Twelve Tribes

Quick Facts on Twelve Tribes

• What: Twelve Tribes is a communal religious movement.
• Names: Generally referred to as the Twelve Tribes. Formerly known as The Vine Christian Community Church, Northeast Kingdom Community Church, Messianic Communities, Community Apostolic Order, The New Apostolic Order in Messiah, The Church in Island Pond, The Communities. Communes around the US and abroad generally are called Community in [placename]
• Associated: Peacemaker, a sailing ship owned and operated by The Twelve Tribes gives tours and evangelizes at ports. Yellow Deli, health-food restaurants operated by Twelve Tribes communities. Other names: Maté Factor cafe, Forest Keepers (tree cutting), Common Sense Market (organic produce store), Community in Rutland and Community in San Sebastian (hostels), BOJ Construction, and others.
• Founded: 1972. One of many religious offshoots that emerged from the Jesus People Movement.
• Founder: Elbert Eugene Spriggs, sometimes referred to as Elbert 'Gene' Spriggs, or simply Gene Spriggs. Known within the community as Yoneq, he refers to himself as "Super Apostle."
• Membership: Believed to be between 2,000 - 3,000
• Beliefs: "The Twelve Tribe’s beliefs resemble those of Christian fundamentalism and Messianic Judaism; however the group believes that all denominations are fallen, and so refuse to align themselves with any denomination or movement. They believe that in order for the messiah to return, the Church needs to be restored to its original form seen in the Acts 2:38–42 and Acts 4:32–37. This restoration is not merely the restoration of the 1st century church, but of a new Israel consisting of Twelve Tribes in twelve geographic regions. Part of this restoration is the return to observing the sabbath, maintaining Mosaic law including dietary law, and Jewish feasts. This interpretation of the prophesied restoration of Israel, combined with the perceived immorality in the world leads the group to believe the end times have arrived, though no date has been set." [1] Members in the group take on Hebrew names, but instead of referring to Jesus as Yeshua they use Yahshua -- in common with those within the Hebrew Roots and Sacred Name movements.
• Controversies: The group's aberrant and heretical teachings identify it as, theologically, a cult of Christianity. Sociologically, there are cultic elements as well, including the high level of control leveled over the group's followers. The group advocates racial segregation.

A colorado newspaper described the group as follows:

The Twelve Tribes' evening worship service in Manitou Springs is reminiscent of a scene straight from a hippie commune in the 1960s and early '70s, and this group does, in fact, live in a communal setting.

But the similarities end there. No drugs and alcohol are allowed in Twelve Tribes. The women wear modest, baggy attire straight out of 19th-century America. The speakers at the religious services talk repeatedly about end times. And Scripture runs their life.

Begun in 1972 in Chattanooga, Tenn., Twelve Tribes is the brainchild of Elbert Eugene Spriggs, who is still part of the tribe but has never been its spiritual figurehead. Current worldwide membership is about 2,000.

The local Twelve Tribes community ranges in age from 1 to about 60 and consists of seven families and 12 single adults. They live and worship together in two neighboring Manitou Springs homes, and strive to replicate how they believe Christians lived in the first century: chaste, pious, hardworking and living together under the same roof.
Members give up almost all their possessions to be part of the tribe.

"I came into this world with nothing, and that's how I will leave it," said 31-year-old Malak Chesed Gould - born Derek Gould - who joined Twelve Tribes a decade ago and is now a community leader.

Twelve Tribes attempts to include every member in decisionmaking, but there is a hierarchy. Each of the communities - 25 in the U.S. and about 25 in other countries - is overseen by in-house leaders, who are overseen by a tribal council in a regional office, who are, in turn, overseen by the Apostolic Council, a fluid number of elders scattered across the U.S.

Communities support themselves through their small businesses, and all profits go into a common pool.

The local Twelve Tribes runs three Manitou Springs businesses: the Maté Factor cafe, the organic-produce store Common Sense Market, and the tree-cutting business Forest Keepers. They don't proselytize to customers, but if someone inquires about their faith, they will talk about it.

Because Twelve Tribes is a 501 (d) - used by for-profit organizations with a religious purpose and a common treasury - the community pays taxes on its earnings and property. [...]

Though Twelve Tribes has sometimes been characterized as a cult, its members say it doesn't have the negative characteristics often associated with a cult: abuse and mind control.

"We don't teach abuse," said Apostolic Council member Eddie Wiseman, who is currently living in the tribe's community in Purceville, Va. "Our safety net is that we don't silence people. This has been very effective in keeping the community together. People can also leave the tribe whenever they want."

Allegations of child abuse have been made against some Twelve Tribes communities, and some people have accused them of mind control, but the faith has never been charged in connection with either. Its biggest blemish occurred in 2001, when two of its businesses in Green County, N.Y., were fined for breaking child labor laws.
- Source: Mark Barna, Twelve Tribes living as one, The Gazette, Jan. 2, 2009

We'll be taking a closer look at Twelve Tribes in the weeks to come.

Footnotes

1. Twelve Tribes, Beliefs and Practices. Wikipedia entry. Last accessed Monday, March 12, 2012 - 8:57 AM CET

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