[Trapped]

I think this is why they pour themselves into the campus work. Mining the hordes of naive young people looking for a place to belong in a totally new environment. Even with their dumping so many resources into that, the growth rate is still 0. Without the influx of naive, unsuspecting students, they would be shrinking rapidly.

They have learned to acknowledge some of the weird stuff. I think they will explain the "amen" thing to new students by pointing to a verse. I have heard college students complain some that current Christian songs are never sung in the local church. They will transition from initial meetings in third-party locations to meeting halls by saying things like "some of the members of the club meet with a church nearby", making sure to always keep it vague and general rather than, you know, that whole open and honest thing. The new students pick up on the subtle things pretty quickly, going along with them in order to belong, i.e. hiding Witness Lee's name, not mentioning certain things. It's crazy.

The problem is, the existing members believe it. They believe they are "the church" to the exclusion of all other churches. They believe they are on the right ground. They believe they have a special unique ministry. They believe they are the special chosen within the special chosen.

When you speak to others outside your movement while maintaining that belief of your movement, it's not an attractive quality.

I agree the problems you mentioned (shouting, amen, instrument limits, forced to speak) are a part of it, but I think they are a smaller percentage compared to the harder to swallow problems. The bigger mountains are only reading Witness Lee, putting down other Christians (new ones often have issues with this because it means they are putting down their family), focusing on Witness Lee, not participating in the rest of what Christianity is doing, elitist mindset, restricting themselves to Witness Lee, conforming to outward standards rather than growing through inner transformation, not caring about those who can't repay, following only Witness Lee, and the palpable inability to ask real probing questions and noticing you don't get a straight answer. Did I mention Witness Lee?

But since the co-workers get their status from their proximity to Witness Lee, and they are the ones who set the direction, tone, and content of the churches, it will never change without an outside agent.

All you mentioned, as well as all I mentioned, do fall into the unnecessary category, as you said. They also fall into the legalistic, commandments of men, putting burdens on saints' shoulders, unscriptural, and in some cases, abusive category.

The whole thing is a mess, with some hospitality and lovefeasts frosted on top.