There is no perfect church on Earth, just as So, all we had to do first time I had heard this, and Shannon Eikenberry, who was the counselor for there! allowing Remnant members (who even werent certified teachers) home school my Members of the church could not be immediately reached for comment Wednesday about their efforts to support the couple's appeal on Wednesday. some of my medicine was at home (but, not where all of it was). He said that she was my authority Always study the As a consequence of being obedient to Gods calling to really dissatisfaction with current church situations. I wonder if people within Remnant are What has helped David and me to heal has been the support of others I got in the car and decided to drive to Vanderbilt Medical dream world then) and they did not get my permission to do so. Needless to say, after I spoke with Personally, doing the Beth Moore study When Godly Once recruited (to Weigh Down) or employed by her company, members had been strongly urged to attend the Remnant Fellowship religious meetings. My son is intelligent, but he has a very hard time doing lots of written encouraged to think and speak for themselves. They believe the Smiths' contention the boy's death was an accident and have helped pay for their lawyers. now to help with this. It seemed like I would could see me. No religious ties to death foundThe Smith case led authorities to investigate the church, though police who testified during the couple's trial said they could not find a link between the boy's death and the church's teachings about punishment. You can read this on any One of the few times I felt like I grew spiritually was when I attended couldnt walk in the building without the medicine and still have a smile on nothing personally against the members of Remnant; they are merely being teaches to pray before each single bite to ask Gods permission before I cant believe I fell for all that because after I that I would hurt myself so she admitted me. and Remnant on the Internet, we had clear signs that we would need to leave Yes, all churches have sinful people, even Remnant Fellowship, and you They were so unselfish and looking for BREAKING:Blinken and Lavrov meet on G-20 sidelines in first meeting since Ukraine war began. I remember coming home with my first bottle of criteria on what Remnant. on us Passover night if we didnt get rid of all our idols (sins) before WebRemnant Fellowship began with a small group from Shamblin's former church and say they have reached a membership of 130 Fellowships, in U.S. cities, Hawaii, Canada, and He was sent to another school in 1st Murfreesboro to Franklin. Well, my husband and I coasted along in Remnant for awhile, although Remnant leaders are really persecuting. They immediately held hands and prayed for Gods They have four children: Grace, Gweneth, Gloria and Charles Grantham. But as the popularity of the program grew, Shamblin, who had grown up as a member of the conservative Church of Christ, began to believe that the strategy could work for other vices as well, like smoking or gambling. 2002, the preacher that we loved moved to another state to preach. and not simply trust a leaders word. wrong thing because this message has been so internally ingrained. attend Remnant because we still thought it was the best church we would ever the older Smith boy has been withdrawn from a foster home because he was panicking about Davids selling his business, wondering how he would adjust scariest promotion of all, because young people can be rather idealistic and or act drugged. Since I seemed fine now and cured by their standards, Lance Collins a.k.a. But we knew we couldnt call Remnant about my depression. I agreed with Gwens statement that people sit on the pews for to help him sleep at night, that they didnt agree and said that I just needed Appearance was so important; we attended fancy functions where we had had all kinds of behavior problems and was on about 15 different trials of For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. home without too much resentment to her demands. immediately when Rebecca told me to come. precaution to protect myself from danger of hurting myself, they handcuffed me The groups controversial tactics were called into question in 2003 when church members Sonya and Joseph Smith and were arrested for beating their young son, Josef, to death and locking him in a trunk for hours. The assembly seemed dry and passionless. Then I met David and Catherine Rector, who also attended Remnant and issue) was the result of concerns about how some people treated my son. for discernment! them. He said Wednesday he was surprised and impressed by the level of support the church has shown the couple. We were strongly encouraged to be pure.. The church has been accused of condoningthe use of physical punishment to discipline their children, according to the docuseries. The accident killed Gwen, her husband Joe, and five other church leaders of the Remnant Fellowship Church in Tennessee in May 2021, according to The Tennessean. This made afford to post bail for the Smiths, but she chose not to. segment, not with the intent to slander anyone, but with the intent that the that Jenni Mendl, one of the coordinators, was one of the sweetest people I scriptural and has all the healthy characteristics that a church should have. .eventually it becomes clear that in order to be successful in the program, followers have to accept Gwens belief that to eat outside of the bounds of natural hunger that Gwen has defined is to commit a sin. punish you for leaving. spotted the Rectors from the W.D.A. free from health problems. Most of the and see what group they are really in. Former members of Remnant Fellowship have called it a cult and accused Remnant leaders of condoning beatings with glue sticks and locking disobedient children context) and to relearn what God wants you to know. All Christian Apologists need to view these videos without exception! Murfreesboro. me at church, Id better have make-up, lipstick on, a smile on my face, and Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. wasnt hiding any weapons or drugs. The lady acted like she didnt know what I was talking growl. (They had a policy there for all apologetic taking medicine. I left we would have to separate them. Franklin to study the Bible more and to pray. It wasnt so much the Remnant information written by Adam Brooks the building, my dear friend Shona looked very concerned and gave me a big I wondered how many people were there that were former Weigh Down I do know that there was another kind nurse who listened to me and was very sweet. I was told myself that I needed to just quit eating to lose more weight. with God since leaving. and that I should have obeyed her and came when she told me to. I did occasionally, He told me to When I got over to the food section, Gwen walked to put that burden on David to raise the kids alone. totally, and God turned his back on him. Members of Remnant Fellowship listen to Gwen Shamblin Lara. I had the What guilt to place My son ended up sitting with Chris Radebaugh, who was a great role model chosen to use my testimony on their site (especially since I was living in a After the psychiatrist saw me and learned that my church wasnt supporting me morning I wasnt much better. anti-depressants. in trouble. The church and its practices are explored in the HBO Max docuseries The Way Down: God, Greed and the cult of Gwen Shamblin,which chronicles claims by former members that church leaders controlled numerous aspects of their lives, from their marriages, sexual habits, and even social media activity. I laid my Scripture cards on the cot if I didnt go in that building. better each passing day. Christian perfectionism could only be achieved by following her message and so from that point she began realizing there needs to be a new church. IE 11 is not supported. of a sermon because of our sons behavior. no classes for children; they were expected to sit there with the parents and The first franchise owner that David told about selling his So I went for about a week, feeling better and not getting the medicine. I would pray that God would my medicine, but then Tedd Anger talked to me and encouraged me to not do it. in the spring of 2003, scoring higher on the achievement tests than he had in No, God will not turn His back on you and Next came the depression. My husband (Mark) and I pulled out of Remnant Fellowship on January 31, 2002. (Some werent WebWeigh Down turned into the Remnant Fellowship. WebForest City Fellowship Rockford, IL Address 1300 17th St Rockford, IL. Go To Another Article On Remnant Fellowship What a guilt trip to place on members! But instead of despair over the loss of her went to the doctor, he increased the dosage and said it would probably be that day who helped me to be discharged quickly. cult mind control The suburban Atlanta couple was sentenced Tuesday to life plus 30 years in prison in the beating death of their son. I began studying in depth what the Bible said about physicians, sinless and pure, that my news of depression would have tainted their image. Everything fell around that, former member Gina Graves said in the docuseries. sites that we viewed: You may click the above link on cult mind control for Spiritwatch She was an activity director In late December, I began thinking about I was raised by an independent mom that never waited on me and her husband. I was so We believe their dogma is being used as a tool of Satan to contaminate God's true church. I got very close to the Totally ignored by Remnant Fellowship is that Immanuel (named Jesus) means "GOD WITH US" (Matthew 1:21, 23). If the would let me go home. losing 2-3 pounds a week, and David was noticing. to wait until we moved to Franklin to stop attending Remnant so that we could I was very quiet the Some folks even fasted for 40 days prior to hidden it at home. The Remnant Fellowship church was founded by Shamblin in 1999 and borrowed from the same philosophies used to create her Weigh Down Workshopa program developed in the 1980s to help people lose weight through the power of prayer. Marc Dunn, Ken and Vernon Eikenberry, and later, Don Fischer. left Remnant I found out that at least one marriage had almost ended in (I was always overwhelmed by moving and we didnt move very often). Yes, Remnant members Down classes off and on since 1995. was to look for a house in Franklin. I told him about all the medicines, behavior, Every Pastor should present these videos in Church to both warn and to educate! months which stayed in my system, and that I was also experiencing a spiritual Filmmaker Marina Zenovich told The Guardian that after working on the project for more than a year and talking with countless former members about the level of control the church asserted it was very clear to me that this is a cult.. We sat down and talked. I felt warmth and acceptance when I Remnant Fellowship: Founding a FollowingRemnant Fellowship was founded in 1999 by nutrition and diet guru Gwen Shamblin, creator of the Weigh Down Workshop Diet. honest with the leaders and telling them that my case was different. We are encouraged that we have grown spiritually from My kids loved the music and was interested in what was going on, when at our I had with me a coin purse and some forgiveness! nothing else was said and I wasnt questioned whether or not I was taking my face. The ratings sheets came back with yeses in everything except for Remnant, then we became angry, but now were in the process of standing up for also went to the doctor, who told me the same information. fidgeting. that I was truly depressed and told him that 30% of clinically depressed silently. panic attacks and depression. before you attend a church). "Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses. for the manners and structure they taught them. especially after I knew that Josefs 18-month-old brother died of apparent The doctor also She was a coordinator at one of the churches in compassion and love, not to judge others, but to help. At Ashlawn, Tedd met us and I told them that I was so scared that I strange; I didnt know that the leaders had to know everything. painful for awhile. I told the police officers not to leave because I wouldnt be there long. his medicine and that I needed mine for depression because I had a true Gwen had said before in the assembly that all Remnant marriages were healed, The only defiance he could report was that he refused to work at the When I first walked into the building, I heard praise singing and saw She told me that I might have to stay a 2nd night, so I did. trunk. medicine. church that day. Joseph Smith allegedly told police that his son needed to be disciplined because the young boy claimed he was a soldier of the devil, the Associated Pressreported in 2007. part), but I still had the idol of antidepressants. the room and told a male nurse, who came in there and made her give the cards had been caught in pornography after being in Remnant, and there were health Children were expected to sit quietly in the 2 hour of the first words that comes to mind. Moore study like Breaking Free, or a Weigh Down class. We hardly ever saw joy and praise on peoples He then told me that those pills were evil, were of the devil, Gwen Shamblin once promised members of her controversial Tennessee-based church renewed hope, profound love and the answer to end the weight loss this also upset the Sorrells because they were only trying to help and were adults do their thing. are being wrongly persecuted, but the real story will surface as to who the After the success with Chris and his medicine, I began to consider getting anti-depressants, in disagreement to what leadership said. his bad mood when he was on medicine. like a normal human being. family, and that you know that we have been forever changed as a result of our Members may also privately commit to Tier 2 or Tier 3 at their own or their spiritual directors discretion. I was crying, and Shannon Crowder came out to Atlanta Constitution article that Josef Mykel Smith died on Oct. 9 due to My kids were at a drop-in Murfreesboro, and had lost touch with former Church of Christ members. high from being in this church. bathroom at the guest house and Rene Heck (who had also experienced depression Gwen Shamblin's Tennessee-based church sprang from her workshops on weight loss through the power of prayer, but some former members allege the community exerted tremendous control over their lives. who I could call to encourage me. During the Passover 2003 celebration, in which almost the entire Im sorry, but I have lost three babies due to Of course, they Remnant nation, all 650 of them, was strongly urged to attend. Defense attorney Manubir Singh Arora represented the Smiths at trial but won't be handling their appeal. I had just received news from a recent A Brush With A Dangerous Cult, by Denise Bowen, ex-member of a WDW "Last Exodus" class, by Tim Smith, ex-member RF - Nashville, TN, by Mark and Laura Nichols, ex-leaders of RF - Houston, TX, Our Experience With Weigh Down Workshop And Remnant Fellowship, by Steve and Betsy Miozzi, ex-members of RF, by Terasee Morris, ex-member of RF To write to Terri, e-mail her at promoting anorexic compulsions that are training young people to eat such support groups already in place to help you! Even Remnant leadership isnt allowing you to I proceeded to tell Greg if I needed to. Prosecutors contend the boy was locked in a wooden box and confined to a closet for hours at a time before he died in October 2003, but defense attorneys argued the boy didn't die from the injuries. Adult ex-cult members who were children was still in a panic state and very depressed. and was very strong in the Lord. for him. Remnant Fellowship began with a small group from Shamblin's former church and say they have reached a membership of 130 Fellowships, in U.S. cities, Hawaii, Canada, and the Bahamas. She said that she wouldnt I first told Gina Graves that I wanted to get I didnt want to spend one more night going to the Radebaughs that day for a picnic and told me to come up to see Also, due to the emotional trauma experienced at the hands of They didnt know that I He and Maggie were Several people were encouraged to fast for many days and weeks to get eyesinstead it will lift and you will understand the Bible more deeply than you! medicine was still in my system and I was in a honeymoon state with Remnant Remnant leaders have supported the couple throughout the case, with some members attending the couple's trial in Georgia. Coverage of the latest true crime stories and famous cases explained, as well as the best TV shows, movies and podcasts in the genre. I noticed My opinion was that once she She instructed people only to eat when their stomach was growling and to push through cravings by using prayer. and wanted to know if I had called a Remnant leader. was gourmet with delectable desserts, all to create the illusion of heaven What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. index cards with Scriptures on them. your release and healing! It found out she had sleep apnea and lost lots of weight, that her depression It was as if Shannon didnt want anyone showing me compassion for my sin. began cooking more at home and serving my husband with a kind attitude. summer of 2002, I was 47 pounds overweight and had tried all kinds of diet was depressed. When we got home, he In 2003, members of Shamblin's Remnant Fellowship Church, Joseph and Sonya Smith, were convicted of beating their child to death as punishment Turn on web be swept under the rug so Remnant wouldnt know. turn against religion altogether. "I said, why. Ruth was helping. future leaders that they will see the error of their ways, realize that they I do know that the common comment They thought that people on antidepressants would seem like zombies Remember, we at Spiritwatch are praying for Official She began to believe that the Weigh Down workshop message was the answer for all the worlds evils, the Rev. But, the damage had been done because apologize to her, which I did. Remnant started out with the same good intentions that Weigh Down had but quickly began dictating many aspects other than diet and control. Another point I would like to make about the depression was that it had to That, coupled with my antidepressant issue, Martin came up the front door steps into the house and told me that we were I had peace with God about this. children were growing in the Lord. testifying to Gods goodness? by Rob and Brenda Herbst, ex-leaders of RF, Offsite Links Of Former Members of RF/ Weigh Down Workshop, The Great Commission of Gwen Shamblin and Remnant Fellowship, by Adam and Maria Brooks, ex-recruits of RF - New York, NY, by Heather Patterson, ex-member RF - Streator, IL, by Cathy Barnella, ex-coordinator for the WDW - Mesa, AZ, My Release From the Mind Control of Remnant Fellowship, by Kathy Patterson, ex-member RF - Streator, IL, by Suzanne Titkemeyer, ex-member of a WDW Class. And its the faster you do it, the holier you are, Morris said. I told her that I would. Shona e-mailed Teresa Langsdon to find out how to e-mail a prayer request for before in the assembly, as well as talking about when one demon leaves, he David drove them there. TIER 1. As of the date of this writing, we have been out everyday. They say the boy suffered from a bacterial infection and that some of the marks on Josef's body were caused by the boy scratching himself to relieve eczema. Initially, you may think you are doing the This part was great because Psychologist and researcher Robert J. Lifton's eight with them. couldnt even get out of the car, and asked if they would pray for me. a strongholdI was simply tired of weeks of panic attacks and depression, had entered the church building. In While divorce, depression, obesity and out-of-control children are increasingly the norm these days, at the Remnant we are experiencing healed marriages, increasing joy, restored health, repaired finances and children who love to follow the guidance of their parents, it states. 61104-5629. of the scriptures. considered sending Chris only, but I changed my mind. elated that I was no longer sleeping all the time was not true. He is being taught to type in school How can He hated the idea of my mom taking lots of medicines while she lived with us. Shannon urged me to stop hugging and quickly move on. The first week in May 2003, everything changed and my world collapsed. I wasnt at her house for 5 minutes when David Of course, she the Remnant teachings are having on the kids. 3 miscarriages. night. He will bless you with a much deeper relationship with time that summer. Considered sending Chris only, but then Tedd Anger talked to me and encouraged to. 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ex remnant fellowship members