Stacey Aviva Flint was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, and was a spiritual seeker from a young age though her family wasn't tied to a religion. She was approached by a pseudo-Christian cult known as the International Churches of Christ at age 16. The ICOC was run by a man named Kip McKean, and is not affiliated with the mainline Church of Christ. Rachel has memories of the Boston Movement from the 80's, when she attended Boston University.
Passing up scholarships and other big dreams, Stacey became a leader in their Nairobi, Kenya and Cleveland, Ohio branches. Emotional and psychological control in this group orchestrated friendships and marriages, alienation from family, financial exploitation, and loss of individual identity. When she started a family with her husband, Stacey realized she was expected to use many strict techniques on her children (withholding food, ignoring their cries, and physical discipline). With the discovery of an international outcry from its members describing years of abuse, Stacey chose to start making her own decisions.
Stay tuned, Before You Go: Rachel highlights some signs of dangerous control, and then sends a shout out to someone working hard to end a group's hold on him.
Part 2 Coming Soon: Hear more about Stacey's time on a mission for the group in Africa. It is powerful and intense, troubling and very surprising- definitely tune in!
