c***@gmail.com
2019-01-23 07:45:59 UTC
I have heard a rumor that Dr. Durst is no longer an active member of the
Unification Church. Does this rumor have any truth? If this happens
to be old news, then my ignorance is simply due to having only joined
this newsgroup recently. If this is a false rumor, then fine, let me
know.
I remember Dr. Durst from my first days in the so-called "Creative
Community Project" in San Francisco, 1976. Durst was great for giving a
lively lecture that had little real content. He was well-liked by the
members, in contrast to his evil, scheming wife, Onni Soo Lim, who had
somehow gotten him into her cultic clutches and hastily married him,
presumably for the Immigration advantages this would allow her. In
those days the members of the Oakland Family called her "Omma" as in
"Momma" and Dr. Durst was called "Oppa" as in "Poppa". They were like a
second set of substitute parents, and during the brief time that I was a
member in Oakland (late 1976), they were revered almost as highly as the
so-called "True Parents", and certainly seemed more real to the members.
The Oakland Family was, in fact, a cult-within-a-cult, and its greater
success in harvesting victims through its witnessing campaigns was
primarily due to Onni's faithful imitation of Moon's personality cult,
along with some innovations designed to appeal to Westerners. Onni
created a personality cult around herself that easily rivalled that of
Moon. To combat this, without giving the appearance of directly
suppressing her, Moon decided in 1979 to elevate the Dursts to
leadership of all of California, and again in 1980 he made them
leaders of the entire America church. Furthermore, Moon switched the
emphasis away from Onni and onto Dr. Durst. This had the effect (no
doubt intentional) of killing off the Onni personality cult. Moon
didn't care that the Oakland Family was more successful with its
existing methods; he just wanted to ensure there were no rivals for his
egotism.
I certainly would be happy to hear that Durst had managed to escape from
this madness.
Sincerely, K. Gordon Neufeld
--
_____________________________________________
"Zeal was not enough. Orthodoxy was unconsciousness."
- George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Share what you know. Learn what you don't.
Dr. John Didsbury passed away in New Zealand with his wife and 4 kids. I remember the group, as I was at the Ashley house. Some people were nice, but I got out soon as it felt all wrong.Unification Church. Does this rumor have any truth? If this happens
to be old news, then my ignorance is simply due to having only joined
this newsgroup recently. If this is a false rumor, then fine, let me
know.
I remember Dr. Durst from my first days in the so-called "Creative
Community Project" in San Francisco, 1976. Durst was great for giving a
lively lecture that had little real content. He was well-liked by the
members, in contrast to his evil, scheming wife, Onni Soo Lim, who had
somehow gotten him into her cultic clutches and hastily married him,
presumably for the Immigration advantages this would allow her. In
those days the members of the Oakland Family called her "Omma" as in
"Momma" and Dr. Durst was called "Oppa" as in "Poppa". They were like a
second set of substitute parents, and during the brief time that I was a
member in Oakland (late 1976), they were revered almost as highly as the
so-called "True Parents", and certainly seemed more real to the members.
The Oakland Family was, in fact, a cult-within-a-cult, and its greater
success in harvesting victims through its witnessing campaigns was
primarily due to Onni's faithful imitation of Moon's personality cult,
along with some innovations designed to appeal to Westerners. Onni
created a personality cult around herself that easily rivalled that of
Moon. To combat this, without giving the appearance of directly
suppressing her, Moon decided in 1979 to elevate the Dursts to
leadership of all of California, and again in 1980 he made them
leaders of the entire America church. Furthermore, Moon switched the
emphasis away from Onni and onto Dr. Durst. This had the effect (no
doubt intentional) of killing off the Onni personality cult. Moon
didn't care that the Oakland Family was more successful with its
existing methods; he just wanted to ensure there were no rivals for his
egotism.
I certainly would be happy to hear that Durst had managed to escape from
this madness.
Sincerely, K. Gordon Neufeld
--
_____________________________________________
"Zeal was not enough. Orthodoxy was unconsciousness."
- George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Share what you know. Learn what you don't.