Calvary Cathedral Ft Worth TX

Both Johnson and the pastor of the church I attended for 12 years were "sent out" by Calvary Cathedral- Bob Nichols. Both got their training there, but I have never heard anything about that place being associated with spiritual abuse, shepherding/discipleship or any of that. I always assumed that because this is where these guys got their training, then that "church" down in TX must practice this stuff as well. Has anyone heard anything about Calvary Cathedral?

It's too long of a topic to cover within one post, but yes, they all learn it from Bob Nichols. They learn that:
- everyone is in a congregation to support "the man of God". Of course, being co-heirs with Christ, we are all men and women of God, (Romans 8:17), being taught by the Holy Spirit (John 14:26), etc.
- at Calvary Cathedral, only one person is allowed to be called Pastor (Bob Nichols)
- the "man of God" (Bob Nichols) is the only Pastor (whereas, in I Peter 5, Elders (plural) are called to shepherd God's flock) Bob Nichols disobeys scripture since only HE shepherds the flock. HE is the ONLY Pastor.
- the congregation of Calvary Cathedral International are there to support HIS vision (Of course, Bob Nichols isn't there to train, equip, and send people out) Ephesians 4:12
- it's okay to disobey scripture by slandering people from the pulpit (Of course, scripture says differently Psalm 101:5, James 4:11)

Bob Nichols has created a system of control, manipulation, and power. Years ago, when his brother, Ralph Nichols left, the story goes that Bob Nichols called KCM and blackballed his brother and sister-in-law. Now, he's created such an environment of fear and intimidation, that all of the staff there are afraid to leave for fear of their jobs and status within the immediate religious community.

Here's some information to read about. The person who wrote this visited Calvary Cathedral a few years before he wrote this article:
www cbn.com/spirituallife/churchandministry/Spiritual_Abuse1.aspx
www cbn.com/spirituallife/churchandministry/Spiritual_Abuse2.aspx
www cbn.com/spirituallife/churchandministry/Spiritual_Abuse3.aspx

It's very sad, actually, to see what happens when leadership does not hold itself accountable to other leadership. Bob Nichols has tried to run Calvary Cathedral like a corporation, but a corporation is not like the church Christ died for. As described in I Peter 5:5, we ALL are to submit to one another, elders and younger alike.

Thank you for your response. I will be checking into the links you have provided. You are the first person I've run across that knows anything about that place. I always thought it was weird that whenever ole Bob would show up once a year here in MO that nothing ever changed, that things in fact would just get more controlling and demanding. Much easier to see the big picture when it's in retrospect and you've been out of the place for awhile. I've been out for 3 years now, and it's just now occurring to me that people should be warned about the Ft Worth training center (Calvary Cathedral).

Oh, my. The articles you provided links for are the very articles I first ran across after leaving this place here in MO. They were the first indication that what we experienced was spiritual abuse. I had no idea this was written with Calvary Cathedral in mind. I bought Mike Fehlauer's book not long ago and have had his articles on my hard drive for three years now.

What's ol' Tom up to nowadays? The last time he preached at Calvary we found out that he had obtained his PhD.

Well, I've been gone for almost 3 years now, so I'm not too sure. I know a potload of people left after I did, but there are quite a few diehards that are still hanging on. Yes, he got the PhD and some call him Doctor now, or so I'm told. Guess they love the titles. And he's still got the radio spot on local Christian radio. The church bldg and part of the land is paid for, so they may be able to hang on. Hadn't heard anything about his MU experience- news to me. How do you know them?

I've know him for decades... or I thought I did. The sad thing was that when they were heading to Missouri, he and Vicki were telling folks that they couldn't wait to get out from under the controlling environment, and their church was going to be completely different.

Well, not so much. You can take the man out of the abuse, but you can't take the abuse out of the man. Tom used to have a such tender heart for God, but he was taught at Calvary that the pastor is royalty, and the congregation's job is to serve the pastor. It's heartbreaking to see what he's become.

I fully agree. His brother was our neighbor for several years, and we knew his family fairly well. He definitely did have a very tender heart early on, but things certainly changed, and it really didn't take too terribly long. So he complained about the control??? He'd say that people would complain to him about how controlling he was, but tell us that it was for our protection, for our good. He KNEW he was controlling yet made excuses for it. I guess Bob trained them well.

I guess it's past due for an update about Calvary Cathedral.

A few weeks after the last post, the apparent successor to Bob Nichols resigned from Calvary and took a position at another ministry as an executive pastor. During the announcement of his resignation, we were told in great detail that it was done with Bob Nichols' permission and blessing. Many of the congregation thought the big announcement was going to be that Bob was turning over the pastorate to him. Needless to say, many were in total shock, and quite a few were openly weeping and emotionally shaken. The emotional outpouring of love at the end of the service was awesome, and seemed to upset Bob.

Since then, probably half of the staff and a majority of the congregation have left despite claims of having led 40 to 50 thousand people in a prayer of salvation over the past two years. Many sermons have been devoted to reminding the congregation that they're called to a church (not scriptural), can't leave without the pastor's permission (not scriptural), and that everyone who has left is offended. He's stopped just short of telling the congregation to shun those who have left, but he's just a short step away. Those who were naive enough to schedule a meeting with Bob to tell him they're leaving have been met with reminders of how much Bob's done for them and how much they personally owe him. Many have attempted to schedule meetings, but have been denied, so they just leave anyway. Many of us suspect that the family and business manager are shielding Bob from a lot of what's going on.

It's all so sad. Many of us were there 10, 20, 30+ years, and we're all wondering when and where things went so horribly wrong.

Guess it was inevitable in time. And the way you say Bob has handled it all sounds so very familiar. Been there, done that. I chose to leave quietly and just not return. Some say you should confront leadership, but after being thoroughly drained after 12 years in that black hole, there was no way on earth I was going to be able to confront in a godly manner. It all seems such a waste of people, time, money, and such a drain spiritually on all involved. They say these places are psychological pits of codependence. Issues abound! They honestly think they're right. Thank you for the update.

How long does it take to recover after leaving? I'd like to hear from some of the Canadian folks. The activity on this blog dropped to zero.

Also... what happened to all of the YouTube audio clips from Keith's "sermons"? I wanted someone to hear about the biggest piece of chicken, and it's gone. Have they made legal threats?

Obviously, I'm not from Canada, but I can put in my 2 cents' worth on recovery. It does depend on how deeply you got involved with leadership. My best friend was very involved, getting "mentored" by Vicki, but I stayed on the fringes of the inner circle, getting no more involved than the choir. My friend has had a much harder time of it, and it's been abt 5 years now. I thought I might warn you about something she experienced- a draw back into the place, probably spirits trying to convince her that she was being judgmental, that things would get better, yada, yada. Could have something to do with soul ties formed while in there. I didn't get sucked in to that extent, so I haven't experienced that draw to go back after leaving. And you don't ever really recover, you chalk it up to experience and never forget it. Church will never be the same for you now. Trust becomes a problem, but there are ditches, and there is the middle of the road. Be a Berean- judge EVERYTHING, and assume that whatever you hear is influenced by the human vessel it comes from; look for the truth in everything understanding that humans will corrupt everything to a degree and I think it's safe to assume no one ever corrupts truth intentionally. People think they're right.

Personally, I have left church because I have come to the conclusion that traditional, institutional church setup is what opens the door to abusive garbage in the first place. One man/woman rule, the clergy/laity setup, the whole big package creates lazy, ineffective Christians that want to pass the buck to the "qualified" few. Christians generally are just too naive and trusting. Wave a Christian flag, and most people expect truth and honesty from you, and don't test the spirits. We all need to wake up. I did a lot of research starting the day I left. Here's a link to the little ebook I put together, free download: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/150827, and here's a link to my blog posts on all this: http://red-flag-churches.blogspot.com/ It would be interesting to see what you think from what you have experienced. The post that gets the most views is "Making the Decision to Leave an Abusive Church". There are loads of links in each post to books and other websites that will give you some help and direction.

The Smashwords link is broken. I'm working myself through the Red Flag Churches stuff. Very good.

Try this one: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/150827, or you can just go to www.smashwords.com, put Red Flag Churches in the search and find it that way. It will download in umpteen different formats. Also ran across this the other day- www.cultwatch.com. Loads of great info there, including a lengthy article on discernment. That's good stuff- don't see much on that subject.

Wow. Both the blog and e-book are excellent. It's kind of fun knowing who and what the unmentioned people and places are. You've really done a good job of backing up your points with scripture. I'd never considered the Jezebel angle.

There are a few distinctions between Bob and his sons in the ministry (Keith and Tom). First and foremost, Bob hates confrontation. He's always been pretty cagey about calling people out from the pulpit - he does it, but never mentions any names. On the other hand, he doesn't hold back behind closed doors either in meetings with church members or during staff meetings.

Another distinction is the armor bearer thing. Paid staff handles that for the most part.

I thought the part about Tom & Vicki monitoring people was pretty hilarious because several of us who have left Calvary have received Facebook friend requests from Tom. The church business manager has been blocked by so many people that he's resorting to using staff members' Facebook accounts to keep track of us.

Keep up the good work!

Hey, thanks for the kind words. It was a lot of work, but every time someone downloads the book or views the blog posts, I am hoping someone is getting free. I bet it is a hoot to read and know who I'm referring to! I was super careful to avoid any chance of libel, so I used a pen name as well.

I have not-so-fond memories of Tom riding some nameless person from the pulpit into the ground, something that happened with great regularity. And I'm told that Vicki was absolutely brutal behind closed doors. I never was the object of her wrath. It's amazing to me how they get away with behavior like that. I really don't think Tom wanted confrontation either, but Vicki certainly was ready to go! I remember when the armor bearer thing hit me just a few months ago. I'd forgotten about those books. I dug them out, threw them away and edited a couple posts!

And the whole facebook thing is just stupid. That was in full swing when we left. Cathy caught on fairly early to that one and de-friended a bunch of them. I don't do facebook, so it wasn't a problem for me. Like I said, I never got into the system all that deeply to start with. I'll never forget the day she told me about how they were using another woman in there to "spy" through facebook and by going to some of the small group meetings. Spying. In a church. What's wrong with this picture????? Sounds like a bunch of little teenage girls!