The LIES of the ICOC and ICC bible studies [How the ICOC and ICC use deception to gain members]

 

One of the spiritually abusive practices of the ICOC and ICC is the churches' indoctrination process known as the first principle studies,  commonly known as the bible studies. 

These first principle studies are a series of foundational studies one must successfully complete to be 'saved" and water-baptized. Once these actions are achieved, the person is accepted as a member of the "movement".  These studies are discipleship-based, with the goal of making the "student" into a "disciple". 

First Principle bible studies include: Word study, Cross (Crucifixtion) study, Discipleship study, Sin and Repentance study, Kingdom study, Denominations study, Light & Darkness study, and Counting the Costs study. There are also some additional studies, such as the Seeking God study, that are optional. 

These "discipleship studies" are very deceptive. For starters, the person invited to the study is led to believe that the "bible study" is a collaborative exchange of ideas where everyone is on an even playing field. When I was asked if I wanted to "study the bible" after the first ICOC Sunday service I attended, I said yes. I was interested in learning more about the bible and thought the format of a college- student bible club would be worth a go. What I didn't expect was to walk into a session where it was them against me. One girl controlled the study while the other girl used my pad to take notes "for me" so I could "focus". This girl fired questions at me and sat there, staring me down, expecting me to answer. I could sense the underlying power dynamic in the study and it was very subversive psychologically.  It didn't take long to realize that this "bible study" was no even playing field. I had unknowingly walked into an ambush. I felt so blindsided.

Secondly, these "bible studies" are presented as a spiritual learning experience. It is not. These "studies" are a pre-packaged set of scriptures and study topics (i.e. the Word study has the same set of scriptures with pre-set questions that go with each scripture).  I remember getting a copy of the First Principles after I was baptized so I can do the "studies" with non-members. At the time, I looked at the studies as a sort of honorary "passing of the torch"--a curriculum rather than a tool of indoctrination. That's what happens when you're indoctrinated. You believe what they instill in you to believe. 

They claim to be "studying the bible" with people. 

So, what is studying?

Studying is an activity where one explores a topic or a set of topics to find the truth of whatever it is one is exploring. 

Here is the official definition of what "studying" means (as a verb}:

verb

1. 1.

   devote time and attention to acquiring knowledge on (an academic subject), especially by means of books.

   "she studied biology and botany"

When an ICOC or ICC member asks someone to "study the bible" it is not to acquire knowledge. It is convincing someone through the guise of acquiring knowledge to subject themselves to a process of indoctrination. 

Look at the definition of indoctrination versus education:

The difference between education and indoctrination is:

 

EDUCATION opens the mind. 

INDOCTRINATION closes the mind.

 

EDUCATION is a process-driven approach to engaging in the knowledge and ideas of the world. Education is playful, experimental, mysterious. Education opens doors of intellectual exploration and equips its students with the tools they will need to dissect, analyze, and interpret the information that they find.

INDOCTRINATION is a results-driven approach that aims to instill in people a set of habits and beliefs that align with an ideology or political agenda. Indoctrination narrows the lens through which we are able to see the world and insures that all of the information we receive is interpreted through the filter of the promoted ideology.

*original source:  

http://www.democraticeducation.org/index.php/blog/article/education_or_indoctrination/

The ICOC and ICC studies are tools of indoctrination. Every last one of these studies are put together with a specific intent of indoctrinating the non-ICOC or non-ICC member with the church's ideology. As the definition above states, the ICOC and ICC studies are a results-driven approach that aims to instill in people a set of habits and beliefs that align with the church's ideology.

The ICOC and ICC bible studies narrow the lens through which the person is able to see the world and insures that all of the information the person receives through the studies is interpreted through the filter of the promoted ICOC and ICC ideology.

For example, the ICOC "Kingdom study" imposes on the individual the narrow worldview that the ICOC church is the one true church on earth, using absolutist, simplistic equations like "ICOC= church = God's Kingdom". This narrow-minded lens sees anyone not in the ICOC as lost and going to hell.

Informed consent 

Another issue: The order in which the studies are done is intentional. The bible studies are a sales funnel designed to take a free-thinking person from being a "lost soul" to a "saved disciple".  The church members never provide people with informed consent before starting the studies. The person, therefore, is agreeing to something they do not understand. And this is done on purpose. 

What if the ICOC or ICC member was more transparent and said:

 "Would you like to do a bible study with us as a learner? This will not be a group meeting, it's a set of instructional studies we do with people to train them in [our view] of the bible." 

OR:

"Would you like to join our church? We have a series of studies you have to do in order to be considered a member. Are you interested?" 

If the studies are presented in a more transparent way, as illustrated above, how many people would agree to come to a bible study? Not many. So, these studies have to be presented in a benign, non-threatening way to hide their intentions of imparting onto you their cult ideology. 

The Boiling Frog 

Another way the ICOC and ICC deceive newcomers is by the sin of omission. They ask someone to "study the bible" without telling them that it is a series of bible studies, not just one. Church members come across very light and casual, using a "no pressure, hey do you want to get together?" vibe. But in reality, the non-member is a cult target, a frog stepping into a pot of water that is cold. 

Here's how it works:

First bible study: cold water. You [the frog] step into the pot of cold water.

Second bible study: heat on low. You [the frog] may feel a little heat but dismiss it.

Third study: medium low heat. You [the frog] feel a little warmer but you don't think you're in danger.

Fourth/Fifth study: medium heat. You [frog] start sweating. 

Sixth study: medium high heat. You [froggie] start feeling uncomfortable. You stay in the pot, since you are already used to it.

...By the time the heat is on high [boiling], it's too late. The damage is done. The trauma-based programming has been inflicted. Your boundaries are dismantled and the mind control has taken hold. This is usually the state of euphoria when the person starts thinking things like, "I'm happier than I've ever been".  After the pain of the trauma during the indoctrination process, the conditional acceptance of finally becoming a member feels like you're on top of the world in comparison. 

Darkness into light

When you start doing the bible studies with ICOC or ICC members, you have no clue what you're signing up for. The members are taught to leave the person studying the bible in the dark for the first few studies. 

 

Each individual study is used as a breadcrumb to lead the person forward toward an undisclosed goal. The ladies studying the bible with me never told me anything beyond the next study. So when I did the "discipleship" study, they asked me if I wanted to get together again to do something called the "sin and repentance" study. But they never informed me what the overall objective of the studies were. I didn't learn about baptism until the very end of the indoctrination process. By the time baptism was mentioned it was in the "Light and Darkness" study toward the end, right before the final study, "counting the costs".

By the time I got to the end of the studies, I was a boiled frog. I had invested so much of my time, energy, focus, and devotion that I felt like it was too late to turn back. They tell you that. They instill fear in you. I became afraid that if I stopped the bible studies with them that I would be lost. Fear was instilled in me from the very first study. During the "Word study" the girl leading the study said, "Now that you know this, you're responsible to God for what you know." This means if I didn't take the call of action at the end of the study (at that time it was to believe the bible is the infallible word of God, to read my bible every day and to agree to another bible study) then my soul was in danger of hell. Now that I know what the bible said, God would judge me according to what I know on judgment day. That fear, embedded early on, is what kept me doing the studies despite all the red flags.

 

Doing the bible studies felt like walking into a dark tunnel. By the time you start having doubts and your spidey senses start tingling, you're so far in that it feels impossible to turn back. The ICOC and ICC members studying with you are prompting you to keep walking. They hint (subtly) that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, where they are already on the other side, so you keep walking. The hope is that you eventually see the light and get to where they are, the enlightened "land of milk and honey". 

This is done on purpose. People are deceived into this vague "hazing" process of going through these studies and endure the spiritual abuse of breaking you down so they can make you into a cookie-cutter "disciple".  

The spiritual "sales funnel"

The order of the bible studies are done to take the person down a "sales funnel" to getting baptized. There is a reason why the "softer, heart-based" studies are done first {Word, Cross, Discipleship}. These initial studies are done first because they "teach" basic normal Christian doctrine for the most part. All Christians believe the bible is the infallible word of God, that Jesus died on the cross for humanity and resurrected, and that following Jesus means being a good christian. With common christian teachings in these first set of studies, it disarms many people and thus sets the foundation for the person to endure the narrow-minded ideology of the later studies.

The "Cross study", for example, is meant to tap into the heart [or emotions] of the person, using guilt and shame to "break" him or her. This is done by reading through the story of Jesus' crucifixtion, paired with a so-called medical account written by a medical doctor as a trusted authority figure to validate the teaching. This medical account is intended to shock the person and jar them using the imagery of physical torture that Jesus went through "for their sins". It's similar to a mother telling their child all the horrors they endured giving birth to him or her. It is guilt-inducing. The fear and guilt in the initial studies anchors the person into trusting the process of the bible studies as you go along. Once these are done, the person is taken through the "hard" studies [light and darkness, denominations, sin and repentance].

The deceit of the first principle bible studies is that they are based on the end justifying the means. The deception is considered okay because the person is "lost" and needs to be "saved".  Just like the saying goes, "hurt people hurt people".  In the ICOC/ICC, you've got indoctrinated people indoctrinating people, perpetuating the cycle of trauma over and over in the name of "evangelism". 

If you are asked to do these bible studies by ICOC or ICC members, remember that:

1. You can say no. Don't allow them to love-bomb you into doing these studies.

2. If you are halfway through the studies, discontinue immediately. Don't let them lead you on to some vague light at the end of the tunnel. If you stop, nothing bad will happen. In fact, if you keep going, you're guaranteed bad things will happen. 

3. They are lying and being deceptive. You owe then nothing. They see you as a target for recruitment. You are not "studying the bible". You are being recruited into a cult church. 

4. These bible studies are meant to disarm you and break down your identity. They undermine your individuality so they can rebuild you into a cookie-cutter member of their group. 

Which leads us to to the final conclusion:

The ICOC and ICC are cults. Understanding what a cult is is so important to protecting yourself from predatory groups or "movements" like the ICOC and ICC. Click here to learn more about what the characteristics of a cult is. 

Stay safe. Have boundaries. And be self-aware. These bible studies are toxic and dangerous. People have been permanently scarred from these studies.