Editing The Family International

{{Short description|1968 American new religious movement}}
{{For|the parachurch organization|Teens for Christ}}
{{Distinguish|Family|The Fellowship (Christian organization)|The Family (Australian New Age group)}}
{{use mdy dates|date=June 2019}}
{{Infobox Christian denomination
| abbreviation       = TFI
| branched_from      = The Family
| successor          = 
| formation          = <!-- {{Start date and age|YYYY|MM|DD}} -->
| other_names        = {{plainlist|
* Teens for Christ
* The Children of God (1968–1978)
* The Family of Love (1978–1982)
* The Family (1982–2004)
}}
| language           = English
| founder            = [[David Brandt Berg|David Berg]]
| founded_date       = 1968
| founded_place      = [[Huntington Beach, California|Huntington Beach]], [[California]]
| type               = [[Christianity|Christian]] [[cult]]
| main_classification = Christianity
| leader_title       = Leader
| leader_name        = *David Berg (1968–1994)
*[[Karen Zerby]] (1994–present)
| key_people         = 
| website            = {{URL |http://thefamilyinternational.org/}}
}}
'''The Family International''' ('''TFI''') is an American [[new religious movement]] founded in 1968 by [[David Brandt Berg]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.icsahome.com/articles/the-children-of-godthe-family-raine |title=The Children of God/The Family |website=International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA) |access-date=December 23, 2017 |archive-date=April 20, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200420162301/https://www.icsahome.com/articles/the-children-of-godthe-family-raine |url-status=dead }}</ref> The group has gone under a number of different names since its inception, including '''Teens for Christ''', '''The Children of God''' ('''COG'''), '''The Family of Love''', or simply '''The Family'''.

A British court case found the group to be an authoritarian [[cult]] that engaged in the systematic [[physical abuse|physical]] and [[child sexual abuse|sexual abuse]] of children,<ref name="Brocklehurst-Hell-2018"/> resulting in lasting trauma among survivors.<ref name=BURGARINO>{{cite news |last1=BURGARINO |first1=PAUL |title=Book explores what becomes of offspring of '60s 'Jesus Freaks' |url=https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2007/11/01/book-explores-what-becomes-of-offspring-of-60s-jesus-freaks/ |access-date=30 September 2021 |agency=East Bay Times |date=1 November 2007 |archive-date=September 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210930221328/https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2007/11/01/book-explores-what-becomes-of-offspring-of-60s-jesus-freaks/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The group has also been accused of targeting vulnerable people.<ref name="Gardner-cbc-2016">{{cite news |last1=Gardner |first1=Simon |title=Children of God sex cult survivors come out of the shadows |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/children-of-god-survivors-1.3481788 |access-date=30 September 2021 |agency=CBC News |date=13 March 2016 |archive-date=September 30, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210930222028/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/children-of-god-survivors-1.3481788 |url-status=live }}</ref> As of the 2010s, the group was still active and involved in missionary work internationally.<ref name=":6" />

== Overview ==
According to the [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]], "at its height" the Family movement had "tens of thousands of members, including [[River Phoenix|River]] and [[Joaquin Phoenix]], [[Rose McGowan]], and [[Jeremy Spencer]]".<ref name="Gardner-cbc-2016"/>
TFI initially spread a message of [[salvation]], [[apocalypticism]], spiritual "revolution and happiness", and distrust of the outside world, which the members called ''The System''. Like some other [[evangelical Christian]] groups, it "foretold the coming of a dictator called the [[anti-Christ]], the rise of a brutal [[One-world government conspiracy|One World Government]], and its eventual overthrow by Jesus Christ, in the [[Second Coming]]".<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/>

In 1976,<ref name="davidberg.org">{{cite web |url=http://www.davidberg.org/mission/flirty-fishing |title=Flirty-fishing |website=DavidBerg.org |access-date=2014-03-02 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140809234611/http://www.davidberg.org/mission/flirty-fishing |archive-date=2014-08-09 }}</ref> TFI began a method of [[evangelism]] called [[Flirty Fishing]] that used sex to "show God's love and mercy" and win converts, resulting in controversy.<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/> TFI's founder and prophetic leader, [[David Berg]]—who adopted the name "Moses David" while in the [[Laurentides]] in Canada,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Borowik |first=Claire |year=2023 |title=From Radical Jesus People to Virtual Religion: The Family International |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=9781009037990 |language=en |doi=10.1017/9781009037990}}</ref> and was also referred to "Father David" by members<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/>—gave himself the titles of "King", "The Last Endtime Prophet", "[[Moses]]", and "[[David]]".

Berg communicated with his followers via "Mo Letters"—letters of instruction and counsel on myriad spiritual and practical subjects—until his death in late 1994.<ref name=moletters>{{cite web |title=Index |url=http://pubs.xfamily.org/ |website=The xFamily.org Publications Database |date=2012-02-20 |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=January 26, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190126224420/https://pubs.xfamily.org/ |url-status=live }}</ref> After his death, his widow [[Karen Zerby]] became the leader of TFI, taking the titles of "Queen" and "Prophetess". Zerby married Steve Kelly (also known as Peter Amsterdam), an assistant of Berg's whom Berg had handpicked as her "consort". Kelly took the title of "King Peter" and became the face of TFI, speaking in public more often than either Berg or Zerby. There have been multiple allegations of child sexual abuse made by past members, including against Zerby.<ref name="suicide">{{cite news |author=Kaye, Randi|title=Young man's suicide blamed on mother's cult |url=http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/04/kaye.murdersuicide/ |publisher=CNN |date=5 December 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100601095200/http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/04/kaye.murdersuicide/ |url-status=live |archive-date=June 1, 2010 |access-date=September 3, 2009}}</ref><ref name="brazilian">{{cite news |title=Sexo, mentiras e videotape |url=https://www.uol/noticias/especiais/comunidade-meninos-de-deus-.htm#tematico-1 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171203224517/https://www.uol/noticias/especiais/comunidade-meninos-de-deus-.htm#tematico-1 |url-status=live |archive-date=December 3, 2017 |journal=UOL notícias |language=pt-BR |access-date=2 December 2017}}</ref>

Berg preached a combination of traditional Christian evangelism, with elements popular with the [[counterculture of the 1960s]]. There was much "end-of-the-world imagery" found in the [[Book of Revelation]] of the [[New Testament]], preaching of impending doom for America and the ineffectiveness of established churches. Berg "urged a return to the early Christian community described in the Bible's [[Book of Acts]], in which believers lived together and shared all,"<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/> resembling the communal living of late 1960s [[hippies]].

== History ==

=== The Children of God (1968–1977) ===
The founder of the movement, David Brandt Berg (1919–1994), was a former pastor in the [[Christian and Missionary Alliance]], an [[evangelical Protestant]] denomination.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.davidberg.org/mission/history |title=History – Mission |website=DavidBerg.org |access-date=2016-08-13 |archive-date=August 22, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822171609/http://www.davidberg.org/mission/history |url-status=live }}</ref>  Berg started in 1968 as an evangelical preacher with a following of "[[Jesus movement|born-again hippies]]" who gathered at a coffeehouse in [[Huntington Beach]], in [[Orange County, California]].   In 1969, after having a revelation "that California would be hit by a major earthquake", he left Huntington Beach and "took his followers on the road".<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/>

They would [[proselytism|proselytize]] in the streets and distribute pamphlets. Leaders within The Children of God (COG) were referred to as ''The Chain''.  Members of COG founded [[commune (intentional community)|communes]], first called colonies (now referred to as homes), in various cities.

Around the end of 1969, about 200 members of the COG group established a 425-acre "colony" several miles from Thurber, Texas – a ghost town. This acreage was owned by the American Soul Clinic.<ref name=":62">{{Cite web |last=Association |first=Texas State Historical |title=The History of the Children of God Movement |url=https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/children-of-god |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240620183701/https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/children-of-god |archive-date=June 20, 2024 |access-date=2026-01-11 |website=Texas State Historical Association |language=en}}</ref>

By 1971, the COG claimed that it had 4,000 members, mostly consisting of teenagers and people in early 20s. In November of 1971, COG's colony was evicted after a serious disagreement with American Soul Clinic's head Fred Jordan and other associates.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |last=Association |first=Texas State Historical |title=The History of the Children of God Movement |url=https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/children-of-god |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240620183701/https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/children-of-god |archive-date=June 20, 2024 |access-date=2026-01-11 |website=Texas State Historical Association |language=en}}</ref>

Berg communicated with his followers by writing letters. He published nearly 3,000 letters over a period of 24 years, referred to as the ''Mo Letters''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.davidberg.org/mission|title=The Man – Mission|website=DavidBerg.org|access-date=2016-08-13|archive-date=February 20, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140220045437/http://www.davidberg.org/mission|url-status=live}}</ref> In a letter written in January 1972, Berg stated that he was God's prophet for the contemporary world, attempting to further solidify his spiritual authority within the group. Berg's letters also contained public acknowledgement of his own failings and weaknesses,<ref>{{cite book |last=Chancellor |first=James |year=2000 |title=Life in The Family: An Oral History of the Children of God |publisher=University of Syracuse Press |location=Syracuse, NY |pages=64–67}}</ref>{{Verify source|date=July 2016}} for example, he issued a Mo Letter entitled "My confession – I was an alcoholic!" (ML #1406 Summer 1982) relating his depression after some of his closest supporters quit in 1978.<ref name="Chancellor-2000-11" />

In 1972, a Mo Letter reportedly entitled "Flee as a Bird to Your Mountain" was interpreted by some members, including Ruth Gordon, author of ''Children of Darkness'' about the cult, as a warning to leave America. "God was going to destroy the U.S. ... and we had to get out."  This, along with the pressure members felt that parents were trying to "rescue" children who had joined CoG, encouraged members to "[migrate] abroad—first to Europe, eventually to Latin America and East Asia".<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/>

By 1972, COG stated it had 130 communities around the world,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.thefamilyinternational.org/en/about/our-history/|title=Our History|website=The Family International|access-date=2016-08-13|archive-date=August 22, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822075611/http://www.thefamilyinternational.org/en/about/our-history/|url-status=live}}</ref> and by the mid-1970s, it had "colonies" in an estimated 70 countries.<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/> BBC reported 10,000 full-time COG members in the 1970s.<ref name="Brocklehurst-Hell-2018"/>

In 1974, the NY Attorney General’s Office called the COG a “cult”. Investigations by the FBI and Interpol were underway and hunted for Berg. One informant had spoken of rape, imprisonment, kidnapping, as well as incest inside the group. The investigations, however, ended in 1994 when Berg died.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Tewa |first=Sophia |date=2017-03-11 |title=Life after a sex cult: 'If I’m not a member of this religion any more, then who am I?' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/11/children-of-god-church-sex-cult-texas-mexico-fbi |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170319194629/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/11/children-of-god-church-sex-cult-texas-mexico-fbi |archive-date=March 19, 2017 |access-date=2026-01-11 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> 

In 1976,<ref name="davidberg.org" /> Berg introduced a new proselytizing method called [[Flirty Fishing]] (or FFing), which encouraged female members to "show God's love" through sexual relationships (religious prostitution) with potential converts. Flirty Fishing was practiced by members of Berg's inner circle starting in 1973, and was introduced to the general membership in 1976.<ref name=Origins />

=== The Family of Love (1978–1981) ===
The Children of God was abolished in February 1978, and Berg renamed his group "The Family of Love"<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/> In what Berg called the "Re-organization Nationalization Revolution" (or RNR).<ref name="Chancellor-2000-10">{{cite book |last1=Chancellor |first1=James D. |title=Life in The Family: An Oral History of the Children of God |date=2000 |publisher=Syracuse University Press |page=10 |isbn=9780815606451 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5FXHyOwK9IEC&q=flirty |access-date=2 October 2021 |archive-date=September 6, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220906003943/https://www.google.com/books/edition/Life_in_The_Family/5FXHyOwK9IEC?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=flirty |url-status=live }}</ref> Berg reorganized the movement, dismissing "more than 300 leading members after hearing unspecified 'reports of serious misconduct and abuse of their positions."<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/> Reportedly involved were The Chain's abuse of authority, and disagreements within it about the continued use of Flirty Fishing. The group was also accused of sexually abusing and raping minors within the organization, with considerable evidence to support this claim. One eighth of the total membership left the movement. Those who remained became part of a reorganized movement called the Family of Love, and later, The Family. The majority of the group's beliefs remained the same.<ref name=Origins>{{cite web |url=http://www.thefamily.org/dossier/statements/origins.htm |title=Origins |website=The Family International |access-date=2016-07-24 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090429042335/http://www.thefamily.org/dossier/statements/origins.htm |archive-date=2009-04-29 }}</ref>

The Family of Love period was characterized by international expansion.{{Citation needed|date=January 2026}}

After 1978 Flirty Fishing "increased drastically"<ref name="Chancellor-2000-11">{{cite book |last1=Chancellor |first1=James D. |title=Life in The Family: An Oral History of the Children of God |date=2000 |publisher=Syracuse University Press |page=11 |isbn=9780815606451 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5FXHyOwK9IEC&q=flirty |access-date=2 October 2021 |archive-date=September 6, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220906003943/https://www.google.com/books/edition/Life_in_The_Family/5FXHyOwK9IEC?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=flirty |url-status=live }}</ref> and became common practice within the group. A Mo Letter from 1980 (ML #999 May 1980) for example was headlined "The Devil Hates Sex! — But God Loves It!".<ref name="Chancellor-2000-17">{{cite book |last1=Chancellor |first1=James D. |title=Life in The Family: An Oral History of the Children of God |date=2000 |publisher=Syracuse University Press |page=17 |isbn=9780815606451 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5FXHyOwK9IEC&q=flirty |access-date=2 October 2021 |archive-date=September 6, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220906003943/https://www.google.com/books/edition/Life_in_The_Family/5FXHyOwK9IEC?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=flirty |url-status=live }}</ref> 
In some areas flirty fishers used escort agencies to meet potential converts. According to TFI "over 100,000 received God's gift of salvation through Jesus, and some chose to live the life of a disciple and [[missionary]]" as a result of Flirty Fishing.<ref name=Origins /> Researcher Bill Bainbridge obtained data from TFI suggesting that, from 1974 until 1987, members had sexual contact with 223,989 people while practicing Flirty Fishing.<ref>{{cite book |last=Bainbridge |first=William Sims |year=1996 |title=The Sociology of Religious Movements |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-91202-0 |page=223}}</ref>

=== The Family (1982–1994) ===

According to the Family's official history, the group had "far fewer common standards of conduct" during The Family of Love stage than it had previously. In the late 1980s the group "tightened its standards" "to ensure that all member communities provide a very wholesome environment for all, particularly the children", and changed its name to "The Family".<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/> In March 1989, TF issued a statement that, in "early 1985", an urgent memorandum had been sent to all members "reminding them that any such activities [adult–child sexual contact] are {{em|strictly forbidden}} within our group" (emphasis in original), and such activities were grounds for immediate [[excommunication]] from the group.<ref name="Child Abuse?!">{{cite web |url=http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Child_Abuse%3F%21 |title=Child Abuse?! |website=XFamily |date=2008-01-24 |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=September 9, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050909175542/http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Child_Abuse?! |url-status=live }}</ref> In January 2005, Claire Borowik, a spokesperson for TFI, stated:
<blockquote> Due to the fact that our current zero-tolerance policy regarding sexual interaction between adults and underage minors was not in our literature published before 1986, we came to the realization that during a transitional stage of our movement, from 1978 until 1986, there were cases when some minors were subject to sexually inappropriate advances&nbsp;... This was corrected officially in 1986, when any contact between an adult and minor (any person under 21 years of age) was declared an excommunicable offense.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.newdaynews.com/resource/davidito/borowick-01.htm |title=Statement From Family International |first=Claire |last=Borowik |website=NewDayNews.com |date=2005-01-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050914142114/http://www.newdaynews.com/resource/davidito/borowick-01.htm |archive-date=2005-09-14 }}</ref></blockquote>

After a 1993 expose in the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'',<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-03-21-vw-13345-story.html |title=A true conversion? |website=Los Angeles Times. 1993-03-21.|date=March 21, 1993 }}</ref> the group broke "years of virtual silence" and began "inviting reporters and religious scholars" to visit its commune in [[La Habra, California]], where ''[[Washington Post]]'' journalist Gustav Niebuhr found its members to be "a clean-cut bunch, friendly and courteous". At that time The Family claimed to have "about 9,000 members worldwide, with about 750 scattered across the United States".<ref name="Niebuhr-1993">{{cite news |last=Niebuhr |first=Gustav |title='The Family' and Final Harvest |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/cult/children_of_god/child1.htm|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=2 June 1993 |archive-date=March 25, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325012912/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/cult/children_of_god/child1.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>  The group emphasized its mainstream Christian opposition to abortion, homosexuality, drugs and drunkenness and its respect for  Rev. [[Billy Graham]].<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/>

Internationally, the Family had been subject to police investigations and prosecutions during this period for child protection and morality offenses. Investigations are known to have occurred in Argentina, Australia, England, France, Italy, Norway, Peru, Spain and Sweden. In Argentina and Australia, children were taken into state custody for protection, then released after examination.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Family and The Children of God: A Legal History (CESNUR) |url=https://www.cesnur.org/testi/TheFamily/ |access-date=2026-01-03 |website=www.cesnur.org}}</ref>

=== The Family (1995–2003) ===
After Berg's death in October 1994, Karen Zerby (known in the group as Mama Maria, Queen Maria, Maria David, or Maria Fontaine) assumed leadership of the group.

In February 1995, the group introduced the ''Love Charter'',<ref>{{cite web |url=http://thefamily.org/dossier/charter/overview.htm |title=Charter of the Family International – Governing Documents |website=TheFamily.org |access-date=2016-07-24 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100825230258/http://www.thefamily.org/dossier/charter/overview.htm |archive-date=2010-08-25 }}</ref> which defined the rights and responsibilities of Charter Members and Homes. The Charter also included the ''Fundamental Family Rules'', a summary of rules and guidelines from past TF publications which were still in effect.

In the 1994–95 British court case, [[The Right Honorable|the Rt. Hon.]] [[Alan Ward (judge)|Lord Justice Alan Ward]] ruled that the group, including some of its top leaders, had in the past engaged in abusive sexual practices involving minors and had also used severe [[corporal punishment]] and sequestration of minors.<ref name=judgement/> He found that by 1995 TF had abandoned these practices and concluded that they were a safe environment for children. Nevertheless, he did require that the group cease all corporal punishment of children in the United Kingdom and denounce any of Berg's writings that were "responsible for children in TF having been subjected to sexually inappropriate behaviour".<ref name=judgement>{{Cite web|title=Judgement of Lord Justice Ward|url=http://www.exfamily.org/art/misc/justward.htm|date=19 October 1995|website=www.exfamily.org|archive-date=October 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211025070541/http://www.exfamily.org/art/misc/justward.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== The Family International (since 2004) ===

The Love Charter is The Family's set governing document that entails each member's rights, responsibilities and requirements, while the ''Missionary Member Statutes'' and ''Fellow Member Statutes'' were written for the governance of TFI's Missionary member and Fellow Member circles, respectively. FD Homes were reviewed every six months against a published set of criteria. The Love Charter increased the number of single family homes as well as homes that relied on jobs such as self-employment.<ref>{{cite journal |first1=Gary |last1=Shepherd |first2=Gordon |last2=Shepherd |date=August 2005 |title=Accommodation and Reformation in the Family/Children of God |journal=[[Nova Religio]] |volume=9 |issue=1 |pages=67–92 |doi=10.1525/nr.2005.9.1.067}}</ref>

==== Teachings ====
TFI's teachings have become based on beliefs which they term the "new [spiritual] weapons". TFI members believe that they are soldiers in the [[Spiritual warfare|spiritual war]] of [[Conflict between good and evil|good versus evil]] for the souls and hearts of men.{{Citation needed|date=January 2026}}

==== Spirit Helpers ====
"Spirit Helpers" include [[angel]]s, other religious and mythical figures, and departed humans, including celebrities; for example the goddess [[Aphrodite]], the Snowman, [[Merlin]], the [[Sphinx]], [[Elvis]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://pubs.xfamily.org/text.php?t=3059 |title=Pre-Release of "Who Said They're Dead?" Part 1 |website=The xFamily.org Publications Database |date=April 3, 2003 |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=January 6, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140106041340/http://pubs.xfamily.org/text.php?t=3059 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Marilyn Monroe]], [[Audrey Hepburn]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://pubs.xfamily.org/text.php?t=3060 |title=Pre-Release of "Who Said They're Dead?" Part 2 |website=The xFamily.org Publications Database |date=April 3, 2003 |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=January 6, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140106041337/http://pubs.xfamily.org/text.php?t=3060 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Richard Nixon]], and [[Winston Churchill]].

==== The Keys of the Kingdom ====
TFI believes that the Biblical passage "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatsoever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatsoever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven" (Matthew 16:19), refers to an increasing amount of spiritual authority that was given to [[Saint Peter|Peter]] and the [[First disciples of Jesus|early disciples]]. According to TFI beliefs, this passage refers to keys that were hidden and unused in the centuries that followed, but were again revealed through Karen Zerby as more power to pray and obtain miracles. TFI members call on the various Keys of the Kingdom for extra effect during prayer. The Keys, like most TFI beliefs, were published in magazines that looked like comic-books in order to make them teachable to children.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://archive.xfamily.org/docs/fam/mlk/mlk_190.pdf |title=Using The Keys Part 1 |website=archive.xfamily.org |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304073228/http://archive.xfamily.org/docs/fam/mlk/mlk_190.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Loving Jesus ====
"Loving Jesus" is a term TFI members use to describe their intimate, sexual relationship with [[Jesus]]. TFI describes its "Loving Jesus" teaching as a radical form of [[bridal theology]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thefamily.org/dossier/statements/lj.htm |title=About The Family International |website=The Family International |access-date=2016-07-24 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090429093717/http://www.thefamily.org/dossier/statements/lj.htm |archive-date=2009-04-29 }}</ref> They believe the church of followers is Christ's bride, called to love and serve him with wifely fervor; however, this bridal theology is taken further, encouraging members to imagine Jesus is joining them during [[sexual intercourse]] and [[masturbation]]. Male members are cautioned to visualize themselves as women, in order to avoid a homosexual relationship with Jesus. Many TFI publications, and spirit messages claimed to be from Jesus himself, elaborate this intimate, sexual relation they believe Jesus desires and needs. TFI imagines itself as his special "bride" in graphic poetry, guided visualizations, artwork,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.xfamily.org/index.php?title=File:Tamar_558.jpg&filetimestamp=20050609225658 |title=File:Tamar 558.jpg – XFamily – Children of God |website=XFamily |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=February 14, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214214255/http://www.xfamily.org/index.php?title=File:Tamar_558.jpg&filetimestamp=20050609225658 |url-status=live }}</ref> and songs.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Loving_Jesus_album |title=Loving Jesus album – XFamily – Children of God |website=XFamily |date=2008-06-11 |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=October 26, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111026155628/http://xfamily.org/index.php/Loving_Jesus_album |url-status=live }}</ref> Some TFI literature is not brought into conservative countries for fear it may be classified at customs as pornography.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Love_words_to_Jesus |title=Love words to Jesus – XFamily – Children of God |website=XFamily |date=2008-09-12 |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=October 26, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111026125532/http://xfamily.org/index.php/Love_words_to_Jesus |url-status=live }}</ref> The literature outlining this view of Jesus and his desire for a sexual relationship with believers was edited for younger teens,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Loving_Jesus#For_minors |title=Loving Jesus – XFamily – Children of God |website=XFamily |date=2012-03-16 |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=February 4, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204042746/http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Loving_Jesus#For_minors |url-status=live }}</ref> then further edited for children.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://archive.xfamily.org/docs/fam/mlk/mlk_168.pdf |title=Mlk 168 |website=archive.xfamily.org |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304054606/http://archive.xfamily.org/docs/fam/mlk/mlk_168.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Criticism and accusations of sexual assault ==
The Family has been found liable in a British court, and also criticized by the press and the [[anti-cult movement]]. Ex-members have accused the Family's leadership of following "a policy of lying to outsiders", being "steeped in a history of sexual deviance" and even meddling "in Third World politics". The Family replies that it is a victim of persecution.<ref name="Niebuhr-1993"/>

Allegations of abuse and mistreatment have been publicly expressed by some of those who have left the group;<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |date=2023-01-26 |title='Have I just joined another cult?': Daniella grew up in The Family, then joined the army |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-27/daniella-cult-the-family-joined-the-army-toxic-control/101895164 |access-date=2026-01-03 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=AMS v The Department of Family and Community Services (No 2) |date=2013-11-01 |issue=311 |url=https://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/cases/nsw/NSWADT/2013/311.html |access-date=2026-01-03}}</ref> examples include sisters Celeste Jones, Kristina Jones, and Juliana Buhring and Daniella Mestyanek Young, who both wrote books<ref name="nwms">{{cite book |last1=Jones |first1=K. |last2=Jones |first2=C. |last3=Buhring |first3=J. |year=2007 |title=Not Without My Sister |url=https://archive.org/details/notwithoutmysist00jone_0 |url-access=registration |publisher=Harper Collins Publishing |location=London |isbn=9780007248070 |name-list-style=amp}}</ref> on their lives in TFI.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.notwithoutmysister.com/bios.php |title=Bios |website=notwithoutmysister.com |access-date=2009-03-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100528120850/http://www.notwithoutmysister.com/bios.php |archive-date=2010-05-28 }}</ref><ref name=":0" />

In 1971, an organization called [[FREECOG]] was founded by concerned parents and others, including [[deprogramming|deprogrammer]] [[Ted Patrick]] to free members of the COG from their involvement in the group.

At least one individual growing up in the family (Verity Carter) during the Children of God era described being sexually abused "from the age of four by members of the... cult, including her own father". She blames the philosophy of David Berg, who told members that "God was love and love was sex", so that sex should not be limited by age or relationship. Carter also complains of being "repeatedly beaten and whipped for the smallest of transgressions", being denied "music or television or culture", or other "contact with the outside world", so that she had "no idea how the world worked" other than how to manipulate the "systemites" (outsiders), like social workers.<ref name="Brocklehurst-Hell-2018">{{cite news |last1=Brocklehurst |first1=Steven |title=Children of God cult was 'hell on earth' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-44613932 |access-date=25 September 2021 |agency=BBC Scotland News |date=27 June 2018 |archive-date=August 26, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826121314/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-44613932 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Author Don Lattin interviewed numerous members of the Family for his book ''Jesus Freaks''. In a review of his book, Paul Burgarino describes Berg as "drawing from the remnants of hippie life—people with nothing to lose, nowhere to go, and no Christian background" to alert them to deviations in Berg's preaching.<ref name=BURGARINO/> One ex–Children of God member, Jerry Golland, describes himself at the time of joining the group as penniless and so depressed that the Children of God scraped him "off the street".<ref name="Gardner-cbc-2016"/> Members would "learn to spot, you know...  a vulnerable person. We called them sheep", Golland told the [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]].<ref name="Gardner-cbc-2016"/>

Pressure to raise money could also be intense. Ex-member Golland says that members who were good at raising money and distributing the pamphlets were called "Shiners". Those with poor sales were called "Shamers". "If you missed your quota you could not come home for dinner", he said.<ref name="Gardner-cbc-2016"/>

== Media produced by the group ==
The Family International produced multiple pop songs along with music videos.<ref name="g613">{{cite web | last=Lamar | first=Cyriaque | title=The catchiest New Wave song (written by a doomsday cult) of all time | website=Gizmodo | date=2012-01-04 | url=https://gizmodo.com/the-catchiest-new-wave-song-written-by-a-doomsday-cult-5873136 | access-date=2025-04-08}}</ref> One notable song released in 1985 was ''Cathy Don't Go'', about a woman who goes to the supermarket where customers have [[barcode]]s on their hands and foreheads, and who almost gets implanted with a [[666 (number)|666]] [[microchip]].<ref name="s271">{{cite web | last=Capoccia | first=Francesca | title=Questa canzone del 1985 non parla dei microchip sottopelle, ma della società del consumo | website=Facta | date=2024-02-15 | url=https://www.facta.news/antibufale/canzone-1985-microchip | language=it | access-date=2025-04-08}}</ref><ref name="t706">{{cite web | title=An extremely catchy tune from the Family International cult | website=The Daily Dot | date=2013-01-25 | url=https://www.dailydot.com/upstream/family-international-cult-kathy-dont-go/ | access-date=2025-04-08}}</ref> The cult also created children's shows, with an example being ''Life With Grandpa'', which had characters based on Berg and his family, and featured sexual themes alongside Christianity-related life lessons.<ref name="i700">{{cite web | first=Daisy | last=Phillipson | title=Smartschoolboy9 doc creator exposes “perverted” kids TV show created by a cult | website=Dexerto | date=2024-11-18 | url=https://www.dexerto.com/tv-movies/smartschoolboy9-documentary-creator-exposes-cult-life-with-grandpa-2982646/ | access-date=2025-04-08}}</ref>

== Notable members (past and present) ==
===Joined in adulthood===
* [[Jeremy Spencer]], [[blues]] [[slide guitar]]ist and a founding member of [[Fleetwood Mac]], which he left in 1971 when he joined TFI.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://media.xfamily.org/docs/press/jeremy-spencer-classic-rock-2006-03.pdf |title=Mac, Myths and Mysteries |first=Martin |last=Celmins |website=Media.xfamily.org |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=September 28, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928173025/http://media.xfamily.org/docs/press/jeremy-spencer-classic-rock-2006-03.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Raised in the COG and later left===
{{Anchor|Raised in COG as children}}
* [[Christopher Owens]]: musician, of US indie band [[Girls (band)|Girls]], was brought up in TFI by his parents.<ref>{{cite web |first=Ryan |last=Dombal |url=http://www.pitchfork.com/features/interviews/8669-girls/ |title=Girls |website=Pitchfork |date=2011-09-14 |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=September 25, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110925013850/http://pitchfork.com/features/interviews/8669-girls/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.faqmagazine.org/ChristopherGirls.htm |title=Christopher Owens |first=Emily |last=Easley |website=FAQ magazine |access-date=2012-10-13 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121005052054/http://www.faqmagazine.org/ChristopherGirls.htm |archive-date=2012-10-05 }}</ref>
* [[Rose McGowan]]: film actress, described her TFI childhood in interviews with [[Howard Stern]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Howard Stern radio broadcast |url=http://lavender.fortunecity.com/dale/536/media/arthoward.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000819115657/http://lavender.fortunecity.com/dale/536/media/arthoward.htm |archive-date=August 19, 2000}}</ref> ''[[People (American magazine)|People]]'' magazine,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20522622,00.html|title=Rose McGowan: How She Survived and Escaped a Cult|website=People|access-date=February 15, 2015|archive-date=February 16, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150216144932/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20522622,00.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> and later in her book ''Brave''.
* [[River Phoenix]], [[Joaquin Phoenix]], [[Rain Phoenix]], [[Liberty Phoenix]], and [[Summer Phoenix]], actors, were members of the group from 1972 to 1978. River Phoenix, who died of a drug overdose in 1993, told ''[[Details (magazine)|Details]]'' magazine in November 1991 that "they're ruining people's lives."<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Friend |first=Tad |date=March 1994 |title=River, with love and anger |journal=[[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire]] |volume=121 |issue=3 |pages=108–117 |issn=0014-0791 |url=http://www.aleka.org/phoenix/zines/phoenix7.htm |access-date=22 March 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090216162846/http://aleka.org/phoenix/zines/phoenix7.htm |archive-date=16 February 2009 }}</ref>
* [[Susan Justice]]: American pop rock singer-songwriter and guitarist, known best for her debut self-recorded album, ''The Subway Recordings''.
* [[Tina Dupuy]]: American journalist and syndicated columnist.
* [[Ricky Rodriguez]]: In 2005, he committed a [[murder-suicide]], killing one of the women who raised and sexually abused him, then himself.<ref name="suicide"/>
* Davida Kelley: eldest daughter of Sara Kelley, who was [[David Berg]]'s nanny and raised Davida and [[Ricky Rodriguez]] in a highly abusive environment. Davida has been outspoken about the group's abuse in public media such as ''Larry King Live'' and accused Berg of sexually abusing her as a child in a June 2005 ''Rolling Stone'' article.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Wilkinson |first1=Peter |title=The Life and Death of the 'Children of God' Messiah |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/children-of-god-cult-messiah-chosen-one-182272/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=10 April 2024 |date=30 June 2005}}</ref>
* [[Juliana Buhring]]: first woman to bicycle around the world<ref>{{cite news |last=Moreton |first=Cole |date=22 December 2012 |title=Juliana Buhring becomes first woman to cycle round the world as she pedals into Naples after 152 days on the road |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |location=London |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/9763072/Juliana-Buhring-becomes-first-woman-to-cycle-round-the-world-as-she-pedals-into-Naples-after-152-days-on-the-road.html |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/9763072/Juliana-Buhring-becomes-first-woman-to-cycle-round-the-world-as-she-pedals-into-Naples-after-152-days-on-the-road.html |archive-date=January 12, 2022}}{{cbignore}}</ref> and co-author of ''[[Not Without My Sister]]'' along with Celeste and Kristina Jones.
* Lauren Hough: author of ''Leaving Isn't the Hardest Thing'',<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/nov/27/family-religious-cult-former-member-recalls-experiences |title=Work, pray, fear: my life in the Family cult |last=Hough |first=Lauren |date=2016-11-27 |newspaper=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077 |access-date=2016-12-06 |archive-date=December 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161206190016/https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/nov/27/family-religious-cult-former-member-recalls-experiences |url-status=live}}</ref> brought up in TFI.
* Flor Edwards, author,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://floredwards.com/about/|title=Apocalypse Child|date=June 24, 2017 |access-date=2020-02-17|archive-date=February 17, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217082703/https://floredwards.com/about/|url-status=live}}</ref> who was raised inside the group before her parents moved out.
* Dawn Watson: victim of sexual abuse while living in a TFI community.<ref name="brazilian"/>
* Taylor Stevens: author,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/taylor-stevens/post_1818_b_834665.html|title=On Writing 'The Informationist' and Coming from a Cult Background|website=Huffington Post|date=25 May 2011|access-date=December 3, 2017|archive-date=August 28, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170828104257/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/taylor-stevens/post_1818_b_834665.html|url-status=live}}</ref> raised in the group from age 12 until she left in her 20's with her two children.
*Bexy Cameron: British child member who left aged 15 and later wrote a book about her experiences.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/07/guardian-journalist-helped-me-see-way-out-ex-children-of-god-cult-member|title=Guardian journalist helped me see a way out, ex-cult member recalls|first=Harriet|last=Sherwood|date=July 7, 2021|newspaper=The Guardian|archive-date=April 4, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220404175149/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/07/guardian-journalist-helped-me-see-way-out-ex-children-of-god-cult-member|url-status=live}}</ref>
*Faith Jones: a lawyer, was raised in the group in Macau before leaving. She wrote about her life in the book ''Sex Cult Nun''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Jones |first=Faith |author-link= |date=2021 |title=Sex Cult Nun |url= |location=New York |publisher=HarperCollins Publishers |page= |isbn=978-0-06-295245-5}}</ref>

== Autobiographical accounts ==
{{Refbegin}}
* Davis, Deborah (Linda Berg) (1984). ''THE CHILDREN OF GOD: The Inside Story''. [[Zondervan|Zondervan Books]], Grand Rapids, Michigan. {{ISBN|0-310-27840-6}}. Expose by the founder's eldest daughter who left the cult.
* {{Cite book |last=Connolly |first=Ray |title=Something Somebody Stole |year=2011 |publisher=CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform |isbn=978-1460922545}} Expose by a senior member who left after 20+ years.
*{{Cite book |last=Young |first=Daniella Mestyanek |title=Uncultured: A Memoir |year=2022 |publisher=St. Martin's Publishing |isbn=978-1250280114}} Young was born and raised in The Children of God cult. She's the eldest daughter of a second generation cult member who was 14 when she was impregnated by an older cult member.
*{{Cite book |last=Hough |first=Lauren |title=Leaving Isn't the Hardest Thing |year=2021 |publisher=Vintage |isbn=978-0593080764}} Hough was born and raised in the Children of God. Her 2021 essay collection is a New York Times Bestseller.
*{{Cite book |last=Bulwer |first=Perry |title=Misguided: My Jesus Freak Life In a Doomsday Cult |year=2023 |publisher=New Star Books |isbn=978-1554202058}} At age 16, Bulwer ran away to join the Children of God, escaping twenty years later in 1991. He became an advocate for second-generation survivors of the cult's child abuse and psychological trauma. 
** {{cite news|last=Drake|first=Kitty|title=My cultural awakening: Losing My Religion by REM helped me escape a doomsday cult (as told by Perry Bulwer)|newspaper=The Guardian|date=10 January 2026|url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2026/jan/10/my-cultural-awakening-losing-my-religion-by-rem-helped-me-escape-a-doomsday-cult}}
*{{Cite book |last=Mahoney |first=Mary |title=Abnormal Normal: My Life in the Children of God |year=2020 |publisher=CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform |isbn=979-8631746060}} Mahoney, a member for 31 years, tells her story, focusing on how her sense of what was normal was altered within the insular world of a cult.
{{Refend}}

== Media reports about the group ==
* ''The Jesus Trip'' (1971): a documentary by [[Denis Tuohy]] that has interviews with Children of God members.
* {{Lang|zh|《谁来爱我们》}} (Let There Be Love) - Aired on [[TVB]] Jade Channel in Hong Kong in 1986.<ref>{{Cite web |title=谁来爱我们 (Let There Be Love, 1986) :: 一切关于香港，中国及台湾电影 |url=https://hkcinema.cn/film/40941 |access-date=2026-01-21 |website=hkcinema.cn}}</ref>
* ''Children of God'' (1994): a 63-minute [[Channel 4]] documentary by [[John Smithson]]; detailing the Padilla family and the abuse of their three underage daughters and the death of another.
* ''Children of God: Lost and Found'': a 75-minute documentary by Noah Thomson, featured at the [[2007 Slamdance Film Festival]].<ref>{{IMDb title|qid=Q127688714|title=Children of God: Lost and Found}}</ref>
* ''Cult Killer: The Rick Rodriguez Story'': a 53-minute UK documentary with a transcript.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Cult_Killer:_The_Rick_Rodriguez_Story |title=Cult Killer: The Rick Rodriguez Story – XFamily – Children of God |publisher=XFamily |access-date=2016-07-24 |archive-date=June 16, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100616235224/http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Cult_Killer:_The_Rick_Rodriguez_Story |url-status=live }}</ref>
* In the first episode of ''[[Louis Theroux's Weird Weekends]]'', "Born Again Christians", Louis visits a Texas TFI family.
* The [[Parcast]] Podcast ''Cults'': Episodes 11 and 12.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.parcast.com/cults/ |title=Cults |website=Parcast |language=en-US |access-date=2017-12-04 |archive-date=December 4, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171204171242/https://www.parcast.com/cults/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* ''[[Citizen Rose]]'': A five part documentary series shown on the E! Channel. The first episode premiered on January 30, 2018. The series follows actress [[Rose McGowan]] who was born into the cult.
* ''[[The Last Podcast on the Left]]'' did a four part series on the cult: Episodes 248-251<ref>{{cite web |title=Episode 248: Children of God Part I - Mother's Peanut Butter |url=https://open.spotify.com/episode/5veCjQOaficF1klu7HKwgJ |website=Spotify |access-date=19 January 2022 |date=28 November 2016 |archive-date=January 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119225859/https://open.spotify.com/episode/5veCjQOaficF1klu7HKwgJ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Dan Cummins]]' podcast ''Timesuck'' covered the cult in episode 104, "The Children of God Sex Cult".
*[[AJJ (band)|AJJ]] released a song entitled "Children of God" on their 2014 album ''Christmas Island''.
* [[A&E (TV channel)|A&E]]'s ''[[Cults and Extreme Belief (TV series)|Cults and Extreme Belief]]'', episode 3 (2018) is about the Children of God.<ref name="AECEB">{{cite web| url = https://www.aetv.com/shows/cults-and-extreme-belief/season-1/episode-3| title = ''Cults and Extreme Belief'' S1E3, aired June 5, 2018. Retrieved June 13, 2018.| access-date = June 13, 2018| archive-date = June 13, 2018| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180613084557/https://www.aetv.com/shows/cults-and-extreme-belief/season-1/episode-3| url-status = live}}</ref>
* [[Cool Zone Media|Cool Zone]] Media's ''[[Behind the Bastards]]'' PodCast did a [https://www.iheart.com/podcast/105-behind-the-bastards-29236323/episode/part-one-david-berg-and-the-282690120/ two part series] on "[[David Berg]] and The Children of God" with guest [[Ed Helms]].

== See also ==
* [[Comet Kohoutek]] was thought by David Berg to be a prophetic sign of imminent disaster.
* [[Jim Palosaari]], part of the ''Jesus People Army'', left it before the group joined the Children of God, and tried to convince Linda Meissner not to join it.
* [[Love bombing]] describes a manipulative style of recruitment.
* [[Panton Hill, Victoria]], Australia is the location of one of the communes, where a large government raid removed many children.

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
=== Academic ===
{{Refbegin|40em}}
* Chancellor, James (2000). ''Life in The Family: An Oral History of the Children of God''. University of Syracuse Press, Syracuse, NY.
* Bainbridge, William Sims (2002). ''The Endtime Family: Children of God''. State University of New York Press. {{ISBN|0-7914-5264-6}}.
* Bainbridge, William Sims (1996). ''The Sociology of Religious Movements''. Routledge. {{ISBN|0-415-91202-4}}.
* Barker, Eileen. (1989). ''New Religious Movements, A Practical Introduction''. Her Majesty's Stationery Office. {{ISBN|0-11-340927-3}}.
* Barker, Eileen. (2021). [https://www.cdamm.org/articles/children-of-god "Children of God/The Family International Armageddon"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210426175117/https://www.cdamm.org/articles/children-of-god |date=April 26, 2021 }}. In James Crossley and Alastair Lockhart (eds.) ''Critical Dictionary of Apocalyptic and Millenarian Movements''.
* Barrett, DV (1996). ''Sects, Cults and Alternative Religions''. Blandford A. Cassell. {{ISBN|0-7137-2567-2}}.
* {{Cite journal |doi=10.1177/0891241602031003003 |author=Boeri, Miriam Williams |year=2002 |title=Women After the Utopia: The Gendered Lives of Former Cult Members |journal=Journal of Contemporary Ethnography |volume=31 |issue=3 |pages=323–360 |s2cid=145652798}}
* {{Cite journal |author=Kent, Stephen A. |year=1994 |title=Lustful prophet: A psycho-sexual historical study of the children of god's leader, David Berg |url=http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/~skent/Linkedfiles/lustfulprophet.htm |journal=Cultic Studies Journal |volume=11 |issue=2 |pages=135–188 |access-date=August 11, 2004 |archive-date=February 28, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050228024209/http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/~skent/Linkedfiles/lustfulprophet.htm |url-status=live}}
* {{Cite journal |doi=10.1007/BF02354497 |pmid=24263783 |author=Kent, Stephen A. |year=1994 |title=Misattribution and social control in the Children of God |url=http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Misattribution_and_Social_Control_in_the_Children_of_God |journal=Journal of Religion and Health |volume=33 |issue=1 |pages=29–43 |s2cid=24012781 |access-date=July 6, 2005 |archive-date=June 28, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050628013642/http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Misattribution_and_Social_Control_in_the_Children_of_God |url-status=live |url-access=subscription}}
* {{Cite journal |author=Kent, Stephen A. |year=2000 |title=Brainwashing and re-indoctrination programs in the Children of God/The Family |url=http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/~skent/Linkedfiles/cog_brainwashing.htm |journal=Cultic Studies Journal |volume=17 |pages=56–78 |access-date=August 11, 2004 |archive-date=February 28, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050228023927/http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/~skent/Linkedfiles/cog_brainwashing.htm |url-status=live}}
* Lewis, James R, and Melton, J. Gordon (eds). (1994). ''[[Sex, Slander, and Salvation: Investigating The Family/Children of God]]''. Center for Academic Press, Stanford, CA.
* Lynch, Dalva, and Paul Carden (1990). [http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/cri/cri-jrnl/web/crj0075a.html "Inside the 'Heavenly Elite': The Children of God Today."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040803225541/http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/cri/cri-jrnl/web/crj0075a.html |date=August 3, 2004 }}. ''Christian Research Journal'', pp 16.
* McFarland, Robert (1994). [https://web.archive.org/web/20041209223047/http://www.vote.org/ramsey/cults.htm "The Children of God."] ''The Journal of Psychohistory'' '''4'''(21).
* Melton, J. Gordon (2004). ''[https://archive.today/20060323035923/http://www.signaturebooks.com/children.htm ''The Children of God, "The Family" ''(Studies in Contemporary Religion vol. 7)]''. Signature Books. {{ISBN|1-56085-180-5}}.
* Melton, J. Gordon (2004). [http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/701799/The-Family-International The Family International Britannica Article] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120424013327/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/701799/The-Family-International |date=April 24, 2012 }}
* Melton, J. Gordon and Robert L. Moore (1982). ''The Cult Experience: Responding to the New Religious Pluralism''. The Pilgrim Press, New York, USA.
* Palmer, Susan J. (1994). [https://archive.today/20121228093207/http://www.thefamily.org/dossier/books/book1/chapter1.htm "Heaven's Children: The Children of God's Second Generation"] in ''Sex, Slander, and Salvation'', ''op. cit.''
* Palmer, Susan J., and Charlotte Hardman eds. (1999). ''Children in New Religions'' (3rd ed.). Rutgers University Press. {{ISBN|0-8135-2620-5}}.
* Shepherd, Gary, and Lawrence Lilliston (1994). [http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20020914213946/http://www.thefamily.org/dossier/books/book1/chapter5.htm "Field Observations of Young People's Experience and Role in The Family"] in ''Sex, Slander, and Salvation'', ''op. cit.''
* Shepherd, Gary, and Shepherd, Gordon (August 2005). [http://caliber.ucpress.net/doi/abs/10.1525/nr.2005.9.1.067 "Accommodation and Reformation in The Family/Children of God"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120311194035/http://caliber.ucpress.net/doi/abs/10.1525/nr.2005.9.1.067 |date=March 11, 2012 }}, ''Nova Religio'' (Journal of the University of California)
* Shepherd, Gary and Shepherd, Gordon (Spring 2000).[https://web.archive.org/web/20051026005804/http://www2.oakland.edu/oujournal/files/Shepherd.pdf "The Moral Career of a New Religious Movement"] ''The Oakland Journal''.
* Wilson, Bryan and Jamie Cresswell, eds. (1999). ''New Religious Movements: Challenge and Response''. ''Routledge'', London, UK.
* Wright, Stuart (1987). ''Leaving Cults: The Dynamics of Defection''. Society for the Scientific Study of Religion. Washington, D.C., USA. {{ISBN|0-932566-06-5}} (Contains interviews with ex-members of three groups, among others the Children of God)
* Van Zandt, David (1991). ''Living in the Children of God''. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey.
* Young, Shawn David, ''Hippies, Jesus Freaks, and Music'' (Ann Arbor: Xanedu/Copley Original Works, 2005). {{ISBN|1-59399-201-7}}.
{{Refend}}

=== Journalistic and popular ===
{{Refbegin}}
* {{Cite news |last=Goodstein |first=Laurie |date=January 21, 2005 |orig-date=January 15, 2005 |title=Murder and Suicide Reviving Claims of Child Abuse in Cult |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/15/national/15cult.html |url-access=subscription |url-status= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150503124134/http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/15/national/15cult.html |archive-date=May 3, 2015 |work=[[The New York Times]] |page=A-1 |access-date=}}
* Jones, Faith (2021). ''Sex Cult Nun''. HarperCollins. {{ISBN|978-0062952455}}.
* Lattin, Don. ''Jesus Freaks: A True Story of Murder and Madness on the Evangelical Edge''. HarperOne. {{ISBN|0-06-111804-4}}.
* Mahoney, Mary (2020). ''Abnormal Normal: My Life in the Children of God''. {{ISBN|979-8-6317-4606-0}}.
* McManus, Una (1980). ''Not for a Million Dollars''. Impact Books. {{ISBN|0-914850-54-7}}.
* {{Cite news |last=Niebuhr |first=Gustav |date=June 2, 1993 |title='The Family' and Final Harvest |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/cult/children_of_god/child1.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325012912/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/cult/children_of_god/child1.htm |archive-date=March 25, 2012 |work=[[The Washington Post]] |page=A01}}
* Rivenburg, Roy (March 21, 1993). [https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1993-03-21-vw-13345-story.html "A True Conversion?"] ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''.
* {{Cite news |title=30 Members of Children of God Arrested |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/cult/children_of_god/main.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214040250/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/cult/children_of_god/main.htm |archive-date=December 14, 2017 |work=[[The Washington Post]] |agency=[[Reuters]] |date=September 2, 1993 |page=A05 |access-date=}}
* Williams, Miriam (1999). ''Heaven's Harlots: My Fifteen Years as a Sacred Prostitute in the Children of God Cult''. Quill. {{ISBN|0-688-17012-9}}.
{{Refend}}

== External links ==
* {{Official website|http://www.thefamilyinternational.org/}}
{{Family International}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Family International}}
[[Category:The Family International]]
[[Category:1968 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Christian organizations established in 1968]]
[[Category:Jesus movement]]
[[Category:Religious organizations established in 1968]]
[[Category:Child sexual abuse in the United States]]
[[Category:Christian denominations founded in the United States]]
[[Category:New religious movements established in the 1960s]]
[[Category:New religious movements established in the 20th century]]
[[Category:Christian new religious movements]]
[[Category:Child sexual abuse scandals in Christianity]]