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Returning guest, Em Thomas was born and raised in the dogmatic Christian cult The Way International. The daughter of a Way Corps graduate and WOW ambassador, Em attended a fellowship in her home three nights per week, monthly branch meetings with other leadership families, and prolonged stays semi-annually at TWI headquarters. Em’s family was labeled “Mark and Avoid” (excommunicated) in 1998, after which they attended fellowship within a splinter group until 2000 when Em was 15 years old.
Em has two main goals for sharing her story: to connect with other survivors of cultic abuse, especially second or third-generation survivors of The Way International, and to bring attention to this once well-known organization that is still operating and doing harm to its members today. She hopes that by telling her truth, she can bring hope to folks who are still finding their way out.
In this follow-up conversation, Em details the rampant homophobia of the church's leaders and shares her long and complex journey to recovery after leaving the cult as a teenager. She points out the long-lasting psychological impacts that affected her life and relationships long after being physically out of the grips of the church. Together Rachel and Em discuss how being deprived of bodily autonomy as a child can lead to entering into dangerous relationships as an adult.
Em can be found on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/markandavoid/
You can contact her via email at: iammarkandavoid@gmail.com
Thanks to all of our Patreon supporters for making this episode possible!
