Sam and Melissa React to the Shocking Truths of the "Exclusive Brethren" Docuseries 

Sam, I think of you and of your mother daily. My mother once chose religion over me, but she came around. I wish so badly your mother would show up at your door and embrace you and save herself, but I know that is very unlikely. This being posted right before Mother's Day, I wanted to say that regardless of the heartbreak, your mother raised the most remarkable man. Obviously Melissa and your two beautiful kiddos have a huge part in your success and your ability to move forward after such heartbreak. But it's your heart and your compassion, your open-mindedness and your gentle nature that make you unbelievably impressive person you are. I have a deep fear of men, but as a mother myself, if ever I met you, I wouldn't be able to help myself from hugging you. While you celebrate your beautiful and incredible wife tomorrow, keep in mind that you're literally changing the world. And you wouldn't be that person without your mom. ❤💔

I absolutely adore how loving, kind, and compassionate you both are not only towards each other but to complete strangers as well. Girl you had me crying right along with you ❤

So crazy to stumble upon this because I am a New Zealander and I have family members that are closed brethren in NZ that I have never met ❤

I came out of a high demand Christian religion and am the mother of an adult child. I just cannot wrap my head around how so many of these groups will say they are family focused and put an emphasis on the family, yet regularly force their children out of their lives. I don’t understand how parents (and grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles, etc.) can justify the contradiction of valuing family while discarding their kids. My heart breaks for those whose family turned their backs on them just for who they are or what they believe. I wish them all the joy and love of found family.

I just want to say thank you for not jumping to the opposite end and bashing Christianity as a whole. I’ve been recently watching a lot of these types of videos. I didn’t know so many of these groups/cults existed! Many channels just jump to the far end and bash Christianity as whole not realizing that orthodox/conservative churches are very different from these high demand groups/ cults. I appreciate your channel and sharing these difficult topics and drawing attention to them.

Oh Melissa! You made me cry! (At about the 45-minute mark) ❤❤

Wow! I’ve been watching you guys for years with fascination and now I was super shocked to see you comment on the cult that I was born and raised in. I was born and raised in the exclusive brethren. Excommunicated 17 years ago. Just so everyone is clear there’s all kinds of brethren groups and brethren branches and splits, but the documentary that’s being watched is the group I was born and raised in - the most extreme and conservative and strict of all the brethren branches. They used to be known as the exclusive brethren. Recently they rebranded as the PBCC, Plymouth Brethren Christian Church to be more palatable. The leader Is BDH, Bruce D Hales is Sydney, Australia. See the Get A Life podcasts.

A few points: They have their own school system now called One School Global. When I was a child, we went to public school and only got to socialize with our group of insiders. We went home for lunch. Now they have their own school system with their own volunteer bus drivers. They are not located only in New Zealand. I came out of a Canadian locale in Winnipeg and also belonged to the Maple Creek locale for a short time. My great grandfather led the church out of Neche, ND. He passed away in 1987. There are locales in Canada, America, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Barbados, and I believe possibly one other. The last names bring back memories to me on the outside. It’s funny hearing a name out here and the memories flood back of those with the same surname inside, such as: Symington, Holt, Rochat, Cavenaugh, Mailey, Admiral, Hughes, Hales, Boram, and so on.

I have Brethrens and exclusive Brethrens and LDS near me in Australia. I live about 2 blocks from where LDS people go to worship. The next block has a JW kingdom hall. I'm in a town of about 5,600 people. Lots of different religions and denominations here. The next town over has the Brethren church and a big Sikh temple and both our towns have mosques. We had a Jewish synagogue about 70 years ago. Now Jewish people travel over 2 hours to a metropolitan synagogue.

Hi. I'm in New Zealand. The Exclusive Brethren is a worldwide religion. I taught at an Exclusive Brethren school here and got to know many of their 'interesting' way of life

I grew up in a variety of churches. Mostly pentecostal. My Dad was an independent preacher (and a narcissist and a controlling person) and would go wherever they'd let him preach. But I related to so much of this! We were more strict than anybody I knew. So many rules! As I look back, I think my Dad was just inches away from being a cult leader. As a kid I knew we were weird. lol I'm 61 now and still sometimes feel like I don't get some cultural references. It was a giant revelation as an adult for me to realize God extends grace and mercy to us. I'd always heard those words. But in reality what came through was judgement and punishment. Thank you both for being so open. It's helping.

Thank u so so much for exposing the Exclusive Brethern/pbcc! I was born & raised in this hell hole thank u!

We can all agree that Sam is a remarkable person! Made me tear up too.

New Zealand needs to get smarter to the abuse that’s going on in these communities, I’m glad you are bringing it out in the light

I have a great aunt who was exclusive brethren and our family didn't know her or her family They left at one point but my auntie returned They came to my nan's 90th birthday and were sooo upset they hadn't grown up knowing us all. So many little stories of the church community keeping their mum from seeing her family ( as she got older and they would for instance take her out on her 100th birthday knowing her sisters and family would want to visit) We are Australian and live in Aus

Sam and Melissa, I'm so glad that you didn't cut out your emotional reaction to the separation of families when people leave these high demand groups. Your relationship is so beautiful and supportive, and you're such kind people. I'm so sorry that Sam's parents and your children cannot know their grandparents and that Sam's parents cannot experience Sam as a parent and husband and the two of you as a couple who created a loving and happy family. Thank you for sharing yourselves with us. You are loved.

My eyes got a little bit sweaty at the end. I love the way you two love each other.

Not all religious groups are bad and being separate from the world. These days is a very good thing. I'm not sure if you people have seen what's going on around you but it is not of God. So if they are leaving these religions and going into the religion of the world, then it is a horrible thing for them, and their family should pray for them and. Hope that they turn around and turn back to God. Because the world is not the place you want your children to be or your grown children or your mother and your father. Look around. You see what's happening in the world in the music, sir? In the television programs in the world, we should be separate from the world.

Sam, dude, it’s your natural curiosity that ultimately saved you! I’m so proud of all you both have done

I grew up in a community with a big number of Exclusive Brethren. They came to public school up until the age of about 13 (Year 8) but didn’t continue on to high school. They were “home schooled” after that but the girls I was friends with all knew that once they left Intermediate School they were basically starting their training on how to be a mother. Their marriages were pretty arranged and they had systems to try and prevent close inbreeding - the girls I was at school with knew that when they were of age to marry they would be shipped off to another town to marry into the community there. They rotated where the girls were sent each year. In our town, the Exclusive Brethren owned many of the businesses and they employed “worldly” people to use computers or other technology necessary to make a profit. They were very much integrated but separate. Many of them were really nice people - my mum was a teacher and was friendly with some of the Brethren mothers, who tried their best in the circumstances they lived in. Many of the boys struggled with learning disabilities and people kind’ve understood it as a byproduct of inbreeding. I don’t know how scientifically accurate it is but the teachers all bemoaned the fact the Brethren girls were generally pretty bright but the boys were dumb as, and that the girls would never have a chance to pursue higher education.

Just to clarify, I was raised in the Plymouth Brethren Church and experienced nothing like this. Actually, I have fond memories. Most of my older family members were PB. It was no big deal for those of us who moved on to other churches. My UK PB relatives are definitely stricter than what I experienced. The Exclusive Brethren are one of several splinter groups and are considered sects. Btw, I lived in Utah County for about a decade. I had no clue there was polygamy in Utah until I saw FLDS at Costco in St George. I love your show. The 2 of you make a great team.

Have you seen the documentary on Netflix, The Program: Cons, Cults, & Kidnapping? The teen centers are owned and ran by a Mormon. Would love to hear your take on this.

I work with a lady that was in the Exclusive Brethren. She’s middle aged now but she told me about how she got out when she was young and the first thing she did was cut all of her hair off. She had waist length hair because she wasn’t allowed to cut it, and after escaping she got it cut to about an inch long and kept it that short since then (for decades). It sounded like she was quite traumatized and she commented that she’d never again grow her hair out. That was over a decade ago and nowadays I only see this lady in passing now at shift changeover time, but I noticed over the last few years that she’s grown her hair and keeps it at shoulder length now. I’d never ask her about it directly because that would seem too forward, but it makes me smile because to me it indicates that maybe she’s been able to process and integrate some of the past trauma… I hope I’m right, because she’s a beautiful and kind lady and I really do hope that she’s happy and has found some peace 🩷

An aquaitance of mine taught in one of the Brethren schools the uk. He was horrified at the treatment women. All married off young.

Here in the uk we have plymouth bretheren, they are very inward looking and i remember one of my daughters not understanding why they couldnt play together out side of school

on Wikipedia it says It is difficult to number the Exclusive Brethren, with the exception of the Raven/Taylor/Hales group, of which there are approximately 46,000[17] meeting in 300 church assemblies in 19 countries, with strongest representation in Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain, and North America.[3][4] Other Exclusive groups now number only 2-3,000 in the UK, but there are larger numbers on the European continent and also in North America.

Oh, y'all. I was raised in a cult here in Texas. I escaped in my early 20s. I also got my mom out eventually. But, yes, we were told similar things--if we leave, God will turn His back on us, we'll be stricken dead, you'll never see the face of God. We couldn't mix with "the outside world. They were "wolves that will tear us apart." Not supposed to see movies, listen to worldly music, etc. And yes, when a person left, they were completely shunned. You can't return. You're made to feel you're leaving God, your chance to know "the truth", your community, your job, your home. I left EVERYTHING to be free. And we were not LDS or anything. We were "nondenominational". I found later, its roots are in Pentecostalism (among other things). They believed in end times, having no children, there's no hell, and speaking in tongues. At age 50, now, i have two, grown children. ❤ And I have most certainly lived a life. I'm so glad I walked away. I'm glad you both did, too. ✊🏼

There is a group of Exclusive Brethren in Adelaide, South Australia.

I taught kids who were exclusive brethren. You had to run two programmes because they weren‘t allowed to have access to any media (newspapers included) and anything make believe was completely off the table. And this was in a state run school. Also the way the boys treated the girls was really unpleasant. They were also notallowed to share food with anybody so they were taken of school at lunch time. They have their own school now but before we were expected to cater to their ideas.

I live in Sydney Australia and in my suburb we have a massive brethren congregation. They do not talk too or acknowledge anyone. In their own world. They have their own schools and obky support each other.

I grew up in Timaru, South Island of NZ and was aware of Exclusive Brethren in the area.. never knew much about them though.. super interesting video!

I’m crying for you. Thanks for the kindness you show.

I grew up in Takanini, Auckland, New Zealand, and remember seeing Closed Brethren families shopping in the supermarket near our house when I was a kid in the 80s.

I left a semi-fundamentalist church and I’m SO lucky to still have a strong relationship with my family. I often wonder: Do non-religious parents feel similar pain and heartache if their children grow up and choose to follow a religion? Or just disappointment maybe? It seems like human nature to want our children to follow in our footsteps and we’re disappointed if they choose a different path.

Talking about new things... I didn't get to experience water parks until I was an adult. I love that I got to experience water parks for the first time with my now-husband. I also grew up in this cult, in the Chicago locality.

I use to live among them in Perth, Western Australia. The neighbors across the street were very nice, but you were never allowed into their homes. They never cut their hair, all girls have to drive, they picked up their kids from school at lunch time, no TV, books (only religious), no radio, no jewelry except watch and wedding ring, no movies, eating out at restaurants. At that time 90's, the women could go out alone shopping, but I believe that changed long after I left Perth. The guy's parents lived next door. Their churchy place was in our neighborhood, pretty much high walls and concealed. They would speak to me, and his wife sometimes came over to chat, she didn't wear her scarf then, just clips with ribbons which they called tokens to ward off the devil. They didn't use fax machines or computers, yet their leaders office was vandalized in NSW, and guess what? They had computers and kept tabs on all their followers. They believed the devil lived in the air ways. However, they would ask businesses if they could use their copiers and fax machines. This was my experience with them, there were a lot of other not so nice things they did.

Canada also has quite a few brethren churches

Not all "Brethren" churches are "Exclusive Brethren"

I remember being required to read the Miracle of Forgiveness, that i was better off dead and buried, than to lose my virtue. This was required of me in the late 80’s to go through the temple. I was a 17 year old mom, who had been molested from age 3 to age 8 and raped at 15. That was a hard part of the LDS faith to accept. I am not active.

It's bizarre to me that these extreme Christian groups shun and don't want anything to do with people that they consider sinful. One of the best aspects of what Jesus seemed to be teaching was showing compassion for people that were ostracized by society. When he broke bread with the prostitutes and tax collectors or when faced with a woman accused of adultery saying "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone". Isn't prioritizing your own perceived moral superiority and writing off the rest of the world as evil and inferior completely against what he taught? Jesus seemed to emphasize showing love for outcasts and even enemies and not on developing the arrogant sanctimonious attitude that you're better than everyone and shouldn't have any contact with them.

Excellent content. So wonderful to see these very raw reactions. You are both so thoughtful and respectful.

As someone who has been watching LDS content for a couple years now, as someone who saw your Missionaries as I grew up the child of a missionary. And as someone who was raised in the Sister church per se to this church, I found this very interesting. I grew up in a church called the gospel hall, which also descended from the brethren movement or the Plymouth brethren. We were less extreme than this, but still very conservative

Oooh! Yeah! These guys have most probably come out of the Raven/Taylor/Hales Exclusive Brethren group. Their worldwide headquarters are located in a suburb of Sydney Australia and are led by a man called Bruce Hales. It's about 2km from where I live so there's a lot of them living in my area. Family is important to them. They only have one wife and usually quite a few children. The women must cover their hair hence the headscarves but some families allow their women to just wear a hair decoration of some kind. They live in separate family homes within any suburb or town. They worship together and work in each other's businesses and only associate with each other. Every family has a different business which are quite often building related. The children go to the local government schools until about year 4 when they go to the Exclusive Brethren school called One School which is run under that name worldwide. They are only allowed to eat with ither Exclusive Brethren folk. At One School it is self directed learning (home schooling but with a teacher to help). The curriculum is not the same as set out by the Government Department of Education which all schools in Australia must follow. Rather all the content is controlled by the elders of the church and the teachers cannot stray from that (I have 2 friends who teach there and they find that frustrating since it is so narrow.). I've been told the kids have no hope in their hearts as they look forward to the future because it's already mapped out for them. There are also a high number of kids with ADHD and other similar conditions due to all the inbreeding. They are restricted in who they can marry to try to reduce the incidence of this but it's difficult when there's been so much intermarriage in the generations before that now they're all cousins of each other. They are only allowed to do tertiary study online since they're not allowed to interact with outsiders. All internet use is limited to business or study only. While I was doing temporary administration work, I worked twice for Bruce Hales company. I had to wear a dress below the knee and stockings! Even though I am a strong Protestant Christian, I was treated like a leper. A few years ago I got a job with a family run company. My heart fell on the second day when I found out they were Exclusive Brethren!! However this family was a little more open to outsiders and had many working for them. As far as I could tell we all had some form of Christian background. At the end of the first week I met a young man, whom I'll call Brad, who was from another family in the group. It happened to be his 20th birthday. Now Brad was wanting to leave the group and I saw how appallingly they treated him during the 3 months we worked together. One would call it coercive control. Brad wanted to leave because he said Bruce Hales had set out the plan for the next 10 years for the church which was the same as they'd been doing already. Brad didn't like that as he thought it wasn't working out very well already. During those 3 months Brad had to meet several times with the elders and had several really long conversations with the boss, where they were trying to persuade him to stay and grilled him with endless questions. The poor kid went through hell during that time! His father locked him out of the house several times and if not for one of the men on the factory floor, he would have been homeless. Brad told them he wanted to go overseas so they tried to persuade him to stay by offering to pay for his trip and that he'd be welcomed home after it and get all the material goods he could wish for. But Brad stood firm and said no because he wanted to get out and live a life that was of his choosing not theirs. He also didn't want to marry who was available for him to marry. Brad would tell me bits and pieces of what was going on and it became very clear that he was not getting support from anyone! So I tried to play mamma by giving him clear Biblical viewpoints. I told him they weren't treating him as a Christian should. And since it was clear to me that Brad wanted to travel I had to rack my brain for the sort of advice a parent would give to their child. Things like how to deal with social media and trusting people with his story plus a few other guidelines of living in the real world. Shortly after Brad was told to leave, I was also asked to leave. I was quite glad to go as their view of life was incredibly naive. They thought they knew the world but they seriously didn't! Living in such a closed group makes one so insular in one's thinking and also more than a bit inappropriate in one's actions around others!! There are two types of Brethren church. This one and also what is sometimes referred to as the Open Brethren or Gospel Chapel. The Exclusive Brethren are a cult. The Open Brethren are not. The OB's are ok with outsiders and while conservative, act fairly similarly to other Christians.

However there is no obligation to be successful and beaming with happiness after leaving a cult. Leaving a community behind is hard. One should not feel pressure to prove that leaving was the right choice. We are all born free and that’s it. ❤

I think a while ago I asked you to do a bretheren video. But I get immediatly triggered by it. I prefere Mormon Videos. People who shared similar experiences, but are from a different cult I grew up in. I don't know why that is. But it's more helpful and hurt's less. And the language difference helpes me too, to have enough distance.

Having been brought up in the Exclusive Brethren ( now rebranded as the PBCC ) 43:04 things have changed a lot since I left in 1973 at age 20 but I was an only child and my father had passed away 2 years before. from 1973 until my mother passed away in 2006 we had no relationship. The world leader I’d now based in Sydney, Australia, They now have their own schools. A lot of these clips are quite old but there are a lot of more current information on the Get A Life, ex cult conversations on RU-vid Tube. There are lot of parallels. I have listened to a lot of your podcasts. I am now a grandmother of 8 and feel sad my kids missed that grandparent experience.

Thank you both for this informational video. I’m currently on a huge learning path atm, I’ve been learning about christianity and Judaism for a couple of years now and as I’ve currently got LDS missionaries from Utah having conversations about religious beliefs and the Morman church.. I’ve also studied the FLDS and followed ‘the news’ about Warren Jeffs. I live in Australia and I’ve never heard of this particular religion at all… so I would like to thank you again. ❤

There is a group called German Baptist brethren very prominent in Indiana. Very sweet people but they don’t like TV’s have a distinctive dress type. They are anabaptists similar to some Mennonites

I grew up in a christian church and was homeschooled the only thing I relate to is having a great childhood. We watched limited movie that were approved by my parents. Never anything PG13 til highschool and only historical movies that we watched with our parents then. So I definitely relate to not understanding pop culture in highschool/college but also remember feeling annoyed by people my age because they only talked about movies. When I would try and change the subject and talk about a classic book, or history that I thought everyone has read, or learned. I would get called weird. I am still a Christian today, I love Jesus and feel happy to be a christian. I'm raising my kids the same way but it's a different world then I grew up in. It makes me so sad to hear about cults that prevert the gospel. I pray every one would read the new testament or the Bible and and decside for yourself. No person or group should add to the bible.

I am so sorry that it seems your children will never meet nor get to know their grandparents. It's not fair to them, they're just little kids and are 110% not responsible for the decisions that adults make. I hope that at some point Sam's parents will come around and at least meet their grandchildren. Obviously it wouldn't be a good idea for a whole lot of interaction as damage to the kids could occur, but they really should at least meet before it's too late. and that's entirely upon gma and gpa. I helped my daughter in law find her father's birth family around Christmas of last year. While doing the research it became obvious that these people were tied to Mormonism. My dil was raised by Jehovah Witnesses and that didn't turn out well - mostly because of the shunning and manipulation tactics that get used by them, so I was cringing and kind of feeling my way ahead with trepidation for her. I was being the go between because I understand the DNA science, so I figured it would be best if I had the initial contact in case things went really south. Better the wrath fall on me than her. I focused in on a person I deemed was her 1/2 aunt and seemed to be the one from the family most active on the site. Aside from her absolute shock that her father had had another child (my dil's father) she knew nothing about - she was an absolutely kind and lovely person. Thank god! Turns out she and her family had walked away from the Mormon church, so that wasn't going to be an issue. In any case, after her initial shock wore off and she saw the science of what the reality was, she accepted the situation within 2-3 weeks (yes it was fast!). They speak frequently and my dil's new aunty is coming to visit this summer! So she finally figured out who her dad's family really is, thus she knows who she is - but they also turned out to be some awesome and welcoming people! You have no idea how relieved I was for her after her having to deal with the JW shunning stuff for so long. She really needed this in her life. My point with this - there is hope!! Don't ever lose that. Good things can and do happen. 😎

Is this "Bretheren" related to the AUB/ Apostolic United Bretheren? Supposedly the "Sister Wives" people are AUB.

Ex old order Amish here, and oh my goodness ... deja vu over and over!

I went to a college that was “Brethren” but nothing like this. The accent brought in mind (unrelated otherwise) Gloriavale. Check out Lilia Tarawa:….she’d be such a cool guest.

Seems like my parents were their own high demand group, no religion involved. I felt so isolated in a way until watching this made me realise that religion or not the similarities are too many. After losing my everything of 28 years (RIP Ian Bowman 21/05/2024) on top of being cut off by my parents and family I felt nobody could really understand. Also, the profound sense of calmness and compassion you both exude is a beautiful thing. I have never been one for prayers but if you both or anyone has any appropriate prayers for Ian or me, it would be greatly appreciated.

I'm curious about your home schooling. Were you taught the basics that we all learned in school, or was it more faith based? If it was faith based, how did you cope furthering your education?

So much of what I hear reminds me of being raised Pentecostal. I was raised Pentecostal and there seems to be a lot of similarities. I wonder if others would agree?

I live in Western Sydney Australia, and often see Exclusive Brethren women and girls at my local shopping centre.

I went to high school (UK) with Brethren in the late 90’s - 00’s. They started there own school towards the ended up leaving the our state school and you’d only see them at exams. There was lots of things which they weren’t allowed to participate in (especially the girls). I still wonder what happened to these now women.

There are Plymouth Brethren in the U.S. We had Plymouth Brethren neighbors in our apartment complex in suburban Detroit.

I wondered if spouces need or have groups to learn why their counterpart does things differently and why. I had never heard of this group either other then in passing. It's scary to see how many different groups are out there and how they are alot alike

In Australia they have some of their own schools. Although not all Brethren live near them so some kids go to public school. Under Australian law they have to let other kids attend their school even if they’re not the same religion. I’m not sure how they get around that. I also have heard the teachers are not Brethren as Brethren are not allowed go to university. I used to follow an ex brethren member on socials, he mentioned they have these books that have photos of every Brethren family in it with names. It can be used to match up couples around the world. But if you leave they just change the photo in the next edition to one without you and remove your details from your families page. It’s like you never existed.

Sam obviously has no accent because he is a well-versed person who speaks with depth and thought! Mom spent time with her 12 children and no doubt that is where the gift of communication developed!

They also have The Exclusive Brethren in Australia.

I've never heard of this group interested in learning more about them! Great video as always ❤

You guys are just the sweetest couple in the world.

What platform is this documentary on?

This was really interesting to see, especially because I'm a New Zealander and am somewhat familiar with this religion. There is a fairly large population of closed brethren in the community I grew up in and I lived within a 5 minute walk to their church. I also went to school with a lot of brethren kids. They always stood out because the girls had very long hair with a ribbon in it and they never ate lunch with us, even on school trips they would eat separately. I believe they would go home for lunch so all lived really close to school. One girl I knew of cut her hair and was excommunicated which was awful to see. They were often pale and wore glasses and I hate to say but us kids used to say that was because they were in bred. Their church had no windows so that also added to the speculation and we would try to sneak around hoping to hear something but never did. I remember sometimes there would be large groups arriving from other countries and we used to joke that this was to increase their gene pool. Kids are awful 😔 They are known locally as being good businessmen and I'm aware of several very successful businesses they own here. They do employ non members but I believe they're quite strict with the dress code and hair length for men. Edit to add ... As an adult I did get to see another side of some brethren people which was nice. I also discovered the parents of my childhood friend had left this church and the two oldest boys were born into it. They were were an unusual family and I never met the brothers but was aware one was in prison. My friend's mother has since written a book and that really answered a lot if questions i had about their family. It put things into perspective and how leaving really affected all of them.

I worked in a Closed Brethren Community in NZ's largest city. Not with any of them, but in an area where there was a church and a fairly large Brethren community. Every time a house in the street and close neighbourhood came up, where their church is, a Brethren family would purchase it. I had a friend whose daughter had a closed Brethren boyfriend. He was totally shunned, he still lived with his family ( he was like 16 ) but they did not talk to him, he ate separately, moved out of home and got employment as soon as he could. A group of five men would stand in the shopping centre once a week to preach, they all had turns at speaking. It was like they were almost mechanical, were talking to the wind, rarely anyone interacted with them, they were not approachable. While they kept themselves very separate. if there was a 'Jesus March" they were in there with everybody else. I found that interesting.

They don’t go to public schools anymore, they have their own. We don’t often see them around anymore. The last time I saw some exclusive brethren men in Napier (NZ) where I live, they were ‘preaching’ in town. Quietly, no eye contact with anyone & it was clearly for show because they’re not allowed to engage with us worldies (what they call everyone else). I stopped to talk to them, told them I was a Christian and tried to talk to them about sharing the gospel but it was clear they didn’t want to talk and they soon moved on.

Wow! Very many similarities I can relate to! Love and admiration to you both! I am now experiencing the joy of someone loving me for who I really am and I dont have to always be trying to be good enough. Thanks again for all your efforts to help people from these situations and helping everyone understand us better!!

New Covenant Whole Gospel: How many modern Christians cannot honestly answer the questions below? Who is the King of Israel in John 1:49? Is the King of Israel now the Head of the Church, and are we His Body? Who is the “son” that is the “heir” to the land in Matthew 21:37-43? Why did God allow the Romans to destroy the Old Covenant temple and the Old Covenant city, about 40 years after His Son fulfilled the New Covenant promised in Jeremiah 31:31-34 in blood at Calvary? What the modern Church needs is a New Covenant Revival (Heb. 9:10) in which members of various denominations are willing to re-examine everything they believe and see if it agrees with the Bible, instead of the traditions of men. We need to be like the Bereans. It will be a battle between our flesh and the Holy Spirit. It will not be easy. If you get mad and upset when someone challenges your man-made Bible doctrines, that is your flesh resisting the truth found in God's Word. Nobody can completely understand the Bible unless they understand the relationship between the Old Covenant given to Moses at Mount Sinai and the New Covenant fulfilled in blood at Calvary. What brings all local churches together into one Body under the blood of Christ? The answer is found below. Let us now share the Old Testament Gospel found below with the whole world. On the road to Emmaus He said the Old Testament is about Him. He is the very Word of God in John 1:1, 14. Awaken Church to this truth. Jer 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Jer 31:32 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by husband unto them, saith the LORD: Jer 31:33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. Jer 31:34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. Is the most important genealogy in the Bible found in Matthew 1:1 (Gal. 3:16)? Is God's Son the ultimate fulfillment of Israel (John 1:49)? Why has the modern Church done a pitiful job of sharing the Gospel with modern Orthodox Jews? Why would someone tell them they are God's chosen people and then fail to share the Gospel with them? Who is the seed of the woman promised in Genesis 3:15? What did Paul say about Genesis 12:3 in Galatians 3:8, 3:16? Who is the "son" in Psalm 2? Who is the "suffering servant" of Isaiah 53? Who would fulfill the New Covenant promised in Jeremiah 31:31-34? Who would fulfill the timeline of Daniel chapter 9 before the second temple was destroyed? Why have we not heard this simple Old Testament Gospel preached on Christian television in the United States on a regular basis? Once a person comes to understand the New Covenant promised to Israel and Judah in Jeremiah 31:31-34, which is found fulfilled by Christ during the first century in Hebrews 8:6-13, and Hebrews 10:16-18, and specifically applied to the Church in 2 Corinthians 3:6-8, and Hebrews 12:22-24, man-made Bible doctrines fall apart. Let us now learn to preach the whole Gospel until He comes back. The King of Israel is risen from the dead! (John 1:49, Acts 2:36) We are not come to Mount Sinai in Hebrews 12:18. We are come instead to the New Covenant church of Mount Zion and the blood in Hebrews 12:22-24. 1Jn 3:22 And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. 1Jn 3:23 And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. 1Jn 3:24 And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us. God is not now a “racist”. He has extended His love to all races of people through the New Covenant fulfilled by His Son’s blood at Calvary. The Apostle Paul warned against using “genealogies” in our faith in 1 Tim. 1:4, and Titus 3:9. The following verses prove the Holy Spirit is the master teacher for those now in the New Covenant. Jer 31:34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. Mar 1:8 I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. Joh 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. Act 11:16 Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost. 1Co 12:13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. 1Jn 2:27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him. Watch the RU-vid videos “The New Covenant” by David Wilkerson, or Bob George, and David H.J. Gay......

Hello again from Norway 🙂I`m the first to comment tonight.

I recently watched a creator on RU-vid, comparing and contrasting two religions (she used to be mormon) and i turned it off halfway through ... I didn't like the bad talking. I very much appreciate and love that you two can talk about religions you were part of, with respect and not bashing or saying they are wrong. Thank you for that. Really. And the love you have for each other is very obvious. I would love to give you both hugs and just hang out - ive never felt that way about strangers on RU-vid, but you two bring those feelings to the surface. Thank you for being you ❤.

I did a temp job for the Brethrens once. I wasn’t allowed to go into their lunch room, we had one for non-Brethren & I had to wear a long skirt to work, no long pants & cover my arms & shoulders. I live in Australia.

I just want to say I love your channel and are a beautiful couple

21:34 This section made me melancholy. I was thinking about him, and people raised like him in the U.S., and then North Koreans came to mind, and it made me sad the way some are raised to think about others in the world. Once they lift their heads and look around their minds expand (hopefully).

Melissa you are such a beautiful human being 💕💕💕

NEW ZEALAND?!?! Gawd dammit, we really don't need more cults here. Also: Yes Gloriavale is also here. They are in the south island, where this group is based in the north island. From my understanding, LDS operates on both islands, however the current temple is towards the top of the north island, with a future temple to be built 1.5-3hrs north of the current temple. Another temple is also planned for the south island. Edit: clearly I wrote before finishing the video, it seems like the group is all over NZ and a little bit of Australia.

It it’s interesting how mankind will accept without question or doubt the physical laws that govern the universe: gravity, physics, quantum mechanics, etc. etc. i.e., fixed laws that govern the natural world. But when it comes to morality and spirituality think that God plays dice with the universe and anything goes. No moral true North, no moral compass. A Creator who created the natural world to operate so decisively could not be fickle when it comes to rules and guidelines governing morality as established in His Word. I am not condoning cults and the excesses and wanderings into obsession and control that they espouse. But neither do I think that operating outside of The Ten Commandments is the way God intended our lives to go either.

The exclusive brethren are active in Australia as well. The women are easily identified by their conservative dress, long long hair n head scarf. The men dress conservatively also. There are some branches who don't believe in electricity n other "modern" tools for life. There are terribly sad stories of families broken apart due to their beliefs. It would be good to know more about them.

New Zealand ist not their hub. The roots are in europe. They are from all over the world but just very few. And as I remember it, every local group ist kind of a unique group and has their own roules, which can be different to the other groups.

I so appreciate how you are helping others who are trying to leave these cults and high demand religions. To leave everything you have known behind takes an enormous amount of courage. Thank you for your great work!

What is the name of the docuseries please

I was raised in what they called the Brethren. We always called it “meeting” not church. We never had a pastor. They believe that the Lord puts on the men’s hearts what should be said. Not “in tongues” but just for teaching or sharing their thoughts. We didn’t live close to others-like all living in the same community. All the women used to wear head covering such as a mantilla. My parents didn’t allow us to play sports but other families did. A lot of the families homeschooled -not my family. Our main belief is pretty much “repent of your sins to be saved or you will go to hell forever.” I still believe those teachings but no long go to this type of church-but this teaching is preached in other denominations. I don’t regret having to live that way. We just felt that we should take our kids to more of a mainstream type church, which didn’t cause any hard feelings with anyone!!

I can see a lot of mental abuse in very different religions an belives. I think, this ist a mater of not knowing that leadership is a sort of serving to others and the fear of loosing control over the situation. It's the opposit of the teaching of Jesus: Living a life of righteousness, grace and serving with love even as a leader.

Happy Mother's Day, Melissa! This review was fascinating. Interesting to see the similarities.

Melissa, thanks for posting that quote about the strong social pressure vis a vis chastity in the LDS teaching. Chastity is very valuable, but we shouldn't harm ourselves for falling short.

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It's so triggering to see this Girls forced tho wear the scarfes to cover the head. This is one reason I refused to obey the mask COVID rules. Today I had a operation in Hospital with local anestesia not full narcotised. So they said for hygenic reasons I have to wear mask. And I caused bad blood by the Hospital staff, because I refused that. No one can ever demand from me again to cover a part of my head, or body, if I feel I don't want that. No scarf, no mask, nothing.

I have a feeling that Joseph Smith was a bigger fibber???

Hi from Chile

They have all their own schools now and only go to public school for the very early first few years…if even.

I’m from NZ so this was very interesting. Would be interested in your perspective on the Deybel case.

I remember seeing ladies dress in a long skirt and blouse with long hair and headscarves, men dressed in smart casual clothes going into a small building. Obviously this is who they were. I also have seen them in the city centre and I am sure they had smartphones.

Hmm... Reuben is a hottie and so is Sam...

In Barbados every church is against lgbtq people. My dad is from Barbados and my mom is Canadian. It was always strange growing up having one side very accepting and loving of lgbtq people and the other side very against it. Needless to say my father isn’t happy I’m trans.

46:31 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷😊

The Brethen family of churches has a variety of branches. The Central Valley of California had a big influx of Brethren churches. Fresno even has a Brethren University. It’s one of the “peace” churches committed to non-violence.

Exclusive and open Bretheren are quite a big thing in New Zealand. A lot of big buisnesses run by them. Oh and I was writing this before the video played, and now I see it is a video from New Zealand lol.

I have a question to ask being brought up in a cult did y’all ever ask or were taught The place your Ancestors came from originally?