Hearing and reading about such slanderous outright lies is hard for me as a 24-year-old fulltime member of The Family International. I still can’t believe that people would stoop to such low measures and means to demonize and bring others against a group of individuals who have dedicated their lives to helping others and bringing the true Gospel to many who otherwise perhaps wouldn’t have the chance to learn about Jesus’ love.

Being a mother of two small children myself, and wanting the best for them as they grow up, I am thankful to be surrounded by loving and caring members of my community who have the same vision and goal in life as I do, and impart that to my kids in their daily interactions with them. If I, living day in and day out in our communal Home, saw that it was indeed a “den of alleged sexual molestation, prostitution and extreme physical abuse”, I would be out of here without second thought. Who in their right mind would allow their children to continue to live in such conditions? Nevertheless, there are thousands of similar parents in The Family, who know the truth, have seen it and lived it for years, and are very thankful for the opportunity to have such a peaceful, pure and charmed atmosphere for their children to spend their formative years in.

Of course, living a life fully dedicated to others includes quite a bit of sacrifices and giving up of selfish desires, so I can understand why there are many who choose an easier, less sacrificial and more self-centered lifestyle. I respect that. That is their choice, such as the Scripture says: “Many are called, but few are chosen.” (Matthew 22:14) Few choose to give their lives to the benefit of others in this way. But this gives those who don’t no right or leeway to criticize or make up stories about those of us who do feel called and have chosen to dedicate our lives to something more worthwhile and long-lasting than selfish living.

My prayer is that these former members can find the peace that they are looking for, not by inciting more anger and violence, but by leaving the past behind and deciding to go on with their lives in the way that they feel is best, and allowing us to do the same. Each of us is an individual and has the right to live our lives in the way that we wish. I’ve found a wonderful place to live mine, and for my children to live theirs as well, and I feel very fulfilled in the cause of spreading Jesus’ message to all who are interested. Why can’t you just leave us alone so that we can get the job done while there is still time?

With regards,
Estrella Sola

This entry was posted on Friday, October 7th, 2005 and is filed under Archived, Letters to the Editor. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.