Customer Reviews

Bewitchment: You Foolish Galatians

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Having known many people in the ICOC, I was interested in reading a thoughtful analysis of the organization. However, I was sadly disappointed.

1.0 The authors' first state (see the back cover), "This is not the usual 'cult scare' book that whines about the supposed faults of another group. If you are looking for a book that only points a finger at others, this one is not for you."

From the first page until the last the book is filled with nothing but whining and finger pointing. The authors bash the churches of Christ (p.25 et al.), the Christian Church (p.36), The Disciples of Christ (p.36), the ICOC (p.25 et al.), and other groups as well.

2.0 The authors' fundamental complaints center on the following points:

2.1 Social Pressure to conform within the group.
2.2 Attention to "numbers" of members
2.3 Member Mentoring "Discipling"
2.4 Emphasis on giving (monetary)
2.5 Use of musical instruments (in worship)
2.6 Belief in the Holy Spirit.

All of these points are made in the first few chapters in the book. The rest of the chapters are a continual rehashing of the same 6 points with nothing new added. Many Christian groups have the same kinds of problems. This really isn't anything new.

3.0 Misuse of scripture
The authors' continually quote scriptures outside of biblical context drawing heavily from Old & New Testament scriptures that simply do not apply to the points they are trying to make. See pages 109, 113 - 115, 130. Other misuses of scriptures abound with in the book as well.

4.0 Mistrust of Logic and Reason
The authors' contend that a logical view of the bible is 'sinful' and that people should not try to use reason as a tool for understanding the scriptures (see chapter 12).

5.0 The book fails (though promised on the back cover) to provide a "solution". There are no practical steps given except to pray about the situation and run away to another church group. However, the authors fail to describe what to look for in another group (except their own ... of course).

In short anything outside of what the authors' perceive as truth is wrong. Blah Blah Blah ...

I read this book (Bewitchment) about a month ago. I grew up in the Assembly of God denomination and let me tell you, anyone is capable of trying to live the gospel by legalism instead of listening to the Holy Spirit. We had our list of "don'ts" just like the International Church of Christ and it was always easier for me to follow someone's rules rather to hear from God on my own. It's also easy to soak up scripture and make yourself feel spiritual, when your heart is not changing at all! Tim and Carla Williams present some powerful examples of how people do everything possible outwardly to follow scripture yet end up as Jesus said in John 5:39-40, "You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life." I would heartily recommend this book to anyone searching for a deeper relationship with God, who desires to be obedient to His Holy Spirit!