The Family in Action!--#4 DFO Special Issue!
More than Conquerors!
Copyrighted April, by Family Services, Zurich, Switzerland
On September 1, 1993, in the early hours of the morning, five Homes of the missionary church "The Family" in Buenos Aires, Argentina, were raided by police. The occupants, among them 140 children, were taken to jails, prisons, and institutions where some of them remained for over 100 days. All Family members have now been released due to lack of evidence of any wrongdoing. The Federal Appeals Court ruled that the judge who ordered the raids and presided over the investigation was acting outside of his jurisdiction and exceeded his authority.
Following are letters and accounts of the raids and imprisonment written by the young people who were detained in the institutions or in jail. God bless these young people for the faith, courage, and love for the Lord and for others that they demonstrated in such cruel and unjust circumstances!
By Tommy (age 15, son of Phillip Q. and Esther)
THE LORD HAD BEEN WARNING US in advance that persecution was brewing, by giving some of us dreams and the strong impression that we should be prepared. So when it happened, it wasn't such a surprise. Thank the Lord, He's always one step ahead of our adversaries!
On the morning of the raids, I was suddenly awakened by the sound of the door being banged open, and when I opened my eyes, I saw three plainclothes policemen rush into the room with their semi-automatic guns drawn. Outside I could hear lots of confusion, as vehicles with police were coming in.
When I got up, to my surprise the policeman at the door wouldn't let me go to the bathroom. I told him that I was going anyway, and he followed me there, and wouldn't let me shut the door, which upset me.
Someone started to film everything, and a reporter was taking photos, which is illegal according to Argentine law.
Besides myself there were three other teen boys and two adult men in the room. We all started praying together, especially that these events wouldn't affect the children. We started getting ready for the great battle that was ahead of us.
After a while, the police told us to get dressed, but they also said we weren't going to go anywhere. What liars! Outside, the street and driveway was full of vehicles, so much so that when one of the vans tried to park, it rammed into another one. I saw that the front door of our house had been broken open.
Inside the house there were lots of police, social workers, and people from the judge's office. Most of our adults and children had been gathered in one room, and the police were checking people's papers. It was mass confusion, as some of the police were yelling, which really frightened the children, and the little ones were crying.
When I went to the back of the house later to go to the bathroom again, one of the policemen called me over to where our computer is, and started telling me to open one of the provisioning files on the computer. When I told him I didn't know how to, he started to ridicule me. Then he got angry and told me not to lie, and that if I lied and didn't open it, supposedly God was going to punish me. Then a policeman behind me kind of slapped me on the head and said, "You see, God judged you!"--And they all started laughing.
After a while they allowed us to go back to our rooms to get some of our clothes. On the way, I accidentally stepped on a policewoman's shoe, whereupon she angrily said, "If you step on my foot again, I'm really going to kill you!" Comments of that sort were heard often, and the police were constantly cursing.
One of The Family members was taking photos, when all of a sudden a policeman grabbed the camera away and yanked out the film. That camera, along with many other things, was later stolen from us by the police.
After the social workers finished checking everyone's papers, the police rounded up all the adult men and took them to jail. When the children saw their daddies being taken, they all started crying, and got pretty scared. Then the police rounded up all of us that remained and told us to get in the vans. The teen boys had to go to one place, the teen girls to another place, the children and moms went to another place. They told us that we were going to go to a really nice place for vacations, but when we asked them where we were going, they said they didn't know and couldn't tell us.
We all prayed together before leaving, and then started singing as we left. We were able to sneak some Bibles and devotional material out as we left, so we started praying and reading on the way.
Arriving at the Institution
The trip took about two hours, and when we finally stopped, we were at an institution, and lots of kids were outside watching us come in. We were shown to our rooms, and then left alone.
We learned this was an institution for children whose parents had neglected them, and in our case, for the "victims of this dangerous sect". The whole place was extremely filthy and the bathrooms didn't even have running water.
Once there, we got together and prayed! We decided which one of us would be the shepherd (group leader, see Isaiah 40:11; Mark 6:34; John 10:11; Acts 20:28; 1 Peter 5:1-4), and we also decided that rather than staying to ourselves in our own little world, we were going to try to reach as many people as possible with the Message of God's Love and Truth in the time we were there. Thank the Lord, the people at our institution were quite nice and receptive to our sharing our beliefs with them, and some grew quite close to us.
After being there for a few days, we were made to undergo medical exams. Each one of us was checked from head to toe to see if there was any sign of physical or sexual abuse and, of course, they found nothing. We also had to undergo stupid psychological tests, where we had to answer silly questions and draw some pictures.
A week later, officials from the American embassy came to visit my brother and me, as we are Americans. It was so sickening to see the hypocrisy of the officials, as they said that they couldn't do anything to help us, but at the same time they insinuated that if we wanted to leave The Family, they would get us out of all this.
Lessons in Bonds
After being there for a while together we began to learn some important lessons. I learned how important it was to be united and not fighting between each other, as there was a bit of friction between me and one of the other teen boys, Lord help me.
One of the most important lessons that we learned there was to never have a "give-up" spirit, because that was when the Devil had a chance to get us discouraged.--Whereas when we were constantly militant in the Spirit, and fighting to stay in tune with the Lord, the Devil had no place to enter.
Another important lesson we learned was about watching TV. After being at the institution a while, since we didn't have that much to do, we started watching TV. It wasn't that we were watching bad programs, but after watching it a while, we started to get quite lethargic and lazy in the spirit, and our inspiration and initiative level was quite low. So when we heard that the entire Family worldwide had stopped watching videos for entertainment as part of a fast until we were released, we decided to apply this "movie fast" to the TV as well, since we saw the effect it was having on us. The Lord really blessed that decision, as after we stopped watching movies and TV, our inspiration level went back up and the Lord gave us lots of ideas and projects to do.
Victories for the Truth!
One event exposed the hypocrisy of the whole "child protection" issue that they were using, saying we had to be kept at the institution to protect us from being abused in The Family. While at the institution, one of the teen boys was attacked by two other boys who were jealous because of something, and they nearly broke his nose. So much for "protection"! This incident really served to show us the importance of going everywhere two-by-two, as our teen was alone when this happened. It also taught us to always stay alert and on guard.
We had an opportunity to run in two marathons that were held publicly in Buenos Aires during our time in the institution. This was really a testimony, as besides one accusation that we were all brainwashed and that we couldn't make any decisions on our own, some also said that we weren't healthy, and that we were like robots. So when we came out among the top 40 out of 5000, everyone could see we were healthy and normal. It contradicted false allegations about us and showed that they were completely false.
While at the institution we were able to do a lot of personal witnessing, explaining our faith lives, God's Love, and His Truth with others. I hadn't been that good of a personal witnesser, so I was able to use this time as an opportunity to brush up. It really encouraged me how the Lord always gave me the words to say and helped me as I witnessed.
One morning, I spent a few hours talking with one of the guards, who turned out to be very receptive. He wanted to know all about the Endtime, so we talked about the soon-coming rule of the Antichrist, the One-world Conspiracy which is foretold in the Bible, and that the reason why we get so persecuted is that we are exposing this evil plan, and spreading Christianity, which the Antichrist is trying to eliminate. Afterwards he asked me if when this was all over, he could come and visit as a friend. It really inspired me, because I knew that it wasn't me at all that he was responding to, as I can't express myself well at all. It was only Jesus! Thank the Lord!
More Lessons
We learned we needed to use lots of wisdom while there. For example, when we first arrived, the director seemed very sweet, even pretending to be on our side. But as soon as she seemed to feel her job was in jeopardy, she showed her true colours and turned against us. Also, one of the other kids seemed very nice, but when we let our guard down with him, he stole some of our things.
The main lesson we learned was to hang on to the Lord. He's the One Who brought us through, and without Him we couldn't have made it. Whenever we were down and discouraged, He was always there to hold us up. We saw that as long as we kept ourselves immersed in His Word and trusting in Him, He didn't let anything bad happen to us, which was a real encouragement. Without Him, we couldn't have done it, but He was always there, carrying us in His arms.
I always wondered what it was like being sent to an institution and how our Family in France and Australia could stand it. But now I know how: It was because they leaned on the Lord, and He never failed them.
A Shining Example!
Following is an account of the raid on another Buenos Aires Home, which was conducted in a different manner.
By Solomon (age 21, now in Mexico, son of Megiddo and Mara)
THE RAID OF OUR HOME took place at 2:10 a.m. on Wednesday, September 1st. At first, the policemen rang the doorbell, but when one of our young adults, Gary, went to the door and asked who was there, they proceeded to pound on the door with tremendous force. Gary promptly woke up Ivan and Isaac to come with him to open the door. As soon as they opened the door, the police ran to all the rooms in the house, flicking on the lights, and taking pictures of each room. All the teens were told to get dressed immediately and go downstairs to the garage to wait. In our case, the officers were quite respectful and did not get abusive or violent with anyone.
While the teens waited in the garage, the families with children stayed in their rooms, watched carefully by a policeman. The teens all immediately began to go on the attack with a positive response to the situation, witnessing and singing to all the police guarding them. The teens cornered some officers individually and shared their hearts with them about many things we believe in.
In the living room Daniel and others talked and sang to the police doctor and support team official during the entire four hours we were in the house before being taken to jail. They were able to cover such topics as our way of life, aspects of our work here in Argentina and worldwide, why we believe we're being persecuted, the Endtime, along with our interpretation of current events and what Bible prophecy has to say about them, our educational standard for our children, and our basic beliefs and practices.
All in all, a very strong explanation of our faith was given to each of the policemen involved in the raid. Although they still had to fulfil their duty, many of them were won over as they could clearly see that the things our enemies say about us are pure fabrications.
During the raid, the mother of one of the Home members happened to be visiting us for a few days, as her daughter had just been married. It was her first experience in a raid and although she was quite shaken by the whole situation, she took a positive stance. She even called some of the brethren together to pray for our safety and well-being. This woman comes from a very important family in another country, and even holds a diplomatic passport which grants her diplomatic immunity. Technically, she can't be arrested; however, she was taken right along with the rest of us to jail and actually spent two days there, which was a grave error on the part of the police.
The police proceeded to search every room. They went through the first room with a fine-toothed comb, but as the search went on and they found no "evidence" against us, their zeal and thoroughness diminished.
The officers who participated in the raid were very impressed by what they observed of us and the state of the Home. They're used to raiding ratholes full of junkies, drug dealers, and criminals. Those places are usually filthy and packed with very strange people. We, on the contrary, were very courteous to them, our Home was orderly and clean, and much to their surprise, we even served them coffee and a snack while they were carrying out the raid.
By the end of the day, everyone had been taken either to institutions or jail. I was taken with three other men to the police station jail. After being strip-searched and told to leave our belts, shoelaces, money, watches and any other valuables with the desk, we were led to the prison area. We passed through four separate barred doors, then into a narrow hallway. There were four cells off this hallway, and a disgustingly filthy bathroom.
At the same time we were shown to our cells, an elderly, well-dressed man was put in one of the cells with us. He was a prominent man who happened to be renting a room from a relative of a Family member when her residence was also raided that morning. Authorities thought it was a Family Home, so arrested all the boarders there as well. He was put in a cell with one of us, while the other three of us were put in the three other cells alone. It didn't hit me that I was actually in jail until the guard slammed and locked my cell.
(Editor's note: These four Family members, as well as the elderly gentleman, were released after a short time, while many other Family members remained in prison for over 100 days.)
* * *
Closer to Jesus!
Letters to Father David and Maria from Teens in the Institutions
From Dawn (age 17, of Megiddo and Mara):
November, 1993 Dear Grandpa and Mama Maria,
SINCE THE PERSECUTION took place two months ago, I have been in an institution with five other teen girls. I've never appreciated The Family as much as I do now. There are other girls in this institution who have no family, no friends and no one who really loves them. They have become hardened and bitter. There is one young girl here who spends most of her time with us, as the other girls beat her up because she's small and frail. This has really broken my heart.
The hardest thing for us right now is to be away from the rest of The Family, but through this experience I have learned to depend more fully on Jesus. I realize that it's at times like these when my true character comes out, and I've seen I am very weak and incapable; whatever strength I possess now is definitely only His. This is a poem I wrote:
That Night at Calvary
It all happened late one night,
While my heart was burdened in prayer.
Burdened about my troubles and trials,
Burdened with worry and care.
"Could I have taken an easier road?"
I asked the Lord in despair,
Why I'd carried such a great load,
I really don't think it so fair.
While I was busy worrying
`Bout hardships in bygone years,
A strange, new light filled the room,
So warm it vanished all fears.
Then came a voice so soft and sweet,
With words ever loving and kind,
"Come with Me, My precious child,
Leave this old world behind."
Then all fell in sudden darkness,
As the night was so silent and still.
And words could never describe it,
I was standing `neath Calvary's hill.
There on that age-old mount,
Hung history's truly great One.
There was my Saviour dying;
There was God's only Son.
With nails piercing His hands and feet,
With body all twisted and torn,
I cried, "Dear Jesus, is this You,
Who for this reason was born?"
Then in a hush His eyes met mine,
With body as pained as could be,
He lifted up His tear-stained face,
And said, "Yes child, `tis Me."
Then I seemed to hear inside,
A voice with words ever clear,
"Do you think He had ever worried,
About hardships in bygone years?
Did He burden Himself with care,
And ask His Father just why
He had to die for all in despair?
Do you think for that He would sigh?"
Oh Lord, please forgive my ignorant way.
I have not suffered that much.
For the cup of sorrow that You drank,
I did but scarcely touch.
I pray, dear Lord, in all these things,
I count but nothing for Thee,
And anything that You may ask,
I may more than willing be.
From Victory (formerly Rachel, age 16, of Titus and Charity)
October, 1993 Dearest Grandpa and Mama Maria,
THANK YOU SO MUCH for all the beautiful messages you have sent to us! Getting a word from you has been like a drink of water in a desert.
I'm very honoured and feel very privileged to be a part of this fight here in Argentina. It makes me even more sold out to our Family and our way of life. I'm learning so much and realize now more than ever how much we have in our Family Homes. Being in an institution for two months really makes me long for a Family Home. The worldly system is such a hell hole with such liars.
It's wonderful to be able to stand up for my convictions when I have to go to the courthouse to make a declaration or be questioned. Of course there have been very unpleasant experiences like the forced medical exams, blood tests, etc. But knowing that I'm suffering for Jesus helps me through. It's worth it all!
This time has strengthened my convictions and goals. One thing I feel more sure of now is the calling the Lord has given me to be a missionary to China. Ever since I was young I felt the Lord calling me to go there! I'm learning Chinese and aside from regular daily prayer vigil, I spend half an hour each day praying for China and missionaries there, and in Taiwan, Hong Kong, etc. Since for now China is closed, the Lord has led me to write for clearance to Taiwan. I'm waiting for an answer now. I never thought it possible to love a people I've never met before, but I know now it's very possible. I feel a very special love and concern for them!
I love and appreciate you and all you've poured into Argentina and me personally!
Much love forever, Victory
(Editor's note: Since writing the above, Victory has received her clearance to go to Taiwan, God bless her!)
From Mercy (young adult, now in Mexico, wife of Solomon)
November 11, 1993 Dearest Grandpa and Mama Maria,
I LOVE YOU! This is a little note to let you know how much you mean to me! I was detained in the persecution in Argentina, and was placed in one of the institutions along with my children, Cherish (two years old) and Nicholas (two months). I remained in the institution for a month and a half. Since I'm a Mexican citizen, my consul intervened and helped us get out, thank the Lord. One of the conditions to our leaving the institution was returning to our home country. Although it wasn't my personal desire to leave Argentina, I was extremely glad to be able to get out of the institution. Argentina has a very special place in my heart, as I lived there as a missionary for the past five and a half years.--And although the field itself wasn't that easy, it was a real challenge.
I'm very thankful to be back in a Family Home. My kids have been reunited with their daddy and they are back in the loving atmosphere they are accustomed to, which is a real blessing for us.
Being able to read Family literature once again has been like taking a breath of fresh air; I've never appreciated God's Word so much in my life. We had a few Bibles, but most of us had our Bibles taken away. We were so angry when the police did this. We even commented to them: "Has this democratic society become Communist?" Their reply was that it was written material and they had orders from the judge to confiscate anything in writing.
The messages you sent about keeping up the fight and not getting discouraged were such a blessing. Those messages played a big part in keeping us inspired and holding on to the Lord. Sometimes the situation seemed so bleak, but those encouraging messages and also all the prophecies that our dear Family received are what kept us going. I guess our main battles there were mostly tiredness, discouragement, and being short-handed with all of our children. (Editor's note: The set-up in the institution wasn't adequate for the care of the children, so our mothers stayed to care for them, cook, clean, etc.) God bless our dear mothers!--They did so well and were such fighters!
Although I was glad to leave, I still felt this overwhelming sadness to leave the rest of my Family there. I continue to pray that the Lord delivers them speedily. (Editor's note: All adults and children have now been released, thank the Lord!)
Especially at the beginning, I didn't know what was going to happen to us. We even thought, "Maybe we'll die as martyrs." But as time went on, we knew that the Lord was going to deliver us out of their hands. I'm thankful to have gone through this situation, as I learned a lot of lessons not only on the spiritual side, but also in physical, practical matters. I'm more sold on serving the Lord with The Family than ever, because I know that there is nothing like The Family!
Our enemies thought that persecuting us might shake our faith and make us weak, but I think I can speak for all the teens--they were more on fire than I've ever seen them! They were dying to get a chance to be able to go out and defend our Family, stand up to our enemies, and fight for our parents! Since we were the supposed "victims", we were desperate to do something about these accusations. We have seen how corrupt, deceptive, and ugly the worldly system can be! We are now certain that there is no better place in the world than The Family.
Seeing our brethren on TV holding demonstrations was so inspiring! We were moved to tears to see all the love of our dear Family. Where else do you find love like that?--Nowhere! Actually, all of us involved in the persecution were more concerned about dear Grandpa than about ourselves. We know how hard it is for Grandpa to see his children go through situations like these. Please let him know that we are proud of everything he's written and taught us because we know it's the Truth. If it wasn't for him, I would never be here. "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that shall be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18).
Thank you!--You've given me everything!--Jesus and The Family--what a wonderful cause to suffer persecution for, worth giving our life for. I love you! The truth is marching on!
Much love always, Mercy
From Claire (age 18, of Jeho and Consuelo)
November 25, 1993 (Excerpts of a letter to Maria)
I WAS IN THE INSTITUTION for 50 days, but I wouldn't change that experience for anything. The lessons I learned from it and the changes it brought about in my life were well worth the suffering. It changed my outlook on life, made me more of a fighter and made me more sold out on The Family.
It just made me so thankful that the Lord blessed us by giving us such wonderful, loving shepherds and someone to lead us through these Last Days. Thank you for your faithfulness in teaching us God's Word, as it was the only thing that pulled me through! This whole experience has strengthened my convictions.
More than anything I wanted to take this time to thank you for sending that sweet and encouraging note to my mom (Consuelo) and the other Family women in prison. It was hard for me to accept and understand why He chose her to be in such a place. I wasn't complaining about the Lord's ways, but it hurt and I was troubled, seeing her there. I must admit though, that every time I saw her she was shining and so beautiful. I'm so proud of both her and my father, who is also in prison. (Both released now!) Your note was such a help for me to better see the Lord's plan in that situation and to trust Him for the future. (Editor's note: Maria wrote our women in prison that one of the reasons the Lord must have put them there was because of His great Love for the other inmates who came to Jesus after our women witnessed to them day after day.--Girls who had seen such darkness and brutality came to the light through knowing our women, and received Jesus, His Love, and His peace in their hearts.)
From Celine (age 19, of Megiddo and Mara)
December, 1993 (Excerpts of a letter to Maria)
I SPENT 25 DAYS INSIDE an institution and have been free for two months now. It was a whole new experience for me as I was faced with battles that I've never encountered before! I learned that having already formed a firm habit of listening to and depending on the Lord is crucial during the battles of persecution.
In the past, I never really feared persecution itself, but I did fear that when questioned I wouldn't know what to say. But after going through all this and being questioned over and over again by favourable and unfavourable people, that fear has totally vanished! I've always believed that "it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak" (Matthew 10:19), but actually experiencing it is something so miraculous and incredible! The words would effortlessly flow out of my mouth! Like Grandpa says, "Fill up your heart and you won't have any trouble knowing what to say or what to do."
During times like that, all the Word that has been poured into me for so many years suddenly came to life. I didn't have to plan what to say because the answers would flow from the abundance of my heart. I can see now more than ever how important it is to study the Word faithfully and keep my heart and mind full of it, because after going through all of this, I can feel that we are getting closer and closer to the End, and all we'll have to hold on to is the Word.
Another thing I experienced firsthand while inside the institution that greatly encouraged me and strengthened my faith was our worldwide Family's prayers. We often use the expression, "I could feel your prayers", but never before has that saying become so real to me. Sometimes at night when I would lie in bed with my two-year-old niece asleep in my arms, whom I was taking care of day and night, I would look at the dark, dirty, dilapidated, old walls surrounding me and my heart would sink, while the tears of despair would begin to well up. But as soon as I would lift my eyes up to the Lord, I could literally feel the warm, brilliant light of His Love, grace and peace flooding my soul and giving me faith. I knew that at that very moment my Family in some part of the world was praying for me! The tears would fall again, this time not of despair, but of joy for such a beautiful Family who makes our every battle their own and fights in prayer with all their might, "remembering those in bonds as if bound with them!" (Hebrews 13:3).
There's just nothing in the world like our Family. I'm convinced of that now more than ever. This persecution was the best thing that could've happened to strengthen my personal convictions. It has also shown me the real face of the world and how cruel and heartless it really is underneath its hypocritical, plastic mask! I now have more of a personal disgust for this anti-God world system and its blind rejection of the Truth and the Lord. I thank God that we can offer hope to this world, and that Jesus has given us the answers to its problems.
From Oseas (Argentine national, age 17, son of Martin and Ester)
December 11, 1993 Dear Grandpa and Mama Maria,
I LOVE YOU VERY MUCH and am proud to be able to represent you and The Family during this time of persecution.
Having been in an institute for such a long time has truly made me very grateful for you and for The Family. Lately, we've been able to leave the institute during the day to visit the brethren in the Home and it's been so nice. Before this, I had been so discouraged and fed up after being there so long, but when I visited the Home, it was incredible and it completely changed me. It was so inspiring to see the brethren, and the difference between the institute and the Home was so clear. The brethren were so nice and the hardest thing was having to say good-bye and return to that place. I can't wait to be able to live again in a Home of The Family. (Editor's note: Thank the Lord, everyone is now in Family Homes again.)
I remember a Family publication that talked a lot about personal dedication and whether your attitude is one of "I'm staying in The Family because I know that it's the only place for me to be." When I read that, it touched me very much and I prayed that the Lord would help me to be completely devoted to Him. After being outside The Family now for over two months, I can see the damned hypocrisy of the world system and how rotten and horrible it really can be. I can see that there is no other place for me to be in the world where I'll be happy but in The Family, and by God's grace, I'm going to stay.
With much love, Oseas
Demand Your Rights!
From Sunny (21, written after his release from prison, where he was detained with the other adult men)
January 13, 1994
THIS WHOLE EXPERIENCE has been exciting, thrilling, and has increased my faith greatly. Thinking back, I remember I could hardly imagine that one day I could be in prison, and yet the Lord gave me the grace to be in those conditions for three and a half months.
When they first raided our Home at 2:00 a.m., to be honest, I was scared. Since it was the first time anything like this had ever happened to me, I didn't know exactly what to do.--And though we asked the officials to explain, they wouldn't tell us what was going on. Looking back now, I realize that we could have been much more insistent in demanding our rights. Even though they showed us the search warrant (which they didn't do in some Homes), we still had all the right in the world to call our lawyer, and to have the officials explain what was going on. What they told us is that basically we had no rights at all.
If this happens to me again, I'm going to stand up for the rights that I know I have and not budge. By God's grace, I'm going to tell them, "Look, we're not moving an inch or giving you one document until you explain to us what's going on and let us call our lawyers." At least I could demand my rights, and if they don't respect them, then let them slap handcuffs on me!--Or do whatever they are going to do, and if they violate my rights, in the long run they will be exposed for it.
During the entire three and a half months, whenever we stood firm and demanded our rights, they either had to give in to us, at least part of the way, or they would have to deny our basic rights and thus show their true colours. So I learned that you can't lose by demanding your rights, with prayer and wisdom.
From Timothy (16, of Megiddo and Mara, written after his release from the institution)
December 14, 1993
WHEN THE POLICE and social workers flooded into our room at 2:30 in the morning on that fateful day, we were given no explanations, just told to stay in our room. Whenever I asked what was going on or if I could call my lawyer, I was given the simple answer, "I'm sorry, we aren't authorised to give any information." They even lied to me and said the brethren in the main house had already contacted our lawyers, which was not the case at all. In fact, it wasn't until the second day in the institution that we had any contact at all with the outside world.
After waiting for over three hours, we were told to pack some clothes as we might have to wait a while for the judge to come, which didn't make any sense to me. First of all, why would we need more clothes if we were just going to be waiting around, and second, why would the judge have to come to the house? When they checked our bags they didn't let us pack any Bibles or devotional books, without giving any reason.
Then, all of a sudden a policeman came in and ordered us outside to get into a bus, along with all the children and women. We were told we were being taken to an institution for about two days while they "resolved some matters". Those "two days" turned out to be quite a bit more than that! After just now hearing the Appeals Court's decision to release us, I was thinking about how I would've reacted if I had known then I would be in the institution for three and a half months. But as the weeks rolled by, the Lord helped me through every test and trial that came my way. He was faithful to encourage my heart whenever I was so down and discouraged I just couldn't go on another day. I learned to just trust the Lord and rest in His arms.
Although it was a hard thing to go through, I'm thankful to be counted worthy to suffer for Christ's sake. It strengthened my connection with the Lord and drew me closer to Him.
Fighting for the Truth!
From Sam (18, of Philip and Amy)
October 27, 1993
Following are excerpts of a letter to Maria, written after Sam had been released from the institution and gone to the U.S. to fight against the lies of our detractors.
TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH, I feel very indebted to The Family for the effort and the sacrifice that everyone has so willingly put forth for all of us who went through the persecution in Argentina. Having gone through this whole ordeal, I feel more convinced than ever about The Family and that we preach the Truth.
When I was able to go back with several others to our former Home (manned by young adults in Buenos Aires) to salvage what was left, it was like seeing our dream and everything that we'd worked so hard for shattered in front of us. The place was destroyed, and I could practically hear the Devil laughing, trying to discourage us and get us to give up. But I think I can speak for all of us in saying that I feel eternally grateful to you and Grandpa for having had faith in us and being willing to trust that we were going to act responsibly with what you offered us as young adults.
I think I can honestly say that I had never felt so happy about The Family and so sold out to what we believe and practice as I did at the time right before the raids. Now, I'm convinced even more about it, having now gone through the persecution and having seen the Devil and all of his worldlings so mad at us for our beliefs. It's one thing to be hounded for wild allegations that they cook up, but being directly confronted and psychologically tortured for simple Christianity is really proof to me that what we do is definitely right, beyond a shred of a doubt.
If I had a chance to go back in time and get out of this persecution, I wouldn't. I wouldn't trade this experience for anything, because of the conviction that it's given me. At the same time, I feel enraged about the whole thing, and want to be able to fight back as hard as I can. I also feel honoured that we were worthy to go through it for the Lord and The Family.
One major lesson I learned is that we can't afford not to be ready for persecution. We can't wait till persecution comes and expect the Lord to take care of everything for us. He has helped us, it's true, but we can make it easier for Him and us by getting ourselves together and living as we would if we were about to have persecution, regardless of our present conditions.
As soon as we were under pressure, it seemed like our weaknesses started coming out more, and the Enemy attacked any point of vulnerability. I'm no longer trying to read things to inspire my vision for the Endtime, I'm convinced we're in it.-- And I feel like we're not as ready as we could be, and we can't afford to risk the possibility of another attack without strengthening our weak spots.
I love you so much and I want you to know that I feel proud to be a part of The Family that the Lord and you, Grandpa and Mama Maria, have created for us all. Even though you both are quite a bit older than us young people, we truly feel that the Lord has given you a special understanding for us, and that there is really no young nor old in Jesus. It makes it easy to believe and obey what the Lord gives you, when we look at the understanding and love that you've given us.
Along with the other young people who were in Argentina, I feel sure the fight has just begun and I'm willing to go to any necessary lengths to see it through. It's a pleasure to forego any personal plans, to do what I can to fight in this battle.
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Peace from Heaven in the Midst of Hell!
Adults Share Lessons from Prison!
From Charity (written from prison six weeks after being arrested)
October 15, 1993
Charity is a U.S. citizen and had been a missionary in Argentina for many years. She is the mother of eight children, and was arrested shortly after the raids, right after appearing on TV with her husband Titus, in defense of The Family.
I FOUND THIS VERSE last night and just wept, as this is what we all desire--to be released so we can witness and share His loving Truth with others! "Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise Thy Name. The righteous shall compass me about; for Thou shalt deal bountifully with me" (Psalm 142:7). Sometimes I feel so full of all the wonderful things the Lord has done, I want to tell the world! Our Enemy, the Devil, thinks he can stop us with fear, but his tricks have just the opposite effect, as we get more and more inspired and convinced that our Message is the Truth as this battle continues!
Prison is a crash course in learning to fight fear and intimidation. We are learning through each experience to be very careful not to make any decisions or make any moves based on fear. In this kind of situation, intimidation is the name of the game, so to speak, so we're learning to pray fervently and stay on top of things and be on guard at all times. For example, sometimes at night we get startled by a flashlight shining in our faces, or we're awakened to sign something at 4 or 5 a.m. Or we are awakened at 1 a.m. to be advised that we are going somewhere, then we leave at 5 a.m. after no sleep.
I've had to pray hard at night to be able to go to bed in a peaceful spirit because never knowing when they are going to come in for something can make me quite tense. For example, when the judge ordered me to have a blood test, they woke me up at 1 a.m. and said it was an order that could not be refused. At 4 a.m. they came back to get me and I went without food or sleep all that day till I returned in the evening. The Lord gave me such peace though, praise the Lord! All the way, I witnessed to the prison guards, who happened to be pretty kind.
We simply couldn't have made it without all the training we have had in The Family. When you are in a situation like this, you realize how much of His Truth, His lessons and His Love we have stored inside! It just pours out, it is part of us! Without our training in rebuking the Devil's attacks and fighting a spiritual warfare, all that we are going through now would have been devastating, but for us, it is simply another more intense phase. The Lord gives so much grace! Sometimes we are so happy and peaceful, we just know it's the Lord!
From Charity
October 22, 1993
WE LOVE YOU SO VERY MUCH and miss you all and hope that we can be together soon! We have a lot of faith the Lord's going to get us out, but we are, by God's grace, trying to stay open to His Will and submitted to it.
We miss having The Family publications, Dad's Letters, and the other feeding Word material we enjoy so much. But we are thankful for the Word we do have, in the Bible and devotional materials, and for all the blessings we have which are many. I just wept at the note from the girl in Dad's house about Dad praying for us and the movie fast. (Editor's note: Dad suggested that the entire Family give up watching our recreational movie videos until the brethren in Argentina were released, and that we use that extra time to pray for them.) God bless The Family! We love you all so much!
Here's a beautiful poem my daughter Angel wrote me, in a note she sent from the institution where she is being held.
Dear Mom,
We were thinking of you the other day,
Of how much we love you in every way.
Your courage, your faith, and assuring smile,
Are things that make the fight worthwhile.
It's because of you that we're all still here.
The fight grows tougher as the End grows near.
But seeing you make it and with trouble cope,
Has helped us endure and not give up hope.
We love you and thank you for all you've done.
Let's unite in this fight, `til the victory's won!
Love, your children.
From Paloma (written after two months in prison)
November 5th, 1993
(Editor's note: In the prison cell where our five women were staying with four other women, two new girls moved in who were lesbians, infected with AIDS, and known to be violent. As the prison was generally the scene of many horrible acts of revenge and hatred, and the hostility towards our women was inflamed by the false allegations of child abuse against them, they often felt that their lives were in danger. Thank the Lord, He didn't forsake them for a moment, and kept them safe in this threatening situation!)
When the two new girls came to stay with us last week, I learned a lot about how to battle face-to-face with fear. We had been warned that they might try to harm us, or that they could have been deliberately moved into our room for that purpose. I stayed up all night to watch, as did two of our cellmates, who had been in prison for quite some time before we Family women arrived, and knew of the reputation of the new arrivals.
That very day the prison officials had called me in to ask me the address of a close friend they should contact, in the event that I got seriously hurt or sick. So I began to think that maybe these girls were actually after me, or, after Claire who sleeps right beside me. This may seem exaggerated, and I can see that from the outside these stories must seem almost unreal. But from in here, when you have no freedom to choose where you are or why, and having already gone through two months of harassment, fighting off fear is a very real battle.
That night I lay in bed and asked the Lord to help me be willing to do anything for Him, even if it meant dying! I thought about how Dad has said our enemies will eventually resort to illegal measures to do away with us, and that there will be martyrs among us, and I began to see this as a very real possibility. It was a heavy sensation--to have the faith to yield to this without being afraid. Well, thank the Lord, it wasn't our time to go! I know that when it is, there will be "dying grace" for that moment.
Actually the whole experience brought major victories, because our desperate prayers to get these bad girls out were answered so miraculously. We asked the Lord specifically, "If they are here to harm us, Lord, You have to take them out!"-- And He did! (See complete story in PEN 3 and 4, "Falsely Accused and Jailed in Argentina".) Such a quick answer to prayer was a wonderful testimony to our cellmates, and in turn brought about more unity and mutual trust in our cell, answering our prayers for living in peace together.
From Consuelo (written after three months in prison)
December 5, 1993
I REALIZED THE LORD had brought about a victory in my heart through our being here in prison longer than we first expected. If we had been released too soon, I would have left here with a tremendous fear of prison, and it would have been hard to share testimonies or encourage others that the Lord can keep us through it. Now that we have adjusted to the situation better, and overcome a lot of the fears we first had, I feel much more positive about it. I can share lessons about how the Lord brings us through! Thank You Jesus!
From Charity (written after her release from prison)
January 14, 1994
I AM DEEPLY GRATEFUL to the Lord for allowing me the privilege of suffering for Him, even a little--for it was very little in comparison to what so many other Christians have gone through--yet this experience gave me so much faith in God's absolute power and ability to keep us through anything. I feel so certain that the Lord let five weak girls go through such a difficult situation to encourage The Family that if we could make it, anyone in The Family certainly can! It was Jesus and His grace alone!
The reality of Heaven became so clear to me; I clung to promises in the Word, that no matter what happened at least I didn't have too many years to wait to be There and reunited with those I love! TTL! When we finally got the tape recorder and the "Fear Not" Scripture Song Tape, I'd listen to "I, John, Saw the Holy City" over and over and weep with joy! TTL!
Being in solitary confinement was not a time when we were strengthened by "group faith", but it had to be my own individual commitment to the Lord that kept me. (See PEN 3 and 4 for the complete story of our women's stay in prison.) I wasn't sure I'd ever see the other women again, much less my husband, my children or other Family members. Face to face with imprisonment and maybe even death (due to what we knew about our situation in prison and the animosity of the other prisoners), it was a heavy time of decision. But I had to decide to submit to His Will and trust Him for the outcome, no matter what.
Maybe a lot of people fear, like I did, that they won't make it in the Endtime, and if we look at ourselves, we can't! But Jesus is there and He's already made it for each of us--and will continue to do so! "My grace is sufficient for thee" (2Corinthians 12:9).
Because of the overwhelming amount of negative publicity, the Enemy tried to intimidate us and put us on the defensive. At one point, when we were in real danger physically, I was desperate to witness, because if I was going to be martyred, I wanted it to be because of my faith in Jesus, and not because I'm thought of as a so-called child abuser! We prayed against being intimidated or put on the defensive by their lies, and the Lord gave us the victory. I got to the point where I decided, "Well, it doesn't matter what they think I've done or am guilty of.--So what!--They still need Jesus!" The Lord really blessed it when we were on the attack witnessing whenever we could. He gave us that joy that comes from telling others about the One we love the most! Praise the Lord!
Even the last night, when we were to be given our liberty, we were trucked in handcuffs to the Federal Police Station and we happened to get one of the meanest guards, who always put our handcuffs on very tightly. She had always seemed quite an impossible case, but that night she received the Lord with me on the way to the city! Thank the Lord! A real miracle!
When Maria's message came to us about how the Lord loves the inmates we lived with so deeply, that He would even go so far as to send us to be a witness to them, it broke my heart. They were going through quite a hard time then, and one was treating us just horribly. My patience with their shenanigans had just about run out, but we took Maria's message to heart. As Dad says, "Real love never fails", and we realized that if we really loved them, we wouldn't give up on them. True to what Maria said, they did finally come to see us as the Lord's representatives.
On the night we left, they were so sweet, helping us get our make-up on and dress the baby, making us drinks, etc. They had truly been won by the Lord's Love. One of the inmates, an American girl, said, "When my mom died [a few days before we left], I didn't even want to talk to you because you represent the Lord to me and I felt mad at Him." We were all crying! They knew that we constantly prayed and that God Himself had done the miracle to get us out! So it was a wonderful testimony to them, and I am sure one that changed their lives.
Another lesson I learned in our dealings with them is that we just couldn't witness every time we talked. We had to show them that we loved them and try to relate to them on their level and relax with them. Once the American girl and I were trying to make icing for a cake someone had given the other girls, and the icing turned into a hard ball of fudge. It was a big mess, since neither of us knows how to cook. But it was a laugh for everyone and made us a lot closer. Little daily happenings like that helped them see we were just normal people and not some "weird sect".
One even commented how the five of us have very different personalities and temperaments. She liked that but hadn't expected it! At the time it didn't seem possible to give them more Word classes, but through the mail it may be easier, since their pride won't be in the way.
Another thing that helped me make it was our unity. Because the five of us Family women had all worked together at different times before, we had to be willing to see each other as the new creatures we were becoming through this experience, and not let familiarity enter in. We all have strong personalities, and of course little differences cropped up since we were literally locked in the same room 24 hours a day. But our differences were very minimal; it was a very tight team!
Whenever one of us would begin to drift off to herself too much, due to trials, the others would pray for her, as our unity was imperative to keeping our spirits high. Thank the Lord! In prison you really miss affection and hugs, children and mates, so closeness and knowing you are loved means a lot!
We had to learn that each one handles stress and battles differently and to take it in stride. Some would just go to sleep, others would pace walk. We were quite a funny bunch sometimes and we did have a lot of laughs in spite of the battles! We borrowed a theme song from the movie, "Sister Act": "If my sister's in trouble, so am I!"
A precious blessing for me was learning to depend more on the Spirit and our spiritual gifts--the Word, prayer and prophecy, as well as dreams, visions, miracles, etc. Since our communication with the outside world was very limited, we often had to stand on what we got from the Lord in prayer.
Since both my husband Titus and I were in prison, it gave me such peace to know The Family was fighting worldwide for our children who were in the institution since my husband and I were unable to. I knew The Family wouldn't let them go! I now appreciate The Family like never before.
Like Maria says in her explanation of Romans 8:28, "Trials equal good!" I know this experience transformed my life and gave me an urgency about my service for the Lord that I didn't have before. I'm sure that is one reason the Lord sees persecution as a priceless treasure: it breaks your heart and makes you love Him more, depend more completely on Him in prayer, have deeper faith in His Word, and puts a burning desire in your heart to witness His Truth! TTL! He does it all!
Love, Charity
From Jonathan
January 15, 1994
ONE OF MY BIGGEST LESSONS had to do with my fears of going to prison--something that I battled with even before the persecution. Although I knew persecution was coming, still I worried what would happen to me if I got put in prison. Looking back, I believe that the Lord had me there three and a half months because I wasn't ready to come out before then, because during that time He gave me a wonderful victory over the fear of going to prison! I don't have that fear any more because the Lord proved He would care for me!
Another lesson was concerning prayer, which was almost more important than the Word in this situation. It wasn't enough to just be in prayer, but to be in desperate prayer. I wasn't just fighting for myself in prayer, but for others who were going through heavy battles, and each one was different. The other shepherd and I had to have good communication together, as it wasn't just our own battles that we were going through, but we were also fighting for others who were asking for counsel and for prayer about the various trials they were going through. (Editor's note: In the men's prison there were 16 Family members, and they elected two to be their shepherds. Jonathan was one.)
I found that what worked in shepherding before in the Homes didn't neatly apply to this particular situation. Situations and events were so sensitive for each person. We had to take a lot of time with people to pray with them and just listen to them.
I see now that my contact with people as a shepherd and even as a brother needs to change. For example, in a normal situation you can guide people to read certain Letters that will help them, but there we had very little Word and the battles were very, very heavy. Our contact with our over-shepherds was very limited. Often the only thing we could do was pray for each other.
Another example where our shepherding had to change was realizing that people were under an incredible amount of pressure and tension; reactions that we would normally point out as wrong in a Home, we had to just be patient with. An admonition sometimes would have just added to their burden and wouldn't have helped them personally. Taking these particular situations to the Lord was imperative. At the same time we tried to keep the spiritual standard high.
Apart from all the lessons in conviction and being on the attack, my relationship with the Lord has been strengthened and I count all these things I've learned to be a big blessing.
From Eli:
January 14, 1994
ONE OF THE MOST PRECIOUS LESSONS that I learned in prison was that of truly believing that the Lord speaks to us personally, by giving us messages or prophecy in answer to our prayers for His help and guidance. In the past, I found prophecy to be encouraging and uplifting, but I didn't have complete faith to act on it. But in prison, the Lord spoke so specifically and gave such beautiful prophecies; never once did He lead us to believe something that did not come to pass.
At one point, by a miracle of God, we were able to smuggle in transcripts of a collection of prophecies received for us by brethren around the world who had prayed for us. These were such an encouragement, specifically giving promises from the Lord that we would be delivered. I remember one that said: "Thou shalt be delivered and there shall be a day of rejoicing! Doubt it not!" I stood on this promise and hung onto it while in prison.
We got together at times to hear from the Lord and have prayer for our situation. Often our prayers would be: "Lord deliver us from these bonds." But the miracle is that never once did the Lord give us false hopes that we would be delivered when it was not yet His Will, but He did give us many very encouraging things to help us hang on.
For example, at one point He gave us some beautiful prophecies about how He would never leave us and He was with us until the End of the world. These specific prophecies brought many to tears. Another time we got the illustration of Lazarus--how the disciples felt Jesus should go and heal him while he was yet sick, but Jesus waited until a few days after he had died so that it would be an even greater testimony. We felt this meant that maybe it wasn't the Lord's Will that we got out exactly at that time (about halfway through) but that He would do greater works if we hung on just a while longer.
Towards the end, we again prayed for our deliverance, but the Lord specifically said it wasn't yet His time and gave us the illustration from the Book of Acts, when Jesus said to tarry until the Holy Spirit comes. We felt this meant that we should wait patiently for His appointed time.
Three days before our deliverance, the Lord spoke, saying that we would be getting out and we should prepare. He said specifically to pack our bags and get ready! Doing this was quite a step of faith for us, as people in the prison were saying the contrary, and even the U.S. embassy people came and brought us two months' worth of magazines, doubting our deliverance! But we went ahead by faith, believing the prophecy more than the doubters, and the Lord honoured it! We were released just as He promised!
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Thank You from Dad and Mama!
Dear ones,
Thanks to all of you who wrote of the marvellous victories and lessons the Lord gave you during your time in prison and in the institutions in Argentina. You're a great encouragement to the whole Family! You led the way, and we saw how wonderfully the Lord protected you. It's helped us all to have more faith for the future.
It's thrilled us to hear your wonderful expressions of love and loyalty to the Lord, The Family, and to us, written while you were detained and afterwards. Although we couldn't include them all here, we appreciate every one. Seeing the glory of the Lord descend upon you in your adversity, sweetening your lives and making you shine as never before, showed us again that all things truly do work together for good to them that love Him. Each one of you are precious to us; we're so glad that the Lord kept you through the ordeal, and released you when His time came and His purposes were accomplished. Who hath delivered, doth deliver, and in Whom we trust, that He will yet deliver us" (2 Corinthians 1:10).
Stay strong in the Lord, and keep fighting for Him, the Truth and The Family! We love you and are proud of you.
Much love, Dad and Mama
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family