[OBW]

I must say that there is something correct in every statement made. The LC was a factor in many of the problems with the kids. But on the other hand, there was not simply some epidemic of problems that was only caused by association with the LC.

One observation that Don made I would like to emphasize. The LC collected a lot of peculiar people. I would take it farther than that. The LC was, at some level, a magnet for the dysfunctional of society.

I know that sounds funny when it is put up against the willful desire to go after the “best material” but it was true. The “good material” has real lives, real friends, even real Christian fellowship. The marginal are looking for that family they never really had. The sense of belonging is tremendous. Add to that the sense of belonging to the one place on earth that is “God’s heart.” They flock, metaphorically.

When I consider the Church in Dallas, I can recall some problems with kids. I also recall a lot of normal families. In this respect it was neither idyllic nor hell-on-earth.

But when I look at the collection that was the Church in Dallas, I also see a strange variety of people. There were plenty of very normal couples and singles. Mixed in among them were some very interesting people. Some had significant problems with life. The LC didn’t cause it, but the LC didn’t help it either.

I remember a brother who once overslept and rather than get dressed quickly and get to work, he did his regular one-hour reading and praying routine and when he finally got to work was summarily fired. It wasn’t the only time he had problems with keeping a job. You might be able to point to a lack of practical balance to typical LC rhetoric about your quiet time. But the truth is that this brother, while there was a brilliant mind somewhere inside, had previously damaged that mind with drugs. That he was functioning at the level that he did was at least partly the result of his conversion and support of the LC.

So you can’t just blame the LC. But it didn’t help either. More and more, churches help beyond spiritual guidance or didactic sermons. And this is where the LC failed. We have all heard the stories about how Lee would say one day that they shouldn’t own expensive cars, then the following week comment that they were spending too much time fixing old cars. You can blame the followers for being so dogmatic in their following, but Lee was not ignorant of the effect he had. While it may have never been expressed, I question whether he somehow enjoyed seeing everyone jump when he spoke, even if it was to jump off a cliff.

Did this hurt families? Probably so. Did bad examples in the local leadership cause problems for others? Probably so. Is it fair to say that it was the LC’s fault? Not so sure.

And we have had threads that discussed the disdain for counseling, whether by the LC leadership or by professionals. The number of marriages that might have been saved if the answer to every problem was not to pray-read more and attend more meetings but instead some serious discussions about the issues that were stewing in those couples. (Don. I’m sure that there were situations in which that was not exactly true, but you must admit that, at least in broad brush, it was true. Even if it was a misperception of the members, it is hard to understand that anyone wants to hear about it when the official line is “know no man in the flesh” and that means don’t talk about anything but Christ and the church.)

Did the LC experience more problems than the rest of Christianity? I don’t know. But despite trying to create some image of superiority, they tended to be just like Christianity in many ways. Fill their heads with knowledge and they will turn out OK. Well, it sometimes does not work. And it is possible that to the extent that the LC parents tried to over-protect their kids, the result was the often-seen rebellion at the first opportunity.

I heard an interesting story recently. This brother was talking about the possibility of taking his daughter out of the public schools because they had gotten so poor in certain ways. Part of the consideration centered on a friend of the daughter’s that was otherwise an outcast. Her input was “who will love [the friend].” The decision was made.

I’m sure that the LC has had an impact on many families. For some it was positive, and for some it was negative. In some cases, the ultimate outcome may have been devastating. But the LC was never the whole problem.