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Intro to the Assembly Ministry of George and Betty Geftakys » »
About us and this site...
Brent
T. launched the original website GeftakysAssembly.com
in November 2002 to expose corruption in the Geftakys Assembly ministry and publicly call
the leaders to action. Within a few months George Geftakys
was removed from the Fullerton Assembly. The website had accomplished its initial purpose.
In 2003 Brent handed the site over to the Irons to take it in the direction of understanding and healing. Steve initially added many articles, especially in "Assembly Teaching and Practice" and "Biblical Perspectives". Margaret is now the editor.
The Assemblyboard
is an archived forum on the Geftakys Assembly that was active from 2002 through 2010. There is no administrative
connection with this site, but it is chuck full of information, opinions,
arguments, encouragement and much more. Pick and choose!
Purpose of the Site
This website provides information to discern cultic characteristics at work in Christian groups, and to recover from the damaging effects.
We invite readers' comments
- click any
comment link. If you would like to talk or email with someone
about the Assembly
contact us here. We do not offer counseling or other services, we
offer no programs, we have nothing to sell. We are simply sharing
what has helped us and we hope will be helpful to others.
Here
is feedback we've received.
Some folks will think this site puts groups like the Assembly in too harsh a light, and fails to emphasize the positive aspects. The use of the word 'cult' may be particularly offensive. Others will feel the opposite. The Assembly was a confusing experience, with both negative and positive aspects. The important point is not how groups are characterized, but recognizing and coming out of a performance-based Christian experience.
Some will disapprove of the non-Christian content of the site, and feel that people need only the spiritual content. Our view is that once a person has been ensnared by unethical influence in a cultic Christian group, both facets are necessary in order to rebuild critical thinking. However, we agree that the spiritual damage will only be healed by the grace of God.
About current site administration
We, Steve and Margaret Irons, were former leaders in the Geftakys ministry. Our story tells how we got involved with George's ministry and how we left. It is crushing to realize that for twenty years we gave our lives to something that was wrong on so many levels. We are deeply grieved for the damage we perpetrated on others - more about this here. Our work on this website is our effort to try to make amends in some small way.
Someone asked in 2011, "How do you keep interested in all the Assembly stuff after all of these years? It is quite an investment of emotional energy isn’t it?" In answer, I am reminded of The Kite Runner. Amir witnesses and participates in a huge wrong done to his friend; at the end he struggles to make amends to his friend's orphaned son - "For you, a thousand times over." That would be my reply as well. I made a huge effort for so long ensnaring people in spiritual abuse; the least I can do now is try to assist in their recovery. If even one person finds some help here, it's worth it.
Should this website continue?
Some former Assembly members have questioned whether there is still a need for this site, especially the sordid revelations in "Final Weeks". Shouldn't people just forget about the Assembly and move on? Part of the answer to this was articulated by "Moonflower" in April, 2008, in reference to the Assembly bulletin board. She said:
There are some still coming out of the groups, some coming back to God after having left, some who are members of another aberrant religious group, and some may be attending the preaching that is rising up again in CA.
Although the truth of the Assembly groups came out on one particular date, we are processing the information at different rates, because some of us were totally kept in the dark regarding certain events and behaviors.
And I think we should be aware that it has affected us. I think it will take us a loooooong time to sort through everything that transpired in the Assembly groups and how it affected us and our families. We are not going to change overnight and, like abused children, will carry certain scars for the rest of our lives, whether we were the abused or the abuser.
Having the pieces to the puzzle is necessary in order to make sense of what happened. It is our hope that all the information and resources presented on this website, including the "Final Weeks" section, may help those who have been hurt, not only by the Geftakys ministry but in other cultic Christian groups, to on the path of recovery.
Inquiries also continue to arrive from folks who for one reason or another are just now becoming alarmed about the Assemblies and/or the Geftakys ministry - visitors to continuing former Assemblies; folks in home gatherings who recognize warning signs; overseas ministries that have a brush with George or with a former Assembly; people who are in a relationship with a former Assembly member, etc.
In addition, there are several thousand people each month from around the world who google terms related to cults and spiritual abuse and find help here. This internet resource on cultic Christianity and the Geftakys ministry is needed for the foreseeable future.