This blog will contain some insight for those who have experienced spiritual abuse and will also hopefully help to educate those who would like to learn about it. 
The Wave
Posted January 17th, 2012 at 08:26 AM by Lois
Awhile back I posted a video of a made-for-TV movie based on the book, "The Wave." I recently found it has been made into a feature length film in Germany. This is the link to the DVD on Amazon, where you may read reviews. It is based on an incident that actually happened in the 1960s in a school in California. People who have been in unhealthy churches should be able to relate and maybe learn something from it.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...iritualab0c-20
You may also rent it for a lot less: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...iritualab0c-20 There is a trailer you can watch on this link.
I was able to watch it recently. They updated the story, having it take place in our time and the ending was changed. Both endings in each film are powerful.
In doing some research afterward, though not in depth, I found that the made-for-tv version is closest to what actually happened. I also found that last year a documentary was put together about it, with interviews with some participants and the teacher. The name of that is "Lesson Plan" and the DVD is not yet available. In fact, the teacher has a bit part in the German remake and there is a brief interview with him in the bonus section.
As previously mentioned, the movies are based on an actual event from 1967 at a high school in California. It was a class experiment that got out of hand. It was the first year of teaching for Ron Jones, who three years later lost his fight for tenure (it appears to do with political activism).
Here is the short story that Ron Jones wrote about the incident: http://libcom.org/history/the-third-...ount-ron-jones See if you notice anything similar with what happens in unhealthy churches. I encourage you to watch either this film or the 1981 TV version that is found on Google. Amazon also rents the film.
Here is a quote from Ron Jones from the interview on the DVD: "...you're looking at 'The Wave,' trying to understand why do we give up our freedom for the thought of being better than everyone else. And it's a lesson that we all need to see and hear and talk about."
Another quote from Ron Jones from the DVD, in speaking about one of the students crossing over an invisible line that was a simulation and became something real: "And I realized that I was crossing over that same line. I was no longer just teaching about this thing called fascism, I was enjoying- enjoying- being a leader and that was frightening."
Some of the similarities from this incident and being in an unhealthy church are:
Blind obedience to authority
A gradual process of influence and indoctrination
Rigid rules
Conformity
Peer pressure
Giving up yourself to be part of something great
Tattling on the disobedient
In further research on the incident, there are some who do not believe the events happened quite as Mr. Jones states. It is not my desire to get into all of that as it does appear that there was this class experiment. The movies are thought provoking and a possible way to help people since the subject matter is not spiritual abuse, but people caught up in these church movements can relate to it. Similar to the movie, "The Village."
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...iritualab0c-20
You may also rent it for a lot less: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...iritualab0c-20 There is a trailer you can watch on this link.
I was able to watch it recently. They updated the story, having it take place in our time and the ending was changed. Both endings in each film are powerful.
In doing some research afterward, though not in depth, I found that the made-for-tv version is closest to what actually happened. I also found that last year a documentary was put together about it, with interviews with some participants and the teacher. The name of that is "Lesson Plan" and the DVD is not yet available. In fact, the teacher has a bit part in the German remake and there is a brief interview with him in the bonus section.
As previously mentioned, the movies are based on an actual event from 1967 at a high school in California. It was a class experiment that got out of hand. It was the first year of teaching for Ron Jones, who three years later lost his fight for tenure (it appears to do with political activism).
Here is the short story that Ron Jones wrote about the incident: http://libcom.org/history/the-third-...ount-ron-jones See if you notice anything similar with what happens in unhealthy churches. I encourage you to watch either this film or the 1981 TV version that is found on Google. Amazon also rents the film.
Here is a quote from Ron Jones from the interview on the DVD: "...you're looking at 'The Wave,' trying to understand why do we give up our freedom for the thought of being better than everyone else. And it's a lesson that we all need to see and hear and talk about."
Another quote from Ron Jones from the DVD, in speaking about one of the students crossing over an invisible line that was a simulation and became something real: "And I realized that I was crossing over that same line. I was no longer just teaching about this thing called fascism, I was enjoying- enjoying- being a leader and that was frightening."
Some of the similarities from this incident and being in an unhealthy church are:
Blind obedience to authority
A gradual process of influence and indoctrination
Rigid rules
Conformity
Peer pressure
Giving up yourself to be part of something great
Tattling on the disobedient
In further research on the incident, there are some who do not believe the events happened quite as Mr. Jones states. It is not my desire to get into all of that as it does appear that there was this class experiment. The movies are thought provoking and a possible way to help people since the subject matter is not spiritual abuse, but people caught up in these church movements can relate to it. Similar to the movie, "The Village."
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Recent Blog Entries by Lois
- Videos On Television (August 24th, 2012)
- When A Pastor Morally Fails (August 9th, 2012)
- T.D. Jakes Embraces Trinity, Leaves Oneness Beliefs (January 29th, 2012)
- Newspaper Article on Church Rules (January 23rd, 2012)
- Marjoe Movie- Watch For Free (January 22nd, 2012)
