To Stewart Traill from Mike Montoya

I am not sure that you got my last letter. I sent it to the email address on your web site. I
did not get a reply. I called Manhattan and Brooklyn asking for your phone number to call you and got the pre-GRACE Meeting legalism you taught coming out of brothers and sisters I knew 15 years ago. I have the privilege to host a web site where brothers and sisters who used to listen to you can come and talk about what they went through under your leadership. Don’t misunderstand. You are a very small part of their lives now that God has liberated them from your abuse, your teaching, your cult. I get about 15 to 20 emails a day from brothers and sisters who have since married, raised children and most important have grown and are growing in the grace of God each day.

I understand that You had a Grace Meeting in 1988. This was the meeting that you called to disavow all previous teaching as Old Testament Legalism. You asked for forgiveness and committed yourself to teaching Grace. Some of the sisters who lived with you at Princeton bore witness to the sins you committed that lead to this purge. Stewart, I can confirm with 2 or 3 or 10 witnesses what you have done. I can confirm with hundreds of witnesses what you are plainly guilty of. You used to rail at the older brothers and sisters how they just didn’t want to be responsible. How it was their cult , not yours. You are wrong. They left your cult and are living for the Lord Jesus right now. Their spirit shows it. Their words show it. Their actions show it. And what fruit is your tree bearing. With the acceptation of Kathy Ditton and perhaps Liz Bailey I encounter bitter, fearful brothers and sisters in your cult who, for some reason , still aren’t married, still  don’t have children(which you no doubt have read are a blessing from the Lord) and still regard you, not as a loving and kind brother who lays down his life for the brethren, but as an untouchable , unattainable  paramount of legalism. You are that jagged mountain in Pilgrim’s Progress that stands too high and overshadowing to climb. You have sinned against the sisters of Princeton. Did you call a brothers meeting like you taught us to do? Did you make your behavior right? Did you step down or remove yourself as an honorable brother would do if he judged himself as unfit to teach.

Did you misappropriate funds? With what money did you start your camera business?
Where do you live now? Does any brothers and sisters share in your comfort for which they labor? Why does the church have 4 aircraft? Who else but you flies them? I could ask you a thousand questions. Would you answer one?

And now what appalls any who hear. That you  no longer teach the basic message of salvation whereby people will be saved? Shake yourself man. Wake up and see what you are doing. God will call you to account.

You are mistaken about many things. Not the least of which is that the Church of Bible Understanding is not in there with you. The church is out here. What happened to the Teaching of Grace. Some have written me stating that things went back to Legalism as usual the very next day. Did you call the Grace Meeting in order to WAG THE DOG? For those still inside who haven’t followed the Clinton scandal or seen the movie, let me explain. President Clinton and the President in the movie have something in common. The both will start something ,say, in country A in order to divert attention from whats going on at home with their own personal problems. Did you , Stewart , call the Grace Meeting to pacify those who knew what you were doing with the sisters at Princeton?

You used to complain that the brothers never held you accountable. Never tested you. From what I understand , when they do , you blast them! I imagine that there are some in the church right now who really want to be there. That’s fine. I have never doubted that COBU had as its members real Christians who truly believe and love Jesus. You I can’t quite place in that category. Why didn’t you step down after the Princeton affair? Why do the current brothers and sisters treat you like the Great Oz. You can’t check on them to see how they really behave because...well....you are Stewart. No one acts normal around you.

You should listen to your fruit on the telephone. They don’t fear God . They are terrified of God. They do not believe they are saved or born again anymore. They have stern warnings for us Christians outside the walls of COBU. Nice work Stu. They will never leave you because they are terrified.

I thought of other reasons why they stay. Hmmm. Would a 45 to 50 year old woman leave COBU now? She is not married. She thinks her chances of marriage are better in COBU. She has life long friends in COBU. Guess its better to be in than to be out. Yeah Yeah..I know. They are doing God’s will and those who left and got married are living for the world. Stewart , you don’t read my email or answer my phone...heck you don’t even answer your own phone. Your followers hammer us and the unsaved with “How will you stand before God and the day of Judgment stuff. Yeah real grace. Hey Stewart remember John 3:17  or here is an easy one...John 3:16. They were part of the 12 memory verses. You memorize all 12 and you get a red button. How many verses did you have to memorize to get that cool black one? So you have robbed sisters of motherhood and marriage. You have stood in the way of brothers starting relationships which would result in marriage. You have abandoned true teaching of the gospel of salvation. Hmmmm what else? Still want to know if you have been a good stewart ..oh excuse me...steward with church money. One brother found a bank statement with your name on it. $200,000 plus in the bank and that was years ago.

Why should I care? Why should I write you a letter? Why not let it all go on and on? Well, I am a Christian. I have been a Christian for 23 years.  God has been faithful even when I was faithless(see Mike Testimony on web site). I am faithful to what I know. In fact there alot of us who are faithful to what we know. And we are here for the brothers and sisters in COBU when they leave. We are healing from the experience of knowing you. I get the letters . I get the phone calls. I meet the brothers and sisters. You have a lot of splainin to do.(See I Love Lucy Show). I could go on and on. In fact I did(see Mike Montoya’s Testimony on web site).

The truth is , Stewart, we are not afraid of you anymore. Guess what? God lives outside of COBU too. My brother was at a meeting some years ago. He remembers you opening up the floor for questions and criticisms. He must have been dreaming. He said that one brother stood up and asked why we ,as a church , believed that one could not be a faithful Christian outside COBU. To which you responded incredulous. “Does anyone think that”(Stewart with a questioning confused face) eliciting reaction from a silent knowing COBU. No one stood up and answered. So you went on. We all knew that the brother was telling the truth. The evidence is still living in COBU today. Call up and get the party line. “Why don’t you come back here and unite with us.” The implication is that I am not united with anyone there because  I’m here. Where did they learn to think like that. How bout when you said “I’m not saying you can’t be faithful anywhere else, but 99% of those who leave backslide.” Remember that, Stewart. Are you paying attention! I’ve got audio clips of you behaving in a disgraceful manner on my audio site. Its worth a visit. You might explain that was before the GRACE Meeting. Fair enough. I sent a pack of 5 cassette tapes to Bob Muller. I want him to tape the New and improved Stewart. He and Steve Tourpe said they would get back to me on whether or not to give your phone number to me. They did not get back to me. Bob Muller said he’d write me a letter. He hasn’t. I have. I have been in contact and more faithful to my words than your followers are. They have my information. They know where I live. They know how to reach me. I
live openly. Nothing done in a corner. How bout you?

You remind me of Dr. Gene Scott. He is much better at culting than you. He has a Ph.D.. from Stanford. Works out of Southern Calif. Look him up. If you can fit your two egos in the same stadium then call him , meet with him. He could give you pointers. He is rich. Owns alot more than you do. He is global. Jim Jones went to Father Divine for pointers. Jones got up to a thousand followers. Of course he had a different style which led to a significant drop in church attendance.  Learn from others mistakes. You and Scott have a similar style. Authoritarian, legalistic. And you both have a monopoly on interpreting the Bible. Funny how 2 people can think they have the only truth. No chance you could call me if you and Scott meet. Love to be there. Love to be there. I could just hear it the dialogue. But I digress.

In closing(mild applause from the audience)I would like to ask you if you ever received the Holy Spirit? Have you been born of the Spirit? The gospel of John chapter 3 has a very clear message of salvation. Check Romans 10:9. Hey I have an idea. Why don’t you read the New Testament. Its in the latter part of your Bible. There are alot of scriptures about the new birth and receiving the Holy Spirit. Alot of that new birth stuff happening in the Acts of the Apostles. Have another Grace Meeting. And mean it this time.

P.S. If, when you asked everyone to forgive you back in 1988 for all the bad teaching you taught for all those years, you meant to include us brothers and sisters who left before 1988, I forgive you. You big Lug!

Your Brother in Christ Mike (provided you are also a brother in Christ)
<P>P.P.S.  The gift to discern spirits. Hmmm. I'll address that next time.