William Branham Historical Research Podcast

John Collins speaks with Eve, a former participant in charismatic and deliverance movements, about her journey through healing ministries, prophetic practices, and ecstatic worship—and how those experiences ultimately led her out of Christianity and into shamanism before a slow, painful return to a simpler faith. Eve describes the psychological impact of trance-based worship, healing crusades, prophetic art, and deliverance practices, drawing parallels between modern charismatic experiences and ancient ritual techniques designed to suspend critical thinking. Together, John and Eve examine how figures associated with healing revivals and deliverance culture shaped expectations of miracles, identity, and spiritual success, and why those systems often collapse under real-world suffering, unanswered prayers, and unmet promises. The conversation explores cult markers, mind-control techniques, loaded language, and the long process of rebuilding faith after spiritual disillusionment, offering insight for anyone questioning charismatic theology or recovering from high-control religious environments. ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and Bob trace how modern prophetic culture shifted from discernment and accountability into a system driven by influence, status, and institutional power. Drawing from firsthand experience inside the Kansas City Fellowship and its evolution toward IHOP-KC, they examine how prophetic authority was consolidated, how failed prophecies were protected, and why unchecked spiritual influence inevitably produces conflict, control, and disillusionment. The conversation explores the historical through-line from William Branham and the Latter Rain to contemporary apostolic movements, showing how prophecy became systemic rather than spiritual. Along the way, they unpack biblical tests that were quietly abandoned, why flattery replaced discernment, and how religious systems mirror the same power dynamics found in politics and business. ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and Brantley discuss the hidden mechanics behind modern prophetic culture, sharing personal experiences from IHOPKC, Latter-Rain-influenced churches, and other charismatic environments. They explore why certain experiences feel supernatural, how communal expectation shapes perception, and why vague impressions often get elevated into authoritative messages. Together, they untangle the emotional, psychological, and spiritual factors that make prophetic systems so compelling for sincere believers.They also walk through the impact of prophecy rooms, cold-reading dynamics, performative spirituality, and the subtle pressure to speak "for God" even when nothing is happening. This conversation helps listeners understand how people can be drawn into these systems, why the language of spirituality becomes a tool for control, and how to reclaim a grounded, healthy perspective on faith, intuition, and the mystery of human experience.______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and Chino continue their in-depth examination of Hobart Freeman by tracing the medical, theological, and psychological factors that led to his death in 1984. Drawing directly from Freeman's own sermons, eyewitness testimony, coroner records, and contemporary reporting, they document a long-ignored progression—from childhood polio and traumatic injury, to chronic pain, untreated infection, and ultimately gangrene. Along the way, they expose how proof-texting and authoritarian faith-healing doctrine replaced sound hermeneutics and basic medical care. This episode confronts a central contradiction in destructive revival movements: leaders who demand radical faith from followers while quietly exempting themselves when reality intrudes. By examining Freeman's claims of healing, his refusal of medical treatment, and the aftermath within Faith Assembly, John and Chino show how cognitive dissonance, spiritual intimidation, and theological elitism persist even after a leader's death. The discussion places Freeman squarely within a broader pattern seen in Branhamism, Latter Rain, and modern apostolic movements.

John examines why Freemasonry alone cannot explain the theological problems inside modern charismatic and New Apostolic Reformation movements. Tracing the issue back to ancient Gnosticism, he explains how secret knowledge, spiritual elitism, and hidden revelation repeatedly resurface in Christian history. By comparing early church responses—especially Irenaeus' work Against Heresies—with post-World War II healing revivals, Branhamism, and modern NAR teachings, this episode shows how Gnostic ideas reshape salvation, authority, and church identity. The discussion exposes why mystery-driven Christianity thrives in times of fear and instability, and why the simple public gospel remains the antidote. ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and Amanda explore what it was like to grow up in the Message, from constant tape-listening and Cold War fear language to the lifelong weight of guilt, shame, and depression. They talk candidly about PTSD-like symptoms, emotional invalidation, controlling gender rules, racism, and the way fear of judgment shaped every decision--from hair and clothing to relationships and voting--while John connects these experiences to broader research on William Branham, Christian Identity, and Cold War-era apocalyptic preaching. Together they reflect on leaving a high-control group, facing the grief of lost family relationships, and learning to reclaim bodily, intellectual, and spiritual autonomy. Amanda shares how therapy, education, and curiosity about other cultures helped her heal, while John describes the long climb out of despair and into a life where faith is no longer weaponized. This conversation is for anyone wrestling with religious trauma, lingering fear about prophecies, or the question of whether a healthy, ordinary life is still possible after spiritual abuse. ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and Jenny dive deep into the psychology of obedience in high-control religious movements, focusing on the global ministry Youth With A Mission (YWAM). Drawing from lived experiences and professional trauma recovery work, they explore how enforced obedience suppresses consent, erases personal agency, and stunts emotional and cognitive development in children and young adults. Jenny explains how somatic trauma responses like “fawning” emerge from chronic obedience conditioning, while John connects these behaviors to the broader cultic systems within Pentecostal and Latter Rain movements. Together they unpack the devastating effects of obedience-based discipleship, from the breaking of children’s wills to lifelong struggles with shame, identity, and self-trust. The conversation also exposes how spiritual manipulation can rewire developmental pathways, creating adults who fear mistakes and repress emotion. It’s an honest, insightful dialogue that challenges one of the most dangerous doctrines in modern evangelical missions—and calls for restoration of agency, growth, and healthy autonomy.______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________– Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham – Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and John McKinnon examine how certain modern Christian teachings redefine salvation, adoption, and spiritual authority. Together they contrast biblical teaching on grace, adoption, and human inability with systems that emphasize pre-existence, spiritual hierarchy, and dominion, showing how these ideas reshape the starting point of the gospel. The discussion traces how language about power, manifestation, and authority replaces repentance, redemption, and resurrection, and why Scripture consistently presents salvation as God's work from beginning to end. By grounding the conversation in clear biblical texts, this episode helps listeners discern the difference between adoption by grace and systems that promise elevation through spiritual status. ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John explains why Freemasonry becomes a fixation for people leaving high-control religious groups, especially movements tied to William Branham and the New Apostolic Reformation. Drawing on history, personal experience, and documented hoaxes, he separates conspiracy theory from verifiable evidence while showing how fraternal-order structures were quietly replicated inside modern charismatic and apostolic movements. This episode examines Albert Pike, the Taxil hoax, Lucifer language, Christian Identity, pyramid theology, and why secrecy, hierarchy, and "inner knowledge" do far more damage inside churches than Freemasonry ever did outside them. The result is a sober, historically grounded framework for understanding why cult survivors spiral into conspiracy thinking — and how to step out of it. ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and Jedediah reflect on growing up inside elite families within high-control charismatic movements, comparing their experiences in Branhamism, IHOP-KC, and related networks. They explore how "secret knowledge," proximity to powerful leaders, and inherited status create rigid hierarchies that reward conformity while masking abuse, hypocrisy, and manipulation. Drawing on personal stories, they explain how elitism functions like a mystery cult—offering prestige and access while quietly demanding silence and loyalty. The conversation traces how these systems evolve over time, absorbing new prophecies, myths, and authority figures while discarding dissenters the moment they become inconvenient. From unpaid labor programs and prophetic grooming to shunning and reputational erasure, John and Jedediah unpack the psychological cost of leaving such environments. The discussion closes with reflections on rebuilding identity after exit, finding meaning beyond spiritual elitism, and learning to value ordinary life after years of extraordinary claims.______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John, Kevin, and Barbara examine how post-Latter Rain and Voice of Healing networks helped lay the groundwork for today's blend of Word of Faith teaching, New Apostolic Reformation ideology, and aggressive Christian nationalism. They trace lines from Gordon Lindsay and early identity-influenced revival culture to Andrew Wommack's ministry in Woodland Park, Colorado, highlighting how a seemingly gentle Bible teacher fronts a sophisticated dominionist project aimed at reshaping local government, education, and civic life through Charis Bible College and the Truth and Liberty Coalition. ______________________Pelligrino Walk:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCPviIYcBQYTk491wXZWBYzw  ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and Bob trace the long, tangled lineage of modern Pentecostal and charismatic movements, showing how cycles of cultural upheaval, crisis, and disillusionment have shaped revival narratives for more than a century. Their discussion follows the relational "family tree" behind movements like Latter Rain, Kansas City Fellowship, IHOPKC, and the New Apostolic Reformation, revealing how claims such as the "billion soul harvest" evolved through repeated patterns of failed predictions, fear-based messaging, and institutional control. Drawing on historical examples, personal experience, and deep research, they explore why revival expectations persist, how technology has reshaped spiritual culture, and why authentic renewal requires honesty about past distortions. ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and Brantley discuss how authoritarian religious systems blur the lines between fantasy and faith, examining the strange doctrines, magical thinking, and psychological mechanisms that kept them trapped for decades. Using humor, honesty, and personal experience, they reflect on the cognitive dissonance required to believe in things like Branham’s “magic sword,” IHOPKC’s angelic warfare cosmology, and the Harry-Potter-style incantations normalized in modern charismatic culture.   They also explore how money, secrecy, elitism, and militarized theology feed high-control movements—from Branhamism to IHOPKC to YWAM—shaping everything from personal identity to political attitudes. The conversation connects historical roots, cult dynamics, and lived experience to show how ordinary people can get swept into extraordinary (and sometimes absurd) belief systems, and what it takes to walk away.   John and Brantley discuss how authoritarian religious systems blur the lines between fantasy and faith, examining the strange doctrines, magical thinking, and psychological mechanisms that kept them trapped for decades. Using humor, honesty, and personal experience, they reflect on the cognitive dissonance required to believe in things like Branham’s “magic sword,” IHOPKC’s angelic warfare cosmology, and the Harry-Potter-style incantations normalized in modern charismatic culture. They also explore how money, secrecy, elitism, and militarized theology feed high-control movements—from Branhamism to IHOPKC to YWAM—shaping everything from personal identity to political attitudes. The conversation connects historical roots, cult dynamics, and lived experience to show how ordinary people can get swept into extraordinary (and sometimes absurd) belief systems, and what it takes to walk away. ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________– Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham – Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and Chino examine the life and teachings of Hobart Freeman, tracing how a strict faith-healing theology collided with human aging, illness, and reality. Drawing from firsthand experience, recorded sermons, and historical context, the discussion explores how promises of guaranteed healing create cognitive dissonance, enable spiritual abuse, and leave families devastated when those promises fail. ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John traces the long, unsettling history behind today's "Army of God" and Seven Mountains language, showing how Christian Identity, British Israelism, and early twentieth-century revival movements shaped the way many believers now talk about nations, elections, and prophecy. Walking through old sermons, newspapers, and political campaigns, he explains why it only feels like things are worse today, and how earlier generations used the same fear-based apocalyptic narratives around leaders, wars, and "holy nations" that we see recycled in modern prophetic politics. From King Cyrus rhetoric around presidents to end-times math, dominion language, and the blending of pulpit and campaign stage, John invites listeners to step back and examine where these ideas came from and what they do to real people and real countries. This journey through overlooked history is meant to equip thoughtful Christians, former members of high-control movements, and anyone watching the New ______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and Priit discuss how sincere faith slowly shifted into a pressurized, high-control environment shaped by elitist teachings, strict submission, and the pursuit of “deeper revelation.” Preet shares how performance-driven expectations, prophetic claims, and honor culture replaced the love, peace, and joy that had originally drawn him to church life. Together, they explore how subtle philosophical shifts created emotional strain, isolation, and the sense that one’s future was tied to a leader rather than to God. They also describe the breaking point—how political messaging, fear-based prophecies, and reactions to world events accelerated confusion within the congregation. As Priit regained stability outside the system, he discovered confidence, clarity, and the freedom to relate to God without pressure. This conversation highlights how people can recognize unhealthy dynamics, rebuild their faith, and find hope on the other side. ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K______________________Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branhamVisit the website: https://william-branham.org

John and Jenny dive into the disturbing intersections between militarism, psychology, and religion within Youth With A Mission (YWAM). Drawing parallels to early Pentecostal cults and authoritarian movements, they examine how “spiritual warfare” language and practices condition young minds for obedience and control. Jenny shares her firsthand experience of life inside YWAM—where teenagers are sent on “target missions,” sleep-deprived prayer watches, and told demons lurk in everyday objects—while John connects these patterns to the mind control methods of Branhamism and early revival cults like those of Frank Sanford and John Alexander Dowie. Together they expose how hyper-spiritualized fear, trauma bonding, and dissociation produce lifelong anxiety and religious PTSD, even as participants believe they are serving God.______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________– Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham – Visit the website: https://william-branham.org 

John and John examine how twentieth-century revivalism helped construct the theological architecture behind today's apostolic networks. They trace how Branham's teachings--especially his denial of Christ's deity and promotion of adoption mysticism--created the framework later movements like the Latter Rain, Word-of-Faith, and NAR would amplify. The conversation highlights how these systems subtly redefine Jesus, elevate prophetic authority, and reshape Christianity into a hierarchy of "initiated" believers while retaining the language of orthodoxy. By exposing connections between Branham, Gordon Lindsay, British Israelism, and modern charismatic governance structures, they show how historic heresies continue to shape contemporary supernaturalism and distort the gospel.

John and Chino discuss the painful contradictions inside the divine healing movement: the promise of supernatural health contrasted with the hidden reality of chronically ill leaders and suffering followers. They revisit Hobart Freeman’s teachings, exploring why his doctrine collapsed under its own weight and how misapplied scriptures—especially Isaiah 53 and the “healing is easier” message—misled thousands. The conversation highlights the emotional toll on former members, the danger of tying salvation to physical healing, and the destructive power of pride within authoritarian religious systems. They also unpack how movements like British Israelism and the Latter Rain shaped modern healing theology, why context matters when reading prophetic texts, and how sincere but misguided leaders can still leave a trail of trauma. Through scriptural analysis and lived experience, John and Cheno show how peeling back the curtain—much like in The Wizard of Oz—reveals the human frailty behind grand spiritual claims. ______________________ Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR: Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K______________________Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branhamVisit the website: https://william-branham.org

John and Jed discuss the strange world of charismatic lore, looking honestly at how supernatural testimonies, miracle stories, and movement mythology shape the inner life of believers. Together, they explore how testimonies are created, how disassociation reinforces spiritual narratives, and why people inside revival culture often feel pressure to reinterpret reality through faith language. They also reflect on lived experiences--from IHOPKC to YWAM to the Branham movement--and how those environments formed patterns of belief, identity, and internal coping strategies. Through humor, honesty, and psychological insight, John and Jed offer a grounded, compassionate look at how people come to believe extraordinary stories and what it means to rebuild life on the other side of them.______________________Weaponized Religion: From Christian Identity to the NAR:Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1735160962 Kindle: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DCGGZX3K ______________________- Support the channel: https://www.patreon.com/branham - Visit the website: https://william-branham.org