David Wilcock
07-17-2001, 05:19 PM
unforeseen troubles
published: july 5, 2001
section: front, page a1
source: tim mcglone the virginian-pilot
ãƒâƒã‚âƒãƒâ‚ã‚âƒãƒâƒã‚â‚ãƒâ‚ã‚âƒãƒâƒã‚âƒãƒâ‚ã‚â‚ムâƒã‚â‚ãƒâ‚ã‚â‚ãƒâƒã‚âƒãƒâ‚ã‚âƒãƒâƒã‚â‚ãƒâ‚ã‚â‚ãƒâƒ ã‚âƒãƒâ‚ã‚â‚ãƒâƒã‚â‚ãƒâ‚ã‚â© 2001- landmark communications inc.
edgar cayce's followers say he predicted world war ii, stock market crashes,
a presidential assassination and even, in 1932, the growth of virginia beach
as one of the largest resort cities on the east coast.
but his 14,000 ``readings'' never prophesied the turmoil that now grips the
international organization he founded 70 years ago on the oceanfront. the
association for research and enlightenment, cayce's nonprofit center for
holistic healing and spiritual guidance, is sinking, according to some
current and former members. it has lost nearly 80,000 members in the past 10
years and $4.5 million in the past two.
hemorrhaging money and members, a.r.e. now faces a multimillion-dollar
lawsuit by former leaders who were accused of trying to transform the
ecumenical organization into a hotbed of christian fundamentalism.
analysts say the organization won't survive much longer at that rate.
officials of the institute, led by the late founder's grandson, said there's
nothing to worry about. reforms are in place to reduce expenses and boost
revenue. years of deficit spending will be turned around.
``we've been faced with these things for 10 years. we made lots of changes
in the past year to run a more responsive organization,'' said harvey green
of hawaii, a 35-year a.r.e. member and chairman of its board of trustees.
the lawsuit, meanwhile, is symbolic of the ongoing internal struggle over
the direction a.r.e. should take in the new millennium. some believe it
should become more spiritual. others think holistic medicine should be the
priority, and still others believe psychic and esp avenues should be
pursued.
a.r.e. reached a zenith in the late 1980s at the height of the new age
movement. actress shirley maclaine's books on reincarnation and meditation
were bestsellers, aging baby boomers sought yoga and meditation and a.r.e.
membership neared 100,000.
cayce followers flocked to virginia beach for holistic remedies, dream
interpretation, spiritual growth, astrology readings and to explore the more
far-out principles of esp, clairvoyance and past life regressions. a.r.e.
also offered more mainstream programs, such as a youth camp and a school for
massage therapy, programs still in place today.
a.r.e.'s programs were inspired by cayce's work. over 43 years, cayce, who
died in 1945, slipped into a trance-like state 14,000 times, giving medical
advice, offering cures, reliving past lives and predicting events far into
the future. he claims to have been able to memorize textbooks by sleeping on
them.
cayce's readings are based on the akashic records, also known as the book of
life, a mystical repository of every piece of information on every human who
ever lived and every event that has ever taken place. he is said to have
tapped into this record during his trances.
kirk nelson of virginia beach has been an edgar cayce student for more than
20 years. he has written several books, including one on the prophesied
second coming of jesus.
typical of many a.r.e. members, he believes in the healing qualities of
herbs and nutritional supplements that cayce emphasized in his readings.
``cayce said anyone who ate three almonds a day would never get cancer,''
nelson said.
``when my mother was alive, she made my father eat three almonds every day.
after she died, he stopped eating them,'' he said. his father's psa - a
chemical warning sign of prostate cancer - skyrocketed.
``he told me this and i yelled at him, `what's wrong with you?' it's so
simple,'' nelson said.
three months later, after his father resumed his daily almond intake, his
psa test was normal again.
similar stories are touted regularly by officials at a.r.e. photos of people
who have been healed using cayce methods and cayce care products hang on the
walls at a.r.e. headquarters at 67th street and pacific avenue. the
headquarters' bookstore is filled with cayce's nutritional and meditative
treatments for nearly every disease.
but a.r.e. and cayce have been criticized through the years by people
seeking to debunk his work.
in his book ``flim flam,'' james randi of fort lauderdale, fla., contends
that cayce simply wrote out his dreams and knew what illnesses afflicted
people before he ``predicted'' the problem.
``there was never any evidence he was in a trance. some people said he was
snoring,'' said randi, who has a standing $1 million offer to anyone who can
prove psychic, supernatural or paranormal behavior.
he and others also criticized cayce's predictions that the second coming of
christ would occur in 1998 and that the earth's polar caps would swap places
by 2000, causing earthquakes and volcanic eruptions around the globe. cayce
followers say these predictions are being misinterpreted.
david c. lane, a philosophy and sociology professor at mount san antonio
college in california, teaches a course on critical thinking and has
explored cayce's work. he, too, argues that cayce's supposed psychic
abilities don't hold up. but, he added, there generally is no harm in his
followers seeking meaning, happiness and health in their lives.
``it's not like jim jones,'' he said of the cult leader who led a mass
suicide at his camp in guyana in 1978. ``it's been more open-ended than
these other groups.''
as the new age movement waned through the 1990s, so did a.r.e.'s membership.
lane and others believe that thousands who joined during the 1980s grew to
doubt cayce's work. a.r.e. officials have a different explanation.
kevin j. todeschi, a senior manager, said the 100,000 membership figure is
misleading. after accounting for thousands who joined through a one-time
direct mail campaign and subscription offer, the core membership was more
accurately about 30,000, he said.
today, membership stands at 21,353, according to a.r.e.'s latest figures.
a.r.e. also was hit hard financially in 1999 when contributions dropped from
$2.4 million to just more than $1 million, federal tax records show.
book sales have slipped, investments tanked with the slumping stock market,
and the number of visitors to a.r.e. headquarters and its gift shop is half
what it was five years ago, according to tax returns and a.r.e. records.
the organization lost $1.8 million in 1999 and another $2.7 million last
year, despite a 20 percent increase in dues. some blame the higher dues for
driving away members.
with annual budgets between $7 million and $8 million in the past few years,
a.r.e. can't survive long in such a decline, according to daniel borochoff,
president of the american institute for philanthropy, a charity watchdog.
a.r.e. had to tap into its reserves to make up for the losses and prepare
for future deficits. as a result, net assets dropped from $11.5 million at
the end of 1998 to $8.4 million at the end of 2000. the assets include the
property at 67th and pacific, assessed at about $3.5 million.
a.r.e.'s board presented the grim budget news to members during a mid-june
annual congress in virginia beach. staff has been cut through attrition and
by replacing employees with volunteers. if finances don't improve, program
cuts will be next, the board said.
in another cost-cutting move, a.r.e. will move its atlantic university,
which offers a master's degree in transpersonal studies, from little neck
road to the headquarters.
the 2001 budget has already factored in a $600,000 deficit, but board
members said they plan to balance the budget and increase membership by next
year.
``of course, the board is not real pleased with the losses,'' said green,
the chairman. ``we review all of the financial information, but we look
toward management to come up with plans to reverse it.''
green said a massive marketing and letter-writing campaign is under way and
the three-tiered membership structure - $48, $72 and $2,400 for a life
membership - will be converted to a single-level membership fee. the new fee
has not yet been set.
a.r.e. hopes to have 23,500 members by the end of the year and 50,000 in
three years.
adding to the troubles are disgruntled long-time members who believe a.r.e.
has lost its direction and is failing to communicate with them. charles
thomas cayce, edgar's grandson and a.r.e.'s executive director, has been the
central target of the complaints.
``ct cayce has an aura of fame that blinds most people, especially
members,'' said jean-jacques surbeck of california, who started an internet
chat room called whitherare.
``because he bears the name cayce, they cannot shake the idea that he must
be a replica of his grandfather. that makes it very difficult for members
like me and a few others who wish to cast a more critical eye, not so much
on the individual per se, but simply on his performance,'' he said.
cayce failed to show up for a recent scheduled interview with a reporter.
a.r.e.'s lawyer said it was because he had a doctor appointment.
seeing trouble ahead, the a.r.e. board of trustees brought in a new
management team in 1999.
gerald l. martin and michael l. dempsey were named the executive directors.
they formed an alliance with employees ronald b. smith, a legal analyst;
robert v. phelps, a program manager; and nancy a. young, a.r.e.'s human
resources manager.
they proposed sweeping changes, including rewriting a.r.e.'s mission
statement to focus more on christ. they wanted to cut wasteful spending,
increase marketing and create a long-term plan.
upon studying the finances, they said they found that money was being lost
on conferences, mainly because too many people were attending for free.
books and supplies were given away as well, they said.
there also were wasteful trips, they said, including a disney world visit
one staff member tacked on during a staff cruise.
they recommended belt tightening and boosting what has been successful, like
the massage school and the cayce care products.
but quickly, there was dissension among the ranks. staff morale plummeted
and instead of turning around the organization, financial losses grew and
membership continued sinking. within a year, the board fired martin and
dempsey and the others were forced out, according to their lawyer.
the five are suing a.r.e., claiming they were wrongfully terminated and
defamed on whitherare, surbeck's internet chat room that has been airing
a.r.e.'s dirty laundry since may 2000.
martin, dempsey and the three other former employees claim that surbeck led
the charge to have them fired, in part because of their religious beliefs.
according to postings on whitherare, martin and dempsey were accused of
trying to turn a.r.e. into a fundamentalist christian organization.
``there was a feeling that they were pushing a heavy christian agenda down
everyone's throats,'' said k. paul johnson, an author and a.r.e. member from
south boston, va.
what turned many members against dempsey and martin began with their
proposal for a new mission statement, which began: ``to be a
christ-centered. . . '' and included frequent references to god, jesus and
christ.
``that's what we're all about,'' said phelps, who said he was forced out
after dempsey and martin were fired.
the current mission statement has no references to jesus or christ.
according to the suit filed june 1 in state court, surbeck, todeschi, green,
board member max preston and employee kieth vonderohe accused the five of
burning books, using gestapo tactics, calling them jesus freaks and
comparing them to the mafia and satan.
each of the five is seeking $3.5 million in the lawsuit.
dempsey was hired in march 1998 and was promoted to executive director with
martin, when he was hired a year later. they said their objective was to
turn around a ``sinking ship.'' they were fired, they say, because
management didn't like what they had to say.
``there were some people there who felt the status quo was threatened,''
dempsey said.
a.r.e. officials blame dempsey and martin for financial losses during their
tenure and for ruining morale. they point to a $600,000 publicity campaign
that failed to attract new members.
``they failed from the first to establish trust between them and the
managers and staff, and the inability to do so has caused a crisis of
confidence and morale for our organization,'' according to a july 2000 board
resolution approved when the two were fired.
martin, phelps, smith and young now run a christian organization called
preparing the way, whose motto is ``building a closer relationship with god
through christ.''
a.r.e. officials declined to comment on the suit but the organization's
lawyer said the federal equal employment opportunity commission has rejected
a discrimination claim.
meanwhile, a.r.e.'s mission and direction continue to be hotly debated.
``we're still talking about `the work,' and most of us still don't know what
it means,'' surbeck said.
reach tim mcglone at 446-2343 or tmcglone(at)pilotonline.com description of
illustration(s):
robert v. phelps, left, and michael l. dempsey, former
members of the management team at the association for research and
enlightenment, are among five who are suing a.r.e., claiming they
were wrongfully terminated and defamed.
mort fryman photos/the virginian-pilot
kevin j. todeschi, a senior manager at the association for research
and enlightenment, is named in a lawsuit against the organization.
photo
cayce...
about the
organization
the association for research and enlightenment, founded by edgar
cayce, above, is a nonprofit center for holistic healing and
spiritual guidance.
the problems
dwindling membership: from a high of nearly 100,000 in the late
1980s to the current number of 21,353.
loss of money: $1.8 million in 1999 and another $2.7 million last
year, tax returns and finance records show, despite a 20 percent
increase in dues.
color file photo
the organization's assets include its headquarters in virginia
beach, assessed at about $3.5 million.
color photo
l. todd spencer/the virginian-pilot
gerry cormier, center, leads members of a tai chi class on the beach
at 67th street in virginia beach. the class, sponsored by the
association for research and enlightenment, is one of many offered
by the organization.
published: july 5, 2001
section: front, page a1
source: tim mcglone the virginian-pilot
ãƒâƒã‚âƒãƒâ‚ã‚âƒãƒâƒã‚â‚ãƒâ‚ã‚âƒãƒâƒã‚âƒãƒâ‚ã‚â‚ムâƒã‚â‚ãƒâ‚ã‚â‚ãƒâƒã‚âƒãƒâ‚ã‚âƒãƒâƒã‚â‚ãƒâ‚ã‚â‚ãƒâƒ ã‚âƒãƒâ‚ã‚â‚ãƒâƒã‚â‚ãƒâ‚ã‚â© 2001- landmark communications inc.
edgar cayce's followers say he predicted world war ii, stock market crashes,
a presidential assassination and even, in 1932, the growth of virginia beach
as one of the largest resort cities on the east coast.
but his 14,000 ``readings'' never prophesied the turmoil that now grips the
international organization he founded 70 years ago on the oceanfront. the
association for research and enlightenment, cayce's nonprofit center for
holistic healing and spiritual guidance, is sinking, according to some
current and former members. it has lost nearly 80,000 members in the past 10
years and $4.5 million in the past two.
hemorrhaging money and members, a.r.e. now faces a multimillion-dollar
lawsuit by former leaders who were accused of trying to transform the
ecumenical organization into a hotbed of christian fundamentalism.
analysts say the organization won't survive much longer at that rate.
officials of the institute, led by the late founder's grandson, said there's
nothing to worry about. reforms are in place to reduce expenses and boost
revenue. years of deficit spending will be turned around.
``we've been faced with these things for 10 years. we made lots of changes
in the past year to run a more responsive organization,'' said harvey green
of hawaii, a 35-year a.r.e. member and chairman of its board of trustees.
the lawsuit, meanwhile, is symbolic of the ongoing internal struggle over
the direction a.r.e. should take in the new millennium. some believe it
should become more spiritual. others think holistic medicine should be the
priority, and still others believe psychic and esp avenues should be
pursued.
a.r.e. reached a zenith in the late 1980s at the height of the new age
movement. actress shirley maclaine's books on reincarnation and meditation
were bestsellers, aging baby boomers sought yoga and meditation and a.r.e.
membership neared 100,000.
cayce followers flocked to virginia beach for holistic remedies, dream
interpretation, spiritual growth, astrology readings and to explore the more
far-out principles of esp, clairvoyance and past life regressions. a.r.e.
also offered more mainstream programs, such as a youth camp and a school for
massage therapy, programs still in place today.
a.r.e.'s programs were inspired by cayce's work. over 43 years, cayce, who
died in 1945, slipped into a trance-like state 14,000 times, giving medical
advice, offering cures, reliving past lives and predicting events far into
the future. he claims to have been able to memorize textbooks by sleeping on
them.
cayce's readings are based on the akashic records, also known as the book of
life, a mystical repository of every piece of information on every human who
ever lived and every event that has ever taken place. he is said to have
tapped into this record during his trances.
kirk nelson of virginia beach has been an edgar cayce student for more than
20 years. he has written several books, including one on the prophesied
second coming of jesus.
typical of many a.r.e. members, he believes in the healing qualities of
herbs and nutritional supplements that cayce emphasized in his readings.
``cayce said anyone who ate three almonds a day would never get cancer,''
nelson said.
``when my mother was alive, she made my father eat three almonds every day.
after she died, he stopped eating them,'' he said. his father's psa - a
chemical warning sign of prostate cancer - skyrocketed.
``he told me this and i yelled at him, `what's wrong with you?' it's so
simple,'' nelson said.
three months later, after his father resumed his daily almond intake, his
psa test was normal again.
similar stories are touted regularly by officials at a.r.e. photos of people
who have been healed using cayce methods and cayce care products hang on the
walls at a.r.e. headquarters at 67th street and pacific avenue. the
headquarters' bookstore is filled with cayce's nutritional and meditative
treatments for nearly every disease.
but a.r.e. and cayce have been criticized through the years by people
seeking to debunk his work.
in his book ``flim flam,'' james randi of fort lauderdale, fla., contends
that cayce simply wrote out his dreams and knew what illnesses afflicted
people before he ``predicted'' the problem.
``there was never any evidence he was in a trance. some people said he was
snoring,'' said randi, who has a standing $1 million offer to anyone who can
prove psychic, supernatural or paranormal behavior.
he and others also criticized cayce's predictions that the second coming of
christ would occur in 1998 and that the earth's polar caps would swap places
by 2000, causing earthquakes and volcanic eruptions around the globe. cayce
followers say these predictions are being misinterpreted.
david c. lane, a philosophy and sociology professor at mount san antonio
college in california, teaches a course on critical thinking and has
explored cayce's work. he, too, argues that cayce's supposed psychic
abilities don't hold up. but, he added, there generally is no harm in his
followers seeking meaning, happiness and health in their lives.
``it's not like jim jones,'' he said of the cult leader who led a mass
suicide at his camp in guyana in 1978. ``it's been more open-ended than
these other groups.''
as the new age movement waned through the 1990s, so did a.r.e.'s membership.
lane and others believe that thousands who joined during the 1980s grew to
doubt cayce's work. a.r.e. officials have a different explanation.
kevin j. todeschi, a senior manager, said the 100,000 membership figure is
misleading. after accounting for thousands who joined through a one-time
direct mail campaign and subscription offer, the core membership was more
accurately about 30,000, he said.
today, membership stands at 21,353, according to a.r.e.'s latest figures.
a.r.e. also was hit hard financially in 1999 when contributions dropped from
$2.4 million to just more than $1 million, federal tax records show.
book sales have slipped, investments tanked with the slumping stock market,
and the number of visitors to a.r.e. headquarters and its gift shop is half
what it was five years ago, according to tax returns and a.r.e. records.
the organization lost $1.8 million in 1999 and another $2.7 million last
year, despite a 20 percent increase in dues. some blame the higher dues for
driving away members.
with annual budgets between $7 million and $8 million in the past few years,
a.r.e. can't survive long in such a decline, according to daniel borochoff,
president of the american institute for philanthropy, a charity watchdog.
a.r.e. had to tap into its reserves to make up for the losses and prepare
for future deficits. as a result, net assets dropped from $11.5 million at
the end of 1998 to $8.4 million at the end of 2000. the assets include the
property at 67th and pacific, assessed at about $3.5 million.
a.r.e.'s board presented the grim budget news to members during a mid-june
annual congress in virginia beach. staff has been cut through attrition and
by replacing employees with volunteers. if finances don't improve, program
cuts will be next, the board said.
in another cost-cutting move, a.r.e. will move its atlantic university,
which offers a master's degree in transpersonal studies, from little neck
road to the headquarters.
the 2001 budget has already factored in a $600,000 deficit, but board
members said they plan to balance the budget and increase membership by next
year.
``of course, the board is not real pleased with the losses,'' said green,
the chairman. ``we review all of the financial information, but we look
toward management to come up with plans to reverse it.''
green said a massive marketing and letter-writing campaign is under way and
the three-tiered membership structure - $48, $72 and $2,400 for a life
membership - will be converted to a single-level membership fee. the new fee
has not yet been set.
a.r.e. hopes to have 23,500 members by the end of the year and 50,000 in
three years.
adding to the troubles are disgruntled long-time members who believe a.r.e.
has lost its direction and is failing to communicate with them. charles
thomas cayce, edgar's grandson and a.r.e.'s executive director, has been the
central target of the complaints.
``ct cayce has an aura of fame that blinds most people, especially
members,'' said jean-jacques surbeck of california, who started an internet
chat room called whitherare.
``because he bears the name cayce, they cannot shake the idea that he must
be a replica of his grandfather. that makes it very difficult for members
like me and a few others who wish to cast a more critical eye, not so much
on the individual per se, but simply on his performance,'' he said.
cayce failed to show up for a recent scheduled interview with a reporter.
a.r.e.'s lawyer said it was because he had a doctor appointment.
seeing trouble ahead, the a.r.e. board of trustees brought in a new
management team in 1999.
gerald l. martin and michael l. dempsey were named the executive directors.
they formed an alliance with employees ronald b. smith, a legal analyst;
robert v. phelps, a program manager; and nancy a. young, a.r.e.'s human
resources manager.
they proposed sweeping changes, including rewriting a.r.e.'s mission
statement to focus more on christ. they wanted to cut wasteful spending,
increase marketing and create a long-term plan.
upon studying the finances, they said they found that money was being lost
on conferences, mainly because too many people were attending for free.
books and supplies were given away as well, they said.
there also were wasteful trips, they said, including a disney world visit
one staff member tacked on during a staff cruise.
they recommended belt tightening and boosting what has been successful, like
the massage school and the cayce care products.
but quickly, there was dissension among the ranks. staff morale plummeted
and instead of turning around the organization, financial losses grew and
membership continued sinking. within a year, the board fired martin and
dempsey and the others were forced out, according to their lawyer.
the five are suing a.r.e., claiming they were wrongfully terminated and
defamed on whitherare, surbeck's internet chat room that has been airing
a.r.e.'s dirty laundry since may 2000.
martin, dempsey and the three other former employees claim that surbeck led
the charge to have them fired, in part because of their religious beliefs.
according to postings on whitherare, martin and dempsey were accused of
trying to turn a.r.e. into a fundamentalist christian organization.
``there was a feeling that they were pushing a heavy christian agenda down
everyone's throats,'' said k. paul johnson, an author and a.r.e. member from
south boston, va.
what turned many members against dempsey and martin began with their
proposal for a new mission statement, which began: ``to be a
christ-centered. . . '' and included frequent references to god, jesus and
christ.
``that's what we're all about,'' said phelps, who said he was forced out
after dempsey and martin were fired.
the current mission statement has no references to jesus or christ.
according to the suit filed june 1 in state court, surbeck, todeschi, green,
board member max preston and employee kieth vonderohe accused the five of
burning books, using gestapo tactics, calling them jesus freaks and
comparing them to the mafia and satan.
each of the five is seeking $3.5 million in the lawsuit.
dempsey was hired in march 1998 and was promoted to executive director with
martin, when he was hired a year later. they said their objective was to
turn around a ``sinking ship.'' they were fired, they say, because
management didn't like what they had to say.
``there were some people there who felt the status quo was threatened,''
dempsey said.
a.r.e. officials blame dempsey and martin for financial losses during their
tenure and for ruining morale. they point to a $600,000 publicity campaign
that failed to attract new members.
``they failed from the first to establish trust between them and the
managers and staff, and the inability to do so has caused a crisis of
confidence and morale for our organization,'' according to a july 2000 board
resolution approved when the two were fired.
martin, phelps, smith and young now run a christian organization called
preparing the way, whose motto is ``building a closer relationship with god
through christ.''
a.r.e. officials declined to comment on the suit but the organization's
lawyer said the federal equal employment opportunity commission has rejected
a discrimination claim.
meanwhile, a.r.e.'s mission and direction continue to be hotly debated.
``we're still talking about `the work,' and most of us still don't know what
it means,'' surbeck said.
reach tim mcglone at 446-2343 or tmcglone(at)pilotonline.com description of
illustration(s):
robert v. phelps, left, and michael l. dempsey, former
members of the management team at the association for research and
enlightenment, are among five who are suing a.r.e., claiming they
were wrongfully terminated and defamed.
mort fryman photos/the virginian-pilot
kevin j. todeschi, a senior manager at the association for research
and enlightenment, is named in a lawsuit against the organization.
photo
cayce...
about the
organization
the association for research and enlightenment, founded by edgar
cayce, above, is a nonprofit center for holistic healing and
spiritual guidance.
the problems
dwindling membership: from a high of nearly 100,000 in the late
1980s to the current number of 21,353.
loss of money: $1.8 million in 1999 and another $2.7 million last
year, tax returns and finance records show, despite a 20 percent
increase in dues.
color file photo
the organization's assets include its headquarters in virginia
beach, assessed at about $3.5 million.
color photo
l. todd spencer/the virginian-pilot
gerry cormier, center, leads members of a tai chi class on the beach
at 67th street in virginia beach. the class, sponsored by the
association for research and enlightenment, is one of many offered
by the organization.