Quote:
What is it that has been instilled in the members of this church to feel that it is alright to tear families apart?


I suspect, along with a good dose of religious snobbery, it is verses such as the following:

Luke 12
51Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division. 52From now on there will be five in one family divided against each other, three against two and two against three. 53They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law."


They use these verses to encourage their members to separate from "unbelieving" (ie: not in their church or religious denomination) family members for "Christ's" sake.

They conveniently forget such passages as this:

Matthew 15
3He answered and said to them, "Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition? 4For God commanded, saying, "Honor your father and your mother'; and, "He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.' 5But you say, "Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God"-- 6then he need not honor his father or mother.' Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition. 7Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:


8"These people draw near to Me with their mouth,
And[5] honor Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.
9And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men."'


You should put that in a card and send it to him!
Who are these people behind the stained glass windows? Have they forgotten just what they came here for? Was it salvation or "scared of hell" or
an assembly of a social get-together?

Kings X, Mission