Advice for friends

[aron]

Originally Posted by least

Thank you aron for providing an explanation.
I asked because I know "spiritual warfare " merely knowing the terminology. Jo S said he/she is no stranger to spiritual warfare, I thought I get to know more by asking.
And I don't know 'juju', 'Cosa Nostra', 'omerta' ....
May be I don't have to know about such thing ...

The enemy hides in the dark. Cosa Nostra is a group that uses silence to shield itself from law enforcement. 'Omerta' is the name for the practice. If you had any curiosity you could look it up on the internet.

When Witness Lee arrived in the USA, he already had a history of family entanglements and financial improprieties. The Chinese who knew him knew all of this. But they didn't warn the Americans because their culture forbade speaking of such things.

To understand the forces at work in this group, a reading of history is probably essential. First, the so-called Boxer Rebellion, an anti-western spasm of violence that profoundly affected the families of Nee and Lee ( both grew up in Christan homes). I believe both lost relatives to the violence.

This is mainly why Nee's Little Flock exploded across China in the 1930s. It was a way to be both 'Christian' and 'Chinese'. As to his outlook, you have to understand the holiness movement (Keswick) and what might be termed 'continental mysticism', with British Brethren ecclesiology.

But it's all quite oriental, where the hive mind prevails and the individual is sublimated to the whole, which whole is fronted by an all-too-human leader with their own personal agenda. The truth is whatever the big leader needs today.

With Nee, the idea of 'localism' quickly gave way to 'centralism' as the movement grew. While he was a junior member, it was a personal quest for holiness, but as he became supreme it was all about "know who's in charge and get in line". Holiness was surrender to the group, and dedication to the cause.