Anna

We were all up and down the coast, my group that I grew up in. I don't know if you've ever heard of a group called The Assembly, also called the Giftakis Assembly. No. Not Assembly of God. Thinking Assembly of God, that's a different group.

Yes. So the assembly doesn't exist anymore, but it was a Christian cult, basically a Protestant church that started in the 70s where the leader just wanted to go back to basics, be really minimal. People didn't wear makeup. It didn't dress up too much. People kind of lived communally. I think it was kind of nice in the beginning. Everyone just sort of participated, you know, saying acapella.

Yes. So the assembly doesn't exist anymore, but it was a Christian cult, basically a Protestant church that started in the 70s where the leader just wanted to go back to basics, be really minimal. People didn't wear makeup. It didn't dress up too much. People kind of lived communally. I think it was kind of nice in the beginning. Everyone just sort of participated, you know, saying acapella.

Yes. So the assembly doesn't exist anymore, but it was a Christian cult, basically a Protestant church that started in the 70s where the leader just wanted to go back to basics, be really minimal. People didn't wear makeup. It didn't dress up too much. People kind of lived communally. I think it was kind of nice in the beginning. Everyone just sort of participated, you know, saying acapella.

And it was just like, forget all of that worldly stuff. It had a heyday in the 70s. It started in Southern California, but it was all over. There were branches in Canada, Mexico, England, a lot of places in South America.

And it was just like, forget all of that worldly stuff. It had a heyday in the 70s. It started in Southern California, but it was all over. There were branches in Canada, Mexico, England, a lot of places in South America.

And it was just like, forget all of that worldly stuff. It had a heyday in the 70s. It started in Southern California, but it was all over. There were branches in Canada, Mexico, England, a lot of places in South America.

Georgia and Betty Giftakis are guiding light. They were divinely inspired as far as we were concerned. When you talk about cult, at first you think it's going to be like fun and sensationalist and wild, but it's actually just sad. And, you know, a lot of stories are really grim and a lot of them are about abuse. But I wanted something that had a little more sparkle to it.

Georgia and Betty Giftakis are guiding light. They were divinely inspired as far as we were concerned. When you talk about cult, at first you think it's going to be like fun and sensationalist and wild, but it's actually just sad. And, you know, a lot of stories are really grim and a lot of them are about abuse. But I wanted something that had a little more sparkle to it.

Georgia and Betty Giftakis are guiding light. They were divinely inspired as far as we were concerned. When you talk about cult, at first you think it's going to be like fun and sensationalist and wild, but it's actually just sad. And, you know, a lot of stories are really grim and a lot of them are about abuse. But I wanted something that had a little more sparkle to it.

Okay. So my story is about a pseudoscientific medical device that my family used that kind of caught on in our very insular group. It's called the Zapper. And the Zapper was supposed to heal you by giving you a very light, sustained electric shock.

Okay. So my story is about a pseudoscientific medical device that my family used that kind of caught on in our very insular group. It's called the Zapper. And the Zapper was supposed to heal you by giving you a very light, sustained electric shock.

Okay. So my story is about a pseudoscientific medical device that my family used that kind of caught on in our very insular group. It's called the Zapper. And the Zapper was supposed to heal you by giving you a very light, sustained electric shock.

And I want to be clear, this wasn't preached from the pulpit, like the Zapper will heal you. But it was a kind of insular environment where we didn't have any other friends and just weird fads would take place. And if someone of influence brought in a certain fad, one time it was a planner.

And I want to be clear, this wasn't preached from the pulpit, like the Zapper will heal you. But it was a kind of insular environment where we didn't have any other friends and just weird fads would take place. And if someone of influence brought in a certain fad, one time it was a planner.

And I want to be clear, this wasn't preached from the pulpit, like the Zapper will heal you. But it was a kind of insular environment where we didn't have any other friends and just weird fads would take place. And if someone of influence brought in a certain fad, one time it was a planner.

It's almost like an MLM. That's funny because we actually did a lot of MLMs together and just sort of marketed to each other, basically. So to set the scene, because I sometimes go down a dark rabbit hole trying to explain the assembly, I made a kind of list of our fears and loves, which I'm going to share with you.

It's almost like an MLM. That's funny because we actually did a lot of MLMs together and just sort of marketed to each other, basically. So to set the scene, because I sometimes go down a dark rabbit hole trying to explain the assembly, I made a kind of list of our fears and loves, which I'm going to share with you.

It's almost like an MLM. That's funny because we actually did a lot of MLMs together and just sort of marketed to each other, basically. So to set the scene, because I sometimes go down a dark rabbit hole trying to explain the assembly, I made a kind of list of our fears and loves, which I'm going to share with you.

If the assembly is a person, the assembly loves abstinence, all day, all night meetings, chores, which are also called stewardships.