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Each region is managed by a team of Continental Officers (COs), each team typically having five to seven members. The management structures beneath the CO team are more variable and their members are changed frequently.
 
Each region is managed by a team of Continental Officers (COs), each team typically having five to seven members. The management structures beneath the CO team are more variable and their members are changed frequently.
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==References==
 
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===Academic===
 
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* Bainbridge, William Sims (2002). "The Endtime Family: Children of God". ''State University of New York Press'', Albany, NY.
 
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* Beit-Hallahmi, Benjamin (1997).  "Dear Colleagues: Integrity and Suspicion in NRM Research"  ''University of Haifa'', Haifa, ISRAEL.  [http://www.apologeticsindex.org/c59.html Abridged version]
 
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* Chancellor, James (2000). "Life in The Family:  An Oral History of the Children of God". ''University of Syracuse Press'', Syracuse, NY.
 
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* Collins, John J. (1991). "The Cult Experience: An Overview of Cults, Their Traditions and Why People Join Them". ''Charles C. Thomas Publisher'', Springfield.
 
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* Kent, Stephen A. (1994). [http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/~skent/Linkedfiles/lustfulprophet.htm "Lustful prophet: A psychosexual historical study of the children of god's leader, David Berg."] ''Cultic Studies Journal'' '''11''' (2), 135-188.
 
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* Kent, Stephen A. (1994). [http://www.theonet.dk/spirituality/spirit97-10/cog.html "Misattribution and social control in the Children of God."] ''Journal of Religion and Health'' '''33''' (1), 29–43.
 
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* Kent, Stephen A. (2000). [http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/~skent/Linkedfiles/cog_brainwashing.htm "Brainwashing and re-indoctrination programs in the Children of God/The Family."] ''Cultic Studies Journal'' '''17''', 56–78. 
 
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* Langone, Michael D (Ed.) (1993). [http://www.csj.org/studyindex/studychild/study_childcult.htm "Children and Cults"] in ''Recovery from Cults: Help for Victims of Psychological and Spiritual Abuse''. W. W. Norton & Co. ISBN 0-3933-1321-2.
 
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* Lewis, James R, and J. Gordon Melton, eds. (1994). "Sex, Slander and Salvation; Investigating The Family/Children of God". ''Center for Academic Press, Stanford, CA.
 
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* Lynch, Dalva, and Paul Carden (1990). [http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/cri/cri-jrnl/web/crj0075a.html "Inside the 'Heavenly Elite': The Children of God Today."]. ''Christian Research Journal'', pp 16.
 
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* McFarland, Robert (1994). [http://www.vote.org/ramsey/cults.htm "The Children of God."] ''The Journal of Psychohistory'' '''4'''(21).
 
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* Melton, J. Gordon (2004). "The Children of God, 'The Family' (Studies in Contemporary Religion vol. 7)". Signature Books. ISBN 1-5608-5180-5.
 
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* Melton, J. Gordon and Robert L. Moore (1982). "The Cult Experience: Responding to the New Religious Pluralism". ''The Pilgrim Press'', New York, USA.
 
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* Palmer, Susan J. (1994). [http://www.thefamily.org/dossier/books/book1/chapter1.htm "Heaven's Children: The Children of God's Second Generation"] in Lewis JR and Melton JG (eds.) (1994) [http://www.thefamily.org/dossier/books/book1/toc.htm ''Sex, Slander, and Salvation: Investigating The Family/Children of God''] Stanford, California: Center for Academic Publication. ISBN 0-9639501-2-6. (Note: This book was funded by The Family International)
 
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* Palmer, Susan J., and Charlotte Hardman eds. (1999). ''Children in New Religions'' (3rd ed.). Rutgers University Press. ISBN 0-8135-2620-5.
 
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* Shepherd, Gary, and Lawrence Lilliston (1994). [http://www.thefamily.org/dossier/books/book1/chapter5.htm "Field Observations of Young People's Experience and Role in The Family"] in ''Sex, Slander, and Salvation'', ''op. cit.''
 
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* Wilson, Bryan and Jamie Cresswell, eds. (1999). "New Religious Movements: Challenge and Response". ''Routledge'', London, UK.
 
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* Wright, Stuart (1987). "Leaving Cults: The Dynamics of Defection". ''Society for the Scientific Study of Religion''. Washington, D.C., USA.
 
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* Van Zandt, David (1991). "Living in the Children of God". ''Princeton University Press'', Princeton, New Jersy.
 
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===Journalistic and popular===
 
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* Bainbridge, William Sims (1996). "The Sociology of Religious Movements". ''Routledge''. ISBN 0-4159-1202-4.
 
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* Barrett, David V. (1989). "New Religious Movements, A Practical Introduction". ''Her Majesty's Stationery Office''. ISBN 0-1134-0927-3.
 
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* Barrett, DV (1996). "Sects, Cults and Alternative Religions". ''Blandford A. Cassell''. ISBN 0-7137-2567-2.
 
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* Chancellor, James D. (2000). "Life in the Family: An Oral History of the Children of God". ''Syracuse University Press''. ISBN 0-8156-0645-1.
 
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* Davis, Deborah (1984). [http://www.exfamily.org/art/exmem/debdavis/the_cog.html "The Children of God: The Inside Story".] ''Zondervan''. ISBN 0-3102-7840-6. (Davis is one of David Berg's daughters.)
 
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* Palmer, Susan and Hardman, Charlotte (edited) (1999). "Children in New Religions". ''Rutgers University Press''. ISBN 0-8135-2619-1.
 
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* Williams, Miriam  (1999). "Heaven's Harlots: My Fifteen Years As a Sacred Prostitute in the Children of God Cult". ''Quill''. ISBN 0-6881-7012-9.
 
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* [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/cult/children_of_god/main.htm "30 Members of Children of God arrested"] (September 2, [[1993]]). ''Washington Post'', pp. A05
 
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* [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/cult/children_of_god/child1.htm "The Family" and Final Harvest"] (June 2, [[1993]]). ''Washington Post'', pp. A01
 
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*McManus, Una (1980). "Not for a Million Dollars". Impact Books. ISBN 0-9148-5054-7.
 

Revision as of 03:10, 25 March 2005

Welcome to xFamily.org, a collaboratively edited encyclopedia about The Family/Children of God group.

Featured Pages

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  • xFamily Forum — xFamily.org's Forum is a place to request and contribute information as well as find out what our latest research is on.


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  • Karen Zerby — Info about and photos of "Mama Maria", current leader of The Family


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  • FBI — Contact information for FBI investigations on The Family.

Due to the secrecy that shrouds many of The Family's activities we work together to collate and divulge information.

The position of this website is neither for or against The Family as it is a collaborative work that is aimed at supporting contributions from diverse individuals. Individuals contributing to this project might have taken up a favorable or unfavorable position on The Family but through peer review we maintain objectivity. If you have a factual correction to make, feel free to contact us. While we may not agree with the facts as you see them we will take your suggestion into consideration and present the information here as fairly as possible.

We welcome you to also visit the xFamily Forum.

Glossary - An index of definitions for terminology particular to The Family.

Categories

Beliefs and Practices

  • Beliefs — Beliefs held by The Family
  • Practices — Practices in The Family
    • Abuse — Abuse that occured in The Family
    • Secrecy — Secrecy within The Family
    • Finances — Finances within The Family
    • Education — Education within The Family

Events and History

  • History
    • Events
      • Timeline — Articles that contain lists of events for a particular year.
      • Deaths — People who were current or former members at the time of their death.
        • Suicides — People who were current or former members at the time they committed suicide.
    • Legal Action — Information on any legal action currently or previously taken against The Family International.

People

  • Current and Former Members — Information about people who are or have been members of the Family
    • Abusers — Collecting information about abusers
    • Leaders — Here you will find the pages for the leaders of The Family
    • Pseudonyms — Pseudonyms used by Family members
  • Non-Members — People who never were members of The Family but are involved in some way

Documents and Articles

Multimedia Archives

Operations

  • Places — Articles that connect events to places.
  • Fronts — Organizations behind which The Family has operated or currently operates.

External Links

  • Links — Here you will find external links categorized


All Categories

Children of God/The Family

The Children of God (COG), later known as the Family of Love and The Family and now The Family International, is a new religious movement that started in 1968 in Huntington Beach, California, USA. It sprung from the Jesus Movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Criticism

The group has often and heavily been criticized by the press, the anti-cult movement, and the Christian countercult movement. In 1972, an organization called FREECOG was founded by concerned family members of followers to "free" them from their involvement in the group.

Notable members

Actors River Phoenix, Joaquin Phoenix, Summer Phoenix, Rain Phoenix, and Rose McGowan were members of the group during their childhood. Jeremy Spencer, a former member of Fleetwood Mac, is currently a member of the group.

Statistics

According to the Children of God, there were 130 communes or "colonies" in 15 countries in 1972. In 1993, 7,000 of the 10,000 members were under 18 years of age. Recent statistics by The Family International puts full-time and fellow members at just over 11,200 in over 100 countries (around 4,000 adult full-time members and 4,000 children). Some estimates have placed the total number of people that have passed through the group at 35,000.

Programs, projects, and productions

The Family International (as the group calls itself today) or The Family International Fellowship has various programs through which it operates. The main ones include Family Care Foundation (FCF), Aurora Productions, and Activated Ministries. However, the group has many other local foundations and projects in various countries throughout the world, for example (note: Some of the following may no longer be active):

  • World Services (WS; location a closely guarded secret; they can be contacted through a Post Office box in Zurich, Switzerland that has been open for over two decades with the mail handled by the European regional office (EURCRO)
  • Family Missions Foundation in Zug, Switzerland
  • Heaven's Magic
  • Martinelli
  • Fellowship of Independent Christian Churches
  • Donate Car for Charity Spring Valley, California, USA
  • Teaching, Education and More (TEAM) Foundation in Dallas, Texas, USA (EIN 75-2790783)
  • East European Christian Correspondence Center in Hungary (previously the "MM Home")
  • Asia Vision in Thailand
  • Los Angeles Missionary Base (LAMB)
  • Bluebird Family Foundation in Hungary
  • Golden Sunrise Productions Co., Ltd. in Taiwan
  • The Spiritual Retreat and Missionary Training Program in USA
  • Mission Support & Humanitarian Services Program
  • Immediate Disaster Relief in India
  • New Horizons - Student Interchange in India
  • Helping Hands
  • Milk for Many/Mexcity Mission
  • KidzVids International, based in Humble, Texas, USA
  • The Extra Mile
  • The Family Singers (they usually perform at the White House every Christmas)

Aurora Production AG

Aurora Production AG, based in Zug, Switzerland, is the copyright holder and owner of all of The Family International's revenue-producing productions. These include publications, music, and videos (i.e. Countdown to Armageddon and Treasure Attic). Although ultimate control over this company is in Steven Kelly's hands, on paper the following people are listed as running this company [1]:

Family Missions Foundation

Family Missions Foundation, based in Zug, Switzerland [2], receives and processes the tithes of members. The board has many of the same names as for Aurora Production AG. The two key people are:

  • Chris Smith (aka Steven Kelly; registered in Luzern, Switzerland)
  • Thomas Mestyanek (registered in Los Angeles, USA; also Finance Manager of The Family International)

Activated Ministries

A Family International–operated charitable foundation in Escondido, California (EIN 33-0857142). All the Directors are Family International members. Thomas Hack, a high-ranking Family International officer and former director of FCF, is the President. Activated Ministries is a licensed distributor of Aurora products worldwide, including the magazines Activated and The Wine Press, both of which promote Family International beliefs and practices. It is The Family International's largest outreach operation. Activated Ministries openly acknowledges its support of The Family International and links to The Family International website. Activated Ministries has also made at least one cash donation to FCF. [3] [4]

Productions

Active areas

Areas where The Family International have remained active for many years and are generally active today include:

Leadership, Regional Offices, and Management

The leadership of The Family International is headed by:

  • Karen Elva Zerby
- spiritual leader of The Family International
- American
- legally changed her name to Katherine Rianna Smith, 4-Nov-1997
- Aliases: Maria, Mama, Maria Fontaine, Maria David, Maria Berg, or Queen Maria
  • Steven Douglas Kelly
- head-leader of The Family International
- American
- legally changed his name to Chris Smith
- Aliases: Peter Amsterdam or King Peter
  • Kevin Anthony Brown
- senior leader under Karen Zerby and Steven Kelly (less officially Grant Montgomery)
- American
- legally changed his name from Samuel Charles Perfilio, 29-Sep-1993
- Aliases: Matthew or John PI

Under them, management is divided into World Services, Creations, and Family Care Foundation. The following is a sample of The Family International's current and former leadership or high-profile members (note: Many of them have legally changed their names and have adopted either "Brown" or "Smith" as their surnames):

World Services (WS)

  • Thomas Mestyanek
- Finance Manager of The Family International
- Aliases: Shemariah Books or Elliot
  • Sean Michael Mullen
- senior leader under Kevin Brown
- American
- Aliases: Francis Fisherman
  • Gayle Kelly
- member of North American leadership (NACRO) and Director of the TEAM Foundation; former wife of Steven Kelly
- American
- Aliases: Abi, Abigail or Damaris
  • David Forsberg
- member of North American leadership (NACRO)
- Aliases: Simon
  • Thomas Hack
- member of North American leadership (NACRO) and President of Activated Ministries; former FCF Director
- American
- Aliases: Abner
  • Barbara Ann Emerson
- Executive Secretary to Karen Zerby
- American
- Aliases: Misty
  • John Francis
- spokesman for The Family International
  • Susan Claire Borowick
- an official representative of The Family International
  • Christina Healey
  • Jacqueline Sue Scott

Creations

  • Micheal Timothy Brown
- head of Creations
- American
- legally changed his name from Terry Lee Martin
- Aliases: Gabe, Jeremy Woods, or John
  • Donna Kinnikin
- head of Creations
- Canadian
- Aliases: Vicky or Amy
  • Thomas Leonard
- part of Creations
- Aliases: Will
  • Carol Lloyd
- part of Creations; former wife of Philip (EURCRO)
- American
- Aliases: Palestina
  • Cheryl Anne Brown
- part of Creations
- American
- legally changed her name from Kathleen Mary Fowler, 17-Jun-1993
- Aliases: Bonnie

Family Care Foundation (FCF)

- President of FCF; former Prime Minister of The Family International
- Canadian/American
- legally changed his name to Lee Ronald Smith, 21-Dec-1992
- legally changed his name back to Grant Cameron Montgomery, 29-Oct-1996
- Aliases: Gary, Hosanna, or Paul Papers
- Executive Director of FCF
- an FCF Director; brother of Steven Kelly
- American
- Aliases: Steve Tall
- Treasurer of FCF; wife of Ken Kelly
- American
- FCF India
- Aliases: King Arthur
- FCF Indonesia
- FCF Mexico; former member of North American leadership team (NACRO)
- American
- Aliases: Dust

Former leaders

- former leader and nanny of Davidito
- American
- Aliases: Prisca Kelley or Sara Davidito
- former leader
- American
- Aliases: Alf or Ready
- former leader and current member in Russia
- Peruvian
- Aliases: Francis or Peruvian Manuel
- not a member for many years, former leader and son-in-law of David Berg
- American
- Aliases: Arny or Big Josh
- deceased (Jan-2005); part of Karen Zerby's staff for over 30 years, former FCF director, and former director of a retirement home (Elderhaven, Inc.) run by Zerby's parents in Arizona
- American
- legally changed her name from Susan Joy Kauten, 14-May-1993
- Aliases: Ceder, Joy, Trust, Hope, or Sue

Regional Offices

The Family International divides regional management into zones that have changed very rarely and typically in very small ways over its history. They are:

  • ASCRO (Asian Central Reporting Office): Southeast Asia and Indian Subcontinent; administered in Bangkok, Thailand
  • EURCRO (European Central Reporting Office): Europe, Africa, most of Russia; administered near Zurich, Switzerland by:
    • Lisa (Norwegian)
    • Philip or Zadock Lloyd (American)
  • NACRO (North American Central Reporting Office): United States, Canada, Mexico, Carribean and some countries of Central America; administered in Dallas, TX by:
    • Gayle Kelly (American)
    • Thomas Hack (American)
    • David Forsberg
  • PACRO (Pacific Area Central Reporting Office): Japan, China, Korea, Australia, Far East Russia and other countries of the Pacific; administered in Tokyo, Japan and Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Also known as FENRO (Far East National Reporting Office) when it was located in Hong Kong prior to the 1990s
  • SACRO (South American Central Reporting Office): South America; administered in Santiago, Chile
    • Juan Rosas (Peruvian)

Each region is managed by a team of Continental Officers (COs), each team typically having five to seven members. The management structures beneath the CO team are more variable and their members are changed frequently.

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