Strange but true: not one single part of Jack Merrygold’s ex- perience in 1994 is without a mundane explanation. In fact, if you ignore the inexplicable deaths and the equally inexplicable ap- pearance of Lars’ dictaphone in Jack’s coat pocket, all of the things that happened to Willardston Grove Full Gospel Church hap-
pened identically in evangelical churches across North America, Britain and Australia (and, in some churches, is still happening). The writer recalls attending about three quarters of a meeting much like Dunn’s with an equally skeptical friend, and having to leave his friend lying on the fl oor, in a state of hypnagogic religious ecstasy, having been touched on the forehead. Unlike Lars, the skeptic was OK the following day (and no less skeptical). Similarly,
CHAPTER ONE: A HISTORY OF THE WITCH
48 48
the writer recalls a passing acquaintance who swore blind that he’d had his mercury-amalgam tooth fi llings miraculously turned into gold at such a meeting. He tried to show the fi llings, but to be honest, they just looked like fi llings. All this was part of a phe- nomenon that started in the early 1990s in the Airport Vineyard Church, Toronto, and which, by late 1994, had spread across the English-speaking world. It became known as the “Toronto Bless- ing” to both its supporters and detractors.
Anyway, all this is to say that in the real world, weird things happen all the time in the real world without any mag- ical explanation at all, and there is no reason to assume that absolutely everything weird has a supernatural explanation behind it. In fact, what better way to wrong-foot the players if it really is just, you know, psychology?
For example, in a situation like the mysterious events at Wil- lardston, it may well be that extreme religion has turned into a personality cult. Churches of the kind Pastor Dunn led cut people out for asking questions all the time: question the local Apostle’s word, question God, blaspheme against the Holy Spirit.
A minister like Dunn could be so blinded by his own cult of personality that he may have ordered the murder of Kathy and Lars without a second thought (they were hindering God’s Work!) or may be unaware that members of his church, mistak- enly believing themselves to be doing God’s work, are dispatch- ing people they believe are enemies of the cult. His demagoguery backfi red: he might be able to drive a new BMW bought out of the weekly collection, but what price his soul when he sees that his own people have been murdering people in his name?
• That Old-Time Religion, and that New-Time Religion All that having been said, what better way for a magi- cian to hide in plain sight than to call his magic “miracles”? With the whole Toronto Blessing phenomenon, and its se- quels, charismatic evangelicalism became the source of some of the weirdest beliefs and practices seen in mainstream re- ligion since the Middle Ages. Snake-handling isn’t the half of it. More importantly, it made some of its bandwagoneers extremely rich. Big time evangelists Kenneth and Gloria Copeland, Reinhard Bonnke, Rodney Howard-Browne and Benny Hinn weren’t short of money to begin with, but “signs
and wonders” have made them all millionaires, hundreds of times over. Their belief in “naming it and claiming it” - in telling God you want that drop-top Kompressor (and in blue – quite seriously) and that you want it now – worked for them, but doesn’t seem quite so effective for the majority of the TV congregations who send them money for the Lord’s Work, with the expectation that it’ll come back tenfold. A magi- cian with powers of persuasion and healing (and several other things) could quite easily hide within one of these well-sup- plied, well-attended and affl uent congregations without any- one ever knowing. On the other hand, a lot of people leading these churches are wholly sincere. A charismatic minister may fi nd one day he has gained the power to do the miracles he always dreamed of seeing. Does he see himself as a new Apostle, gifted by God? Does he reject his power with fear and trembling as Satanic? Or does he go crazy and start think- ing he’s the Second Coming?
• Alpha Rat’s Nest
The popularity of the Alpha Course in Christian basics was a direct result of the Toronto Blessing hitting Holy Trin- ity Brompton in London. Courses run all over the UK, and across much of North America and Australia. This is a big bone of contention for the Knights of Saint George, since Al- pha courses, which tend to attract wealthy, educated people, are a prime recruiting ground. But every Alpha Course (really) includes an away weekend where people go to “experience the Holy Spirit.” That is, people who take one of these courses go away somewhere quiet to spend a couple of days experiencing the phenomena that characterized the Toronto Blessing.
Which, given the above, is a place for a witch to be, or hide, or become. And yet, the Knights have a blind spot for the Alpha Course. They’re too busy arguing about whether it could be a recruiting tool that they haven’t seen it could be a hunting ground, or a place where the very thing they fi ght against could be most fertile. What happens when the two things coincide?
Detention (2008)
A typed document posted anonymously to Detective Inspector Frank Crowe, South Wales Constabulary, three weeks ago:
18TH MAY, CATHAYS YOUNG OFFENDERS’ DETENTION CENTRE
CROWE: And this is Simon May. The social worker. He’s dealing with the case. Apparently.
LEWIS: Ah. Pleased to meet you. MAY: Hello.
CROWE: There have been allegations, Mr. Lewis. About the center. LEWIS: Allegations.
MAY: Allegations of abuse.
LEWIS: And this is a police matter? CROWE: It’s a police matter now.
49
49 DETENTION
MAY: I... DI Crowe felt it necessary to come. To, ah... investigate the allegations.
[PAUSE]
LEWIS: This is about your daughter. MAY: What?
CROWE: Nothing.
LEWIS: Mr May doesn’t know. Somewhat remiss, I would have thought. CROWE: Lewis...
MAY: What is he talking about? CROWE: Nothing.
LEWIS: His daughter was here. Bianca. Repeat offender. MAY: You didn’t tell me-
CROWE: Shut it. Lewis, this has nothing to do with the investigation. LEWIS: You think she’s still here.
CROWE: I’m warning you- LEWIS: You’re warning me?
MAY: Calm down. Calm down. Gentlemen. Please, calm down. Whatever the situation with DI Crowe’s daughter, there are still allegations which we need to talk to you about.
LEWIS: About this establishment. MAY: Yes.
LEWIS: You had better sit down then. [PAUSE]
LEWIS: You can’t smoke in here, DI Crowe. CROWE: Stop me.
[PAUSE]
MAY: The allegations. LEWIS: The allegations.
MAY: It’s alleged by several of the inmates here that there’s been sys- tematic abuse.
LEWIS: What kind? CROWE: Satanic abuse.
MAY: No, not as such. Just with a character- CROWE: Satanic.
MAY: An occult character. LEWIS: Where did they-
MAY: We’re not at liberty to say.
LEWIS: You don’t believe it for one moment. CROWE: Why not?
CHAPTER ONE: A HISTORY OF THE WITCH
50 50
MAY: We have a duty to investigate any allegations of abuse. LEWIS: Of course. So?
MAY: We need to question some of your staff. You can apply for a court order. We’ve got to give you notice.
LEWIS: The usual? MAY: The usual.
CROWE: We’d like to go ahead and- LEWIS: No chance.
MAY: Mr Lewis-
LEWIS: No. Not with him.
CROWE: What’s that supposed to-
LEWIS: You know very well, Detective Inspector. MAY: I’m sorry?
LEWIS: His daughter was here for two years. She escaped somehow. It’s still being investigated. DI Crowe has been excluded from the investiga- tion.
CROWE: That’s not-
LEWIS: You should not be here. CROWE: This isn’t-
LEWIS: I see what you’re trying to do. He wants to fi nd out what happened to his daughter. He’s just using the allegations as an excuse.
MAY: Is this-?
CROWE: It isn’t. We have these allegations, and I’ve got no time for arsing about.
MAY: It’ll sort things out sooner. Look, I don’t believe-
LEWIS: They’re young offenders. What, you think they’ll go to the coun- seling staff and tell the truth? They’ll open up and reveal to you the sordid details?
MAY: The sooner we clear it up, the less chance it’ll get into the press.
LEWIS: No. They’re thugs. They won’t tell you a thing. CROWE: Whatever happened to rehabilitation, eh?
LEWIS: Your daughter was just as bad as the rest of them. A cold-eyed thug. No conscience.
CROWE: Lewis...
MAY: DI Crowe, please don’t- LEWIS: Stop.
[PAUSE]
MAY: What did you just do to him?
LEWIS: It doesn’t matter. He’s just out of the way. Your turn. You’re going to forget this. File a report saying it’s all false.
51
51 DETENTION
MAY: I am not.
LEWIS: I don’t think you have a choice. You’re not even going to remem- ber this. All I have to do is-
MAY: I don’t think I am.
LEWIS: Wait. Why didn’t that – you – ?
MAY. Yeah. You’re not alone in hiding things. [UNCLEAR] now.
LEWIS: No. No. I’m sorry. I’m sorry – sorry – I’m sorry – we can make a deal – please, no – no –
[A SCREAM]
[SOUND OF BREAKING GLASS] MAY: Wake up, Frank.
CROWE: Wait. What? Where – no. I didn’t- MAY: No. It’s OK. You didn’t.
CROWE: He’s –
MAY: He can’t have survived. We have to call an ambulance. CROWE: But I can’t have –
MAY: Are you all right? You were here, telling him the allegations. Listing them out. And he broke down. Completely broke down. Threw him- self out of the window. I mean, it’s shocking.
CROWE: He threw himself –
MAY: Yeah. Threw himself out of the window. CROWE: I don’t –
MAY: I’ll go and call an ambulance. You’d better do something about the scene.
CROWE: Don’t tell me how to do my job, son. MAY: Sorry. Of course. Sorry. No.