The Raid on the Branch of Davidians - Research Paper Example

? The Branch Davidians The Branch Davidians Known as “the Branch”, the Branch Davidians mainly emerged as a sect from the Protestant,in the year 1955 whose religious beliefs are partially connected to the Messianic Judaism. The modern perception of this sect is recalled with reference to the Waco siege which took place in 1993 on Mount Carmel Centre in Texas. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATF), and the Texas National Guard (TNG) were involved in this cordon, which lead to the death of the Branch’s leader David Koresh (Tabor & Gallagher 1997). Waco itself is a place which traces its history back to 1860s when it was founded and rebuilt over the next century despite violence and bloodshed. The raid on the Branch of Davidians was considered by religious scholars as an ignorant move towards a conscious group of people which considered their own leader as the ultimate means of power. The actions took by the FBI were of extreme psychological and strategic force. They dismissed the sentiments and beliefs of the Branch Davidians whom they thought were hostages to a sociopath leader, Koresh. The law enforcement community failed to detect religion as a significant variable due to the history of scheming reformations. The agents saw it more as a heretical or a cultic group because of its beliefs in various things, an act which varied from other belief systems including their own. It was due to this image of the “cult” associated with the Branch Davidians that the media and the masses perceived the leader of the group as the dominant psychological controller of unwitting and ego-deficient followers. Hence what the agencies were looking for was a perfect scenario to kill the cult. David Koresh’s profile was set up by agent Mark Young and Pete Sinerick based on previous reports: “For years he [Koresh] has been brainwashing his followers for this battle [between his church and his enemies],…Koresh validates his prophetic warnings that an attack is forthcoming and they are going to have to defend themselves. According to his teachings, if they die defending their faith, they will be saved.” (Ammerman 1995) The Branch Davidians held close to the Christian values with additional dogmas. Originally it was founded by Benjamin Lloyd Roden and Lois Irene Scott Roden who wanted to bring together those who believe in preserving and observing the essential practices such as the Sabbath and Feast Day. Certain rituals were and still are close to the Hebraic tradition especially those pertaining to the agricultural sector. It has been extremely unfortunate and negligible to have misunderstood the message of the branch as was once cherished by the followers as prestigious collection of doctrines which were later demonized by the 1993 siege. David Koresh, whose real identity was Vernon W. Howell, before taking over leadership of the Branch, was not the original representative of the actual values laid down by the founders who had established their headquarters in Odessa and then years later in Waco, Texas at the new Mount Carmel Centre, abandoned by Davidians in 1962. The duration of his rule induced an absolute opposite projection of the Branch on media. Ben and Lois Roden compelled the followers to aid the Jewish community in building a separate land. The ministry was pleased to announce that the well-organized Christian group settled in Israel supported both materially and morally by the Jewish population (Docherty 1998). During the split of the main Branch Movement under Koresh, the followers became violent and rigid in behavior. The controversy grows to an extent that Howell starts taking wives and the comparatively sensible people diverge from the group to alert people of the falsehood of the Davidians. During the siege of 1993, Koresh and his followers are burnt to death in the Davidian compound. Today, some of Koreshians still survive stubbornly awaiting for Koresh and his army to return with victory. Nothing can be done about them except putting them on trial if they cause any serious threat. Waco’s case involved cults and posterity, leading to a disastrous end. The Branch Davidians had an apocalyptic world view and yet indulged in notorious acts. Koresh himself was known to have relationships with underage girls (Goldsmith 2009). In a documentary film, Waco: The Theological Rules of Engagement made in 1997, director McNulty portrays a close-up of the confrontation between the federal law enforcement and the Branch Davidians near Waco, Texas. The documentary enabled in understanding the bond between the leader and his followers. Koresh’s theology reveals the psychological cause of his followers’ attachment with him. His doctrine on the significance of prophet in the interpretation of Bible is one of eminence (Tabor & Gallagher 1997). The main source of convincing his followers was the Amos 3:7, “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” His followers failed to comprehend the biblical teachings the way he did and this weakness made them lean on to him as dependants. They started to believe and in fact were conditioned to admit that he was the sole interpreter and evaluator of the Biblical exegesis and hence failed to gain confidence even after splitting away from his group (Goldsmith 2009). It is Koresh’s apocalyptic theology which attracted more people towards him that towards Roden. But Koresh taught his followers in a cluttered manner to fight against the living forces that might exist around them such as the American forces. He warned them that they would confront them in Israel and eventually helped them migrate in order to prepare them for battle. They started to identify themselves as “apocalyptic warriors”. Situation got too rough when Roden challenged Koresh to resurrect a corpse in a state of desperation to regain his position as a leader of his own ancestral group. On reporting to the police, he was asked to show evidence of such a threat from Roden. Koresh and his people were attacked by Roden when they attempted to gain access to the corpse but they were eventually taken into custody for trespassing (Goldsmith 2009). The tragedy of Waco was strongly connected to Koresh’s apocalyptic theology. For his followers he was trying to establish the “kingdom of God” which could only take place after “their deaths by fire”. They saw this materializing in front of them when the FBI assault began at Mount Carmel. Catherine Wessinger, a scholar of violent apocalyptic groups observes, “if methods to achieve the ultimate concern are failing, believers may shift to using other methods, which may be either peaceful or violent”. Writing a manuscript on the Seven Seals stated off peacefully for Koresh before his surrender. But it became rather too cataclysmically fierce on the day of his surrender. The aim of the Branch Davidians had become to fulfill the prophecies ordained to them by Koresh’s apocalyptic scenario sketched in book of Nahum. For most of the followers, the moment in Waco was a proof that the prophecy was being fulfilled. Out of sheer desperation, most of the Branch Davidians ended up in murder-suicides in order to close the fifth seal with their own lives (Goldsmith 2009). Through above observations, one can evaluate the necessity of a religious group in the postmodern era where people have minimal religious tolerance with the exception of a very few. What was witnessed in Waco was a great disappointment for many scholars of academics who claim that religion is a sensitive issue which requires patience and lending of ear without being affected by its false trend. Whether Koresh was justified to ordain such rules and doctrines for his followers is a separate issue. One may ask to what extent was it justified for the law enforcement community to respond to them in a manner which pressurized them into taking violent actions. One party in psychological disputes as these is always more trained that the other. It struggles to keep the position of its army intact and retains the purpose of the attack till the last action. The agencies involved in the siege led to a misunderstanding towards the so called cult of the Branch Davidians. The group had a strong tendency of indulging in an abnormal extremism which annoyed the free-thinkers who were not raised into believing that this was not the case. The desire to die in the name of a leader who empowers his followers through his own worldview on others is a matter worth questioning. The history shows a conflict within the group but the outside forces did not seem to give enough time to understand the view of the world proposed by the leader. Docherty reveals that the group does not even call itself Branch Davidians as it recognizes itself with the Seven Seals of the New Testament Book of Revelation. They regarded their leader, Koresh, as “the lamb”. She also stresses on the need to comprehend the meaning-making process which might have been the main cause of conflict. One now needs to focus on the lessons learnt in this process. The conflict may have risen due to the possibility of sharing the world view completely, partially or not at all, within the group. It is reported that 21 children dies in the siege of 1993 which indirectly affected all ages especially the younger population (Docherty 1998). The image sketched with reference to “cult” is not a positive one. It induces a sense of falsehood and rituals which injure humanity at large and the followers in particular. Koresh’s relations with the underage girls stirred uneasiness among the majority of the literate class. Many abandoned the group because of these confusing practices. The cultic groups with its eccentric practices have an adverse impact on the American society and cause to influence the youth especially adolescents in a wrong direction. Regardless of fact that Koresh could have molded himself with the rest of the people, there is a strong possibility that his was a case of psychological illness which could have been approached accordingly. Instead of doubting his moves and eyeing his activities critically, one must resolve to find loopholes in his life instead of his death. He could have fallen victim to delusions, which are quite normal for a scholar of his stature. Koresh’s divergence from the original message of Branch Davidians was another reason why the agencies chose to take immediate action against them. Annotated Bibliography Ammerman, Nancy T. (1995) “Waco, Federal Law Enforcement and Scholars of Religion.” in Armageddon at Waco: Critical Perspectives on the Branch Davidian Conflict, Stuart A. Wright, ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 282-296 Professor of sociology of religion, Ammerman disputes the image of Koresh and his followers as sociopath and hostages. She criticizes the Department of Justice for neglecting the agent’s plea to let go of the Branch Davidians as having sincere intensions and faith and instead resist the pressure on them. Docherty, J. S. (2001). Learning lessons from Waco: When the parties bring their Gods to the negotiation table. Syracuse, N.Y: Syracuse University Press. Author is a professor of leadership and public policy. Her work reflects her expertise in negotiation, terrorism and political violence that covers action research, strategic peace-building program design and evaluation; peace-building curriculum development; especially pertaining to places like Middle East, South Asia, and United States.  Goldsmith, Timothy. (2009). “Waco: The Theological Rules of Engagement” in Eternal sunshine of the academic mind: Essays on religion and film. Sydney: Dept. of Studies in Religion, the University of Sydney. Timothy Goldsmith completed his PhD from the New Mexico State University in the year 1984. His major subject was cognitive psychology and artificial intelligence was his minor subject. At present he is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at New Mexico State University. In his paper, he has discussed the various aspects and beliefs of the Branch Davidians and the causes that led to the Waco Siege.  Tabor, J. D., & Gallagher, E. V. (1997). Why Waco?: Cults and the battle for religious freedom in America. California: University of California Press The authors stand in view of the accusation towards the American forces against the religious movements with regard to the Branch Davidians whom they approach sympathetically as having a new world view. They jointly condemn the group being called a cult. Read More