Sword of the Spirit

The Sword of the Spirit, which takes its roots from the Shepherding movement,[2][3] is an international, ecumenical association of Christian communities within the Charismatic Movement.[4] The member communities are composed predominately of laypersons.[5]

For the charitable organization, see Progressio (organization).
The Sword of the Spirit
AbbreviationSOS
Formation1982
TypeEcumenical Christian organization
Membership
90 communities,
14,000+ total members[1]
Websitewww.swordofthespirit.net

History

The Sword of the Spirit was founded by Ralph Martin and Steve Clark in 1982.[3] Clark was born in 1940, and studied at Yale University, the University of Freiburg, and the University of Notre Dame.[4] He worked with Ralph Martin as an early leader of the Charismatic Movement in Michigan, publishing several books on charismatic spirituality and Christian community building,[4] many through the Sword of the Spirit self-publication Servant Publications (often Servant Books).

The Sword of the Spirit developed as the umbrella network centred around the Word of God (community) in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where the it was a prolific organisation amongst the initial charismatic covenant community organisations such as People of Praise and Mother of God Community.[6][7]

Member communities

Word of God

The initial federation of Sword of the Spirit communities included the Word of God community in Ann Arbor, Michigan.[3]

In 1990, the Word of God disaffiliated with the Sword of the Spirit following an investigation into abuses within the community by Bishop Albert Ottenweller.[8][9]

Founders Steve Clark and Ralph Martin split, Martin remaining with Word of God, and Clark remaining with Sword of the Spirit. Following the disaffiliation, Martin said that the Sword of the Spirit training course was "an ill-advised venture that led to considerable confusion, turmoil, spiritual distress both in individuals and in the community as a body," "fostered elitism," "attempted to build a comprehensive Christian culture by fiat," was especially harmful to women and "had a negative impact on many marriages and placed undue stress on many families."[8] The split from Word of God saw 15 further communities leave the Sword of the Spirit.[10]

The Word of God community has traditionally implemented a hierarchical structure, where male 'leaders' within the group were in charge of male community members decisions "down to minor family matters", and female community members were similarly subject to relevant male household heads.[11]

People of Praise (US)

The Sword of the Spirit historically devolves from an initial 'association of communities' created by the Word of God (community) and the People of Praise. In 1981 the association was disbanded due to lack of agreement between leadership of the two groups, prompting the founding of the Sword of the Spirit to act as a replacement association of communities centred around the Word of God community. People of Praise have not been affiliated with the Sword of the Spirit since 1981.[10]

Servants of Christ the King

The Servants of Christ the King community,[3] Ohio, led by Sword of the Spirit senior coordinator Father Michael Scanlan [12] was among the initial federation of Sword of the Spirit communities.

The Servants of Christ the King disaffiliated from the Sword of the Spirit in 1991 under the orders of Bishop Ottenweller, following findings that the Sword of the Spirit influence was controlling, elitist, secretive, fundamentalist, and intruded on family life.[8]

Servant of Christ the King leader, and Sword of the Spirit senior coordinator, Father Michael Scanlan (priest), was involved in a sex abuse scandal at the Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio, where he presided as president of the institution. A revelation came about in late 2018 that a former chaplain at Franciscan of Steubenville, Father Sam Tiesi,[13] had engaged in years-long abuse of women at the university. It has been reported by multiple victims that they made Father Scanlan aware but he did nothing or, in at least one case, verbally assaulted the accuser. Instead of dealing with the abuse he participated in covering up and silencing those who would report his close friend, Father Tiesi.[14]

Alongside Tiesi and Scanlan, a third Servants of Christ the King member is noted as involved in this sex abuse scandal: televangelist John Bertolucci, who is noted as having multiple previous sex abuse allegations, and was dismissed by the Diocese of Albany in 2002 following previous admission of paedophilia and other abuse of minors by Bertolucci.[15] John Bertolucci was also involved in Sword of the Spirit leadership, where he headed FIRE, a Catholic Sword of the Spirit branch.[16]

People of Hope

The People of Hope became affiliated with the Sword of the Spirit in 1983. In 1986, the Archbishop of Newark, Peter L. Gerty, ordered the People of Hope community to end their affiliation with the Sword of the Spirit.[17] Rev. Philipp Rotunno, liaison for charismatic renewal, stated the Sword of the Spirit believed they were "fighting an Empire of Evil". Previous membership of the People of Hope have made claims that leadership thought they were "anointed by god", exerted excessive control over community members, and enforced the subservient role of women, dubbed "handmaidens", in the community.[17]

The People of Hope remained an unrecognised Catholic lay community until 2007 on the grounds of complaints of "abuse, mind control, elitist behaviour and cult-like controls" from ex-members of the group. Archbishop Theodore McCarrick issued a public letter declaring that a school operated by the People of Hope, Koinonia Academy, “is not an approved Catholic school and it is not recommended for Catholic parents as a place where their children can receive Catholic education as supervised by the Church.” In 2007 Archbishop John Myers recognised the People of Hope as an official lay community of the Catholic church, saying the Archdiocese of Newark was satisfied that the People of Hope had made the changes demanded by previous investigation from officials of the Catholic church.[18]

Margaret Atwood states that the People of Hope, while a member of Sword of the Spirit in 1985, were inspiration for the book The Handmaid's Tale. Specifically Atwood calls the People of Hope a "cult" and refers to this group as inspiration due to the claims of the subjugation of women, isolationist nature, and practices of indoctrination observed within the group. [19]

People of Praise (India)

Current affiliated Sword of the Spirit covenant communities include the People of Praise in Bangalore, India, distinct from the now disaffiliated People of Praise in the United States.[20]

Servants of the Word

The Servants of the Word is an ecumenical Sword of the Spirit community of men.[5][21] The men are committed to serving within other Sword of the Spirit communities.[5]

Serious concerns were raised regarding Servants of the Word's child protection policy following the charging of Jamie Treadwell for sexual abuse of children while a member of Servants of the Word, where it became apparent that Servants of the Word leadership had been aware of similar allegations which had been reported to authorities regarding Treadwell and other Servants of the Word members for at least ten years.[22][23]

Sword of the Spirit Practices

Religious Practices

Religious practice within the Sword of the Spirit and other covenant communities within the Charismatic Christianity movement include a range of practices from Pentacostalism. These practices have historically included Exorcism and Demonology, Speaking in tongues, Spiritual gifts (or 'charisms'), Faith Healing and Prophecy.[3][24]

Gender roles

Gender roles within Sword of the Spirit communities have followed a conservative model of gender roles with patriarchal values, where males maintain headship over females within the communities.[3]

Islam, feminism, homosexuality and communism

Sword of the Spirit leader, Steven Clark, has presented a training course for disciples of the Sword of the Spirit, in which Clark identifies "global threats" which endanger the Sword of the Spirit mission to "build the Kingdom of God".[25] These four key opponents of Clarks model for Christianity are identified as "Islam, communism, feminism and gay rights".[3]

Reception

The Sword of the Spirit member communities have been subject to several interventions from local bishops of the catholic church throughout the organisation's history [26] following concerns from members of the communities that community leaders were "attempting to strictly control relationships and finances, and representing that control as the will of God." [27]

Ex-People of Praise Catholic Theologist Dr. Adrian J Reimers has rebuked the covenant community design propagated by the Sword of the Spirt, noting that the organisation is cult-like, claiming that the covenant community model represents "powerful means of psychological and social control", and that covenant communities such as those in Sword of the Spirit present a "world in which a person loses psychological control of his or her own life".[28]

Finance

The Sword of the Spirit finances its operations primarily through tithing, where community members are required to pay a percentage of their income to the community treasury.[3] Sword of the Spirit USA tax returns show a yearly revenue of around $1.5 million, with just under $1 million paid out in wages and salary, with a workforce of just under 30 employees.[29]

Academic study

Following the split between the Word of God community and the Sword of the Spirit some academic study was conducted at the Word of God community investigating the moral reasoning of children within the community, and analysing the capacity of the covenant community model presented by the Sword of the Spirit to transfer religion to a new generation. Csordas finds that young children "equate the conventional order of social life with the moral order of spiritual life" whereas teenagers are "often vehemently opposed to and critical of community ideology and its practices of enforcement", and proposes that such cultures may take 3 generations to stabilise.[30]

See also

References
  1. "Sword of the Spirit: About Us". Retrieved 2021-02-06.
  2. Diamond, Sara. Spiritual Warfare: The Politics of the Christian Right. London: Pluto Press. pp. 114, 122. |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  3. Csordas, Thomas J. (2001). Language, Charisma, and Creativity: Ritual Life in the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. University of California Press. p. 87.
  4. Thiselton, Anthony C. (2013). The Holy Spirit: In Biblical Teaching, Through the Centuries, and Today. William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company. p. 369. ISBN 978-0-8028-6875-6.
  5. Coleman, Simon; Hackett, Rosalind I. J. (2015). The Anthropology of Global Pentecostalism and Evangelicalism. NYU Press. pp. 136–137. ISBN 978-0814772591.
  6. Gillis, Justin (13 April 1997). "Rise and Fall of a Religious Community". Washington Post.
  7. Bernard, David K (1999). A History of Christian Doctrine (PDF). Word Aflame Press.
  8. Jones, Arthur (18 April 1997). "Communities falter under heavy hands". National Catholic Reporter.
  9. "Steubenville merits close scrutiny". National Catholic Reporter. 11 February 2000.
  10. Rush, Theophane (1994). "Covenant Communities in the United States". Pneuma. 16 (1): 233–245. doi:10.1163/157007494X00210. Retrieved 28 November 2020.
  11. Escobar, Gabriel (28 September 1997). "He's the Coach for the Faithful - Or the Far Right". Washington Post. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  12. Rodgers-Melnick, Ann (July 21, 1991). "Catholic charismatic communities in turmoil". The Pittsburgh Press.
  13. Giannamore, Paul. "Franciscan University names five priests accused of sexual misconduct". FOX. WTOV9. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
  14. Morson, Jenn (October 31, 2018). "Plaque's removal from Franciscan University exposes abuse by former chaplain". National Catholic Reporter. Retrieved August 14, 2019.
  15. Wakin, Daniel (June 29, 2002). "Six Priests Are Dismissed for Abuse of Minors". New York Times.
  16. Bellant, Russ (November 18, 1988). "When Right Goes Wrong". 25 (5). National Catholic Reporter.
  17. "Sect Causes Split in Jersey Parish". New York Times. May 4, 1986. p. 64.
  18. Allen, John (22 February 2007). "Charges of 'cult-like' behavior against NJ charismatics resolved, Myers says". National Catholic Reporter.
  19. "Margaret Atwood on the real-life events that inspired The Handmaid's Tale and The Testaments". Penguin. 9 September 2019.
  20. "About Us - People of Praise". peopleofpraise.co.in. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  21. Roberts, Judy (2002-05-19). "Charismatic Renewal Moves Into Church Mainstream". National Catholic Register. Retrieved 2019-07-29.
  22. Smith, Lindsey (January 30, 2020). "Multiple families accused man "living single for the Lord" of child sexual assault. He's still free". Michigan Radio.
  23. Smith, Lindsey (May 11, 2020). "New allegations surface against man investigated by Michigan Radio, judge sets $1 million bond". Michigan Radio.
  24. Clark, Stephen (2011). The Life in the Spirit Seminars Team Manual (PDF) (Catholic Edition (2011) ed.). 4828 S. Hagadorn Road East Lansing, Michigan 48823: Tabor House. Retrieved 6 December 2020.CS1 maint: location (link)
  25. Clark, Stephen (2011). The Life in the Spirit Seminars Team Manual (PDF) (Catholic Edition (2011) ed.). 4828 S. Hagadorn Road East Lansing, Michigan 48823: Tabor House. Retrieved 6 December 2020.CS1 maint: location (link)
  26. Jones, Arthur (18 April 1997). "Communities falter under heavy hands". National Catholic Reporter. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  27. Graham, Ruth (8 October 2020). "Inside the People of Praise, the Tight-Knit Faith Community of Amy Coney Barrett". New York Times. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  28. Reimers, Adrian J (1994). "More than the Devil's Due". Cultic Studies. 11 (1): 78–87. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
  29. "Sword of the Spirit, Form 990 Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax,2015". projects.propublica.org. IRS. Retrieved 2 November 2020.
  30. Csordas, T J (December 2009). "Growing up Charismatic: Morality and Spirituality among Children in a Religious Community". Ethos Journal of the Society for Psychological Anthropology. 37 (4): 414–440. doi:10.1111/j.1548-1352.2009.01067.x. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
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