Hiding in Plain Sight = first chapter of Undertow: My Escape from the Fundamentalism and Cult Control of The Way International™
The first chapter of: Undertow: My Escape from the Fundamentalism and Cult Control of The Way International™ by Charlene L. Edge New Wings Press, LLC (2017) Available in paperback and ebook at major booksellers and indie bookstores Hiding in Plain Sight If they find out, they’ll think I’m weird. In the winter of 1987, my Sociology professor clutched a stub of white chalk, drew a pyramid spanning the height of the blackboard, and crowned it with an X . Thirty students, many half my age, surrounded me in a beige classroom. None of them knew my secret. “Okay. Last week we discussed gender inequality in the workplace,” Dr. Schaffer said. “Tonight, we’ll examine autocratic groups and how they operate. My not-so-elegant drawing represents their hierarchical power structure. Religious ones are often called ‘sects,’ or ‘cults.’ By the way, I’m saying, s-e-c-t-s, not s-e-x.” When laughs died down, she said, “The leader is X .” She underlined the X . “He or she dictates the group’s ...