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Wilkomirski, Binjamin

aka Bruno Doessekker; Bruno Grosjean. Wrote a book called "Fragments: Memories of a Childhood, 1939-1948." in which he described a childhood in Nazi concentration camps. The book was subsequently exposed as a hoax. Interestingly, Wilkomirski also claimed to recognize hoaxster "Lauren Stratford" as a Holocaust survivor.

A best-selling memoir of a "Jewish child" who claimed to have survived the horrors of Auschwitz has been exposed as a fraud and withdrawn from bookshops. "Fragments," in which "Binjamin Wilkomirski" recalled his harrowing experiences as an orphan adrift in the death camps, won the Jewish Quarterly literary prize in Britain and several book awards in other countries before doubts were raised about the writer's real identity. In the meantime, the slim volume has become the most successful Swiss book since "Heidi," acclaimed as a "masterpiece" of Holocaust literature. Wilkomirski's German publishers, Suhrkamp Verlag, who had stoutly defended the author when questions about his bona fides were first raised, Thursday withdrew hardback copies of the 155-page book from the shelves. Their about-turn comes after Wilkomirski's own agent, plagued by nagging doubts about his client, commissioned a historian to write a confidential 100-page report on his origins. Dr. Stefan Machler found that he was not a Latvian Jewish refugee after all but German-speaking Bruno Doessekker, the adopted son of wealthy Swiss Protestants.
Holocaust survivor's memoir revealed as a hoax, Detroit News/The Guardian, Oct. 15, 1999

In a lecture at the Psychoanalytic Seminar in Zurich, held at the beginning of this year [1998] and available on tape, we meet Wilkomirski as the representative of a therapeutic method, namely "Interdisciplinary Therapy." He is able to "treat" people without an assured identity, as they bring scraps of memory to light, by attaching to those scraps the appropriate facts and locales out of actual history. In this way, the patient's own life history, including identity, can be regained.
The Purloined Holocaust BiographyOff-site Link Translation of an article originally published in Die Weltwoche, Aug. 27, 1998

- Articles -
Secular The Purloined Holocaust BiographyOff-site Link Translation of an article originally published in Die Weltwoche, Aug. 27, 1998
Secular Recovered Memories and the HolocaustOff-site Link by Mark Pendergrast

- News Articles Database -
» Database of archived news items
(Includes items added between Oct. 25, 1999 and Jan. 31, 2002. See about this database)
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Wimber, John (1934 - 1997)

- Articles -
Christian The Church Jesus BuildsOff-site Link John Wimber describes his approach to doing church. Includes a timeline of his life.
Christian Offended by God?Off-site Link By John Wimber, sharing that "Sometimes God offends our minds to reveal what is in our hearts." That statement is often heard in defense of all manner of manifestations. Find out what Wimber meant.

- Books -        Click On Titles To Order At Discount           » More Books
Christian Power HealingOff-site Link by John Wimber, with Kevin Springer
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Profess to be Christian but are outside orthodox Christianity Winter, Steve

A person who claims to espouse and promote Oneness Pentacostalism. However, his hate-filled, spiteful ramblings consist mostly of insults padded with template text files and other standard paragraphs. Mr. Winter is not representative of most United Pentacostalists, and certainly does not represent any variety of Christian behavior or doctrine.

It is highly recommended that you check the "Steve Winter FAQ"Off-site Link before attempting to engage Mr. Winter in a conversation. Mr. Winter, who quite possible has been removed, barred or banned from more online services than any other person, also has a nasty habit of contacting ISPs and employers of his opponents. If and when this happens, simply provide them with a copy of the Steve Winter FAQ.

Secular A Guide to Dealing with Steve Winter of PRIME.ORGOff-site Link Excellent information, provided by attorney Peter Wm. Sachs, Esq. As archived by the Internet Archive.
Non-Christian ImpsmailOff-site Link Mr. Winter's "[d]ocumentation of harassment by wire, computer crime, electronic stalking, cyberstalking, email harassment, blackmail threats, blatant lying, heresy, IRC harassment, threats etc. by false-christians, reprobates and generic criminal net trash.." As archived by the Internet Archive.
Christian Rebuttals of Steve Winter's "Bible Studies"Off-site Link by Steve Adams
Non-Christian Refutation of the Steve Winter FAQOff-site Link Mr. Winter's attempt at refuting an old edition of the Steve Winter FAQ. NOTE: While "decent" compared with his incoherent and abusive ramblings in Usenet groups many people will still find this refutation offensive. As archived by the Internet Archive.
Christian Steve Winter FAQOff-site Link Published by Steve Adams, Moderator of the soc.religion.christian.bible-studyOff-site Link Usenet newsgroup
Secular Yahoo! Directory :Usenet Legends > Steve WinterOff-site Link No kidding. Mr. Winter has his very own Yahoo! category.

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Non-Christian WISE

 referral See this page
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Secular Witchhunt Information PageOff-site Link

Information about the modern version of the witch hunts: ritual (and pseudo ritual) sexual abuse trials and those who have been wrongfully imprisoned by them. Focus is on such cases in America, where these kind of witch hunts occur with great frequency.

See also Satanic Ritual Abuse False Memory Syndrome
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Aberrational, Heretical, Heterodox, Suborthodox or Unorthodox Word-Faith Movement

Also known as "Name-in-Claim-it," "Health and Wealth Gospel," "Positive Confession," "Word of Faith," etc.

Word-Faith teachers owe their ancestry to groups like Christian Science, Swedenborgianism, Theosophy, Science of Mind, and New Thought--not to classical Pentecostalism. It reveals that at their very core, Word-Faith teachings are corrupt. Their undeniable derivation is cultish, not Christian. The sad truth is that the gospel proclaimed by the Word-Faith movement is not the gospel of the New Testament. Word-Faith doctrine is a mongrel system, a blend of mysticism, dualism, and gnosticism that borrows generously from the teachings of the metaphysical cults. The Word-Faith movement may be the most dangerous false system that has grown out of the charismatic movement so far, because so many charismatics are unsure of the finality of Scripture
John MacArthur, Charismatic Chaos, p. 290

There are many perculiar ideas and practices in the Faith theology, but what merits it the label of heresy are the following: 1) its deistic view of God, who must dance to men's attempts to manipulate the spiritual laws of the universe; 2) its demonic view of Christ, who was filled with "the Satanic nature" and must be "born again in hell; 3) its gnostic view of revelation, which demands denial of the physical senses and classifies Christians by their willingness to do so; and 4) its metaphysical view of salvation, which deifies man and spiritualizes the atonement, locating it in hell rather than on the cross, thereby subverting the crucial biblical belief that it is Christ's physical death and shed blood, which alone atone for sin. All four of these heresies may be accounted for by Kenyon's syncretism of methaphysical thought with traditional biblical doctrine"
D.R. McConnell, A Different GospelOff-site Link

- Articles -
Christian Atonement and the Word-Faith MovementOff-site Link Article from Watchman Fellowship
Christian Atonement Where?Off-site Link A Biblical analysis and refutation of the disturbing claims put forward by the Faith Movement, which include the inefficiency of Christ's blood, alone, to atone for the sins of man; the need for Christ's spiritual death, and that the redemption of mankind was completed in hell. By Moreno Dal Bello
Christian An Examination of the Word-Faith MovementOff-site Link A good overview.
Christian Faith in Faith or Faith in God?Off-site Link by Hank Hanegraaff, president of CRI
Christian The 'Faith' Movement May Be Prospering, But Is It Healthy?Off-site Link By Stuart StJohn.
Christian Heresies of the Word Faith MovementOff-site Link in chart form.
Christian Heresies of the Word-Faith MovementOff-site Link Documented with quotes (.wav files available)
Christian Misplaced FaithOff-site Link "By saying the right formulas, can people control God?"
Christian My Word-of-Faith TestimonyOff-site Link by Tricia Tillin
Christian Pentecost or Plotinus?Off-site Link A discussion of the origins of word-faith teaching being Plotinus not the Pentecostal movement. By Oliver Hammond.
Christian Positive ConfessionOff-site Link Article from Watchman Fellowship
Christian Profile of the Word-Faith MovementOff-site Link by Watchman Fellowship
Christian Ten Reasons To Reject Word of Faith TeachingsOff-site Link By Tricia Tillin
Christian What's Wrong With The Faith Movement?Off-site Link and part twoOff-site Link By Hank Hanegraaff.
Christian Word-Faith TheologyOff-site Link by Watchman Fellowship
Christian Word-Faith Theology and MormonismOff-site Link a Watchman Fellowship article.

- Books -        Click On Titles To Order At Discount           » More Books
Christian Christianity In CrisisOff-site Link by Hank Hanegraaff. Addresses the errors of the word-faith movement.
Christian A Different GospelOff-site Link by D.R. McConnell.
Christian The Word-Faith Controversy : Understanding the Health and Wealth GospelOff-site Link by Robert Bowman. A balanced overview and thorough critique of the movement. The publisher of Apologetics Index highly recommends this book.
Robert Bowman Jr. critically examines the movement's origins and teachings, distinguishing acceptable Pentecostal practices from distorted offshoots. He insists that the word-faith movement is 'neither soundly orthodox nor thorougly heretical' and encourages charismatic believers to pursue a rich, mature, and biblical sound Pentecostalism.'' Not only does The Word-Faith Controversy  examine the founders and the message of the movement, it goes beyond the health and wealth promise to uncover what have become the most controversial aspects - what the movement's teachings on faith, words, and confession imply about God, Jesus Christ, human beings, and the nature of the Christian faith.
Back Cover, The Word-Faith Controversy

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Aberrational, Heretical, Heterodox, Suborthodox or Unorthodox Word of Life

Scandinavia-based Word-Faith movement with an extensive, international outreach and presence. Known in Scandinavia as "Livets Ord" (Word of Life), the movement is lead by Ulf Ekman, a graduate of Kenneth Hagin's Rhema Bible Training Center.

- Articles -
Secular A Totalistic Swedish ChurchOff-site Link (CONTRA) An article from 1991.
Christian Word of Life: Prosperity TheologyOff-site Link (CONTRA) Overview of the movement's teachings. Article on the Dialog Center site Click for more information on this entry
Christian Wort des Lebens-Gemeinden und die Wort des Glaubens-Lehre (CONTRA)(GERMAN) This article deals with Word-Faith teachings in general, and indentifies Livets Ord as a major Word-Faith denomination. Off-site Link

- Sites -
Aberrational, Heretical, Heterodox, Suborthodox or Unorthodox Livets OrdOff-site Link Official Site
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World Prayer Center

A spiritual warfare ministry based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Billed as a high-tech prayer center, the ministry hopes to be the nerve center for an "emerging worldwide evangelical prayer movement." The ministry's $5.5 building, situated on the property of Ted Haggard's charismatic New Life Church. Haggard envisioned the Center in 1984, and co-founded it together with church-growth specialist C. Peter Wagner - whose Global Harvest Ministries is headquartered in the building. The Center includes the latest computer technology and communications equipment, a bookstore, a "spiritual mapping" office, and private suites that can be rented for extended prayer sessions and retreats.

Rev. Joseph Thompson, Director.

It will collect and compile requests from every continent as national prayer centers report what God is doing and how His people ought to pray. Dr. Peter Wagner says, "We see our task as getting people in touch with one another to interactive, human web networks that are properly equipped to wage effective spiritual warfare."

Many Christians disagree with the notion that expensive buildings and multimullion-dollar mininistries are needed to teach the Church how to "wage effective spiritual warfare."

It should be noted that people involved with the World Prayer Center are deeply rooted in Wagner's third wave theology. Many of the names associated with the movement also adhere to the aberrant and/or heretical theological ideas promoted through today's controversial renewal and revival movements. See, for example, this Charisma News report on a so-called "corporate prophetic word" released by alleged prophets:

A great youth revival, churches so big they have to use stadiums to fit all their members and people being raised from the dead are among dramatic developments Christians have to look forward to in the new millennium, says a group of leaders widely accepted as modern-day prophets.

But there will also be more persecution of the Jews, a possible Russian invasion of Alaska, the threat of a second Great Depression and an increase in the number of natural disasters, warns the group in a "corporate prophetic word" just released after a meeting at the World Prayer Center in ColoradoSprings, Colo.

Called the Apostolic Council of Prophetic Elders, the group gathered under the leadership of C. Peter Wagner, an internationally recognized authority on prayer and spiritual warfare and one of the founders of the prayer center. Among those present were Chuck Pierce, Dutch Sheets, Cindy Jacobs, Mike Bickle and Tommy Tenney.

- Sites -
Christian World Prayer CenterOff-site Link Official site
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