Religion or Abuse? CT Church Tries to Exorcise "Gay Demon" in Teen

[colinian]

Manifested Glory Ministries, a church in Connecticut, has found itself the focus of controversy because, using YouTube, they allowed the outside world to see what goes on inside their church. The church put up a video of an extremely violent exorcism intended to drive "homosexual demons" from a teenage boy. The video goes on for almost twenty minutes with the boy thrashing around violently and even vomiting while he's held down and prayed over by the church ministers.

They took the video down after the story was widely published, but it's available in two parts here.

Colin

[Drewbie]

Manifested Glory Ministries, a church in Connecticut, has found itself the focus of controversy because, using YouTube, they allowed the outside world to see what goes on inside their church. The church put up a video of an extremely violent exorcism intended to drive "homosexual demons" from a teenage boy. The video goes on for almost twenty minutes with the boy thrashing around violently and even vomiting while he's held down and prayed over by the church ministers.

They took the video down after the story was widely published, but it's available in two parts here.

Colin

I'd say abuse, but could the law do anything about it, it seems whenever it's a church the law stays out of it.

[JamesSavik]

Sadly this sort of thing is going on behind closed doors all over the country.

It is good to get it out in the open for the world to see.

[Richard Norway]

I'm usually an optimist, seeing the good in people and giving them the benefit of doubt before reaching conclusions. And then I hear of something like this happening. It's a wake up call that we're not that far ahead yet; we have a lot still to do. We will never convince 100% of the people that we have a God given existence. There will always be a group of people that just can't think for themselves.

[Cole Parker]

How much do those people charge the poor kid's family to put him through that?

You know there's a profit being made somewhere in this.

C

[Bruin Fisher]

I couldn't watch it. I hope the poor guy pulls through, but I'm not optimistic.

[DesDownunder]

The adults in the video are the ones who need exorcising.

[Cole Parker]

I find one of the more provocative aspects of this is that the church itself removed the video from public consideration.

Now they either believe in what they're doing or they don't. If they do, who made the decision to remove it? It shows them at their best, doesn't it, removing a demon from a poor boy who is now better off for the experience? Why not show everyone an example of their good work?

That they removed it rather blatantly shows they don't quite stand behind what they're doing. Which suggests some obvious duplicity in what they're doing.

So they evidently don't believe in the show they're putting on, don't believe in any salutary aspects thereof. Which means they're charlatans. Leaving me to posit they made the video in the first place, or released it in the first place, to attract others, probably other parents with teenaged sons that they wanted saved from those horrible, ungodly impulses. Parents with great angst over the direction their sons' lives were going, and the fat pocketbooks to hire these fine folks to change things.

Some days, I wish horse whips were back in use.

C

[Madrigal]

Obviously the person being exorcised is either acutely psychologically damaged, under the effects of a drug, or both. I'd like to have a little more faith in Christian extremists, but I just can't. I wouldn't be surprised if that church released this video in order to create some sort of 'gay panic' in the community, so they could perform a larger number of exorcisms and gain more following. Thank God (not theirs, obviously) it backfired.

Maddy (:

edit: just read Cole's post. I agree.

[DesDownunder]

Cole, you have no idea how much I am restraining my atheist/agnostic/humanist tongue from spewing venomous thoughts on these people, but I really do understand they are in need of help. Such help is known by a number of names: reason, rational thought, intellectual honesty, education, and compassion to name but a few.

These people suffer from fear of the unknown.

Tell you what, you and I will hold them down and we'll get a wild animal to kiss them better.

[JamesSavik]

I find one of the more provocative aspects of this is that the church itself removed the video from public consideration.

One word Cole: LIABILITY. If the victim gets hooked up with the right lawyer, that church would be history.

Another reason that the Manifested Insanity Church might want to slip back into obscurity: I seriously doubt that they could stand to be investigated. Once an inquiry were started, there is no telling what kind of skeletons would be found in the closets of that flea circus.

[Tanuki Racoon]

I started watching the video and couldn't finish :(

[colinian]

One word Cole: LIABILITY. If the victim gets hooked up with the right lawyer, that church would be history...

Damn, what a great idea, James! Does anyone here know of a good lawyer in Connecticut?

Colin

[JamesSavik]

The problem is getting the victim to complain. Usually they are so brain-washed that they are grateful to have those mean ole demons cast out.

Speaking from experience with my own demons, if only they were that easy to get rid of.

[colinian]

And in addition to being brain-washed, this is a teenage kid who looks to be around 15 or 16. He must have been forced into this "therapy" by his parents who would prevent him from making any kind of complaint.

There oughta be a law!

Colin