The people who make it all happen! A few of the volunteers at The Gnostic Movement's Bay Area Center
This post is part of a series refuting false allegations made as part of a dedicated smear campaign against The Gnostic Movement and its spiritual teacher, Mark H Pritchard. To go to the main page on rebuffing the false allegations click here, or read the background to the smear campaign see here.
The Gnostic Movement is a religious non-profit organization run and administered by volunteers (who are unpaid). Its directors, officeholders, teachers and members are all volunteers. As an organization it provides the opportunity for those interested in Gnosticism to not only study and practice the teachings, but also to help to spread the message of modern Gnosis to those interested in learning about it. The activities volunteers can help out with vary greatly depending on a person’s skills, interests, initiative and role within the organization. The Gnostic Movement exists only because individuals choose to give of their time and effort to teach its courses, build and maintain its websites, design promotional materials, advertise events, write articles, and carry out all of the many tasks involved in administering an organization.
Volunteers of The Gnostic Movement work at their own discretion. Nobody is ever forced or pressured into volunteering at any stage—that is against the organization’s own principles. People can cease volunteering at any time for any reason. There are few set duties with set hours. For the most part, volunteers work at their own pace, in their own time, according to their own schedule.
Volunteers are all responsible, consenting adults, and they take on the positions and tasks that they want to knowing their requirements just like any other job, taking into consideration their paid employment, family lives, and other personal responsibilities outside of The Gnostic Movement.
Volunteers communicate openly about their availability and work together to arrange and manage the tasks that need to be done. People are encouraged to take breaks, to work within their own capacity, and to make responsible choices in the work they choose to do.
Our accusers have made allegations to the contrary, accusing The Gnostic Movement of forcing or pressuring them to do work that they did not wish to do. However, most of these individuals had signed standard volunteer agreement forms which explained the responsibilities and requirements of being a volunteer. They agreed to volunteer at the time, actively participated in the organization’s voluntary projects, and in many cases initiated them, whether or not they have now changed their minds.
The untrue nature of these allegations are addressed further below, using Barbara’s case as a main example, which has clear written evidence refuting them.
Barbara’s Allegations
One of Barbara’s main allegations is that she was forced to do too much as a volunteer by The Gnostic Movement and contracted illness as a result—this is refuted overwhelmingly with email evidence below. There is not one piece of evidence in which Barbara is requested to do her voluntary work by The Gnostic Movement against her wishes, as it just didn’t happen.
Barbara is a consenting and responsible adult who took on the role of an officeholder on the board of the organization, which is a position that has administrative duties and responsibilities prescribed by law. Barbara was aware of these responsibilities and the legal requirements of fulfilling them, and took on and maintained her role willingly. In fact after being asked to leave, she attempted to return to the organization for around a year.
Misrepresented Evidence
The emails which have been presented by our accusers to substantiate Barbara’s claim are a clear example of how “evidence” has been misrepresented by them. They present a series of 5 emails as being from different anonymous members and state that they were “just a few emails forwarded to us by ex-members and teachers”. However, of these 5 emails, 3 of them are written by Barbara. The other 2 are from current members who have not made any complaints to our organization and have confirmed that they did not forward their emails to anyone. Barbara however was an original recipient of these 2 emails. As such, it is evident to us that Barbara is the source of all 5 emails which have been posted to the blog where she is a main contributor. This then serves as a good example of how the facts have been distorted and twisted by them in order to fit the otherwise untrue allegations and accusations made against The Gnostic Movement and its spiritual teacher.
Only extracts of her 3 emails are shown, although they are presented as though they are the entire emails, and the responses are not included. The other 2 are again only partial, and taken from a longer thread which was actually a very constructive discussion in which board members were helping to reorganize things for another member who was asking for tips on how to better manage their duties.
In fact if the emails were all displayed in their entirety, with all their responses, they would actually show the complete opposite of what Barbara is stating. They show the responsibility of our members in taking care of The Gnostic Movement’s volunteers and ensuring their well being.
The emails do not show that The Gnostic Movement is in any way forcing Barbara to volunteer, nor does she state this in any of her 3 emails, but instead explains her own situation as a means to have it addressed. And it was. To one of her emails, the response (which was not included) was to have a chat about her voluntary tasks to sort them out with her. In this same email the part included is just about a problem which she was facing with getting through her voluntary tasks, but the cause which was the line that preceded it and which was not included was, “Regarding the tasks, the problem that continues to arise is that my job is so demanding that I can barely manage more than ½ hour of work in the evening.” As she states, the problem was the demands of her paid job.
Barbara volunteered for the organization for 8 years, and these misrepresented and edited emails are the “evidence” which is presented to support her claim. Now we will look at the evidence which shows otherwise.
The Evidence Which Refutes Her Claims
Substantial written evidence follows which demonstrates that Barbara, like all volunteers, was actually consistently advised not to take on too much. She was never told she should volunteer when tired or ill. And whenever she requested an adjustment in her voluntary tasks it was always granted.
Here are just a few examples (for these and more, click here):
In June 2007 she wrote an email saying that, “With these extra days at work I am starting to drag behind” with some administrative duties. She then proposes some other people take on some of the duties, and the response was that yes, that sounded fine. In May 2008 she asks in an email, “I am still unsure if I should go [on a trip abroad] because it would mean another week that I am not helping much…,” and that “I don’t like to go for a break when there are high priority things like this to be done with not many people to help.” And the response was that if she was up to it, the trip abroad would be nice to take, but that she should use it as a break and relax there. Again in May 2008 she writes about the same trip abroad saying, “I had said that I would be prepared to stay back so I could help with this, but was told to still go and to use it as a break. If this has changed now…please let me know,” and continues, “ I am willing to do whatever is required so just let me know if you need me to be involved next week.” And the response was a thanks for the offer of help, but that if she was ok it was thought better she take a break abroad, and not to worry about not having internet access. In June 2008 she writes in an email that she can no longer help with an administrative task for 3 weeks due to personal reasons and is told that it’s ok. In June 2008 she asks to be excused from a meeting, “as I have a personal matter that I need to attend to then,” and she is told “yes, that’s fine.”
Not only was she encouraged not to do any more than she felt capable of, but from the majority of task-related emails from Barbara’s eight years in The Gnostic Movement, she is shown to be keenly volunteering to do work, as well as instigating tasks and administrative meetings, and gladly accepting the various tasks and responsibilities she was offered.
Furthermore, we have numerous emails in which she says that it is her paid employment which she found was “demanding”. For instance, in an email she sent in May 2007 she says, “Working where I do is very demanding and challenging work…” Then in June 2007 she wrote in an email, “For the next 2 weeks it will be hard for me to do much on this at all as a colleague that is part of [name removed] team is away and I am taking on much of her work on top of my own, which means I am, and will be, working back late for these 2 weeks and in [name removed] and [name removed] office it is reaching crunch time with big events fast approaching and this is also demanding my time.” In January 2008 she sent an email about her full time job saying that, “My work day including travel is 11 hours.” In an email in May 2008 where she is told that she should take a break and rest since she had been unwell, Barbara says thank you for the reply and that she would have got better quicker if she could stay at home and rest, but that she had to do some urgent tasks at her paid work which were difficult, and also that illnesses in the family kept her up late at night having conversations. In December 2008 she sent an email regarding her paid job stating that she worked a “55 hour work week.” In March 2009 she sent an email stating, “Regarding the tasks, the problem that continues to arise is that my job is so demanding that I can barely manage more than ½ hour of work in the evening.” We note that the reply to this was an offer to chat about it to sort it out.
A Sudden Change
The email evidence Barbara sent over eight years she spent within our organization shows her to have been an active, willing worker. It was only after Barbara stated in an email that she was no longer interested in returning to the organization in March 2010 that The Gnostic Movement became aware of the opinion she had of illness being caused to her by the organization through blog posts she made online.
During her time with us, we found her to have a great drive to excel and succeed in her administrative work and religious life, which made her a valued contributor to the organization and accounted for her level of qualification in it. At the time, she gave the impression of being a very genuine, friendly, diligent, and caring volunteer.
However, we now note that the perceptions she has admitted to in her posts appear to have played a part in motivating her voluntary work in the organization. For example, she states in her own words that she perceived there was “an air of competition” between volunteers of our organization; it was seen “that I would do things efficiently”; there was a “fear of sanctions”; sacrifices were accompanied by “boosts to their pride”; members would “switch between pride and fear constantly”; “there were those who were in favor”; “and those who were out of favor”; sanctioned members would try to “return to their ‘former glory’”; “I had the ‘privilege’ of being reinstated as a member”; “I was 100% loyal”; [I] “would do anything they needed quickly and efficiently”; “I took on all manner of roles. It didn’t matter what it was, I would do it”; “I was therefore a very useful ‘asset’”.
Competitiveness, pride, fear, seeking recognition, praise and success, are well known to psychologically push people to take on more than they can handle. Gnosticism teaches that these are harmful states, and gives the exercises people can use to overcome them. Our teachers are encouraged and expected to practice what they teach. Unfortunately, for many years Barbara gave a very different impression to what she now says she was feeling.
Final Comments
We believe that Barbara is blaming The Gnostic Movement for something the organization was not responsible for: she was given sound advice to rest, not take on too much, to cut down on work, etc. while volunteering. Barbara is a consenting adult and was completely responsible for her own actions. Everyone in the organization works voluntarily and practices Gnosticism at their own discretion. Again, we believe Barbara has used anti-cult criteria to make her accusations, ignoring the fact that the hard evidence shows very much the opposite.
To finish with, we would like to say that the volunteers of The Gnostic Movement work in harmony and friendship together out of a wish to see people throughout the world have the opportunity to truly connect with and become one with divinity. The number of our organization’s volunteers continues to grow. Because of their help, there have been more than 90,000 enrollments in Gnostic courses, offered completely free of charge. This is a great accomplishment for our organization which speaks for itself, and the groundless complaints of a few individuals in a smear campaign can’t change that.
I think that just the simple fact that the 5 emails all seem to have been forwarded by Barbara, and that they were not shown in their entirety, and were portrayed out of context really shows the true nature of these allegations and the manipulative ways these allegations are constructed to make “sensational” claims against The Gnostic Movement and its volunteers.
Taking emails, editing them to remove parts (which changes their meaning) without acknowledging you have done so and presenting them out of context does not strike me as honest, nor does not mentioning the fact that 3 were actually from the same person, who also happens to be the main contributor to the blog on which they are posted.
The clumsy way the “evidence” has been misrepresented shows how invalid these allegations are I think.
So, another argument against gnosis is shown to be a distortion. This really reflects on those people who are making these accusations. I bet all of their accusations are just the same. Where is the credibility?
Also, this is a really clear, well constructed article. Great work.
I just want to affirm that my own experience as a volunteer matches what is written here. I have made so many friends through volunteering for The Gnostic Movement, learned so much — both spiritually and in terms of acquiring new skills — and have had countless positive and constructive experiences that I never would have had otherwise.
I feel that those making allegations have painted me and other volunteers with a very broad brush, representing us as sickly, brainwashed, and poor representations of spirituality. This is completely untrue, and I am saddened to see these claims written as if they were fact.
The volunteers I know are kind-hearted, altruistic, talented, intelligent, clear-thinking, humorous, and friendly people, each one unique in their own way.
Well said Justin.
I can also say that volunteering has been a great experience for me. Its something that I really wanted to do since I took up the courses online.
I’ve made many great friends, acquired skills that have helped me in paid employment, had many great experiences and learned so much. I am doing this becasue I enjoy it and it enriches my life, and I know others feel the same.
I think its a sad aspect of human nature that some people feel the need to label us and put us down, claiming we are brainwashed “puppets” and almost zombie like… this is so far from reality and I feel an unfair way to stereotype, ridicule and look down on people.
I think when people demonstrate a need to put others down to prop themselves up, it reflects much more upon them.
Anyway, despite what a few people say, I’m glad to be part of this group, and look forward to working together with the many friends I’ve made here, who I know to be some of the most caring, good humoured, intelligent and greatest characters I’ve met.
Also, I hope those who focus their time and energy on ridiculing or even “saving” us from our own free choices can focus on their own lives and move onto more constructive and beneficial ways to use their time.
I think this illustrates a trap that some people volunteering can fall into. I admit that I’ve fallen into this particular cycle of competitive thinking. Thanks to some very insightful dreams, I was able to understand what I was doing wrong. Since then, I’ve seen how much more beneficial it is to not only myself but to everyone around me, to take it easy, understand my real priorities, and to not measure myself against others. Competition creates hatred on very subtle levels and that hatred divides and weakens a team effort of any kind.
Unfortunately, I think some are not able to see behind this competitive mindset, which in my experience, causes one to perceive all of these imaginary dramas, deception, and ulterior motives that just causes negativity and resentment. It seems that negativity culminated into the smear campaign we see today.
I have seen that for myself as well. It’s great to get free of it when you know it is working within you though. I have found my best work and creative output is when there is no sense of competition at all, when I feel free of aspects of pride, and when my motivation is to do a good job or create something of good quality.
As a member/teacher I have witnessed a lot of the information described in this blog and so I could not agree more.
I have never once witnessed anyone being forced to do any volunteer work. In fact, it is very much the opposite.
Whenever a volunteer is not able to do a task and they put up their hand up to let someone know, I have always witnessed more than enough support from The Gnostic Movement, members and teachers.
Personally, having a familly with two children and my own business, I have been able to manage very well. I really love the Gnostic teachings and volunteering my time to help others brings me great joy.
Thanks again for this blog which has greatly put matters into perspective.
As a teacher in The Gnostic Movement I’ve had lots of opportunities to help and they were some of the most amazing opportunities I’ve had in my life! I really love Gnosis too and the teachings of Belzebuub and the courses from The Gnostic Movement helped my life so much that I really wanted to help others to experience the same thing.
It has been incredibly rewarding to be able to give back and to see the excitement, enthusiasm and often awe in new students starting to get their own experiences of Gnosis, not to mention the skills I gained and the amount I learned about myself too in the process.
All of the volunteer work I have been involved in was by choice and out of interest, I have never felt like I was forced to do any volunteer work. There were times when I’ve done too much out of enthusiasm or aspiration (strangely enough it’s very easy for spiritual aspiration to become physical aspiration if the motivations aren’t seen as Michael mentioned above, and then problems like overwork for the wrong reasons or out of a lack of understanding comes about) but the fault there lies squarely with myself and definitely not with The Gnostic Movement, or Belzebuub who in his books and talks mentions the importance of family life, looking after our body and doing everything we can to keep it healthy, get enough sleep etc.
I have found there to be a lot of support from the teachers and members of the Gnostic Movement in this regard. As an example, recently when my health wasn’t so good I spoke to the person in charge of a task I was doing to see if I could cut back and I was told that I should do whatever I was comfortable with as my health was more important!
To tell the truth it is really sad to see how far this person has gone to prove a point, a very bad point at that.
Like everyone else here, I too have benefited greatly from the many forms that my volunteering activities have taken in the Movement. Not only have I had the opportunity to meet some wonderful people, I have also had the chance to learn so many new skills, which I doubt would have been the case had I not wanted to take on different tasks as offered to me.
In addition, I remember spending time with the person at the centre of this allegation, and I clearly remember that every opportunity was granted her to rest and take breaks when she was not feeling well. I witnessed this personally.
Thank you for once again setting the record straight.
Patricia that’s a good point, it has been the same for me too, I actually have learned a lot of new skills due to volunteering in the organization. In fact, some of the new skills I’ve learned have opened up other job opportunities for me, and I am completely sure that I would have never taken the time to train myself in these areas, if it weren’t for a desire to help others find Gnosis.
My experience volunteering for The Gnostic Movement has been the same. It has been a completely positive experience, I’ve formed so many friendships, and there are always plenty of opportunities to rest and take breaks.
The only way I can see that someone would overwork is if they made the personal choice to do so themselves….similar to how some people choose to overwork at whatever job they do for a living. We all have to take responsibility for our choices at the end of the day, though.
I am glad to read everyone’s replies here, thanks for sharing!
The only thing I’ve ever been “forced” to do in the gnostic movement is take a complete break from any admin, this was after volunteering on a project a group of us were working on for a while. Whenever I’ve been unwell I let the members at my center know and just take it easy and get plenty of sleep (I’m doing this at the moment due to being unwell), they (the members) volunteered to take the class I was taking so I could step back and focus on getting healthy.
With the sad accusations floating around I find it worthwhile reflecting on Belzebuub’s actual teachings (from The Peace of the Spirit Within),
“Durgs, overwork, gluttony, overuse of the body in sports, all wear the physical body out. The body is a temple of the divine, or in most cases could be, so it has to be treated well”,
“It is more difficult to maintain the awareness and to combat the egos when the physical body is ill or tired… that’s why it’s important to keep as healthy as possible and not to get too tired.”
I remember one event when I was about to enroll in the teacher course provided by The Gnostic Movement. I was in a process of enrollment to that course when I talked to someone who is now a part of the smear campaign. He told me many false things on how things work in a center, one of his key points being that one of a teacher from a center he previously attended, was brought to illness due to sleep deprivation.
Due to things he said previously in that conversations, things for which I knew are subjective, I knew that this key point is also likely subjective, or at least that there is more to it which he didn’t tell me.
But regardless of it, what he said still influenced me which brough about some worrying emotions regarding my enrollment to the teachers course. But despite of it I enrolled to the course because I have been a student of this school for several years prior to that, and I knew that things are much different than he tried to convince me.
Now I have been a part of teachers training course for over a year, and I can confirm that what is said in this blog post episode about refuting false allegation is completely true and accurate. Everything that I do as a volunteer is what I accept to do, based on my amount of free time and how I wish to manage it.
Well said everyone!
Volunteering is something that a lot of people do nowadays – ask a person that volunteers at a dog shelter. Is it easy work? Yes and no, I’m sure. Caring about a cute puppy is, well, cute. Cleaning after it, is well, a mess. Are there some times when it’s too hard? Yes, when seeing an animal brought in that has been abused, and needing to help in surgery for many extra hours than what was planned. Is it worth it? Yes, they will all tell you it is. That’s why they do it. The extra hours put in to save a dog. Donating money to buy an extra blanket, or food. Fostering a dog or dogs so that more room can be made at the shelter to receive more animals. Etc.. Etc.. But is it worth it? Yes – for them seeing a dog being adopted by a loving family, having that dog rehabilitated and saved made all the hours, energy, love and pain worth it.
This is just an example of another volunteering experience that many of us can relate to.
Well volunteering for spirituality is the same thing, but instead of saving dogs, it’s about spirituality. I give my time, my energy and my love so that these teachings can be spread. No one forces me to do anything. And when there is a fundraiser, of course I donate. How could I not? This is the life I’ve chosen, the spiritual choices I made as an adult. I’m not a puppet nor brainwashed.
Are the volunteers at a dog shelter brainwashed because they spend 3 days a week, unpaid to care for dogs? No, we think of these people as caring, dedicated and devoted to their cause. We respect them. Some of us (human beings in general) are very happy they are doing that job because we don’t have to do it.
Then why, oh why is volunteering for a spiritual organization seen so different? Why should it be a negative thing?
From my personal experience, I was never pushed to do things I could or could not do. I learned many new skills that helped me get a good job when I needed it the most. This is a choice, made by a rational adult woman. I’m not brainwashed, nor am I weak-minded. I want to help others benefit from all I’ve benefited. Gnosis has so much to offer if one wants to.
And that’s where it starts and stops: free will. You want Gnosis, you practice it and you apply it. You don’t want Gnosis, then you don’t practice it, and you don’t apply it. Same goes for volunteering: you do it because you want to, not because you’re made to do it.
Any accusations that say otherwise are just plainly false.
Hi Everyone,
I can’t agree with you more!
Its a shame how this whole smear campaign has been heralded by a few disgruntled individuals, who do not speak on behalf of the rest of us hundreds of volunteers who are happy helping and learning spiritually.
When you volunteer for Gnosis, there is a tremendous spiritual boost that takes place within – an explosion of learning, understanding and changing. Its a truly profound experience. So for me, for the little I do, I have always and without fail being given so much in return to help me spiritually and in my life all over. I can’t begin to be grateful enough for the opportunity to help other spiritually. Its an amazing gift to have Gnosis and an absolute wonder when we actually make use of it.
Wishing peace to all!
Layla,
What you have said speaks to me very much. Volunteering for a spiritual cause has made a huge impact on me, to let others know about spirituality, to help gnostic spiritual practice be passed on to others, to let others know about the message, the insights, the teachings, that never in my life would I have known about had someone not passed them on to me, being part of this, has only aided me in my own spiritual journey, and like you said, many times I have felt uplifted spiritually, inspired and felt deeply part of this greater connection to let others know about spirituality, and the timeless force in which all spirituality has ever existed.
It is truly not a fair picture, that which only a few displeased individuals have used to give this negative impression, as I have met so many more people who have been inspired by this teaching, and I only hope that more will find it.
I think this article is a very good expose of the false nature of the allegations against The Gnostic Movement & Belzebuub. Thanks for posting it. I can only concur with what others have already said. Surely as a result of this article anyone who was fooled by the false allegations will no longer be so having read this article.
I Plan to have a rest from work.Please who knows where I can do a avolunteering job with the gnostic Christians for at least one year?