I know that while I was at Teen Mania, I judged, condemned and generally hurt other people. Sadly, I can’t remember every name, face and incident. To all of my fellow interns 97-99: If I confronted you for something stupid, I want you to know I’m sorry. If I shunned you, I’m sorry. If I […]
Now That I Am Out… An Apology Read More »
First of all, I just want to say Thank You for your blog. I wish I could just give you a big hug! My son went through HA and is still dealing with many “hurts” inflicted upon him there. I am just now finding out some of the details, because he has simply been unable
A Parent’s Perspective Read More »
From what I’ve seen, the Honor Academy’s “counseling” techniques are woefully inadequate. I’ve heard of many cases where life long problems stemming from severe pain and hurt are addressed with three overly simplistic ideas: Spend time alone with God Figure out everything you did wrong Then stop it This Mad TV sketch shows just how
I think its kind of presumptous for Teen Mania to assume that ESOAL – “Emotionally Stretching Opportunity of a Lifetime” is beneficial to everyone. What about people who have already been through an emotionally “stretching” experience of a lifetime? Broken Homes Sexual Abuse Gang Rape Abortions Jail time Accidentally killing someone else Cutting Suicide attempts
(2021 Update: The original link, hastories.com, has since broken.) As a result of the recent news footage, Teen Mania made an announcement regarding the future of ESOAL. Here is an excerpt. I have already set in motion the assembly of an independent committee of experts that will evaluate every aspect of this retreat. This committee will
Investigating ESOAL? Read More »
Teen Mania has told so many lies about ESOAL and the physical health and safey of interns, I thought it was worth summarizing. These lies are even more egregious because they come from a ministry that continually stresses integrity, honesty and “doing the right thing no matter what the cost.” I’ve limited the list to
Teen Mania’s Many Lies Read More »
Ok, I finally figured out why the forums were rejecting so many people. I accidentally banned anyone with a hotmail or gmail account. Woops! Should be fixed now. Come on in! (2021 Update: The forum has gone under and did not survive the migration to this domain.)
RA Forums – Fixed! Read More »
Here is the final installment in the 3 part series KLTV did on ESOAL. My Thoughts: Clearly, rolling the hill until the point of vomiting is NOT something that Teen Mania leadership regrets. They have done it every year for the past decade. Dave Hasz emailed the reporter to say that cat food has never
Honor Academy’s ESOAL In the News, pt. 3 Read More »
Moderator’s Note: “Sydney” sent this story in last night. While she prefers to remain anonymous, its important to know that her story is recent and occurred sometime in the last 3 years. In my intern year, the turning point for me, the thing that I think cemented the feeling I had that something wasn’t right,
Sydney’s Story: ESOAL Read More »
As part of their continuing coverage, KLTV posts the second video in a series on ESOAL. My main response after watching the video is that although the Lindale clinic reported getting only 10 patients, that is not the main clinic Teen Mania interns use (at least that is what I’ve been told). Ten is not
Honor Academy’s ESOAL In the News, pt 2 Read More »
This afternoon, after the local news reported on ESOAL, Teen Mania removed their response website and instead forwarded the link to the website hosted at www.hastories.com. Here is a link to their original response site. Teen Mania, what are you afraid of? UPDATE: 24 hours later, 3 of the original letters from the original response
Teen Mania Deletes Response Website Read More »
KLTV, a local (to Teen Mania) television station is doing a series on ESOAL. Here is the first part, including an interview with me. Update: I think its interesting that Jon Hasz says that he wishes TM could take a “mulligan” for some actions with regards to ESOAL. How about an apology instead of a
Honor Academy’s ESOAL In the News, pt 1 Read More »
Surprisingly, going against everything Mark said in this phone call, the Recovering Alumni Response website was put up less than a month after he promised a thorough investigation. Its also interesting to note that they put it up on the Friday of Memorial Day Weekend. (2025 Update: The RA Response website has since gone down)
Board of Directors Covers Up TM Scandal, pt. 2 Read More »
As many of you know, back in January, I contacted the Board of Directors by certified letter. In about 20 pages, I outlined the major abuses going on at the Honor Academy, including quotes from many of you. To my surprise, they actually responded to me and solicited stories from you in an attempt to
Board of Directors Covers Up Teen Mania Scandal, pt.1 Read More »
An inside source has reported to me that on Tuesday of this week, during chapel (approximately 36 hours before ESOAL began) Teen Mania leadership asked the intern body if any of them were paramedics or registered nurses. Two people responded and my source witnessed one of them working in the “clinic” area at ESOAL. 55
Who is Providing Medical Care? Read More »
I’m often asked why I’ve chosen to remain anonymous. I think its a good question and one that deserves to be answered. Since the start of this blog I have attempted to remain anonymous for the following reasons: I want the focus to be on the message not the messenger. If I were to give
Why I Remain Anonymous Read More »
Sometimes it can be hard to know who to take advice from, especially when people you love and respect have 2 opposing opinions. Here’s a little test that might help. If someone is advising you to do or be something in particular, will they personally benefit from it? Will they benefit financially? Will their ego
Who Should You Listen To? Read More »
The Honor Academy believes ESOAL will help interns reach the death and burial of their flesh, followed by a resurrection. They call this experience BAR. In this talk from the last year, Dave explains the reasons behind ESOAL to facilitators. (2021 Update: Video has since been taken down) @11:57 We want everyone at ESOAL to
The Theology of ESOAL Read More »
Glossary 9/15/2010 Recovering Alumni Glossary of Terms and Acronyms Alternate – Stands for “Alternate Exercise” for those who are too weak or injured for regular corporate exercise. Alternate participants are often considered lazy. AP – Accountability Partner ACA – In charge of their particular room (4-5 interns). Reports directly to CA. ATF – Acquire
I’m not really sure why the Honor Academy thinks it is exempt from so many New Testament teachings. Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. Romans 15:7 You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? Romans 14:10
Exempt from Scripture? Read More »
Frequent commenter, dan, wrote this in the forum last week and I thought it was too good not to share. Dan is a former Marine and has a long history with Teen Mania including being both an intern and Project Director. His military experience coupled with his TM experience gives him valuable perspective on ESOAL:
A Marine’s Point of View Read More »
Today, you get 2 quotes for the price of 1! “Pain is temporary while growth is permanent.” Pain is temporary – except when you ignore the temporary pain and it becomes a life-long injury! “Pain is weakness leaving your body” Really? I thought pain was the body’s warning system that something was wrong. Perhaps these
Dumb Quote of the Day #2 Read More »
ESOAL 2010 starts next Wednesday. As we’ve discussed before, ESOAL is physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually unsafe. The list of injuries is long including staph infections (one that almost killed an intern and led to a month long quarantine), broken and dislocated bones, panic attacks, hypothermia, diabetic issues and more. Keep in mind that in some
So many good entries, thanks for all the laughs! Without further ado, drumroll please….. Honorable Mention: Anonymous “no cult here. we’re just a regular christian ministry who happens to wear army fatigues.” 3rd Place: Julie Dave, I found a wadded up dollar in your drawer. That’s a fail! 2nd place: Renae “Aaahh, I love the
Caption Contest Winner Read More »
There is no doubt that Teen Mania leadership is authoritarian and controlling. Even the fans will admit that, though they say it’s in service to a good cause. However, can top-down control ever really effect heart transformation? Can spiritual growth really come from a forced obedience to a set of external rules? Lately, I’ve been
Leadership and Authority Read More »
