They joined the church, paired with disciplers for mentorship, fervently studied Scripture, and evangelized on their campuses, seeing more added to the church. Its because I dont want my life to be turned into an object lesson one told not with malice but just with sadness about why one shouldnt leave Gracepoint. Latest was Christmas Part 1 | Isolation | Sunday Worship Service. Kelly Kang worked as an engineer. /*# sourceMappingURL=https://www.redditstatic.com/desktop2x/chunkCSS/TopicLinksContainer.3b33fc17a17cec1345d4_.css.map*/I would not go to NSWN; if I somehow accidentally did (as I think many people do), I would not go to GFC on Sundays; and, if I somehow accidentally did that, I would not get involved with a small group and spend all my free time devoted to GFC. I've been a lifelong Christian but what they do is really, really extreme. Acts2Fellowship Instagram Marketing Intern. Gracepoint Berkeley Church, Alameda, CA. Kang told CT the church tries to mitigate the effects of the media-entertainment complex and tech companies and has historically discouraged the use of televisions and social media. When I objected and reminded him of his promise, he acted like he'd done nothing wrong, because after all, he was working for god, so nothing he did could be wrong. Welcome! (Because of the churchs focus on college ministry, leaders discouraged members from inviting coworkers or neighbors who were out of college. Doe initially planned on returning to Gracepoint, until she realized it was no longer a safe place for her. One individual, who writes under the pseudonym John Kim, started a blog in June 2010 detailing Gracepoints faults, and in recent months, former members have established a subreddit dedicated to discussing Gracepoint. Berkeley, California, United States. Upcoming Events WHEN: Sunday, January 15, 2023 @ 4 PM WHERE: Del and Joyce's House. However, I have found nothing but beneficial experiences so far. The building was used for Sunday service, bible studies, prayer meetings, and many other church activities until the congregation became too large to fit into the sanctuary for Sunday service. Growing up poor in Los Angeles he was headed for a life of crime and delinquency. And third, I made some good friends. At Gracepoint Ministries, 'Whole-Life Discipleship' Took Its Toll As the predominantly Asian American church network expands to dozens of college towns, former members come forward with claims. I'll try to be succinct and objective. Allegations of abuse within campus ministry groups run by Gracepoint and its predecessor Berkland Baptist Church date back at least two decades. While oversight and granular life advice can be part of college formation and discipleship, Gracepoints influence grew more intrusive as members remained at the church. The source, who disclosed their bisexual orientation to church leadership, was advised not to be alone in a car or have a roommate of the same gender. 2000 Northloop Drive. These outbursts shamed members for not following the standards of their community. Scroll . BBC Davis (located near UC Davis in California) became Waypoint Church for some time while remaining affiliated with the Berkeley Branch, from now on referred to as Gracepoint, GP, or Gracepoint Berkeley. Emails obtained by CT show that Gracepoint maintained its own blogs to compete with those critiquing the church. for less than $4.25/month. Still, based on my experiences, I cannot be more thankful I found a group where I can grow in my faith. I go to Gracepoint and no, it's not a cult. I remember all too clearlythe day thatmy entire classgot rebuked because one class member was found to be secretly dating another member of the church. Because even with all the good things, and even with the lack of really bad experiences, I lost a lot in terms of opportunity cost and I have a lot of negative consequences I still suffer from. Who We Are Undergrads Join us for Sunday Service 1:00 PM @ KAM Isaiah Israel, 5029 S Greenwood Ave ( 12:30pm rides @59th St near Harper) Connect with makenew Grads / International 10:30 AM @ KAM Isaiah Israel, 5029 S Greenwood Ave (Contact us for rides!) That familial attitude tied into the churchs model of whole-life discipleship. And he teaches us to value diversity and individuality. There isn't a need to "brainwash" in the stereotypical way that people think when you use that term -- social pressure, from subtle to intense, will do the same thing just fine. Like Paul, Priscilla and Aquila were missionaries. info@gracepoint.church. Gracepoint Church, founded in 2006, currently runs a variety of campus ministry groups across the University of California, including Klesis and Acts2Fellowship at UC San Diego. Sign up for our newsletter: I have made my faith personal here, and I have truly devoted my life to God. Materials produced by The Triton do not reflect the views of the Regents of the University of California and the Regents do not endorse, warrant, or otherwise take responsibility for said content. Gracepoint started in 1991 as Berkland Baptist Church in Berkeley, California, as a church in the Southern Baptist Convention denomination. You can do that here. But does this type of rebuking do more harm than good? Alameda, CA 94502 Gracepoint Fellowship Church, a Berkeley church located near the UC Berkeley campus, is having free seminars / workshops called Life Matters. Online criticism of the churchs high-pressure environment did not start with the Reddit posts. And, I can say that close friends of mine also had seriously negative experiences, the effects of which I saw up close. I was told that in order to accept the truth about myself I need to accept that I committed the same sins as my abuser and as my parents and that it would be extremely sinful and arrogant of me to think that Im any different, Doe said. My sometimes "cult" concerns would have been inflamed if she didn't go to a public school. Despite bringing his symptoms to his leaders, he said he was not allowed to step back from most of his church responsibilities. Please download the NEW 2023 devotional notebook. I had a strained relationship with my parents, said Martin Loekito, who was a member of Gracepoints Davis church for 14 years. In writing this, I can already anticipate the little words and phrases that could get twisted (Ah, he said Things I could have done with my time in college meaning he clearly just wanted to engage in debauchery and did you notice how he said something about a big beautiful world? I viewed God as this incredibly sensitive, temperamental, judgmental being. The other five competitors in the top 10 list are esv.org (1.5M visits in December 2022), ucsda2f.org (528 visits in December 2022), gracepoint-berkeley-devotions.org (164.2K visits in December 2022), biblegateway.com (74.9M visits in December 2022), and areayouth.org (3.1K visits in December 2022). Unplug from UCBMFET. ), but there is a really unhealthy element of the culture that I believe is one of the root causes of the spiritual abuse at Gracepoint. These constant assessments about me being unrepentantthey didnt reflect what I was actually thinking and feeling, said Noelle, who is also an abuse survivor and asked CT not to use her last name due to her job as a teacher. Members said they were manipulated into confessing sins, screamed at by leaders, and overloaded with obligations to the point of illness. In fact, she might even ask you to go to church with her :). - Lyssna p Ed Kang - GracePoint Berkeley Part 2 av The Ralph Moore Podcast direkt i din mobil, surfplatta eller webblsare - utan app. Gracepoint Church - for college students near Berkeley Sunday Worship Service. The University of San Francisco revoked the recognition status of Gracepoints Klesis fellowship in May 2021 because it did not meet the requirements to be a USF affiliated ministry, misrepresented its relationship with Gracepoint Church, and continued to have contact with students following an interim suspension issued in March. Served 113 Homes Since 2006, we've had the privilege to share God's love (the greatest love) to the elderly on Valentine's day. One source who attended Gracepoint during their time at UCSD asserted this resulted in a Gracepoint social bubble that made it difficult to interact with others outside of that bubble.. What is Agora Roads Macintosh Vaporwave Cafe? I don't know. I say it is extremely damaging! Honestly, just bring it up with her. But because it happened as a genuine outgrowth of Christian life. Gracepoint continues its evangelism efforts for the fall semester. Romans 1 - Gratitude. Both Unity in Christ at Berkeley and the Southern Baptist Convention check the practices and beliefs of member churches and college fellowships - meaning, if nothing else, that they do provide a layer of accountability and a church like Gracepoint literally could not join if it were a cult. One thing more to muse on before I close. This was posted two months ago but for those of you who missed it, there is now a Discord channel for anyone who wants to have a conversation there: My perspective is different from many posters on this subreddit. Yes, finally, what you did caught up to you, it got addressed by the leaders, and if you repent, you have a small stamp of approval. leavegracepoint ex-Gracepoint (Berkeley) Additional comment actions I think there's a possibility that the focus is to try and seem like they are "church planting network" aka Acts2College Network/Gracepoint Network rather than an actual church that has a group of elders making decisions. One Thanksgiving, Austin Lee (no relation to Paul) was berated for not tithing enough after moving cross-country to help plant a church at the University of North Carolina without consistent employment. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Rebranding as Gracepoint Ministries, it has expanded Area Youth Ministry, a parachurch organization meant to evangelize middle- and high-school students and supplement church youth groups. I also suspect that their spouse was chosen because there were two instances when the male staff suddenly announced their engagements. (LogOut/ Without the church's support, he might have had nowhere to live. An anonymous source, who first encountered Gracepoint Church on UC Berkeleys campus, attended throughout their time as a undergrad and continued participating in church activities after graduation, noted that within Gracepoint, church leadership encourage LGBTQ+ members of their congregation to implement guardrails., The source defined guardrails as something that was very prominent at various points in terms of how a person should make decisions and behave, particularly in opposite gender relationships.. Get the most recent headlines and stories from Christianity Today delivered to your inbox daily. I'm mad because I've seen not only myself but also others get hurt and develop mental health issues because of your practices. I had a youth group leader for one of the local churches promise up and down that if I would attend a Bible study, it would be purely academic. GRACEPOINT CHURCH - COMPASSION MINISTRY Culture of Service & Mission Serving our Local Community and Internationally Changing the World by Sharing the Love of Jesus Impact Serving since 1997 if you're looking for a church, or just curious about christianity, drop by our on campus sunday services. 295 were here. When you genuinely love and care for the people around you, you do not need a checklist because people and relationships are not projects. This is how you move hundreds of young people to mobilize quickly, efficiently, and without much complaint or deviance. Gracepoint has faced decades of criticism from members who left its ranks, but allegations drew new attention last year on a channel of the message board site Reddit. The war on Christmas comes to mind. Read more. 1981: The Beginning - Rebekah Kim (Becky) and Paul Kim moved from Southern California to Berkeley to start Berkland Baptist Church (BBC). . - Lytt til Ed Kang - GracePoint Berkeley Part 2 fra The Ralph Moore Podcast direkte p mobilen din, surfetavlen eller nettleseren - ingen nedlastinger ndvendig. Site is running on IP address 104.196.26.65, host name 65.26.196.104.bc.googleusercontent.com ( United States) ping response time 4ms Excellent ping.Current Global rank is 7,180,567, site estimated value 300$ (Kang previously sat on the advisory board for Send Network, the church planting arm of the Southern Baptists North American Mission Board. And the brothers and sisters I served with in my new church; the community was something special. You can do so here. According to Hendrickson, that was when her relationship with her son began deteriorating. Phone (423) 728-5050. Gracepoints training documents teach staff to explain why the churchs hierarchical leadership is not authoritarian or why negative perception of the churchs culture of rebuke is overblown due to an emotionally fragile generation. Weary of internal programs being leaked, leaders asked members to periodically delete sensitive recordings and emails containing talks and trainings or to watch them under supervision. Sam C. participated in ABSK from 1999 to 2003, eventually taking on a leadership role within the group. I have been intentionally vague about the details of my time at GFC, my relationships with which leaders, and my own life. I guess you could say we were just a bunch of people who enjoyed college life so much that we never left it, the church quips in a promotional video. Other churches in or near Berkeley include: First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley, Livingwater Church, Evangel Bible Church of Berkeley, and Reality SF. (Are they still there? Change), You are commenting using your Facebook account. The charismatic shepherding movement of the 1970s and 80s ended with former leaders disavowing their own intrusive practices. But thats the point: I had a generally good experience, for a relatively short time and I still have an incredibly weird aversion to something that is even tangentially reminiscent of Gracepoint. My regrets are mostly about the people that I ministered to when I had no right to be called a minister, Loekito said. My point is- any criticism of you, especially because of the things you actually said or did, is not persecution. May 2020 to March 2021. Again I'm not a historian. Regret: What I lost from being at GFC. But what might have felt like conviction from God at the moment they later saw as the leaders aggression. One of the things thats good about the Korean culture is that when someone wants you close to them, they make you part of their family, said a former longtime Berkland member who asked not to be named due to his close ties with Gracepoint leadership. UC Davis alumnus Sam C. (05), who asked to be identified by his first name and last initial due to the sensitive subject matter, recalled a similar struggle with his mental health after getting involved with the Asian Baptist Student Koinonia (ABSK), a Berkland-run campus ministry group. Gracepoint santa barbara is a collegiate church that meets near the ucsb and westmont campuses. This history is provided to give context when understanding how the church came to be what it is today. Jun 2020 - Jul 20202 months. You can ask questions and have discussions regarding the Truth Project by responding to this post. On March 12, 2017, UCSD Chancellor Pradeep Khosla received an email from a concerned community member about Gracepoints presence on UCSDs campus and classified the church as a cult.. Honestly, if someone were to tell me to cut off ties will all my non-church friends, I would seriously question the church. Couple new courses as well as continuation of several popular classes. Check out this recent article about them: https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2022/september/gracepoint-berkland-asian-american-church-discipleship.html. While college ministries like InterVarsity and Asian American Christian Fellowship were launching programs to serve a growing wave of Asian immigrants and second-generation Asian Americans, Rebekah and Paul Kim (no relation to the other Kims) planted a church to minister to Korean Americans at UC Berkeley in 1981. Yes, they are very intentional in their faith. But they are not my stories to tell. Address. For those who have left, connecting with other former members in person and online has helped their transition out of the church. Thank you to all the brave souls who left reviews on Yelp using their genuine profiles. 70 70 Campuses 40 40 Cities Catch the vision 2 Parachurch Ministries Reaching out to the world. Join us online Past sunday service messages. Dis-Gracepoint Berkeley. Ed and Kelly Kang and most of the leaders spoke of her highly and looked up to her, almost as one who could do no wrong. Please feel free to choose from these questions to help remember and process the text. I feel that it's unfair to call Gracepoint a cult simply because of the time people spend. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. I thought someone mentioned somewhere that PED suggested the people who criticize him and GP (i.e. Thirty-two former Gracepoint members who spoke with Christianity Today for this story described a culture that was controlling and coercive for the sake of ministry efficiency. You can disagree with me if you want, this is just my opinion, but it does seem to me that even the slightest amount of adversity will cause Christians to play the persecution card. One thing that we must not do is be persuaded by criticism that theres something wrong with us.. Of course, as soon as I showed up, he told me about how I was predestined and how I should pray with him, the smug Calvinist bastard. I remember being very sleepy because this happened very late at night. Yes it's an "all in" church. One of the biggest differences in the lives of current teenagers and young adults, compared to earlier generations, is that they spend much less time connecting with their peers in person and more time connecting electronically, principally through social media. Gracepoint. I have been attending this church for two years now (I'm a sophomore), been somewhat involved, and I think I kinda know how things are run. Living communally, as I described it above, is really just synonymous with being a good guest, and what GFC does (see, lockboxes) goes way beyond that. $100M Ad Campaign Aims to Make Jesus the Biggest Brand in Your City, Died: Jack Hayford, Pentecostal Pastor Who Wrote Majesty, Federal Judge Tosses Challenge to Christian College Exemptions, The 50 Countries Where Its Most Dangerous to Follow Jesus in 2021, Recant or Leave: Mobs Expel Christians in Central India, damage theyve done to Gracepoints ministry. Later saw as the leaders aggression, she might even ask you to all brave! 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