Days ago, I received a phone call once again from Zhang Xiaofang (a pseudonym), she happily reported a good news to me that "My son has been admitted to his favorite university". Between the words, she was wild with joy and pride. After hanging up the phone, the scene of the first meeting with Zhang Xiaofang appeared before my eyes. It was the autumn of 2018, and if I hadn't known in advance that she was only 40 years old, I really couldn't believe that the white-haired, haggard woman was Zhang Xiaofang.
A happy family
Zhang Xiaofang, female, was born in the rural area of southern Anhui Province in 1978. After graduating from junior high school, she went south to Guangdong to do manual work. She worked from dawn to dusk in a factory. Later on, Zhang Xiaofang met a boy who also came from Anhui Province and worked in the same factor, they fell in love with each other and then got married.
In 2004, with the birth of their daughter and son, the couple ended their temporary work in the south and returned to their hometown in a countryside. While the husband worked in a factory in a nearby industrial area, Zhang herself worked in the field or took care of her children at home. The family was not rich, but husband and wife lived in harmony, so the couple’s life was promising.
Zhang Xiaofang was an industrious woman. To share the pressure of supporting the family with her husband, she often rode a tricycle to sell her vegetables at the market in the city. The vegetables she grew were of such good quality that they were sold out quickly every time, and she has met some regular customers.
If she had not fallen into the quagmire of "Almighty God", Zhang Xiaofang could have lived happily in such a plain way.
She met a "bosom sister"
In 2013, an “elder sister” in her forties often bought Zhang Xiaofang's vegetables and chatted with her from time to time. After learning that Zhang Xiaofang had two children in school, the elder sister often sent her gifts such as snacks, stationery or children's clothes when they met at marketplaces. The unsophisticated Zhang Xiaofang was so grateful that she thought she had met a "bosom sister".
After gaining Zhang Xiaofang's trust, the "bosom sister" began to persuade her to believe in "female Christ", claiming that the "female Christ" was also called "Almighty God ", that "God" had come to the world as a woman to save the world, and that one person who believed in "God" would bless the whole family. Zhang Xiaofang did not think much about it. She believed in whatever the "bosom sister" said. And she told herself that the "Almighty God" must be a "good God" since She could bless the whole family. Anyway, it would be a matter of “having everything to gain and nothing to lose” for her.
Therefore, Zhang Xiaofang followed the "bosom sister" to believe in "God" and sometimes followed her to attend secret parties. The people she met at these parties were particularly enthusiastic to her, claiming that they were all “brothers and sisters”, and that they were all "a same family ". During the gathering, they watched together the catastrophic "movies" about earthquakes, tsunamis, plagues, famines, floods and so on, claiming that “the end of the world was coming”, “the earth was about to explode”, and only "Almighty God " could save the world. They also talked about the "blessings" gained by believing in "God", such as "I fell down on my bicycle, God made me unscathed", "Because of God's blessing, my child got good grades in the exams", "Thanks to God's blessing, my husband's salary has risen again", "Ever since I believed in God, I have recovered from a stomach cancer," etc. In short, the "Almighty God" was omnipotent, and "believing in God" could make the family safe and prosperous.
Under such influence, Zhang Xiaofang began to pin the fate of herself and her family on the "Almighty God".
She became a puppet of the "Almighty God"
And before long, Zhang Xiaofang stopped working in the field, and she devoted herself to "God". She dared not to miss a single gathering, and became eager to pray and sing for "God" with her “brothers and sisters”.
In this new "family", Zhang Xiaofang had a new name called "Lingling". And she was asked to write down a "pledge never to betray God". So, she swore a "terrible oath" before God that "I will believe in God wholeheartedly, do my duty for God, and never betray God. If I betrayed God, I would be cursed by God, or killed by a car accident when I go out, and my children would die young”. Since then, this "guarantee" had completely controlled Zhang Xiaofang's body and mind like a magic spell.
In 2014, at a gathering, the "bosom sister" announced suddenly and excitedly: "Now God's work is almost over, and the end of the world is coming. And we should waste no time doing our part and trying our best to contribute to God, so that we can get closer to God and be saved by God."
When Zhang Xiaofang returned home in a hurry, she immediately "preached the gospel" to her husband and children. Her husband was already angry with her behavior, because she was often away from home to “serve God”. Upon hearing that Zhang asked their children to give up their schooling for “God”, the man was flying into a rage. He shouted, "If you don’t stop believing in God, let us get divorced.So that you can live with the God." Family members all refused to "believe in God", but Zhang Xiaofang was still afraid of being cursed or punished by "God" all day long.
In order for the whole family to be saved by the "Almighty God" when the end of the world arrived, Zhang Xiaofang sincerely believed that "the only way out was to serve the God wholeheartedly". In November of the same year, she could not resist the bewitchment of the cult and ran away from home, concentrating herself on "doing her part" and "devoting herself to God" wholeheartedly.
However, the year of 2018 passed safely, the so-called“end of the world” did not really come. But Zhang Xiaofang was suffering like an ant on a hot pan, living an inhuman life of fear. She was afraid that she might be punished by "God" for “not doing well”. She followed the group of “brothers and sisters” wandering in the urban-rural fringe near her hometown, where they rented and lived in a humble house. All the food, clothing, shelter and transportation were arranged by a special person, and they were not allowed to use mobile phones or contact with the outside world, as if they were walking corpses to complete the tasks assigned by "God", and no one dared to have any carelessness.
A grey-haired woman who regretted her choice
During the four years away from home, Zhang Xiaofang missed her children so much. She often shed tears secretly and asked herself time and again: "I have dedicated so much. God should have seen it. Maybe it’s time I should go home?" However, as soon as the idea flashed across her mind, Zhang Xiaofang would think of the "solemn oath," she kept warning herself: "Don't be cranky, don't give up halfway, and if you don't do your duty well, the whole family will be punished by God."
In October 2018, after trying all possible means, Zhang Xiaofang was finally found. The tense ideological pressure, the bitter struggle in her heart and the harsh living environment, together made the 40-year-old woman’s hair turn grey, and her face appeared much older than her real age.
In conjunction with other anti-cult volunteers and Xiaofang's family, I immediately carried out patient and meticulous help and education for her, gradually guiding her to put aside the psychological fear of the "Almighty God". Zhang Xiaofang finally came to her senses, she wept bitterly, and regretted what she had done in the past. After a period of deprogramming work, Zhang had seen clearly the evil nature of "Almighty God", and completely broke away from the mental control of the dangerous cult.
Now, Zhang Xiaofang has returned home to accompany her children, and soon becomes a great helper to her husband in supporting the family. Happy laughter and cheerful voices have also returned to the family of four.
