There were a series of letters and lessons written by Merie Weiss that led up to or followed her split from the mainstream Churches of Christ. Here are some of the documents that have been circulated by the church over the years. The most commonly referenced when I was growing up were the Brethren Letter, Moyer Letter, Holy Spirit Lesson, and Church Lesson.

Thanks to several contributors for filling in some of the gaps in this collection.

  • The Brethren Letter (1967) – This was the “open letter” sent to the “brotherhood” of Churches of Christ that Merie acknowledge as “faithful churches” at the time. Essentially her split was really a “split of a split of a split,” because the Churches of Christ had already been fractured by schismatic teaching over 70 years.
  • Letter to Brother Cogdill (1968) – This was a letter from Merie to Roy Cogdill about the state of the “conservative” faction of the Church of Christ and it’s expressed interest in holding dialogue with the “liberal” faction at the Arlington Meeting.
  • The Moyer Letter – This is an “open letter” to a Church of Christ preacher named Forest Moyer with whom Merie had engaged in a number of doctrinal arguments.
  • Reply To Moyer Letter (1971) – This is a letter written to Merie in reply to her open letter to Forest Moyer. It includes Merie’s handwritten notes in response.
  • Public Confession – This is a study done by Merie on the subject of public confession in the church.
  • Angels – This study was done by Merie on the subject of angels. I don’t have the date it was published.
  • The Holy Spirit Lesson (1973) – This is a lesson prepared by Merie to support her view that the subject of the Holy Spirit was being incorrectly taught in Church of Christ doctrine.
  • Twelve Questions To Spring Valley & Answers (1975) – A nearby church (Seminole Drive Church of Christ in San Diego) posed 12 questions to the Spring Valley church led by Merie in order to determine Spring Valley’s stance on various issues. This document is Spring Valley’s response to those questions.
  • Baptism of the Holy Spirit (1977) – This was a letter prepared by Merie and sent to Debbie Morris in Boise to support Merie’s view on the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
  • The Church Lesson – This lesson was prepared by Merie to give some fundamentals lines of reasoning for church members knocking on doors so they would at least have the appearance of Biblical truth supporting their claims to be the “one true church.”
  • Put Up Thy Sword – This book caused some concern in the church when Merie first wrote it, because they had been adamantly taught not to waste time reading “books of men,” but to only study the Bible. Nevertheless, she wrote the book and it was published and distributed to the churches. I don’t know whether she paid the publishing costs or if the church did. I seem to remember discussions about the church paying for it, but if anyone has accurate information, please let me know.
This is just a sample non-member lesson delivered by Merie:
  • Non-Member’s Lesson – This MP3 of Merie is the only one I personally have, and it’s only part 1 of 4 of a non-member lesson she gave.