in the Recovery, WL had a way of blaming all his lieutenants for the problems, and he would come out smelling like a rose. WL never took the responsibility for any of the chaos and destruction. The lieutenants closest to him would all depart in shame, while the remaining saints would gather around WL as today's Apostle. Happened every time.