Abel J. Morneault Memorial Library

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction: the beginning of the end -- Prologue: the devil in chains -- In the beginning -- Creation -- Camp of the saints -- Bringing in the sheaves -- Love thy neighbor -- Thou shall not covet thy neighbor's wife -- An attitude change -- Thou shall not bear false witness -- Thou shall not commit adultery -- Honor thy father and thy mother -- Building fear -- The boss -- The root of all evil -- The wages of sin is death -- A prudent wife -- A new level of hell -- Dying in the faith -- And ye shall know the truth -- And the truth shall make you free.

"Based on extensive interviews with mostly former cult members, this book chronicles the history of the Church of God of Union Assembly from its beginning around World War I up to recent times. Founded by a charismatic, unlettered leader, C. T. Pratt, who forcefully broke away from the Holiness COG organization, the church eventually found its home base in Dalton, Georgia. It grew steadily at first and then more rapidly as the great Depression ravaged workers in the mostly rural area of north Georgia. The group set up communal living practices and spread branches of the church across the country, recruiting among the most displaced with a message of social uplift and anti-capitalism, even as its religious practices became increasingly authoritarian and exploitative. If C. T. Pratt exhibited some characteristics of a violent cult leader, his son, who took over the church as his father suffered from ill-health, took these tendencies to a new level that eventually caught the attention of secular authorities. His son, in turn, was even worse--and placed the church on the path to financial ruin. Amazingly, the church survived its three authoritarian leaders and still exists"-- Provided by publisher.