Beliefs of the Children of God
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This article describes the beliefs and the faith of the new religious movement the Family formerly called the Children of God, that was founded by the American David Berg in 1968, and is as of 2005 led by Karen Zerby. The Children of God were part of the Jesus Movement of late the 1960s.
Theologians have placed the Family's basic theology within the historical Christian tradition, along with some unorthodox beliefs.
The Family International states they believe that the Bible to be the inspired Word of God and sacred revelation. They believe in the triune God ; the biblical account of creation in the book of Genesis; and in the fall of Adam and Eve, thus all humanity, from sinlessness. They believe that Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God, who came to Earth, being miraculously conceived by divine intervention and born of the Virgin Mary, that He was subsequently crucified, resurrected, and ascended, and that through His sacrifice people are redeemed. Once people accept Jesus Christ they are forgiven of their sins and receive the gift of eternal life. They believe that the Holy Spirit is the feminine and maternal element of the Trinity, and in the biblical gifts and fruits of the Spirit.
They believe that angels are powerful immortal spiritual beings, and hold that there are also many other good spirits including departed believers. They place a special emphasis on prophecy and believe that not only God but good spirits, acting as God's agents, communicate with believers in this way and thus prophecy is also the Word of God. They hold that Satan was one of God's mightiest angels, who rebelled against God. Other angels followed Satan, and thus became demons and that there is relentless warfare in the spiritual realm between the good forces of God and the evil forces as Satan. As believers, they also play an active role in that warfare, primarily through the agency of prayer.
They are not exclusivist and accept that any believing Christian is a member of the Body of Christ.
They hold that the Great Commission of evangelizing the world is the duty of every Christian and that their lives should be dedicated to the service of God and others. They have several levels of membership and the most committed, "Family Disciples," live communally. They form monogamous marriages. They also encourage the having of children.
They believe that human life is sacred and that it is their duty is to love their neighbor as themselves and to express this both in their spiritual ministries as well practical and humanitarian work. They oppose abortion and euthanasia. They believe in divine healing though this does not preclude them seeking medical help.
They accept the Scripture's teaching that the institution of civil government is of divine appointment, for the interest and order of human society. They obey the laws of the land with the caveat that the laws of the land should not hinder the practicing or preaching of their faith.
A central tenet to their theology is the "Law of Love," that simply stated maintains that if a person's actions are motivated by unselfish, sacrificial love and are not intentionally hurtful to others, such actions are in accordance with Scripture and are thus lawful in the eyes of God. They believe that this tenet supersedes all other biblical laws. They say that since God created human sexuality, that it a natural emotional and physical need and that heterosexual relations between consenting adults of legal age is a pure and natural wonder of God's creation, and permissible according to Scripture. It is their understanding of the Scriptures that the followers of Christ are His bride, called to love and serve Him with the fervor of a wife.
They believe that they are now living in the time period known in Scripture as the "Last Days" or the "Time of the End," which is the era immediately preceding the return of Jesus Christ. Before that event they believe that the world will be ruled for seven years by a government headed by a man known as the Antichrist. At the half-way point in his rule he will be totally possessed by Satan and that will precipitate a time or troubles known as the Great Tribulation. This will be a time of intense persecution of believers as well as a time of stupendous natural and unnatural disasters. At the end of this period believers will be taken up to heaven in an event known as the Rapture that is shortly followed by a battle between Jesus and the Antichrist commonly known as the "Battle of Armageddon". The Antichrist is defeated and Jesus Christ reigns on Earth for 1000 years.
David Brandt Berg is regarded as a prophet by them, in the understanding of one who passed on the message of God, not so much in the prediction of the future. They believe his "mantle" passed to his wife, Karen Zerby, at his death. They regard the writings of both of them as part of the Word of God. While there is an understanding in the movement that all Word is not on the same level of significance, nevertheless all Word is important to read and take heed to.
The Family's official statement of their beliefs can be found here: [1]
[edit] Recent teachings
The Family's recent teachings center around beliefs that they have termed the "new [spiritual] weapons." The Family believes that they are soldiers in the spiritual war of good versus evil for the souls and hearts of men. Although some of the following beliefs are not new to the Family, they have assumed greater importance in recent years.
Prophecy: In Family jargon, the traditional definition of prophecy—a prediction of the future—has been expanded to refer to any message received from the "spirit world" from Jesus, deceased founder David Berg, or another "spirit helper" (see below). A great emphasis has been placed on each member regularly using prophecy to guide their daily lives. Although prophecy, also referred to as "channeling," has been a part of the movement from the beginning, it has assumed greater significance in recent years. It has been noted by scholars that the Family is unique among new religious movements in its decentralization and democratization of divine guidance.
Spirit Helpers: These include angels, departed humans, and even famous fictional characters, e.g. Don Quixote, who are sent to give instruction and to fight in the spiritual warfare taking place in the spiritual dimension that Family members believe is coexistent with the physical world that surrounds them. These helpers are believed to relay divine messages through prophecy and are also engaged in spiritual combat with Satan and his demons. The Family believes that referring by name to spirit helpers when calling on their help, or demons when rebuking or cursing them, affords greater power to their prayers. As a result, the Family regularly publishes names of individual, as well groups or breeds of, spirit helpers and demons, linking them with their respective areas of power within the physical world.
The Keys of the Kingdom: The Family believes that the keys referred to in the Biblical passage "and I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven" (Matthew 16:19), have assumed greater significance today. As such, Family members call on the various Keys of the Kingdom for supposed extra effect during prayer. These keys are also believed to power various spacecraft, and can magically turn into swords for the purpose of fighting demons and other negative forces.
Loving Jesus: This is a term that members of the Family use to describe their intimate, sexual relationship with Jesus. The Family describes the "Loving Jesus" teachings as a radical form of bridal theology [2]. It is their understanding of the Bible that the followers of Christ are his bride, called to love and serve him with the fervor of a wife. They take bridal theology a step further than most other Christians by encouraging members to imagine that Jesus is having sex with them during sexual intercourse and masturbation. Male members are told to visualize themselves as women "in the spirit," in order to avoid a homosexual relationship with Jesus. Additionally, Family publications frequently liken prophecy from Jesus to receiving Jesus' semen, or "golden seeds," as a result of spiritual oral sex.
As a fundamentalist Christian group, the Family's doctrines tend to be progressive, with a few exceptions. For example, while they view male homosexuality as sin, they are generally accepting of female bisexuality.
The Family has also slowly moved away from traditional Protestant doctrines of Salvation as a requirement before death, to one of Universal Reconciliation. This has partly come about in order to reconcile their belief in Hell with other strongly held beliefs in God's absolute love for mankind and forgiveness for human weakness.
The Family continues to stress the imminent Second Coming of Christ, preceded by the rise of a worldwide government led by the "Antichrist." Doctrines regarding the "end times" influence virtually all long-term decision making.
[edit] External links
- Children of God: Beliefs - xFamily.org
