Beyond experiencing some “hammock sticker shock,” today was pretty uneventful.
I had intended for today to be totally wasted, spending it not doing much of anything beyond simply going for a walk, but I found myself deciding to get in my grocery shopping, then came home and went for a walk, and then, of course, went hammock shopping.
(The best deal I’ve found online is $140 for a hammock and stand, though that’s before shipping. *Sigh*)
Most of my weekend was spent passing the time reading all kinds of Web pages related to Jack T. Chick and his associates, most notably Dr. Rebecca Brown, the self-appointed demon hunter who, along with her companion Elaine, informed several of Jack’s witchcraft-related tracts.
It made for some pretty interesting reading, as Elaine, a woman whom “Dr. Brown” (in quotes because her real name is Ruth Bailey and she lost her license to practice medicine in the 1980s) rescued from a life of sin and iniquity in “the craft.”
Elaine (whose real name is Edna Elaine Moses, but who has gone by a variety of names – including Elaine Bailey, claiming to be Rebecca’s sister back when she was still Ruth Bailey – but who was never identified by a last name in any of the literature published by Jack) was one of the most powerful – possibly the most – witches in the world and was, in fact, married to Satan himself.
I can’t help but wonder what Elaine got in the divorce settlement. Technically, half the souls in Hell would belong to her. As for Satan, he is, apparently a snappy dresser, doesn’t talk much, has an appreciation for fine wines and champagne (Thanks to Elaine’s stories I now picture Satan as being rather a lot like Christopher Walken as “The Continental.”), and is, quite literally, a demon in the sack.
Additionally, Elaine, as a VIP in the most powerful secret occult group in the world, traveled the globe sowing the seeds of evil, meeting with world leaders and terrorists, and even the Pope (Catholics are, after all, as Jack will happily tell you, pure evil).
Apparently in her capacity as High Priestess and Regional Bride of Satan, Elaine brokered all sorts of illegal arms deals and had at least twenty people murdered. Fortunately for her, though, when she was “saved” and became a Christian, God told her that she didn’t need to repent for those particular sins by submitting to man’s justice.
So that was lucky. However, one would think that if there were any validity to her claims – as one fundamentalist Christian minister who didn’t buy her story suggested – the ATF, FBI and various other law enforcement agencies wouldn’t be quite so likely to forgive Elaine her trespasses.
Still, what mortal man can judge Elaine, or her deliverer, the erstwhile Dr. Ruth Bailey? After all, they were out there in the spiritual trenches confronting Satanists, witches, demons, vampires, and werewolves. They fight the forces of darkness so that we don’t have to, and what thanks do they get?
None. Well, none besides a pass on any murder, conspiracy, and treason charges that may have been (but most likely weren’t) applicable and whatever money they made from selling their books and tapes and from receiving “love gift” donations for speaking engagements at really gullible congregations (Mostly in the South. Go figure.).
I won’t delve too much further into their histories or the various actual crimes they were guilty of, as others out there have done an admirable job, and I recommend that you do a search on Rebecca Brown and Elaine and do some reading. It’s fascinating stuff. Don’t just read the litany of charges or what their detractors have to say, check out some of Jack’s Rebecca-inspired tracts (some available for reading on the Web at the Chick Publications site) such as “Dark Dungeons,” “Satan’s Master,” or “The Nervous Witch,” or the reviews of the “Closet Witches” tapes that feature an interview (By Jack himself!) with Rebecca and Elaine which Chick Publications released.
The fantasy world that Rebecca and Elaine lived in is every bit as fascinating as the works of J.K. Rowling…whose books you shouldn’t read, as they serve as a gateway to the occult.
That’s one of the key points Rebecca makes: the occult must be avoided at all costs, because even the most casual encounter will leave you cursed.
What kind of things can lead you to become cursed?
Let’s see…rock music, role-playing games, tarot cards, horoscopes, palm reading, fortune cookies, martial arts, yoga, vegetarianism, acupuncture, alcohol, smoking, drugs, sexual abuse, sex of any kind outside of marriage, books on the occult (other than Rebecca’s, of course), incense, candles, and basically anything that mentions magic without explicitly condemning it.
This is by no means a comprehensive list. After all, there are about as many paths to being cursed as there are to the Dark Side of the Force (Star Wars movies, by the way, will lead you to become cursed.).
It should come as no surprise that people who actually practice witchcraft would find fault with Rebecca, but what’s most interesting is seeing fundamentalists condemn her, though there’s not really all that much of that.
Jack eventually severed ties with Rebecca (as did Elaine, and largely due to the same event as Jack, albeit for different reasons: Rebecca got married. Her husband, whose current alias is Daniel Yoder, also has a history that makes for interesting reading.), but he never actually condemned her or came out and said, “You know, it might be that the woman is a little bit kooky.” On the contrary; he still promotes many of her ideas.
After all, that would be admitting the possibility that he had been taken for a ride, and for a man who believes anything that anyone says as long as it supports his view of things, that is something he cannot do.
The one aspect that was most prevalent in all of the condemnations and denouncements of Rebecca was not that her critics were simply saying, “She’s crazy and has cockamamie ideas,” but rather that they were saying, “She’s crazy and has cockamamie ideas that disagree with my cockamamie ideas.”
So you have witches denouncing her because “that’s not how magic works,” and other “deliverance ministers” saying, “that’s now how you fight demons,” and no one saying that it’s all just a bunch of bullshit.
Some people do suggest that Rebecca and Elaine were simple con artists, but I don’t think that’s the case. I think they’re con artists who came to believe their own bullshit stories. After all, the drug abuse that was at the heart of Rebecca losing her license (I just realized that Rebecca was, at one time, “Dr. Ruth.”) to practice medicine undoubtedly led to some interesting trips that might have seemed like the real demonic deal.
Elaine clearly had mental problems right from the start, which were only exacerbated by her relationship with Rebecca.
In any case, like I said, it makes for interesting reading if you’re ever bored.
As for me, I suppose I should call it a night. By the way, reading Threshold? You better believe that will lead you to become cursed.
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