Grab your coffee, tea, wine, martini….what ever it takes…because this is one that will really get your blood boiling! But a new name must be added to our discussion of self-anointed ‘c’hristians . Yet another ‘jewel’ from the ‘c’hristian dominionist sect, one “reverend Rusty Lee Thomas…oh, he has been around…but now I get the dirty work of sharing just who this fraud is, and what he is doing regarding children. We have been discussing this on this site and it is beyond naive to dismiss that this is really happening. It is happening – and it IS alarming!
This is an excellent article recently posted at alternet.com…
“Christian Bootcamp Seeks to Arm Home-Schooled Youths for “Spiritual Warfare”
Posted by Eleanor Bader, RH Reality Check at 8:40 AM on November 16, 2009.
Christian Bootcamp Seeks to Arm Home-Schooled Youths for “Spiritual Warfare”Posted by Eleanor Bader, RH Reality Check at 8:40 AM on November 16, 2009.“According to studies by the Barna Research Group, California pollsters specializing in tracking religious and spiritual attitudes, only nine percent of teenaged Christians believe in moral absolutes. What’s more, Barna reports that the vast majority of kids raised Christian will abandon all or part of their faith by the time they finish high school.
To remedy this, Thomas’ Elijah Ministries has started the Kingdom Leadership Institute, a weeklong ideological boot camp for home-schooled Christians between the ages of 14 and 21. His recently released book, The Kingdom Leadership Institute Manual, is a roadmap for their training and a fascinating — if twisted — look at the concerns of far right evangelicals, complete with a game plan for action.”
Here is Thomas’ 31 second trailer for his “manual” targeting children…
Elijah’s Ministries is usurping the role of Joel’s Army especially after the documentary film, “Jesus Camp” was released to theatres in 2006.
“Jesus Camp debuted at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival, and was sold by A&E Indie Films to Magnolia Pictures. Controversy surrounding the film was featured in several television news programs and print media articles in 2006 (see links below).
On January 23, 2007, Jesus Camp was nominated for the 2006 seventy-ninth Annual Academy Award (Oscar) for Best Documentary Feature.[3] It lost to Davis Guggenheim and Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth.” ~ Wikipedia
They commonly redefine themselves in a practice called “condemnation & re-branding”. So when too much attention is shedding light on any activity – as the documentary, Jesus Camp did to Joel’s Army…they re-name themselves. They NEVER get rid of the activity.
This movie is a MUST see! Although I will caution those who are walkaways from this movement that it does cause PTSD for some viewers who have grown up in this abuse. I mean this sincerely…approach it with caution.
For the rest of us – it has been described to me as the dominionist version of mainstream Christian Bible Camps. Raised Lutheran, I remember going to Bible Camp in the summer and it looked NOTHING like this! Nor should it. Rev. Thomas, a misogynist and Quiverfull father goes on to say….
“Life is not a playground,” he rails. “It is a war zone — a clash of ideas, philosophies, values, and worldviews. It demands leaders who do not shrink back in [sic] the day of battle.” He calls it “spiritual warfare” and repeatedly summons images straight out of the Middle Ages, with gallant Knights protecting grateful maidens, and courtliness trumping gender equity.
Contemporary equals bad, he rants. “During Colonial times, children would be up at four in the morning to help with chores; spoke only when spoken to by an adult; and by the age of seven or eight, boys had chosen their craft or trade and were ready to become apprentices. What a contrast compared to the unruliness, laziness, and lack of direction that characterizes many in this generation.” One can only wonder about the regimen imposed on the good reverend’s 13 children and two grandchildren.”
This is child abuse. Child abuse in the name of God. And it is abhorrent! I often say that if these people would just leave the rest of us alone…they can believe what ever they want…EXCEPT for the abuse to their children that goes on day in and day out. It’s these innocent lives that they are terrifying with their psychological and physical abuses that tears at my heart. And believe me…when we are done with “God’s Own Party?” the next book will be zeroing in on religiously motivated child abuse! You can truly mark my words on that. It turns my stomach…
Bader’s excellent article goes on to say…
“Thomas’ solution for changing this and returning American youth to the Christian fold is straightforward, if absurd, and starts with home schooling. Women, he writes, should quit working for money and instead work on inculcating “Christian values”, including male supremacy, in the next generation. “A patriarch is a family ruler. He is the man in charge,” Thomas begins. “Biblical manhood demands men … defend and shield or cover women from injury, evil or oppression.” Not surprisingly, Thomas puts forward an essentialized view: Men are logical, women emotional and spiritually attuned. Feminist challenges to this monochromatic definition are anathema to nature, he charges. Worse, they challenge the male birthright to establish a “dynasty” at home.’
Now does this represent the more extreme side of dominion theology? Yes…and…no! There are sects within dominionism that do carry actions further than your more palatable congregations who flood to arenas that seat* thousands on Sunday across this country. Viewing the ‘sermon’ by way of huge mega-screens because they are so far back they can’t see the stage…er I mean pulpit. No…I really do mean stage!
…“For Thomas, the call is not only to criminalize abortion and homosexuality, return prayer to the schools, get women out of the workplace, and declare the U.S. a Christian nation, but also to impose Biblical rule on all who reside within our national borders. Furthermore, he’s going for blood — and I mean that literally. “Whether we like it or not, ours is a bloody religion,” he explains. “Beginning with God slaying the animals to cover Adam and Eve after the fall…to the final sacrifice by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, one theme rings true. Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sins.”
This is dominionism. I don’t care what denomination, what name, what guise they want to splinter under – when the rhetoric echoes this agenda – this is DOMINIONISM!
Bader did a great job in her article. I can’t tell you how thrilled I am when I see these articles come out and supporting the work that we do. It is an intense discussion and the people we are up against hide behind the robes of mainstream Christianity.
And let me end with a few thoughts from Alex (dogemporer)…
“In addition to the scariness noted, this does prove as VERY interesting
confirmation of some stuff I’ve been researching:
a) Damning confirmation of Operation Save America’s involvement with
Joel’s Army groups (the person behind this book is assistant director
for OSA, and the “bootcamp” targeting kids is a direct front of Elijah
Ministries, a known Joel’s Army group).b) The thing that *really* worries me: The article may have just given
some indirect confirmation that “NARasitised Assemblies” groups are
explicitly targeting the Southern Baptists for either a consolidation of
steeplejack or a second steeplejacking–this time, to a NARasitic
denomination.(There have been a few disturbing incidents of people in SBC seminaries
using terminology and imagery associated with Joel’s Army groups, and
there is apparently enough influence that the topic of whether
glossolalia and other “manifestations” should be considered acceptable
SBC worship styles came up for actual doctrinal vote as recently as the
last general denominational conference in Nashville. This is one of the
few bits that show there is actively an effort undergoing to NARasitise
the SBC, though.)As you probably found out in your visit to the site, it’s an odd mix of
Christian Reconstructionism sprinkled liberally with Joel’s Army
buzzwords (including the whole “Elijah Ministries” thing, in and of
itself a Joel’s Army buzzword) as evidenced at
http://www.elijahmin.com/Tracts/Tracts.htmAmong other things, he’s literally blamed the 11 September terror
attacks and Hurricane Katrina on LGBT tolerance
(http://gaynewsservice.com/845932-making-less-sense-usual-rusty-thomas-pens-letter-pres-obama),
is an assistant director of Operation Save America (the Sinn Fein to the
Army of God’s IRA), and in fact is a member of a very small political
party (the Christian Liberty Party) that is so hardline dominionist it
makes the *CONSTITUTION PARTY* seem like liberals in comparison
(http://www.christianlibertyparty.com/index.php?option=com_remository&Itemid=40&func=fileinfo&id=83).
Okay…now I am posting this video of Thom Hartmann interviewing this “biblical patriarch”, Rusty Lee Jones…I ask that you endure the interview. Knowledge is not always pleasant or pretty…
I think that is enough to make ALL our heads want to explode for now…I will be back with more…
Appreciate Thom Hoffman's rant!
Speeches truncated to bumper sticker phrases, a long standing tradition and too few bother to look for the larger picture.
As for the first part of the show… ARRRGH… the assurance of quivering and shivvering paternalism…
You had to do it. You just had to do it, didn't you?
It's 3am and I'm heading to bed.
I'll be back tomorrow when my blood pressure is back to normal.
You must be on the East side of the continent as well. It was one o'clock when I shut down…
Keep your BP down… don't you know that they would love to get us all to boil over and keel over?
We have to be Warriors for Humanity. We need to "Live Strong". (Apologies to Lance Armstrong!)
There must be something wrong with my computer. When I click on either of these clips, I get Sarah Palin's interview with Rusty Whats-his-name in the background.
Is anybody else having this problem?
I do not think it is your computer. I have the same problem over at Immoral Minority ever since I clicked on that "Rusty from an undisclosed Oregon location" interview. Irritating! They probably have something devilish attached to it. AHEM… just saying… not accusing, mind you.
Hey Leah! Thanks for this report. Rusty Thomas is my hero.
Your definition of "hero" must be similar to Palin supporters definition of "honest"….
Altogether now, one more time: "Ignorance Is Not Bliss! Ignorance Is Not Bliss!"
Repeat as needed!
OK, now I feel better!
My definition of hero is according to that of Webster's Dictionary: "a doer of great or brave deeds."
Actually, if you think it is "scary" to raise obedient children, obedient to God's laws and wary of man's laws, then you are the scary one, my friends.
As for labeling it child abuse, the child abuse started long before the Thompson nation was raised. It was codified by 12 unelected men in the Supreme Court in a fraudulent decision called Roe v Wade. Ask "Roe" Norma McCorvey who recants the whole phony deal.
The sum-total of God's laws is "love God and love neighbor", there's really nothing more complex than that (Mt 22.37-40, cf Lk 10.25-28), there should be little worry of human-made laws conflicting with that!
An obedient child is one thing…a drone is another…as is a militant child. If you have to resort to frightening your children with constant threats of damnation, retribution and war to get them to follow you…there is a disconnect in your methods. The Jesus that I was raised learning about denounced the punishing portrayal of God in the Old Testament and set out to correct 'man's' perceptions bu teaching love, compassion, tolerance and acceptance. Too much love for the "Rusty's"…
12 men in the Supreme Court? If you get something this simple wrong, maybe you should recheck your other 'facts' as well.
Excellent 'get' Helen! I was so distracted with the 'obedient child' response I completely missed the 'c'hristian math!
Protect the unborn so we can indoctrinate and constrain them to be our little foot soldiers…is that the message of "Elijah's" 'c'hristians? Lovely…
Just keepin em honest.
Post # 1
From Rusty Lee Thomas’ biography on http://www.elijahmin.com/biography.htm
Rusty Lee Thomas, although born on a Marine base in Cherry Point, NC, was raised in the ghettos of Bridgeport, CT. Being brought up in an atheistic home, Rusty tasted what the world had to offer at a very young age.
Street-fighting and drug addiction as a means of survival and escape soon became a way of life. (snip) …Rusty’s parents were divorced and he began living on his own at the age of 16.
During his service in the Army, Rusty began to abuse drugs again. As a result of a drug overdose, he ended up in jail and in two mental hospitals. The military had written his mother to inform her that he had fried his brains on drugs and would be confined to a mental institution for the rest of his life. Seemingly at the end of his rope with no one to turn to God once again supernaturally intervened, delivering Rusty and completely restored his mind.
It appears that Rusty equates street fighting and drug addiction with atheism, rather than the poverty and disfunctional family he grew up with. Atheists are no different than any other group. There are good ones and bad ones, smart ones and dumb ones, rich and poor, caring and hating.
As for God 'completely restoring his mind' – that is remains questionable.
Did you actually read the book or did you merely parrot the article written by Ms. Bader? I've read the book, and most of the quotes in the article are taken out of context. The "spiritual warfare" described in the book is not a call to take up physical arms against liberals and abortionists as the article insinuates. It is a call to prayer and fasting, two spiritual disciplines that every follower of Christ at least acknowledges as a valid expression of faith. You may not agree with the politics or the Biblical interpretation of men like Rev. Thomas, but at least get a sense of the wider context before criticizing something in print.
Your arrogance is showing Mr. Miller…"It is a call to prayer and fasting, two spiritual disciplines that every follower of Christ at least acknowledges as a valid expression of faith."
As a mainstream (non-evangelical/pentecostal/NAR) Christian, we do not believe in the rituals of fasting, or anything that resembles "warfare" – particularly spiritual. And you are 100% correct…I resoundly disagree with BOTH the politics and biblical interpretations of Thomas. But you would know that from my pro-Christian and anti-'c'hristian positions stated throughout the posts on this site.
Dear Leah,
I do not consider myself to be evangelical or pentecostal (I am Reformed Presbyterian), but fasting and prayer is quite Biblical and a godly discipline for Christians. Also, I know Rusty Thomas well and he has never advocated violence of any kind.