As my third "ministry year" in The Way began in August 1979 (Way year went from August to August) several influences flowed together to cause me to become more involved, more committed, to The Way. My parents were becoming more hostile to my involvement in The Way, especially since I had stopped attending church. The community had become overtly hostile to any group that they considered a cult in the wake of the Jonestown Massacre in Guyana. Deprogrammers were more open about their practices and often had the cooperation of local police departments. Outside attacks generate, in general, one of two responses. One is to to disassociate oneself from the group that is attacked. Persecution has the effect of weeding out those who aren't committed. It also has the effect of strengthening the resolve of those who choose to stay. That's the effect that it had on me. The leadership of The Way encouraged that mindset. People who left "tripped out", they were weak. Those of us who stood strong were in the same league as the apostles who persevered in the face of opposition. Being the focus of persecution made me feel like I was actually accomplishing something for God.
A second influence was the example of some of the "believers" around me. During Way year 1978-79 several of the people that I knew set up "Way Homes" that were the focus of outreach in their neighborhoods. Groups of Way folks were travelling to Ohio, Kansas or Indiana (Way headquarters and the locations of Way Corps training) to take "The Advanced Class". During the previous year I had "witnessed" to my childhood friend Joe. Joe took the PFAL class and at Rock of Ages in 1979 was sent to Fremont Nebraska as a WOW Ambassador. Others whom I knew entered Way Corps training. There was a lot of peer pressure to step up and "do something for God". What I decided to do was move into a Way Home.
The Way Home was an interesting concept. You were part of an organized program, but weren't locked in for a set period of time, like the WOW Ambassador program or the Way Corps training. One person was designated by area leadership as the Way Home Coordinator. The household members decided among themselves how to handle their finances, how to divide up chores and when to schedule Twig Fellowships or witness in the neighborhood. Most Way Home members worked whatever jobs they chose, or attended school. The expectation was that the Way Home would be a hub of Way activity in the neighborhood and the members would focus much of their free time on bringing in new people and running PFAL classes, along with weekly fellowships.
The Queens Village Way Home, where I went to live in late August 1979 had four of us living there. Bernie, an electrician in his forties who was in the same PFAL class as I was in March 1978 was the designated leader, Wanda & Beverly were newly minted PFAL grads and me. I was still attending Baruch College in the evenings and working at EF Hutton, the stock broker, as a clerk during the day. It was my first experience living somewhere other than under my parents' roof, but since I hadn't changed jobs and was still in school, there was some continuity with my previous life.
But before long, there would be some major disruptions.
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