Lance Christie, a former member of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, was acquitted in a UK courtroom after being charged with harassing 8 members of the PBCC, including his nephew and two of his own sons.
The charges stemmed from emails and letters Christie sent to various members of the reclusive religious group that states the PBCC was actually a cult. The eight members were cross examined last Monday , claiming Christie’s messages left them feeling “distressed” and “were an attack on what’s precious to them.”
Blackballed welcomes ex Plymouth Brethren cult member Lance Christie to the show @lancechristie7 @klondikepapers @jamesdifiore https://t.co/oGFGA2Hwol
— James DiFiore (@jamesdifiore) January 26, 2023
Christie was excommunicated in 2017 after being accused of “heresy.”
“It’s perfectly clear this is a one-man church,” Christie’s lawyer, Simon Myerson, said. “What that means is these people can’t say why they found it oppressive and unacceptable and what it amounts to is ‘I don’t what I think is heresy.”
Myerson also pointed out that the members chose to open the emails, and said their feelings about being victims of harassment were “nonsense.”
He added, “These are grown up choices. People are allowed to make them of course but you can’t then say ‘now that I’ve done that I’m harassed. You have gone voluntarily to look at material that might upset you. People are allowed to follow faiths that can’t deal with challenge and insulate themselves from criticism if they think their faith will be shattered. But in this case the mechanism of delivery allowed for exactly that.”
This is a big blow to the cult which has spent the past few years dealing with accusations from many ex members worldwide. These include accusations of pedophilia, forcing members to choose the cult over their own immediate families, cover-ups, and corruption stemming from the peculiar trend of cult-owned companies receiving billions of dollars in government contracts.
When you hit a "cover-up" like this, you know that there is something really corrupt & scandalous behind it – in this case, I suspect, the Plymouth Brethren's global PPE profiteering scam.
Keep digging, Press Progress. You are on to something big!#PBCChttps://t.co/s3w00CNHTE— klondikepapers (@klondikepapers) January 27, 2023
The pandemic resulted in cult-owned businesses somehow getting billions in PPE contracts, despite not one of these companies actually specializing in importing PPE.
Christie has been a thorn in the side of the PBCC since leaving. He wass once assaulted on camera by Gareth Hales, son of the leader of the cult, Bruce Hales. Members of the PBCC believe Bruce Hales can speak directly with Christ, and often tells his flock that his words are taken verbatim from conversations he had with Jesus.
Members are also expected to give as much money as they can to the cult, which often ends up fattening the bank accounts of Bruce Hales and his sons.
Christie’s victory may open the floodgates to other ex members who have been ostracized from their children, parents, and other relatives.
