1. Children of God / The Family International
RELS 225
Cults and New Religious Movements

2. History 1968 The Children of God
David Brandt Berg, ( ) “Father David” in Huntington Beach, California
Founded communes
Proselytizing
1969: 100 members;
By 1973, 140 communes
Wrote 3000 “Mo Letters”, indicating he was God’s prophet (1972)
: Flirty Fishing
“for those who were in dire need of physical love and affection, even sex could be used as evidence to them of the Lord's love”
From its inception in 1968, the Family International (formerly known as the Children of God) has had a colorful history. Members circled the globe spreading the Gospel message in literature, song, and multimedia productions, and establishing a presence in over 100 nations. The Family has surmounted the challenges of building an international Christian fellowship of self-supporting, autonomous communities, while reaching out to the needy through personal counseling, seminars, humanitarian aid and disaster relief, and sharing the message of God's love around the world.
The Family International traces its origins to 1968 in Huntington Beach, California, where our founder, David Brandt Berg ( ), also known as "Father David," together with his wife and teenage children, began a ministry to the counterculture youth that congregated in that seaside town. Many of these experienced dramatic changes in their lives as they came to develop a personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
As a result, many decided to dedicate their lives to the service of God and fellow man. In late 1969, when the group had grown to about 100 members, it was dubbed the "Children of God" by the news media. By 1972 there were 130 communities of full-time members scattered throughout the world.

3. History 1978-1986: “The Family” Reorganized 1/3 of the members left
Beliefs remained the same
Childcare manual published January 1982: Davidito (Ricky Rodriguez)
1985: “any such activities [adult-child sexual contact] are strictly forbidden within our group."
In early 1978, the Children of God was reorganized and became known as the Family.
The Family International underwent numerous changes in structure throughout its history, as it developed into an international organization of autonomous cooperative communities.

4. History
Prosecution for child abuse.
“from 1978 until 1986, there were cases when some minors were subject to sexually inappropriate advances”
Consider The Poor ministry, providing material aid to the poor and disadvantaged.
1994: Berg dies; Karen Zerby takes over, remains secluded
Zerby, 1995: “Anyone who attempted to use the Law of Love to justify any unloving, selfish or hurtful behavior is responsible before God for it.“

5. History 1995 2004: “The Family International”
British legal case: sexual abuse had occurred, but the movement was now safe.
A governing charter was adopted
“Loving Jesus Revelation”
2004: “The Family International”
Less dedicated lifestyle
Renewal of proselytization
5 levels of membership:
Family Disciples (FD) live communally, Missionary Members (MM), Fellow Members (FM), Active Members (AM), and General Members (GM).
In 1995, a governing charter was adopted, which codified the beliefs, rights, and responsibilities of full-time Family members. Family members and communities operate according to their own decisions and initiative within the framework of the Family's Charter.
Our movement has been characterized by our missionary and humanitarian activities around the globe. As of 2007, Family members have shared the Gospel message with over 287 million people, and over 32 million people have prayed with our members to receive God's love and salvation. During the past 40 years, over 1.1 billion pieces of Gospel literature in 61 languages, and over 2.2 million videos and 12.8 million audio tapes/CDs/DVDs in more than 20 languages were produced and distributed by the Family International.

6. Beliefs: Revelation Basically fundamentalist Christianity
Bible is the inspired Word of God
David Berg is the most important prophet of the end times
passed to his wife, Karen Zerby
published writings of Berg and Zerby are part of the "Word of God" with the same weight as the Bible.
Great Commission of evangelizing for every Christian
lives should be dedicated to the service of God and others.
God’s Word is the cornerstone of our beliefs and practices. We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, written by men of faith who were inspired by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21). Its timeless principles are the foundation of our faith, and its truth is the basis of the message we share with others.
We believe that God is a living God who continues to speak to His people today and to impart His message through ongoing revelation, prophecy, and words of spiritual direction and counsel.
God’s Word explains His plan for humankind, teaches us how to live in harmony with God and others, guides our actions and decisions, and is essential to our spiritual strength and growth.

7. Beliefs: God Standard Christian beliefs:
all-powerful, all-knowing, ever-present, eternal Being that created and sustains the universe
Loving God
Trinity
Sent one and only son, Jesus, to bring salvation to the world and to teach humankind about His love
“He suffered the death of crucifixion in order to atone for the sins of humanity, so that humankind could be reconciled to God.”
Virgin birth, human form, death on cross, resurrection, ascension, return “in the future to establish His kingdom of love and righteousness on Earth”
Holy Spirit
“the feminine and maternal elements of the Trinity of God, and comforts and nurtures believers”
We believe in one God, who is the all-powerful, all-knowing, ever-present, eternal Being that created and sustains the universe and everything in it. The Bible teaches us that “God is a spirit” (John 4:24) and “God is love” (1 John 4:8). We believe that He loves and cares for each person with an eternal, unending love, and seeks to bring every man, woman, and child into a personal relationship with Him.
God exists eternally in the Trinity of three distinguishable but inseparable Persons: God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
God’s love for the world was so great that He gave His one and only son, Jesus Christ, to bring salvation to the world (John 3:16) and to teach humankind about His love. Jesus is the manifestation of the love of God, and He suffered the death of crucifixion in order to atone for the sins of humanity, so that humankind could be reconciled to God (Isaiah 53:4–6).
We believe that Jesus was miraculously conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He took human form and lived a human life, so that He could become a mediator between God and humankind (1 Timothy 2:5). Three days after His death on the cross, Jesus was resurrected, and 40 days later, He ascended into Heaven (Acts 1:3). We believe that He will return to the world in the future to establish His kingdom of love and righteousness on Earth (Revelation 11:15).
Before Jesus ascended to Heaven, He promised to send the Holy Spirit to His followers, to strengthen and guide them in their spiritual lives and relationship with God, and to remain with them always (John 14:16).
The Holy Spirit guides believers into all truth, helps them to understand God’s Word, assists them in prayer, and empowers them to witness the Gospel of Jesus Christ to others (Acts 1:8). We believe that any believer can receive the infilling of the Holy Spirit, simply by asking God for it. The Holy Spirit’s presence may be manifested in believers’ lives through different spiritual gifts, which include wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, and prophecy (1 Corinthians 12:4–11).
We believe that the Holy Spirit represents the feminine and maternal elements of the Trinity of God, and comforts and nurtures believers.

8. Beliefs: World Biblical creation story (not “random evolution”)
“God gave humankind the responsibility to care for the Earth and its inhabitants”
We believe that God created the universe in accordance with the Biblical account of Creation. God formed the first man and woman in His image and breathed into them the breath of life (Genesis 2:7); thus they became living souls by divine creation and not by random evolution. God’s visible creation provides clear testimony of His invisible existence (Romans 1:20).
We believe that God gave humankind the responsibility to care for the Earth and its inhabitants.

9. Beliefs: The Problem first man and woman without sin
they fell into sin through their choice to disobey God, and therefore all people became sinners by nature and separated from God
We believe that God created the first man and woman without sin. He granted them free choice, and they fell into sin through their choice to disobey God. Through this entrance of sin into the world, all people became sinners by nature (Romans 5:12–14) and separated from God. But God, in His infinite love and mercy, reconciled humanity to Himself by giving the world His only Son, “that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). We believe, therefore, that anyone who accepts God’s pardon for sin through Jesus Christ will be forgiven and redeemed and will live forever in God’s presence in the afterlife.
Salvation (redemption from sin) is a gift of God’s love, mercy, and forgiveness, and can only be attained through belief in Jesus. “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us” (Titus 3:5). Having received the gift of salvation, the believer is saved forever; after death, his or her soul will live forever in Heaven. “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:28). Believers continue to be fallible people in need of God’s forgiveness, but despite their shortcomings and sins, they will never lose their salvation.

10. Beliefs: The Solution
God, in His infinite love and mercy, reconciled humanity to Himself by giving the world His only Son
anyone who accepts God’s pardon for sin through Jesus Christ will be forgiven and redeemed and will live forever in God’s presence in the afterlife
But God, in His infinite love and mercy, reconciled humanity to Himself by giving the world His only Son, “that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). We believe, therefore, that anyone who accepts God’s pardon for sin through Jesus Christ will be forgiven and redeemed and will live forever in God’s presence in the afterlife.
Salvation (redemption from sin) is a gift of God’s love, mercy, and forgiveness, and can only be attained through belief in Jesus. “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us” (Titus 3:5). Having received the gift of salvation, the believer is saved forever; after death, his or her soul will live forever in Heaven. “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:28). Believers continue to be fallible people in need of God’s forgiveness, but despite their shortcomings and sins, they will never lose their salvation.

11. Beliefs: The Good Life example of God’s love
love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control
avoid pursuits and practices of secular society that are incompatible with Christ’s teachings, as well as avoid conformity to attitudes and values contrary to God’s teachings
maintain a healthy lifestyle
reach out to people in all strata of society with God’s message, by methods in harmony with Christian values
comfort, aid, and minister to those in need
early Church’s close fellowship, cooperative efforts, and spiritual unity is a model
“oppose all forms of discrimination, prejudice, and violence”
If government laws violate your faith or right to practice your faith, follow your conscience
We believe that the life of a Christian should be a living example of God’s love, both in word and in deed. Our lives should manifest the spiritual virtues enumerated in the Bible, such as love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22–23).
We adhere to the scriptural admonition to “not love the world or the things in the world” (1 John 2:15). We understand this to mean that the believer should avoid pursuits and practices of secular society that are incompatible with Christ’s teachings, as well as avoid conformity to attitudes and values contrary to God’s teachings.
While we firmly believe that salvation is eternal and cannot be lost regardless of a person’s actions, when our actions aren’t in harmony with Jesus’ command to love God and others, we can distance ourselves from Him. We believe that we should strive to follow in Christ’s footsteps, to live according to the principles in His Word, and to overcome personal weaknesses and sins that would interfere in our relationship with Him and others.
Because our bodies belong to the Lord and are the living temples in which the Holy Spirit dwells, we believe that Christians should also strive to maintain a healthy lifestyle (1 Corinthians 6:19–20).
Christians are commissioned by Christ to share the good news of His love and salvation with others (Mark 16:15). God’s love and salvation through Jesus are a gift for all humankind, and are meant to be freely shared with others. We believe that Christians should reach out to people in all strata of society with God’s message, by methods in harmony with Christian values.
Jesus set an example for His followers of not only teaching spiritual truths, but also reaching out with compassion to people in need, including the poor and disadvantaged of His day. We believe that Christians should likewise strive to comfort, aid, and minister to those in need.
We believe that the Church is a spiritual entity comprising all who believe in Jesus Christ. The fellowship of Christians is not defined by physical buildings, denominations, or institutions, but rather it is a community of faith, joined together in spirit and in love. “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24).
We believe that the New Testament’s account of the early Church’s close fellowship, cooperative efforts, and spiritual unity serves not only as a historical narrative, but as a model for succeeding generations of believers.
Members of the Family International are part of a worldwide community of faith, and consider themselves brothers and sisters in spirit, united in faith and purpose. We believe that as Jesus laid down His life for us, “we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren” (1 John 3:16), serving one another in love and deference (Galatians 5:13). We believe that, as Christians, we should work in harmony with others to share God’s love with the world and to improve people’s quality of life.
We consider it the duty of believers to be good citizens in all matters in accordance with Christian values, to manifest honesty and integrity, and to contribute to the welfare of their community. We adhere to the Biblical teaching, “Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities” (Romans 13:1). However, in cases where the laws or ordinances would violate a believer’s faith or right to practice their faith, we believe that Christians should follow the dictates of their conscience (Acts 5:27–29).

12. Beliefs: Love
Biblical marital metaphor of the intimate spiritual relationship between Jesus and His Church represents the passionate union of heart, mind, and spirit that Jesus seeks with each of His followers
"Law of Love" supersedes all other Biblical laws (except male homosexuality)
encourage procreation (birth control originally discouraged)
actions motivated by unselfish sacrificial love (not intentionally hurtful to others) are in accordance with Scripture and are permissible in the eyes of God
God created human sexuality as a natural, emotional, and physical need, a pure and natural wonder of God's creation.
“Sacrifical sex”/”sharing”: Adults may have sex with any other adult member of the opposite sex, to promote unity and prevent loneliness.
Since 1986, teenagers must be 16 and only may have sex with other members under age 21.
The relationship between God and His people—Christ and His Church—is likened in the Bible to that of a bridegroom to his bride. The Bible tells us, “For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is His name” (Isaiah 54:5), and that we are “married to Him who was raised from the dead [Jesus], that we should bear fruit to God” (Romans 7:4).
We believe that the marital metaphor used in the Bible to describe the intimate spiritual relationship between Jesus and His Church is meant to represent the passionate union of heart, mind, and spirit that Jesus seeks with each of His followers.
We believe that God’s Law of Love as explained in Matthew 22:35–40 should govern every aspect of a Christian’s life and interactions with others. An expert in the Mosaic Law tested Jesus with this question: “‘Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?’ Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” We therefore believe that a Christian’s actions should be motivated by unselfish, sacrificial love—the love of God for our fellow man.
God’s Law of Love is the ultimate fulfillment of Biblical law, including the Ten Commandments, as it fulfills the intent of such laws. “All the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Galatians 5:14). We therefore believe that through Christ’s salvation and His Law of Love, Christians are released from the Mosaic laws in the Old Testament and are no longer required to observe them. Instead, they are held to a higher law—Christ’s Law of Love, which should guide all their interactions with others.
We believe that God designed the family unit as a foundational building block of society. He ordained families to share their lives and to support and help one another. Families are important for the nurturing and care of children.
Children are a gift of God which He blesses and entrusts us with, for “children are a heritage from the Lord; and the fruit of the womb is a reward” (Psalm 127:3). We believe that it is the responsibility of Christian parents to lovingly care for their children, as well as to impart godly principles and moral values to them, and a respect and love for God and others (Ephesians 6:4).
We believe that God created and ordained the marriage union of man and woman, and that marriage is the ideal relationship for the forming of stable families. Believers who marry enter into a covenant before God, committing to love, care for, and be responsible for their wife or husband and their children (Matthew 19:4–6).
We believe that God created and ordained human sexuality, and we consider it a natural part of life. The Bible says that God told the first man and woman to “be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth” (Genesis 1:28). God “saw everything that He had made”—which included the first man and woman as well as their bodies and sexuality—“and indeed it was very good” (Genesis 1:31).
It is our belief that heterosexual relations, when practiced as God ordained and intended between consenting adults, are a pure and natural wonder of God’s creation, and permissible according to Scripture.

13. Beliefs: Eschatology
when they die, their soul is ushered into the afterlife, where they will be rewarded or judged
reward dependent on one’s actions on Earth, whether \lived by God’s laws of love.
God continues to love those who died without salvation and seeks to bring them to the truth
now is the biblical "Last Days" / "Time of the End," just before Jesus returns.
First, the Antichrist will rule with a one-world government for 7 years.
After 3.5 years, the “Great Tribulation” will begin, persecuting Christians as bringing natural disasters.
Then Christians will be raptured to heaven and in the "Battle of Armageddon", Jesus will defeat the Antichrist.
Then Jesus Christ will reign on Earth for “the Millennium.”
Finally, God will create a new Earth and sky, and will live with people in paradise on Earth
We believe that the Scriptures foretelling the future of the world will be fulfilled, as many other Biblical predictions have been throughout the centuries. It is our belief that we are now living in the period of time known in the Bible as the “Last Days,” which refers to the era preceding the return of Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 3:1). His return to Earth will usher in a new millennium of peace, cessation of war and violence, and justice and equity for all mankind. (More on our beliefs on the “Time of the End.”)
We believe that every person has an eternal soul, and that when they die, their soul is ushered into the afterlife, where they will be rewarded or judged for their conduct in their earth life and assigned to their place in the afterlife accordingly.
God has prepared a place in Heaven of everlasting beauty, peace, and joy for all those who believe in Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 2:9) and accept His gift of salvation. “He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying” (Revelation 21:3–4).
While entrance into Heaven is a gift, we believe that the reward believers receive in the afterlife is dependent on their actions on Earth, and whether they lived in accordance with God’s laws of love.
The Bible says that God is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9), and that Jesus preached to the spirits in prison and the dead (1 Peter 3:18–20, 4:6). We believe that He will continue to seek to reconcile all things to Himself (Colossians 1:20). We do not consider that all those who die without receiving Jesus Christ as their Savior will automatically be cast into hell—a place of desolation and suffering—nor will they be eternally bereft of salvation or redemption. In His love, we believe that God will continue to love those who die without salvation and seek to bring them to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4).
Angels are powerful spiritual beings created by God and assigned by Him to watch over humankind. There are many examples in the Bible of their intervention to protect, assist, and deliver messages to God’s people, and we believe that they continue to do so today.
We believe that in addition to angels, God also empowers the spirits of departed believers to minister to and deliver messages to His people. An example of this is found in the Biblical account of the spirits of the departed prophets, Moses and Elijah, appearing and conferring with Jesus (Luke 9:28–31). Paul referred to departed believers as “a great cloud of witnesses” watching over those on Earth (Hebrews 12:1).
The Bible foretells that Satan and his forces will ultimately be defeated and God’s plan for humanity will triumph (Revelation 20:1–3,10). Jesus’ kingdom will eventually be established on Earth, and “the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ; and He shall reign forever and ever” (Revelation 11:15).
We believe that the Scriptures foretelling the future of the world will be fulfilled, as many other Biblical predictions have been throughout the centuries. It is our belief that we are now living in the period of time known in the Bible as the “Last Days,” which refers to the era preceding the return of Jesus Christ (2 Timothy 3:1). His Second Coming will fulfill the Scripture, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever” (Revelation 11:15).
Seven years before Jesus’ return, a powerful world leader known in Scripture as the “man of sin,” “son of perdition,” and the “Antichrist” will rise to power (2 Thessalonians 2:3–4). Three and a half years into his reign, he will declare that he is God, and demand the world’s veneration and worship (Daniel 9:27; Revelation 13:4,7). A mandatory universal financial system will be instituted during this time, permitting no one to legally buy or sell essential goods, except those who bear this demagogue’s mark, name, or number (called the “mark of the beast”) in their right hand or forehead (Revelation 13:16–17). The progression of these events will plunge the entire world into an unprecedented time of social chaos and religious persecution known in the Bible as the “Great Tribulation” (Matthew 24:21).
It is our belief that Christians will remain on Earth during the time of the Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:15–31). Multitudes of Christians will survive the Antichrist’s onslaughts, preaching the Gospel of salvation until the Lord’s return (Daniel 11:32–35). Many adherents of other religions will also rebel against this one world regime (Daniel 8:23–25).
The three-and-a-half-year period of Great Tribulation will climax in the return of Jesus Christ to the Earth (Matthew 24:29–30). Those who have received Jesus as their Savior will then be supernaturally delivered from their persecutors at the Rapture, the miraculous event when their mortal bodies will be gloriously changed and made like Jesus’ immortal resurrection body, as they rise to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:16–17; 1 Corinthians 15:51–52).
The Antichrist’s forces will then be annihilated by Jesus and His heavenly armies in the Battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16:16–21, 19:11–21). This will usher in a thousand-year rule of Christ on Earth, with peace, justice, and equity for all humankind (Daniel 2:44; Revelation 20:1–3).
After this period, God will re-create a beautiful new Earth and atmospheric heavens (2 Peter 3:10–13). God’s Heavenly City, New Jerusalem, will then descend like a magnificent jewel from above to the paradisiacal New Earth. “The dwelling of God is with men, and He will live with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them, and be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away” (Revelation 21:3–4 NIV).

14. 20/20 on the Children of God JOHN STOSSEL (ABC NEWS)
ELIZABETH VARGAS (ABC NEWS)
(OC) This past hour, you've seen that revenge can be sweet, sort of, a kind of rough justice. But it can also be very destructive. When thoughts of vengeance fester for years, they can build to a nasty flashpoint.
JOHN STOSSEL (ABC NEWS)
Tonight on '20/20," February 2nd, 2007.
ANNOUNCER
(OC) In the next hour of "20/20," you'll see a dramatic case in point. A young man who wanted to get back at his own mother for shattering his life, raising him in a bizarre religious sect that he says condoned sex with children. That story is coming up now.
SARAH MARTIN
Well, hey everyone. This is Rick, and I am making this video.
RICKY RODRIGUEZ
I don't think he really thought he had a chance in life. That his life was already over. It had been ruined.
I want there to be some record, my ideas, just who I was really. Just hope I don't (censored by network) up and do something stupid, blow my nose off instead of my (censored by network) head.
He would tell me, "I just wanna die. I'm just tired of this life. I'll never be free from this pain and this past."
Everything that was wrong, we were taught was right. Everything that was really evil and wicked and perverted was done in the name of Jesus. It really does (censored by network) your head up.
DAVIDA KELLEY
The goal is to bring down the sick (censored by network), mom and Peter, my own mother... God damn. How can you do that to kids? How can do you that to kids and sleep at night?
(OC) Good evening, and welcome to the second of our two-hour special tonight on revenge. What you've just seen is real. A young man named Rick Rodriguez, tormented by his past, recording his final thoughts as he prepares to kill himself and his own mother. What would push him to take such extreme revenge?
(OC) His videotape tells only part of the story. Tonight scenes from a powerful British documentary called "Cult Killer" and our own reporting will fill in the details of his life. . A boy raised in a religious group that allowed sex with children. What you're about to see is at times graphic and disturbing, but it will help you understand what pushed Rick Rodriguez over the edge. Here's Jay Schadler.
JAY SCHADLER (ABC NEWS)
We're here to say good-bye to a friend that we had, somebody who need not have passed the way that he did.
DON IRWIN
(VO) Two months after his suicide, memories of Rick Rodriguez haunt this service being held in his honor. Like Rick, many here were raised in a fringe religious sect that practiced free love.
SARAH MARTIN (at memorial service)
(VO) Like Rick, some of the mourners say they were abused at the hands of a group originally called the Children of God. Its radical sexual philosophy was known as the Law of Love.
I wanted to show Elixcia how many people loved Ricky and how many lives that he touched.
The Law of Love, they could do anything that they wanted really as long as they did it out of love, you know. So they used that a lot for a lot of things, you know? For the sharing, you know, for the swapping of couples. So basically that was the only law that they lived under. Because they certainly didn't abide by society's laws. You know, they definitely didn't abide by those laws. It just gave them an excuse to do whatever they want to anyone really or with anyone.
(VO) The Law of Love was the creation of David Berg, founder of the sect, and it was promoted and encouraged through its publications.
I practice what I preach. And I preach sex, boys and girls. Hallelujah. When I say, (censored by network) you know what I'm talking about, don't you? Every one of you know, except maybe some of the little children. And our kids are so smart, they even know what that means. We don't think there's anything evil about it. We don't think there's anything wrong with that.
DAVID BERG
The circumstances of Ricky's passing are very tragic and uncharacteristic of Ricky as a person. Ricky would want this memorial, his memorial to be a celebration of life, not a celebration of death.
JUDY
(VO) Don Irwin grew up in the sect and was a close friend of Rick's. His mother, Judy, had joined in the early days of the group.
I actually joined in 1970 and, of course, I was 20, very vulnerable, didn't know what I was doing, you know. I had always went - since I was a kid wanted to do something for Jesus. So you kind of got drawn into the fact that it looked like they were doing something, because there were numbers coming at you. And actually, I joined - when I joined, there were 200 people. Within three years, there were 10,000 people.
(VO) The Children of God were founded in 1968 in southern California by a charismatic Baptist minister called David Berg. At first, Berg preached a simple back-to-basics gospel, prophesizing the second coming of Jesus. But as his popularity grew, his sermon became more disturbing. By the early '80s, as film from the time shows, Berg's band of hippie followers had mobilized into a disciplined army of converts. Changing their name to The Family, they fanned out across the globe.
I kind of got sucked in, you know, and I got sucked in before I knew what it - you know, I really thought I was joining a Christian organization. I thought it was what God wanted me to do. I had no idea that, you know, it eventually would turn into dark betrayal.
At the age of seven, I remember it was in Panama, and it was New Year's, and I slept on one of these trundle beds that pulls out from a bunk bed, and I remember rolling over and looking and there was the behind of a - of one of the sisters in the home. And she was having sex with my father less than a foot from me. I remember her name to this day. I remember getting up and going to the bathroom and looking in my mom's room, and my mom was having sex with the woman's husband. This wasn't an anomaly.
DANIEL ROSELLE
(VO) To the outside world, The Family was a missionary organization spreading their word from Mexico City to Manila. But behind the closed doors of their communes, free love was their theology.
(VO) Okay, girls, but don't cover up too quick.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE
CLIP FROM "JAPAN EXPO VIDEO: THE FAMILY"
It was part of our doctrine. It was part of our dogma. And it was not something that was restricted to adults. We were taught that as children.
(VO) Armed with camcorders, far-flung communes often recorded their exploits sending David Berg messages of love. Rick was the result of a grand sexual experiment. His mother, Karen Zerby, was David Berg's favorite consort. Early on, he devised a radical method of recruiting new converts. It was called flirty fishing.
So flirty fishing basically consisted of Family women more commonly and occasionally men going to places where they could meet people, bars and nightclubs and what have you, and making themselves available to these people, fairly readily available for sex. And then there was the expectation that they would lead these people to Jesus or pray with them to receive Jesus as their savior.
(VO) Here we see Faithy as she witnesses... and he's asking her at this time, "Do you think I'll go to Heaven?" Very sweet, very sweet man who enjoyed their contact that night.
FEMALE MEMBER
I was never asked to share until the FFing thing came out and then it was kind of a pressurized thing. It was like you either do it or you're out.
David Berg in his writing refers to them as God's whores. My mother when I used that terminology, my mother took exception to that. And I reminded her that it wasn't I who used the words "God's whores" it was her founder.
(VO) Reportedly, Rick's mother, Karen Zerby was one of the first hookers for Jesus allegedly fishing 18 different men on a single trip to Tenerife. One of them was a local waiter, Rick's father. Because David Berg wanted an heir apparent he could mold in his own image, Berg adopted baby Rick celebrating the group's new messiah in publications and documenting his childhood in intimate family pictures.
He was almost like - I don't know. What would you compare that to? I suppose - he was just very famous, you know. Probably one of the most famous, sort of like next - to his dad, you know. It's like their family was like royalty. You know, and he was like a prince and, you know, soon to be king sort of person.
(VO) But the mantle of leadership came with a price. Berg would also use his son as an ideological plaything, pushing the sexual boundaries for a new generation of disciples.
You know, we may not believe in God. I don't. At least certainly not the Christian (censored by network) God.
He talked about suicide a lot. And I would ask him, you know, why he felt like that. Why did he wanna die? And, you know, he said, you know, because I'm already dead.
When "20/20" returns - the roots of Rick's despair. Former members describe a childhood robbed of innocence by David Berg's beliefs.
The women not only had sexual relationships with young boys, they were also facilitators. They also gave their children to the men.
COMMERCIAL BREAK
Next.
'Revenge" continues on "20/20" with Jay Schadler.
Okay. We're back. So anyway, duct tape. Can fix anything or (censored by network) stuff. And I want to fix some people with this. Anyway, okay. I'm sorry. I'm getting off track here. Where the (censored by network) was I? Suicide, yes, suicide.
(VO) 24 hours after Rick recorded his suicide video, he left his Tucson apartment and hit the freeway. Driving west through the Arizona desert, he made his last phone call to his estranged wife, Elixcia.
He said he was afraid of dying. I told him that I believed in angels. And I told him that when he died that he would feel love that he never got to experience in this world. And he told me, keep telling me nice stories. Different parts of the conversation, he's like, 'Oh, I think I'm gonna pull it here and kill myself." And I'm just freaking out. I was like, 'What are you gonna do?" By this time he was really tired, I think he had been awake for, like, two days. And he just started mumbling words. He was, like, 'I have to go now." He goes, 'I'm so tired." He said, 'I'm so tired of thinking. You know, he just, a lot - he was just expressing thoughts, everything that was going through his mind. And then he, he's, like, 'I have to go now."
ELIXCIA MUNUMEL
(VO) Rick was reaching out to friends and family.
I got in contact with my sister, who I consider my sister, because to me she is. She's not flesh and blood, but I'm talking about Davida. She calls me sometimes and we talk, and tells me the stuff she's going through. And it just breaks my heart, you know, because I wanna help her, but there's nothing I can do because it's all up here, you know? The damage has been done.
(VO) David Berg frowned upon conventional families, and Rick was raised by a coterie of female acolytes along with a baby girl called Davida. The pair grew up almost as brother and sister. As The Family's patriarch continued to break sexual and religious taboos, Rick and Davida became his latest playthings.
Growing up as a kid, I remember everything revolved in our lives around religion and sex. They expected us to have some interaction between ourselves with the intent that we would marry, get married, and become the future heirs to the throne, so to speak, meaning that we would be the next future leaders, with - the next gurus, the next David Berg or the next Karen Zerby of our time.
(VO) Not only were Rick and Davida encouraged to have sexual interaction, but they also shared David Berg's bed.
I remember actually, I, I used to look forward to going and spending time with my - with him in the evenings, me and Rick, because it was the only time that he would actually let us watch cartoons. We were absolutely not allowed to watch any TV whatsoever. And it was the only time that we watched cartoons. He'd always let us watched 'Scooby-Doo." Well, we don't look forward to lover time but that was, that was part of the package. You get to watch 'Scooby-Doo" and eat chocolate and have, you know, loving interaction with Grandpa. There was never penetration, but up until about 12 years old. It was never penetration... It was just really all the other forms of molestation, touching and oral and mostly just that. Except it was different with Rick. He always had intercourse with the adult women because as a little boy, I suppose it's a little different, you know.
It was actually very common in The Family for the adult women to have sexual relations with young boys. The women not only had sexual relations with the young boys, they were also facilitators. They also gave their children to the men. It wasn't just the case of sort of, you know, sticking up for your mate or, for your partner, the woman defending the man and being in denial because of it. No, they were active enablers and active participants in our abuse.
GRAPHICS: THE STORY OF DAVIDITO
(VO) Rick and Davida even starred in their own bedtime story, printed by The Family as an example for all their children to follow. Chapters dealt with potty training, discipline, and sex.
The book was just written by my mother because my mother was the one that raised, like I said, had raised Rick and myself, so she had just written these chronicles explaining on a day-to-day basis on how we interacted and what she was teaching us and what we were learning, and that included sexual encounters that she had had with him and how she used to masturbate him to sleep and how she'd make sure that – he would have his love up time before bedtime. It was just so – it was really - you have to read the book. It's really - so that's what the 'Davidito" book was. It was just - a book written about our lives and how we were raised and how other people should imitate the way we were raised to try to do the best to raise their children accordingly.
CELESTE JONES
(VO) By the early '80s, David Berg was on the run from Interpol on suspicion of pimping, moving with Rick and Davida from one secret compound to the next. Now he commanded his female acolytes to send him strip videos. Two young English girls, Celeste and Kristina, were among those he ordered to perform before his cameras.
And we were told we're dancing for God as well as Berg, didn't we? And in fact, we...
KRISTINA JONES
That's to me disturbing because it - this is just, was just the start of much more.
Yeah. Glorify God in the dance. Yeah, it's just, it's just sad. It's just...
David Berg wrote a letter called 'Glorify God in the Dance" where he gave us specific instructions about what he wanted to see on these dance videos. So it came right from David Berg. It was his idea. And it was for him.
(VO) Celeste says her strip video was filmed at family commune in Greece and directed by Berg's lieutenant Paul Peloquin, who she says enthusiastically followed the examples set by Berg.
I hold Paul Peloquin responsible because he ran the communes. His word was go. And he was the one that did those dance videos when I was in Greece. I remember him yelling and being quite physically violent with me on many occasions throughout my childhood. I remember particular sexual abuse when I was 9 years old. It was on the floor in the studio, and I had to perform - masturbate him, and he masturbated me, and then he masturbated himself in front of me. I remember that particularly. But I don't, I don't remember every incidence because, I mean, it happened so often.
CLIP FROM "MUSIC WITH MEANING: THE FAMILY"
And Joan came to me and she said, "well, since Dad suggested that I make love to him in the latest comment tape, do you think I should masturbate?" And, said, I said "of course. That sounds beautiful."
PAUL PELOQUIN
He was the one that would use David Berg's writings to support his position and also help to set up the schedules that I would be put on for sexually servicing all the men in the home.
They never report to anyone else except for Berg. What happened in that location is they began to institute and institutionalize the pedophilia that Berg was already practicing in his personal household. And sadly, what happened with that inner circle, as far as some of the guys were, is it essentially became a pedophile ring. They viciously abused Amy, as well as Celeste in a very systematic way over a very, very long period of time. Now, the pernicious thing about all of this is that the children were inculturated to believe that this was normal.
It was really a beautiful experience. It really...
(VO) Despite the allegations against Paul Peloquin, he has never been charged with any child abuse.
What about these, you know, (censored by network) pervert? You know, aren't they the real terrorists, terrorizing little kids, and driving them to suicide? Isn't that like murdering them basically? (Censored by network) their minds so much that they can't go on? They really can't go on. Isn't that like killing them?
When "20/20" returns, The Family comes forward to defend its past, captured in a how-to guidebook.
(OC) You've got pictures of kids in sexually compromised positions.
'Revenge" continues on '20/20." Here's Elizabeth Vargas.
(OC) Former members of the fringe group then called The Children of God say that part of their religious upbringing involved the worst kind of child abuse, incest and pedophilia that would haunt Rick Rodriguez until the end of his life.
Goddamn. I can only imagine what my sister goes through. She has nightmares about, you know, being dragged out of bed in the middle of the night to go have sex with Berg. Goddamn.
It was very strange because during a lot of these sexual interactions, David Berg would be getting prophecies, and he'd lift his hands in the air and get a prophecy and say that was about, you know, saying that that was amazing sex that you just had with the ghost gypsy. The gypsy ghost would say 'Thanks." That was, it was.. he would get whole prophecies... it was really disturbing.
(VO) By age 12, Rick was reportedly sequestered at The Family's secret headquarters where his abuse may have reached new extremes. In the mind of his father, incest was virtuous. And according to Davida, Berg encouraged Rick's mother, Karen Zerby to join in their sexual games.
I specifically remember a couple of accounts where we were all in the same bed. I was required to be having sexual interaction with the guru at the time, David Berg, and I would be on his right side masturbating him while Rick would be having full sexual intercourse with his mother on the same – on other side of the bed, but it would be like a big happy family time in bed between the four of us.
There are a lot of things that I've sort of come to terms with and I understand that - the issues of control in The Family. But what I haven't come to understand yet is how such a large group of people of diverse backgrounds, of diverse ethnicities, of income levels, can so readily turn to wholesale pedophilia. Not everybody engaged in it, but if you were in The Family, you knew about it.
(VO) In the case of Ricky Rodriguez and Davida Kelley, evidence that they grew up in a sexually charged atmosphere is hard to refute and even harder to look at in photos from the family's own publications. Claire Borowik is the spokeswoman for The Family International. When we spoke with her in 2005, she said she was deeply saddened by what has happened but doesn't believe her organization is responsible and denies Rick was a victim of sexual abuse.
It wasn't really an issue of sex. There was a – liberal, liberality that existed in our homes. That degree of liberality existed in some homes. Not in most homes.
CLAIRE BOROWIK
(OC) Well, how about, how about David Berg's own home? How about, for example, in the book of 'Davidito," there's a picture of Ricky in front of a 'Playboy" playmate. On the next page is a picture of Ricky at the breast of one of your elders.
Mm-hmm. Well, you're giving a sexual context to that. He's 2 years old. But...
(OC) You wouldn't give a sexual context to, to Ricky standing in front of a 'Playboy" playmate?
Yes, I understand.
(OC) Why are the faces blanked out?
Well, because back then Father David had received some threats.
(VO) You don't think that they were scratched out to protect their identities?
No, no.
(OC) You don't? I mean I don't mean to be obtuse, but it seems to me as if one of the reasons that you'd cover it up is because you don't, you've got pictures of kids in sexually compromised positions. You don't want their identities.
I can understand you'd look at it that way. But I'd have to show you our other books so you can see that in our normal publications it had absolutely nothing sexual in it.
(VO) But other ex-members that we've met before like Celeste Jones and Don Irwin still insist that an intense atmosphere of sexuality pervaded the groups they lived in.
I was also the subject of sexual abuse, adults teaching me mainly to fondle them and also...
(OC) At what age?
5, 5 and 6 years old.
(OC) 5 and 6 years old?
Yeah.
(VO) Scandalized by all these accusations and the subject of a number of police raids worldwide, the group renounced adult child sex in Just this week, it issued a statement to "20/20" that included official apologies to several unnamed former and current members and a letter from Rick's biological sister stating that he had, quote, 'become severely disturbed. When I knew him he never felt any of the things he stated in his video." In our interview with Claire Borowik, she also stressed that no court has ever convicted anyone in The Family of sexual abuse.
(OC) The Family turned over a new leaf in 1986, right?
That's right. Now we did not have any policies in place that would protect our minors. It became very clear in 1986 that that was very necessary and important.
(VO) But more and more, those who spent their childhoods in the family have spoken out and remember a far different reality including this former sect member known as Francisco. The Family maintains even today that in 1986 the line was drawn. After that, no more sexual contact between adults and children. Is that true or is that false?
Nobody came to us and told us this was changing. We didn't see a change.
FRANCISCO
If it was categorical, if it was widespread, how come I never suffered abuse? How come I who have over 100 personal friends in The Family International all over the world, how come none of them ever told me they witnessed abuse or experienced abuse?
ANNA
(VO) Despite that claim, other members of The Family, including these young people who we met two years ago, insist they've never experienced any abuse in the group, which they say engaged in fundraising and charitable activities around the world.
(VO) The Family has as denied that Karen Zerby, Rick's mother, ever had sex with him and say he himself never made this allegation to them. In 1994, David Berg died and Karen Zerby became the new leader of the sect, living a life mostly in hiding ever since. Whatever actually happened in David Berg's bedroom had a profound effect on Rick and his sister. In recent years, Davida has struggled with drug abuse and today earns her living as an exotic dancer. As for Rick...
Jesus Christ, you know, anger does not begin, does not begin to describe how I feel about these people and what they've done. You know, I mean, rage. I think I'm just really (censored by network) in the head. I tried so many things, trying to somehow fit in, somehow to find, you know, a normal life.
(VO) But was normal ever an option for this young man, now on a violent collision course with his past, as he hunts for his mother, The Family's current leader, Karen Zerby?
And I wanna keep going until somebody gets her, I get her, justice will be done, believe me. It's only a matter of time.
BEN JIMENZ (Detective, Tucson Homicide Unit)
When "20/20" returns, the destructive path of revenge.
A female victim was laying on the carpet. It appeared that her throat had been slashed.
ROSEMARY KANSPEDOS
The legacy of Rick Rodriguez, describing a childhood of sexual abuse that he says drove him to violence.
I had known that it was coming. It wasn't a matter of maybe it will come. It was a matter of when is it going to happen?
When '20/20" continues after this from our ABC stations.
'Revenge" continues on '20/20." Here's John Stossel.
(OC) We continue now with the story of Rick Rodriguez. Seven years ago, he and his girlfriend were determined to break with The Family and start a new life. They moved to the Northwest. They got married. Rick got a new job, and things seemed to be looking up. But three years into his new life, his past closed in.
(VO) At Rick and Elixcia's home in Tacoma, Washington, former members of The Family began contacting them urging Rick to take a stand against their abusers. Raised to be a leader, it was a role he found difficult to refuse.
People would ask him, "Why aren't you doing something about it? If you know the truth, you more than anybody else will be believed because of where you were." They're, like, "You owe it to us." You know? And here he is, he's got a good job. He's got a happy life. In his heart, he didn't think it was fair for him to have been given that second chance when there were kids out there that were hurting.
(VO) Rick's thoughts turned to revenge against his mother, Karen Zerby, and he began forming a plan. In the summer of 2004, now aged 29, he left Elixcia in Tacoma and drove south to Arizona.
My mom's gonna pay for that. She's gonna pay dearly. One way or another. If I don't get to her, man, if I don't get to her and life goes on, I'm gonna keep hunting her in the next life, let me tell you.
(VO) As official leader of The Family, Karen Zerby's whereabouts were a closely guarded secret. Even Rick, who had severed all ties with the group, had lost track of his mother. So in seeking his revenge for all those years of alleged sexual abuse, his first step was to find her.
I knew that he had a plan to find his mother. I knew that that's all he was - really wanted to do. He really wanted to confront her face to face and ask her, you know, and get some answers.
He was searching for his meaning in life. He really was. And I think he finally came up with a conclusion that his, his reason for living was to make right his mother's wrongs.
(VO) In the summer of 2004, word reached Rick that his mother had recently visited his grandparents in a Tucson retirement home. By September, he had moved to the city. Like an urban hunter, he waited for his mother to reappear. In the meantime, he made contact with his aunt, Zerby's sister, who lives in the city and shuns the cult.
He was my nephew. He needed help. He was the one that was going to be helped. And any anger he had, he had a right to it. His mother didn't take care of him. He didn't have a mother. I had known that it was coming. It wasn't a matter of "maybe it'll come." It was a matter of "when is it going to happen?"
(VO) Rick rented a room in a rough part of town and found a job as an electrician. He practiced martial arts at a local gym and joined a gun club. And he waited for his mother. Four months after arriving in Tucson, Rick set up his new video camera and pressed record.
I'm not trained in torture methods, which is why I'm gonna have to make do. I got my drill here. The reason why it's got this (censored by network) padding on it is just to try to silence it a bit because I'm in an apartment. I got a soldering iron, heat, rather crude implements. I think it'll work wonders, especially if it's used in the right way. But I'm not trained. I don't know how to (censored by network) do. I don't even want to (censored by network) do this. Goddamn it.
The Blythe, California Police Department contacted us on the morning of January 9th. We walked in. The apartment was relatively clean and well kept and a female victim was laying, elderly female, she was laying on the carpet. It appeared that her throat had been slashed. There were some defensive wounds to her arms, some cuts on her arms as well.
BEN JIMENZ
(VO) True to his threats, Rick had committed murder, but the victim was not his mother. It was her close confidante, Angela Smith. Smith had helped raise Rick. And in the story of 'Davidito," she reportedly appears under the pseudonym of Sue. Rick may have arranged a meeting with her early on the evening of January 8th, planning to force her to reveal his mother's whereabouts. While there were no signs of torture here, the savagery of the murder testifies to Rick's desperation.
This need that I have, this need, it's not a want, it's a (censored by network) need, and I wish it wasn't, but it is, it's a need for revenge. It's a need for justice, because I can't go on like this.
(VO) It will never be known if Rick managed to learn where his mother was hiding. Perhaps, he was still hunting for her as he left the murder scene and headed into the Arizona desert. What is known is that his final act of violence was against himself. Police say some time after midnight, he drove into this empty lot...
I'm sort of quitting right now, but in a way, I'm not because I'm not doing it the way I wanna do it. I didn't just turn tail and run and let those (censored by network) win.
(VO) and fired a single round ending his life.
I would have a peaceful happy life. I tried. I did. Maybe I didn't try hard enough. Gave it what I could, you know? I did.
(VO) Rick Rodriguez is dead. His mother, Karen Zerby, is still alive. But where is she?
'Revenge" continues on "20/20." Once again, Jay Schadler.
(VO) Those who knew him best say Rick Rodriguez was seeking revenge against his mother, Karen Zerby, when he finally committed suicide in the Arizona Desert. He never found her. And former members of the sect say the FBI had been investigating her whereabouts as well. We took the mystery to Claire Borowik, current spokeswoman for The Family International. We spoke with her in 2005.
(OC) Why do you think at this crucial moment in the history of The Family and in this crucial moment for Ricky and all of these other second-generation kids, your spiritual leader, Karen Zerby, is nowhere to be found? Don't you think it's stark?
We don't look at it as nowhere to be found. She's very present in her writings.
(OC) Do you know where she is?
Do I know where? No. Not necessarily.
(OC) You don't?
No.
(OC) Claire, the Pope is a spiritual leader. We know where he is. Karen is a spiritual leader, and we don't know where she is. And her son just committed suicide and murder.
And I'm aware of that.
(VO) So why don't we know where she is?
That's her policy. That's all I can tell you.
We want to release doves for Ricky. And I'm also going to read off the names of people that we've heard of, people who passed away who were not remembered. That - this first dove is for Ricky. Abe, Amos…
AMY
(VO) Rick Rodriguez is not the only second-generation member of The Family to commit suicide or fatally overdose on drugs. Exact numbers are not known. But some here say as many as 30 have died in the past 10 years. But on this day, this memorial service is for just one, Rick.
He wanted to understand, he wanted to care, and he wanted to do something about the pain that I had suffered and others had suffered, like himself.
Well, Rick and I grew up together. We were born in the same country, same hospital. My mother raised us both. And I, I just wanted to say that if it wasn't for my family and friends who had been there for me, I can't say that I wouldn't have killed myself a long time ago.
(OC) That's our program for tonight. 'Nightline" is coming up after your local news. I'm Elizabeth Vargas.
(OC) And I'm John Stossel. For all of us at '20/20," we're in touch, so you'll be in touch. Good night.