Chapel Hill man recalls life of fear at western NC church

CHAPEL HILL, North Carolina (WTVD) -- John Cooper said he was just a baby when his family became part of Word of Faith Fellowship in Spindale, North Carolina. He said his dad had been in the Navy and he was trying to get into pastoring and heard that Word of Faith Fellowship had a Bible school.

Cooper's entire childhood is with the church. One of his earliest memories was inside an area called the Lower Building when he was just 3 years old.

"I remember they were doing like their prayer, they called it blasting which is basically them screaming at the top of their lungs," Cooper recalled. "This guy just grabbed my head, he had a really tight grip on my head and was just screaming at me."

Cooper said violence was common practice in getting out the demons. He was actually one of the first to reach out to the media, specifically The Associated Press, about life inside the church.

Now, 43 people have spoken out against the evangelical church and its leader, Jane Whaley. Those now living on the outside detail verbal, mental and even sexual abuse.

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http://abc11.com/religion/chapel-hill-man-recalls-life-of-fear-at-western-nc-church/1776694/