Confessions from Donna Bennum

Donna sent me the following letter addressed to the people she knew during her time as a teacher in the cult. I’m publishing it here to help her reach out to them, whether they are still in the SCOC or not. Wow, thank you Donna. This took a lot of courage–the spirit of Christ is very evident in your life.

Confessions from Donna Bennum

Confessions concerning those I sinned against while a member of a specific sect of the church of Christ, from January 1978 through August 2014.

I was baptized into this sect in January 1978 in Des Moines, Iowa. My husband (Bill Bennum) and I, we’re married in April,1978. We were sent out to help grow a congregation in 1981, to Springfield, Il. We were there for ten years. From there we moved to Decatur, Il. We were there for a year before we were sent to Erie, PA. We lived in Erie, Pa and Girard, PA. for three and a half years. We moved back to Des Moines, then to Oxnard, CA., then back to Des Moines, IA.

I mention the locations for the mere reference of those congregation I served in. Most of those years I served in the capacity of a teacher, and often as a counselor. I affected many members, families, non-members, and children of members.

For anyone that I adversely affected by my pride, and oppression, and judgements I made against them- I ask your forgiveness. I lifted myself up in pride when I was found in favor with the older teachers. I detest who I became!

Please forgive me for teaching this oppressive doctrine of MAN and trying to enforce this doctrine, often with no mercy or grace. Please forgive me for pleasing and serving MAN by continuing in the capacity of a teacher, and cast judgements on those I dealt with unjustly.

I was a HYPOCRITE. I had no business teaching. Albeit, as it is a FALSE TEACHING, I still treated people with no respect or compassion at times.

I HATE that I took part in interrogation of the minds of people, and of the marriage beds of members. This was ungodly and devilish! Forgive me for arrogantly lifting myself above you. Forgive me, please, for getting into your personal business- especially of how to raise your children, or concerning very personal issues, and marriages.

Please forgive me for scrutinizing your behavior and what you wore. Please forgive me for doing the bidding of the teachers, counsellors and evangelists- and burdening you with these corrupt judgements. This involves so many years and locations and people, and SITUATIONS, that I don’t know how I will ever make amends with individuals.

Please accept this for the wrongs I have committed against you, and I pray my God will be gracious to me as I have repented of these grievous sins against you all and against Him. Forgive me for teaching a doctrine that is NOT CHRIST and of God, but rather from MAN.

I decided I needed to take this step to be able to continue my journey of growth with my Savior. If anyone has ought against me, PLEASE CONTACT ME. You can PM me
on FB and I will give you my contact information.

THIS IS A CULT AND I AM SORRY AND ASHAMED I EVER WORKED TO BRING ANYONE INTO IT!

If I could go back to everyone I have every ‘taught’ these hypocrisies- I would share with them that THIS SECT is not portraying the TRUE AND LIVING GOD.

There IS a Great God in heaven! He is my redeemer. He brought me up out of a HORRIBLE PIT. He is merciful. He does not condemn or cast judgement or scrutinize. He loves us while we are yet sinners.

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By Kevin|2019-04-30T09:49:22-06:00September 19th, 2016|Uncategorized|3 Comments

About the Author: Kevin

Writer, imperfect Jesus-follower, cryptocurrency fan, marketer. Passionate about liberty, faith, family, marriage, foster care, and adoption. $BTC $DGB

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Donna Bennum

8 years ago

For clarity sake, God has been leading me to take this step for my own healing , as well as to make amends for the err of my ways while in the SCOC. Please do not feel compelled to do the same UNLESS your heart leads you there. This is not a "precedent" ( I heard that word used. To many times in my 36 years.
May our Great God lead you to peace as I have found. My prayers are with all of you on your individual journeys.

Kevin

8 years ago

Reply to Donna Bennum

Good point, Donna. Thank you!

Seeking...

7 years ago

Donna, I am glad you have found peace. In reading this and your story, you mentioned the word HOSTAGE. Just today I was telling my hubby that I felt we needed some therapy, maybe with an elder from a church we are considering joining. We feel like we're going through a separation after an abusive relationship! As I was on my way out of Merie's church, I was told by a preacher's wife to consider that ALL who were on here and left the church were now wandering, lost, and that Kevin's blog was full of "fair" words but he… Read more »

"This needed to be said Kevin, thank you. I believe you are getting to heart of the problem in the church. Instead of a Christian being allowed to exercise their own conscience, the conscience of a few people living in South Carolina and California is forced upon the entire brotherhood." ~Anonymous

"Great blog, Kevin. I'm originally from Stanton (I remember you being a young boy there). I Spent almost twenty years in the church seeing many of the things you speak about but keeping them in the back of my mind, and doubting my own feelings that something wasn't right.

"This constant gossiping was so confusing because it was OK for teachers to talk about people, but no one else to even question actions of a teacher. Being outside of that influence and away from the constant intimidation, it is so much more clear. There was no love or understanding. I'm sure most, except for the leaders, know something is wrong if they would just be honest with themselves. I regret so much putting my children through this more than I regret putting myself through it.

"I'm just glad I left. No need for being bitter toward anyone because it was my choice to be there and stay there. Keep up the good work." ~Loraine Forshee

I have read every word of this blog… I spent many hours/days reading… Feeling so sick inside… I felt so grateful to find this blog." ~Anonymous

"I left the group because I realized that what the group taught and what God teaches were often-not always-vastly different. I had to make a choice; stay out of fear, obligation, because of relationships, or leave so I could continue to follow Christ. I left. You know, one thing I heard A LOT while in the group is that “fallen away ones” are always longing to come back into the group.” At the time I believed it, but I just haven’t found it to be true! If it were, there would be plenty of people flocking back, and it isn’t happening. I have been in contact with quite a few who have left, and not one of us has thoughts about going back. Ever." ~Debby Stevens

"What’s ironic is that we point these things out to them only for them to ignore, dismiss and scoff at the blog both publicly in talks or sermons, and among themselves in secret. For you leaders and members of the SCOC who still read this blog, it’s one thing to dismiss the dissenters, but when you have people in your own ranks parroting the SAME EXACT PROBLEMS we talk about here (some of whom don’t even read the blog yet they see the same things we do), it may be time to consider your ways instead of having “unity” (conformity) meetings trying to ignore it." ~Advocate for Peace

"I too am a current member in 'good standing' in the church. I read the blog and I know of two other current members who also read it. I am sure you're wondering why in the world I would still be attending after reading all of this. Honestly, I am weak and just don't have the courage to leave because of family members who are still involved. Because of the threat of withdrawal for murmuring it's impossible to ask others what they think of the blog posts and videos. I am sure I will leave someday, I'm just not quite ready." ~Anonymous

"I'm currently a member in "good standing" in the church. I read the blog, even though its frowned upon. I can't begin to tell you how closely the comments and personal testimonies align and match what's happening in the church. You read something here, and it opens your eyes to that behavior now. so that when you see it happening, you instantly think about who it happened to here on this blog, and you know the damage it causing." ~Anonymous

"I’m not giving up on God like they believe I’m lost now. I’m so glad I found this blog. It helped open my eyes to what I was a part of for TOO long." ~Not going back

“The members of the church have a right to question and ask for Bible answers from those who are doing the preaching. But this is considered almost tantamount to heresy by the preachers of today; and if a member persists in such he is usually slandered and called a trouble-maker… We should know our Bible and we should be ready and willing to take a stand for the truth. We are commanded to ‘contend for the truth.’ But this can hardly be done seeing that the church is ignorant and the preachers are content to have it so. Individually and collectively we should take scriptural stands upon all subjects…” Merie Weiss (Brethren Letter, 1967) More Merie Quotes

“But men cannot give up their opinions, and therefore, they can never unite, says one. We do not ask them to give up their opinions–we ask them only not to impose them upon others. Let them hold their opinions, but let them hold them as private property. The faith is public property; opinions are, and always have been private property. Men have foolishly attempted to make the deductions of some great minds the common measure of all Christians. Hence the deductions of a Luther, and a Calvin, and a Wesley, have been the rule and measure of all who coalesce under the names of these leaders. It is cruel to excommunicate a man because of the imbecility of his intellect.” Alexander Campbell

"Someone told me here just recently that, Gary, do you realize what’s happening, under cover? People are coming out and expressing what it is that they feel, their disdain and contempt for what you believe. I’ve got to know how to respond. And I know how I respond. That’s the basis of this lesson. I refuse. I refuse, to the uttermost of my being to dignify the absurdity of the questions and the challenges in which it is that people will present. What I mean by that is that I will not honor, they are not worthy of my consideration. … [M]y whole estimation was to not give it a nickel’s worth of consideration. But I want to give you what it is how I deal with things like this. How I respond. Because I don’t. I don’t." Gary Preman

Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?Honor thy Father and Mother. This is the Fifth Commandment. The first four Commandments deal with man’s relationship with God, his creator. The near middle commandment, the Fifth, deals with man’s rel…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?From Lori Alexander’s “The Transformed Wife” blog. Women have been deceived into thinking God approves them teaching men in Bible classes. This is an error that has been in Stanton since Merie began i…
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Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?Women are better wives and mothers when they focus on their homes, husbands, and children instead of trying to teach in Bible classes and trying to lead churches. I noticed, a lot of men in Stanton ha…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?Last comment was censored by this website for no explicable reason.
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?On Reading and the Classics 2/3 Many children never got into reading, which is problematic, as this country was founded by men who were heavy readers. The first colleges in America, the Ivy League sch…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?On Reading and the Classics Part 1 of 2 Reading the classics has been frowned upon in Stanton. I’ve heard many times reading being discouraged. I’ve listened to many preachers state that they only rea…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?WHICH WAY MODERN WOMEN? From Lori Alexander’s blog, “The Transformed Wife” Author Unknown What does the Church teach about Womanhood and Marriage? Egalitarian – “Equality” of sexes, marriage is mutual…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?“It’s your pride” How many times have those of us who disagreed with teachers been told this? And yet, women who speak publicly in church and the men who defend them are proud, promoting women in role…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?Which woman in the New Testament ever dared to teach men in a formal meeting? I don’t see a single instance. But, it happens in nearly every single Bible class in nearly every church in Stanton. Which…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?The Classics. This great literature is well worth reading. It contains wisdom of the past centuries, and tales of these past centuries convey to us what Christian life was like over the past 2,000 yea…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?Let us consider, would any woman in Stanton have consented to marry and join Stanton if it taught the Biblical role for women and not Merie’s ahistorical version? Likely not. The Bible clearly teaches…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?It’s wonderful that young women in Stanton are raised to be virtuous mothers. But, it’s a tragedy that many of their mothers and the women in Stanton set a terrible example for them by speaking in Bib…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?“Keep the church pure” This has been a noble sentiment of Stanton since its inception. Unfortunately it becomes far more difficult when women are out of their place and insist on assuming the duties t…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?Communism comes from the Jewish Talmud. Judaism regards the Talmud as having more authority than the Old Testament and Torah. Communism murdered 100 million in 100 years, the worst death machine in wo…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?The Russian Peasants knew what 90% of naive Americans don't know today, that it was the Jews behind the Bloody Bolshevik Revolution that murdered 40 million Russians. From Major Robert Williams, “Know…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?It is very easy to deceive women. That is why God instructed them to be silent in the church. Women frequently lack the acuity to clearly perceive evil agendas, and appeals to their maternal instincts…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?Men are to blame for marital and societal issues with women. And behind it are degenerate Jews. Weak men use pornography, watch television, and use drugs. 90% of men in America are into one of more of…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?Two questions occurred to me yesterday, and I am thankful for them in the spirit of today. They are related. 1) Why does Stanton not have any Bishops, Deacons, and Elders? And why haven’t they had any…
Truth Defender on Here’s Joe Gautreau’s letter of withdrawal…where do I start?A quarrelsome woman. Funny how this is an epidemic among women, and yet, I never heard a Bible class on quarrelsome women in the history of Stanton. I heard lots of classes on lust, pride, slothfulnes…

Confessions from Donna Bennum