September 3, 2024 • 30 mins
He’s big, he’s bold and he’s brash. People flock to him. What is it about Pastor Charles Dowell that intrigued Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila and now, two more NFL players that Kalyn learned about? Before the NFL players found him, Dowell still pulled people in - was it the man, his religious doctrine or the lifestyle? If you were tapped by Dowell to move to one of his properties, what would you do?
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
So you got to take one used the right lade
to take the US twenty four West rim to US
twenty four business Logan scrip.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
How did she.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
Say Logansburt, Yeah, that wasn't right. Incorrect pronunciation from goodl maps.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
What she meant to say is Logan's Port, as in Logan'sport, Indiana.
It's a small town about an hour and a half
drive north of Indianapolis, but it's kind of in the
middle of nowhere.
Speaker 3 (00:25):
There's a lot of flashing yellow lights because there's no
need to control traffic because there isn't any I'm on.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
The road with our producer, Buffy. There's not much for
us to look at. It's your typical rural Midwestern drive.
Beige fields, some lonely livestock, a grain silo in the distances.
Your destination will be on the right. Okay, So where
are we headed? A few weeks after I originally started
(00:53):
reporting on Kabir Baja Biamila, a reluctant source gave me
a hint. They said he wasn't the only Accentafi involved
in straightway. That source pointed me to a YouTube video
where they said I just might see a familiar face
and sure, enough, I immediately recognized Robert Mathis.
Speaker 4 (01:12):
Robert Mathis starts the season with a second back.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
He throws lives, he said, the legendary Robert Mathis. He
started as a defensive end and moved to his spot
as a fearsome outside linebacker, playing for the Indianapolis Colts
for fourteen years. He was so important that the team
inducted him into its Ring of Honor with only eleven
other players, and many expect that at some point he'll
be a part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
(01:37):
He's far and away the most famous athlete to join Straightway.
So where are we headed?
Speaker 3 (01:42):
We're headed to Robert Mathis and Daniel Mure's home, large
piece of land in Logan'sport.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
Daniel Muir was a defensive tackle and had stints with
a handful of NFL teams, including the Packers, Jets, and Colts,
where he played with Robert. They both joined and now
they live on the same property just outside of Logan's
Ports the right. This is where Muir and Mathis started
their branch of Dowel's community called Straightway Goshen Oh.
Speaker 5 (02:12):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (02:12):
So we just oh, there's a lot of cars there.
I'm gonna have to loop back around. I'm just seeing
a lot of trees. There was like one home that
we saw with this address.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
The house is kind of set back from the road,
and we actually drove past it at first, so we
turned around to try to get a better look.
Speaker 6 (02:30):
Oh, someone coming out.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
Then the front gate starts to open. Okay, there's a
car out front. It's like a kind of big nice house.
Speaker 3 (02:37):
Oh you know, a woman in a head covering driving
the car.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Wanna go rollsa mailbox out front? There is a no.
Speaker 7 (02:47):
Truspressing sign and there is some weird fencing in front.
So I don't think I would even be able to
pull in there because there's a gate blocking the way,
and there's also a sign here that says warning security
cameras in use.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
It's pretty clear that guests are not welcome.
Speaker 7 (03:09):
Visitors are not welcome.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
Buffy and I knew that we weren't welcome from my
original Sports Illustrated story. I wanted to speak to Pastor Dowell.
I tried, I called, I emailed no response. Then he
posted a video and said he'd only talk to me
if we could live stream the interview. I wasn't going
to do a live interview, and when I tried to
set up a time to talk to Dowell with Cabir
(03:31):
as the go between, Dowell was out of town and unavailable,
but I wanted to try one more time. The week
that we went to Logan'sport, Pastor Dowell posted a video
on YouTube the subject my reporting.
Speaker 4 (03:45):
Oh yeah, Sports Illustrated. You remember how Sports Illustrated made
an article on Caber. Well, they've been on a round
page again.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
By on the rampage, I assume he means I've been
leaving messages.
Speaker 4 (03:59):
They have been calling around all over the place trying
to get in touch with brother Dan and Rob and
brought Clemens, and they even have been calling around here,
calling asking us and calling people in the ministry trying
to get an interview.
Speaker 2 (04:16):
Mathison Muir spoke with me three years ago when I
was working on my original article, but after my latest
attempt to reach them, they're ghosting us. If Mathison Muir
won't talk, we figure there's got to be a neighbor
who will, So we head just across the road to
a mobile home park. A few people are hanging outside
on a rare sunny day in March.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
Oh my goodness, man, Sonny himself, did I son, Hey,
can I ask you a quick question. You're enjoying the sign,
aren't you? Oh?
Speaker 2 (04:49):
My god, I love that.
Speaker 8 (04:51):
It's awesome.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
This is Denny. He's sitting in a lawn chair in
his driveway and cargo shorts and a hoodie with the
sleeves cut short. And in case you didn't hear that,
he said he fell asleep working on his fishing rods.
I ask him when he knows about his neighbors on
the other side of the highway.
Speaker 9 (05:06):
Oh, the cult over here. I can't say that they've
done anything wrong other than irritate people because they're called
a cult, and I don't know what kind of cult
they are, a d religious cult or whatever. They have
a shooting range over there, which irritates some of the
people here, But people in this area shoot guns all
the time, so that's just the way it is. But no,
(05:29):
I've read about a couple of football players that got
together and had this group, and I guess they have
a group down south also. But they haven't bothered me.
They're very private. They keep to themselves. The local police
have not posted anything on them as far as I know.
You guys may know more than that, but no, there
isn't a whole lot to say about him other than
(05:51):
they're called a cult and that scares the shit out
of people. I'm sorry it does.
Speaker 5 (05:56):
It does.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
This is Spiral, Episode two, Coach Dowell. I'm Klein Kaylor.
In the first episode, I told you about Kabir Baja
Biamila's intense passion for Straightway Truth ministries and how he
(06:22):
was willing to pursue it despite his wife's reluctance. But
Straightway's been around since long before Kabir joined, and it
can be hard to parse exactly what they believe. In
this episode, we'll dig into what Straightway preaches. I wanted
to know what makes their message so attractive to people
like Kabir and a small but growing number of other
former NFL players. A lot of it comes down to
(06:45):
the charisma of its leader, Pastor Charles Dowell Junior.
Speaker 4 (06:49):
Good morning, good evening, that afternoon lateis and gentlemen, says YouTube,
This is Pastor?
Speaker 7 (06:53):
Now?
Speaker 5 (06:54):
What else?
Speaker 6 (06:54):
Is?
Speaker 1 (06:54):
Girl?
Speaker 5 (06:54):
Now?
Speaker 4 (06:55):
Still here in California. As you can tell, my voice
is pretty tax. I preached it teach for about about
six hours.
Speaker 10 (07:02):
There was something about Pastor Dow that I like.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
This is Kabir in his own YouTube video.
Speaker 10 (07:07):
I like the fact that he just seemed like an
honest man. He told the truth. He didn't really care
about if he offended you or not. Not that he
was trying to offend you, but he told you the truth.
I don't need yes people around me. I need people
to tell me basically when my shit stinks. But anyway,
so Pastor Dowe basically showed me that he's that kind
of guy. So it just made me interested to see
(07:27):
more of what he had to say.
Speaker 2 (07:29):
Pastor Dowell started posting to YouTube more than a decade ago.
Since then, he's uploaded over six thousand videos. They arrange
in topics from how to homestead and story your own food,
to discussions about the Old Testament and the government weapons,
how to lose stomach fat.
Speaker 4 (07:45):
All right, good morning, to get even to get afternoon,
ladies and gentlemen, citizens and youtubist Pastor Dow, I have
a few things on my heart right here that I
want to go ahead and try to bring some clarity.
Speaker 2 (07:54):
To In the videos, Dowell usually appears in a tight
T shirt and a baseball cap, sometimes in his car,
sometimes at home. In the early years their low quality
and low production value. And then as the years go
on and Dowell's following grows, the videos start to change.
There's new sleek Straightway branding in the background. A gun
(08:15):
appears on the wall behind him, and then the guns multiply.
Speaker 4 (08:18):
I'm probably little bit different everybody else. Some people have
just one single going to carry on locations. To me,
it depends on where I'm going.
Speaker 2 (08:26):
Before founding Straightway, Dowell spent almost a decade on active
duty in the Army. Lake Kabir and other former NFL players,
Pastor Dowell did well in situations with lots of structure.
Speaker 10 (08:38):
Most of you, you know, pretty much.
Speaker 4 (08:41):
Know somewhat of my background in the military. I spent
like five and a half years and eighty second Airborn Division.
Speaker 6 (08:52):
Look at coaches, he resembles a lot of that same
kind of energy about them.
Speaker 2 (08:57):
This is Josh Navarro Hartbin, a former memory of Straightway.
Speaker 6 (09:01):
He's over here with this absurdly tight under armour with
his pegs popping out.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Dowell is known for his trademarks medium T shirts, and
he's big, like physically big. Maybe not compared to the
ex NFL players that he ministers to, but he seems
almost larger than life because he really leans into it.
A lot of times he stands in a power stands
his leg spread out a little bit, hands on his hips.
He's not afraid to take up space.
Speaker 6 (09:27):
He's definitely prided himself in his vanity. I thought he
was pretty cool and like the whole, you know, strong
American male, like you know, like a real man again,
you know, like I didn't really have too much of
an issue with him.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
When Josh was twelve years old, Dwell came to California
to preach, and Josh and his mom went to see him.
Speaker 4 (09:44):
We had a magnificent, wonderful meeting here in California.
Speaker 6 (09:49):
I remember he came down to Fresno for like a
little kind of meeting meet and Greek kind of deal
where he did a little sabast sermon.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
On Saturday, Josh and his mom Lisa, drove nearly two
hours from their house in Bakersfield to see Dowell in
a little hotel conference room.
Speaker 10 (10:06):
I can picture the conference room.
Speaker 4 (10:08):
There was a decent size. Matter of fact, a little
over sixty something people actually came. Many people had their
faith renewed.
Speaker 6 (10:15):
I remember came over to talk to my mom and
I was sitting down and I shook his hand. My
mom told me a stand up next time, because, like
you know, it's rough to your elders. I grew up
in a bit of a bubble. I always grew up homeschool,
so younger Josh me was pretty heavily sheltered. My mom
and I grew up super tight, super super super tight.
She was an incredibly good mother.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
Lisa worked hard to make sure that she and Josh
had a good middle class life. Josh had his own room,
he had a yard to play in, a pool nearby,
and even a lake where he could fish. Josh says
he was baptized Catholic and then went to a non
denominational Christian church growing up, but he remembers that his
mom was still searching for something a better spiritual fit,
(10:59):
and when she heard about Dowell, she was curious.
Speaker 4 (11:02):
I told him, I'm not like these polished preachers out there. Hallelujah.
My fingernails are not manicured, hallelujah.
Speaker 2 (11:12):
Lisa's sister had come across Pastor Dowell on YouTube, like
many of Straightway's members, and she started talking about it
with Lisa, sharing little pieces of information with her about
the community.
Speaker 6 (11:24):
She slowly kind of started feeding my mom's stuff, like, hey,
you know what the Sava day is on Saturday and
on Sunday. Oh, hey, you know to eat pork and
s unclean in the Bible, and you need to start
paying attention to.
Speaker 5 (11:36):
It like this.
Speaker 2 (11:37):
When I started reporting on Straightway and Dowell, I watched
a lot of his YouTube videos, and the more that
I consumed, the more I had trouble making sense of
all the different beliefs going on. It was a fascinating
mix of ideologies. If you go to Straightway's website, it
says we are a nation of Hebrew Israelites, translated in
the KJV Bible as Jews, who are commandment keepers obedient
(11:59):
to y'all God and our Savior, Jesus said Christ. I
had heard of Hebrew Israelites before. That term has been
in the news a lot in the last few years,
usually in relation to celebrities like Kyrie Irving or Kanye West.
Speaker 5 (12:12):
You had another controversy for Kanye West, also known as Ya.
He's been locked out of his Twitter account now, the
platform suspending him after an anti Semitic tweet.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Kanye and Kyrie don't identify as Hebrew Israelites, but they've
made comments that seem to echo similar beliefs, comments that
are anti Semitic. NBA star Kyrie Irving, all of the
brooklyn Nets, shared a link last week on social media
to a twenty eighteen film that's been described as anti Semitic.
Speaker 8 (12:40):
The most common reason that any of those celebrities will
be intrigued by what they consider as Hebrew his life
teaching is usually the idea that black people are like
the Chosen People because of their suffering, which is a
part of the Israelite tradition. But it's far more than that.
Speaker 2 (12:58):
This is Andre Brooks. He's an associate professor of African
and African American Studies at Klaffan University in Orangeburg, South Carolina,
and he's a former member of several Israelite congregations.
Speaker 8 (13:11):
Basically a Hebrew Israelite, and I'll start with the term
itself originates in the twentieth century as an alternative saying
one it's Jewish. Doesn't really have an overly complex meaning
outside of saying someone who believes they are a descendant
of the Biblical Israelites.
Speaker 2 (13:29):
So Hebrew Israelite is an umbrella term that can cover
a lot and can be applied to a lot of
different groups, but at its core, it means someone who
believes they are a descendant of the biblical Israelites. Hebrew
Israelism uses the full Christian Bible while also incorporating some
Hebrew vocabulary. The problem is that label itself Hebrew Israelite
(13:50):
or sometimes even black Hebrew Israelite. Andre says, it's a
bit loaded.
Speaker 8 (13:55):
I tend to use Israelite more unless I'm purposely wanting
to show that the term Hebrews are life isn't all
of the stereotypes of people associate with it, not all
Hebrews Liites or even black. So yeah, it's kind of
a boogeyman word that was cooked up in the media to,
you know, invote fear that there was a horde of
(14:18):
angry black Hebrews LIFs coming into the pillageon plunder their
white congregations.
Speaker 2 (14:24):
This is a really important point. The media has hyped
up a stereotype of who Hebrew Israelites are, and that
stereotype is not so great. You may have seen, either
on YouTube or in real life, a group called Israel
United in Christ Jeremi.
Speaker 6 (14:39):
Chapter fourteen and verse.
Speaker 4 (14:40):
Two and the news.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
They often stand on street corners or outside of subway
stops in big cities, just in regal Purple Tunics with gold.
Speaker 1 (14:48):
Fringe Jeremiah chapter fourteen and verse two, Juna Mona and
the Gate step Up Black Wish.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
Sometimes their sidewalk preaching comes with a megaphone and some
really offensive language.
Speaker 8 (15:02):
They engage in these public debates where they're loud, they're brashed,
they use abusive language, and it's I'm a big wrestling fan,
so I compare it to k fabe in wrestling, which
is this is how you act to get attention. Now,
if this is how they act when they're at home,
I'll be shocked and surprised. If this is how they
(15:23):
act when they're at work, I'll be shocked in surprise.
Speaker 2 (15:26):
Their street performances can get really heated, and this group
in particular is known for saying disparaging things about white
people and using anti Semitic and homophobic language. Andre says
these kinds of public displays are by design, the more
views the better, kind of like Dowell and his YouTube channel.
Speaker 8 (15:46):
So again, to me, it's a performance. Now if you're
on the receiving and end of that performance, I'm quite
sure it's not a pleasant experience. But the idea they
really do hate white people, or they really do hate
white Jews, or they really do hate anybody is probably
far from the truth.
Speaker 2 (16:03):
But because they're so brash in their approach, people take notice,
and this reputation they develop for themselves sticks, And since
most people are unfamiliar with Israelite groups, these ideas get
applied to all Israelite groups, when in fact they're all different.
So how does Straightway Truth Ministry fit into all of this? Surprise?
(16:23):
It's complicated. Straightway calls themselves a nation of Hebrew Israelites,
but Andre says their beliefs and practices don't look like
a lot of other Israelite groups.
Speaker 8 (16:33):
It just has far more in common with white right
wing identity movements than it actually does with other Israelite congregations.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Before we reach out to him, Andre was pretty unfamiliar
with Straightway and Dowell, so we sent him some other
literature and asked him to take a look again.
Speaker 8 (16:51):
I don't want to say they're not really Israelites, but
it's almost like the whole Hebrew is like claim is
tangential to what his actual program is like it's far
more rooted in certain forms of fundamentalist Pentecostalism, and the
use of I'm a Israelite is a way to bolster
(17:12):
his authority as being a prophet or a you know,
someone chosen by God to spread the message.
Speaker 2 (17:19):
Andre told me that he sees Straightway's theological core as Pentecostal,
with quote and overly of Hebrew Israelate rhetoric and afrocentric dress.
Speaker 8 (17:28):
I always find it like a little red flag when
people don't say how they became the Israelite, because unless
they were born into the tradition, which he clearly wasn't,
it's not something that just falls out the sky on you.
Speaker 2 (17:42):
It's important to note that Straightway is not representative of
all Hebrew Israelite groups. One difference, Straightway welcomes members of
any race. Kabir says that before he found Straightway, he
had an opportunity to get involved with a different black
Hebrew Israelite group. Kabir ended up not joining because a
friend who to recruit him said he'd need to divorce
his wife, Eileen, because she's not black. Straightway is more inclusive.
(18:06):
Dowell is black and looking at the Straightway website there
are many melanated faces, but the ministry is open to all.
Speaker 4 (18:14):
As a matter of fact, we are very diverse ministry, Black, White, Mexican,
Puerto Rican, Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, Europeans, all over the place.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Starting a new religious movement gives its founders a blank canvas,
an opportunity to pull together elements from different belief systems
to fit their needs. This is what Dowell did. He
mixed together parts of different religions from his past to
create Straightway. It's a pastiche He added hints of Judaism.
Straightway celebrates Passover and they respect the Sabbath. He picked
(18:49):
from parts of the Old Testament, like Biblical views about
women and polygyny, but he also chose elements from the
New Testament. Straightway does believe Jesus is the Messiah, the
conduct baptisms, and he called his followers the Sins.
Speaker 4 (19:02):
People don't like what we stand for, and what we
stand for is keeping the Commandments, not Sunday. We keep
the Sabbath. We believe in keeping set apart, days, living
sanctified and holding set apart and just trying to do
our best enter into the Kingdom. And for most people
they get offended.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
People get offended because Dowell says some pretty offensive things
in YouTube videos. Dowel claims that the Jewish people are
masquerading as Israelites and that they've stolen the identity of
God's people that really belongs to black people. He speaks
out against gay marriage and homosexuality.
Speaker 4 (19:37):
So guess what Straightway and the whole entire ministry of
Straightway we reject the abominable lifestyle of a man lying
with another man because it is an abomination and it
will get you to burn for all of eternity. What
I like these evolving churches, and.
Speaker 2 (19:57):
He uses his channel to share his criticism.
Speaker 4 (19:59):
Of what women are selfish, sent them self focused, self absorbed,
but they had it under a cloak of maliciousness. Her
love is best demonstrated in obedience. She can't obey you,
she don't love you.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
Donwell tries to pass off his hateful views by saying,
I'm coming from a biblical perspective, but to outsiders it's worrisome.
Members of the community also share a lot of the
same ideology, beliefs, and practices as sovereign citizens, people who
are not bound by the rules of the state.
Speaker 4 (20:30):
This state marriage license has nothing to do with God,
the Bible, and only live and right in anybody.
Speaker 2 (20:38):
It's more than not wanting to pay taxes or have
a license played on your car. It's a set of
beliefs that's hardcore pro gun rejects the authority of the government,
and promotes being very well armed and prepared to use
those guns. As of twenty twenty, the Southern Poverty Law
Center had received three tips about Straightway Truth Ministry as
the potential hate group. SPLC didn't talk to for the podcast,
(21:01):
but they did provide information for the original story back
in twenty twenty. Their main reasons for looking into Straightway
their anti LGBTQ and anti Semitic ideology, and concerns that
Dowell is a dangerous leader. As of recording, Straightway is
not classified as a hate group, though in twenty twenty
s PLC said that they were periodically monitoring their actions.
(21:24):
Dowell repackaged all of these elements and beliefs into this
new religion, and he sprinkled in a few debunked conspiracy
theories like flat earth and the connection between five G
and coronavirus, and people wanted to be part of what
he was creating. We don't know exactly how many people
consider themselves a part of Straightway, but we do know
that Dowell has over two hundred thousand YouTube subscribers. We
(21:47):
also know from their website that Straightway has at least
fourteen satellite groups around the country, including Mirror and Mathis's
outpost in Indiana and the main community in Tennessee. We've
personally spoken to about a dozen people who joined the movement,
sometimes uprooting their entire lives to be part of Dabel's vision.
Speaker 6 (22:05):
It's like, hey, and sister Lisa, go ahead and.
Speaker 10 (22:07):
Move on down there.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
More. After the break, we flew.
Speaker 6 (22:12):
Into Nashville and this guy picked us up and there
was like there was like a haka just laying in
his back seat. I'm like, oh, that's kind of cool.
Speaker 2 (22:19):
A few months after the gathering in Fresnew Josh and
his mom decided to visit the Straightway property in Tennessee.
It was Passover, an important holiday for the community.
Speaker 4 (22:30):
Lord of the King. The king otta lujah, sure it
is not to be born again.
Speaker 6 (22:39):
People were like bouncing off the walls and We're like, oh,
you know, this is pretty passionate, you know, for our
little modest, white selves. It was a black church like
that in of itself, you see a lot of stereotypes
of everyone kind of getting up and moving and like
being all powerful. That was a huge change of pays
and like people not just standing there clapping kind of still.
Speaker 2 (22:59):
For Lisa, that long weekend they spent at Straightway had
a big impact.
Speaker 6 (23:04):
Our biggest thing was Wow, like minded people, they work the.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
Land, grow their own food, live communally. It seemed like
a good fit. And at some point Lisa didn't want
to just be taking it all in virtually from her
home in Bakersfield.
Speaker 6 (23:18):
She started wondering, Hey, like, are we supposed to move
down there? It's that kind of like what we're supposed
to do.
Speaker 2 (23:25):
And then the way Josh remembers it during one of
Pastor Dowell's Tuesday night Bible studies.
Speaker 6 (23:31):
Okay, and soster Lisa, go ahead and move on down there.
So that was like our thumb and stamp of approval
to head on down to Tennessee. I guess that was
the sign from God I needed.
Speaker 2 (23:44):
Once Josh's mom, Lisa decided to move to Tennessee, she
put their house on the market, loaded up the car,
and it was time for Josh to say goodbye to
the life he knew in California.
Speaker 6 (23:54):
I just remember like a way and just bawling.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
Lisa, Josh, and their dog piled into their Honda Ridgeline
for the two thousand mile drive. And they weren't just
heading to a different home in a different place. They
were heading to a community Lisa wanted the lifestyle. Straightway
prided themselves on living off the land with like minded
people who prioritize faith and traditional gender roles. Even though
(24:18):
Josh was sad to leave, he was pumped for the adventure.
Speaker 6 (24:21):
Yeah, off the rip, it was pretty Uh, it was
pretty cool. They were very, very warm and welcoming.
Speaker 2 (24:27):
Lisa and Josh moved into an apartment building just a
short drive from Straightway's gates. Lisa kept homeschooling Josh and
they spent a lot of time on the Straightway campus.
They were at Sabbath services every Saturday, and they would
listen to Pastor Dowell and his fiery sermons. They had
the intensity of a coach giving a pregame pep talk.
Speaker 6 (24:45):
No, you felt attacked, but it's like if you felt attacked,
that was like a good thing, because it's like, oh, Hey,
you're supposed to work on yourself here kind of deal.
Speaker 4 (24:53):
You only get one pass it, just like one chance
to pass through his life.
Speaker 1 (24:57):
Only one, and.
Speaker 4 (24:58):
Don't miss it, because that's do ovals. There are a
lot of people burning in hey, wishing they could had
a chance of repenting and do it all over again.
This is our time.
Speaker 5 (25:10):
Here are now.
Speaker 6 (25:13):
Our time.
Speaker 2 (25:15):
You did, but this macho persona, it didn't work for everyone.
Speaker 10 (25:21):
My wife just had a hard time accepting your reality
that this is where I wanted to go.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
That's Kabir on his YouTube channel. This religion that Kabir
had become a part of. It wasn't something he could
just do at church outside of his home. It was
a whole shift in his life, in Eileen's life, in
the way their family worked. A big part of this
was that Kabir's expectations of Eileen to be an obedient
wife got to be too much for her. She agreed
(25:49):
with the idea that men and women had different roles
in the house.
Speaker 11 (25:53):
And I saw how God created a husband and wife,
and there's to submit to each other, but there is
the order and there is a headship. But the way
that God intended is beautiful. I mean, it's just like
a well oiled machine.
Speaker 2 (26:08):
But this was more than that. This felt different.
Speaker 11 (26:11):
As we kept on going on a relationship, he would
make it a point to like tell people, yeah, I'm
the head, this is how Krishian marriage is, and like
I call the shots.
Speaker 2 (26:20):
The new requirements. The way he told everyone he was
in charge, and the fact that he was introducing their
kids to Straightway when she had read so many things
about them that didn't sit well with her. It was
all too much, so she left.
Speaker 4 (26:34):
I know, I'm a very famous man who is going
through an ordeal right now. He's discovered that he's the
head of his house, and all he wanted to do
was just come down and visit Straightway.
Speaker 2 (26:47):
In July twenty seventeen, on his YouTube channel, Pastor Dwell
weighed in on Aileen and Kabir's situation.
Speaker 4 (26:53):
This very successful man has a very large family, and
he loves his wife his children, but he's quickly discovering
that his wife has never loved him. So she takes
the children while he's at work, and then she turns
around and leaves him.
Speaker 2 (27:11):
When a pregnant Eileen left Green Bay with her seven children,
she took them to a town called Stephen's Point, about
an hour and a half away. She was hoping that
this was just a blip that she and Kabir would reconcile,
but they ended up spending the summer apart. When it
came time to go back to school, Eileen decided to
return to Green Bay. She didn't want to go back
(27:32):
to Kabir, though, so she and all seven kids and
the bun in the oven moved into a condo. It
was a squeeze compared to Praise Land, but they made
it work. Kabir agreed to try marriage counseling. They made
it through three sessions, but at the fourth he was
a no show, and he told Eileen that Dowell was
the only person who could save their sixteen year marriage.
(27:53):
And then, finally, in a YouTube video from April twenty.
Speaker 10 (27:56):
Eighteen, we are in the process of getting a divorce.
There does not seem to seem like there's an irreconsolable
difference or it's just not reconcilable right now. My wife
feels that I need to acqueouce and capitulate to her desires,
and she feels that I need to do that.
Speaker 2 (28:13):
It turns out Eileen wasn't the only one who was
worried about Dowell, And once I did a little digging,
I found out that the story of Straightway isn't as
clear cut as Dowell has made it out to be.
He didn't create Straightway on his own. He studied under
someone else, someone who was also a fiery preacher and
who had his own issues with the law.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Ojay h the pie up and the word of the
Lord would come to the citizens of the world. Your
deal of reckoning is now here. Yay, my word had God.
Speaker 2 (28:47):
That's next time. On Spiraled, we tried to reach Lisa
Josh's mom. She and Josh have been out of contact
(29:09):
and we were unable to contact her. Spiraled as a
production of Sports Illustrated Studios, iHeart Podcasts and One on
One Studios Podcasts. The show was reported by me Kaylen Kaylor,
with additional reporting by senior producer Buffy Gorilla. Writing service
provided by Buffy Gorilla and Jen Kinney, sound design, mixing
and mastering by Charlie Kaier. Sarah Sneath is our fact checker,
(29:32):
Scott Stone is our executive producer, and Daniel Waxman is
Director of Podcast Development and podcast Production Manager at one
on one Studios. At iHeart Podcasts, Shawn Tutone is our
executive producer. Special thank you to Michelle Newman, David Glasser,
and David Hudgin from One on One Studios. For more
shows from iHeart Podcasts, go visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,
(29:52):
or wherever you get your podcasts
So you got to take one used the right lade
to take the US twenty four West rim to US
twenty four business Logan scrip.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
How did she.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
Say Logansburt, Yeah, that wasn't right. Incorrect pronunciation from goodl maps.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
What she meant to say is Logan's Port, as in Logan'sport, Indiana.
It's a small town about an hour and a half
drive north of Indianapolis, but it's kind of in the
middle of nowhere.
Speaker 3 (00:25):
There's a lot of flashing yellow lights because there's no
need to control traffic because there isn't any I'm on.
Speaker 2 (00:33):
The road with our producer, Buffy. There's not much for
us to look at. It's your typical rural Midwestern drive.
Beige fields, some lonely livestock, a grain silo in the distances.
Your destination will be on the right. Okay, So where
are we headed? A few weeks after I originally started
(00:53):
reporting on Kabir Baja Biamila, a reluctant source gave me
a hint. They said he wasn't the only Accentafi involved
in straightway. That source pointed me to a YouTube video
where they said I just might see a familiar face
and sure, enough, I immediately recognized Robert Mathis.
Speaker 4 (01:12):
Robert Mathis starts the season with a second back.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
He throws lives, he said, the legendary Robert Mathis. He
started as a defensive end and moved to his spot
as a fearsome outside linebacker, playing for the Indianapolis Colts
for fourteen years. He was so important that the team
inducted him into its Ring of Honor with only eleven
other players, and many expect that at some point he'll
be a part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
(01:37):
He's far and away the most famous athlete to join Straightway.
So where are we headed?
Speaker 3 (01:42):
We're headed to Robert Mathis and Daniel Mure's home, large
piece of land in Logan'sport.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
Daniel Muir was a defensive tackle and had stints with
a handful of NFL teams, including the Packers, Jets, and Colts,
where he played with Robert. They both joined and now
they live on the same property just outside of Logan's
Ports the right. This is where Muir and Mathis started
their branch of Dowel's community called Straightway Goshen Oh.
Speaker 5 (02:12):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (02:12):
So we just oh, there's a lot of cars there.
I'm gonna have to loop back around. I'm just seeing
a lot of trees. There was like one home that
we saw with this address.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
The house is kind of set back from the road,
and we actually drove past it at first, so we
turned around to try to get a better look.
Speaker 6 (02:30):
Oh, someone coming out.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
Then the front gate starts to open. Okay, there's a
car out front. It's like a kind of big nice house.
Speaker 3 (02:37):
Oh you know, a woman in a head covering driving
the car.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Wanna go rollsa mailbox out front? There is a no.
Speaker 7 (02:47):
Truspressing sign and there is some weird fencing in front.
So I don't think I would even be able to
pull in there because there's a gate blocking the way,
and there's also a sign here that says warning security
cameras in use.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
It's pretty clear that guests are not welcome.
Speaker 7 (03:09):
Visitors are not welcome.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
Buffy and I knew that we weren't welcome from my
original Sports Illustrated story. I wanted to speak to Pastor Dowell.
I tried, I called, I emailed no response. Then he
posted a video and said he'd only talk to me
if we could live stream the interview. I wasn't going
to do a live interview, and when I tried to
set up a time to talk to Dowell with Cabir
(03:31):
as the go between, Dowell was out of town and unavailable,
but I wanted to try one more time. The week
that we went to Logan'sport, Pastor Dowell posted a video
on YouTube the subject my reporting.
Speaker 4 (03:45):
Oh yeah, Sports Illustrated. You remember how Sports Illustrated made
an article on Caber. Well, they've been on a round
page again.
Speaker 2 (03:54):
By on the rampage, I assume he means I've been
leaving messages.
Speaker 4 (03:59):
They have been calling around all over the place trying
to get in touch with brother Dan and Rob and
brought Clemens, and they even have been calling around here,
calling asking us and calling people in the ministry trying
to get an interview.
Speaker 2 (04:16):
Mathison Muir spoke with me three years ago when I
was working on my original article, but after my latest
attempt to reach them, they're ghosting us. If Mathison Muir
won't talk, we figure there's got to be a neighbor
who will, So we head just across the road to
a mobile home park. A few people are hanging outside
on a rare sunny day in March.
Speaker 3 (04:37):
Oh my goodness, man, Sonny himself, did I son, Hey,
can I ask you a quick question. You're enjoying the sign,
aren't you? Oh?
Speaker 2 (04:49):
My god, I love that.
Speaker 8 (04:51):
It's awesome.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
This is Denny. He's sitting in a lawn chair in
his driveway and cargo shorts and a hoodie with the
sleeves cut short. And in case you didn't hear that,
he said he fell asleep working on his fishing rods.
I ask him when he knows about his neighbors on
the other side of the highway.
Speaker 9 (05:06):
Oh, the cult over here. I can't say that they've
done anything wrong other than irritate people because they're called
a cult, and I don't know what kind of cult
they are, a d religious cult or whatever. They have
a shooting range over there, which irritates some of the
people here, But people in this area shoot guns all
the time, so that's just the way it is. But no,
(05:29):
I've read about a couple of football players that got
together and had this group, and I guess they have
a group down south also. But they haven't bothered me.
They're very private. They keep to themselves. The local police
have not posted anything on them as far as I know.
You guys may know more than that, but no, there
isn't a whole lot to say about him other than
(05:51):
they're called a cult and that scares the shit out
of people. I'm sorry it does.
Speaker 5 (05:56):
It does.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
This is Spiral, Episode two, Coach Dowell. I'm Klein Kaylor.
In the first episode, I told you about Kabir Baja
Biamila's intense passion for Straightway Truth ministries and how he
(06:22):
was willing to pursue it despite his wife's reluctance. But
Straightway's been around since long before Kabir joined, and it
can be hard to parse exactly what they believe. In
this episode, we'll dig into what Straightway preaches. I wanted
to know what makes their message so attractive to people
like Kabir and a small but growing number of other
former NFL players. A lot of it comes down to
(06:45):
the charisma of its leader, Pastor Charles Dowell Junior.
Speaker 4 (06:49):
Good morning, good evening, that afternoon lateis and gentlemen, says YouTube,
This is Pastor?
Speaker 7 (06:53):
Now?
Speaker 5 (06:54):
What else?
Speaker 6 (06:54):
Is?
Speaker 1 (06:54):
Girl?
Speaker 5 (06:54):
Now?
Speaker 4 (06:55):
Still here in California. As you can tell, my voice
is pretty tax. I preached it teach for about about
six hours.
Speaker 10 (07:02):
There was something about Pastor Dow that I like.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
This is Kabir in his own YouTube video.
Speaker 10 (07:07):
I like the fact that he just seemed like an
honest man. He told the truth. He didn't really care
about if he offended you or not. Not that he
was trying to offend you, but he told you the truth.
I don't need yes people around me. I need people
to tell me basically when my shit stinks. But anyway,
so Pastor Dowe basically showed me that he's that kind
of guy. So it just made me interested to see
(07:27):
more of what he had to say.
Speaker 2 (07:29):
Pastor Dowell started posting to YouTube more than a decade ago.
Since then, he's uploaded over six thousand videos. They arrange
in topics from how to homestead and story your own food,
to discussions about the Old Testament and the government weapons,
how to lose stomach fat.
Speaker 4 (07:45):
All right, good morning, to get even to get afternoon,
ladies and gentlemen, citizens and youtubist Pastor Dow, I have
a few things on my heart right here that I
want to go ahead and try to bring some clarity.
Speaker 2 (07:54):
To In the videos, Dowell usually appears in a tight
T shirt and a baseball cap, sometimes in his car,
sometimes at home. In the early years their low quality
and low production value. And then as the years go
on and Dowell's following grows, the videos start to change.
There's new sleek Straightway branding in the background. A gun
(08:15):
appears on the wall behind him, and then the guns multiply.
Speaker 4 (08:18):
I'm probably little bit different everybody else. Some people have
just one single going to carry on locations. To me,
it depends on where I'm going.
Speaker 2 (08:26):
Before founding Straightway, Dowell spent almost a decade on active
duty in the Army. Lake Kabir and other former NFL players,
Pastor Dowell did well in situations with lots of structure.
Speaker 10 (08:38):
Most of you, you know, pretty much.
Speaker 4 (08:41):
Know somewhat of my background in the military. I spent
like five and a half years and eighty second Airborn Division.
Speaker 6 (08:52):
Look at coaches, he resembles a lot of that same
kind of energy about them.
Speaker 2 (08:57):
This is Josh Navarro Hartbin, a former memory of Straightway.
Speaker 6 (09:01):
He's over here with this absurdly tight under armour with
his pegs popping out.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Dowell is known for his trademarks medium T shirts, and
he's big, like physically big. Maybe not compared to the
ex NFL players that he ministers to, but he seems
almost larger than life because he really leans into it.
A lot of times he stands in a power stands
his leg spread out a little bit, hands on his hips.
He's not afraid to take up space.
Speaker 6 (09:27):
He's definitely prided himself in his vanity. I thought he
was pretty cool and like the whole, you know, strong
American male, like you know, like a real man again,
you know, like I didn't really have too much of
an issue with him.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
When Josh was twelve years old, Dwell came to California
to preach, and Josh and his mom went to see him.
Speaker 4 (09:44):
We had a magnificent, wonderful meeting here in California.
Speaker 6 (09:49):
I remember he came down to Fresno for like a
little kind of meeting meet and Greek kind of deal
where he did a little sabast sermon.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
On Saturday, Josh and his mom Lisa, drove nearly two
hours from their house in Bakersfield to see Dowell in
a little hotel conference room.
Speaker 10 (10:06):
I can picture the conference room.
Speaker 4 (10:08):
There was a decent size. Matter of fact, a little
over sixty something people actually came. Many people had their
faith renewed.
Speaker 6 (10:15):
I remember came over to talk to my mom and
I was sitting down and I shook his hand. My
mom told me a stand up next time, because, like
you know, it's rough to your elders. I grew up
in a bit of a bubble. I always grew up homeschool,
so younger Josh me was pretty heavily sheltered. My mom
and I grew up super tight, super super super tight.
She was an incredibly good mother.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
Lisa worked hard to make sure that she and Josh
had a good middle class life. Josh had his own room,
he had a yard to play in, a pool nearby,
and even a lake where he could fish. Josh says
he was baptized Catholic and then went to a non
denominational Christian church growing up, but he remembers that his
mom was still searching for something a better spiritual fit,
(10:59):
and when she heard about Dowell, she was curious.
Speaker 4 (11:02):
I told him, I'm not like these polished preachers out there. Hallelujah.
My fingernails are not manicured, hallelujah.
Speaker 2 (11:12):
Lisa's sister had come across Pastor Dowell on YouTube, like
many of Straightway's members, and she started talking about it
with Lisa, sharing little pieces of information with her about
the community.
Speaker 6 (11:24):
She slowly kind of started feeding my mom's stuff, like, hey,
you know what the Sava day is on Saturday and
on Sunday. Oh, hey, you know to eat pork and
s unclean in the Bible, and you need to start
paying attention to.
Speaker 5 (11:36):
It like this.
Speaker 2 (11:37):
When I started reporting on Straightway and Dowell, I watched
a lot of his YouTube videos, and the more that
I consumed, the more I had trouble making sense of
all the different beliefs going on. It was a fascinating
mix of ideologies. If you go to Straightway's website, it
says we are a nation of Hebrew Israelites, translated in
the KJV Bible as Jews, who are commandment keepers obedient
(11:59):
to y'all God and our Savior, Jesus said Christ. I
had heard of Hebrew Israelites before. That term has been
in the news a lot in the last few years,
usually in relation to celebrities like Kyrie Irving or Kanye West.
Speaker 5 (12:12):
You had another controversy for Kanye West, also known as Ya.
He's been locked out of his Twitter account now, the
platform suspending him after an anti Semitic tweet.
Speaker 2 (12:23):
Kanye and Kyrie don't identify as Hebrew Israelites, but they've
made comments that seem to echo similar beliefs, comments that
are anti Semitic. NBA star Kyrie Irving, all of the
brooklyn Nets, shared a link last week on social media
to a twenty eighteen film that's been described as anti Semitic.
Speaker 8 (12:40):
The most common reason that any of those celebrities will
be intrigued by what they consider as Hebrew his life
teaching is usually the idea that black people are like
the Chosen People because of their suffering, which is a
part of the Israelite tradition. But it's far more than that.
Speaker 2 (12:58):
This is Andre Brooks. He's an associate professor of African
and African American Studies at Klaffan University in Orangeburg, South Carolina,
and he's a former member of several Israelite congregations.
Speaker 8 (13:11):
Basically a Hebrew Israelite, and I'll start with the term
itself originates in the twentieth century as an alternative saying
one it's Jewish. Doesn't really have an overly complex meaning
outside of saying someone who believes they are a descendant
of the Biblical Israelites.
Speaker 2 (13:29):
So Hebrew Israelite is an umbrella term that can cover
a lot and can be applied to a lot of
different groups, but at its core, it means someone who
believes they are a descendant of the biblical Israelites. Hebrew
Israelism uses the full Christian Bible while also incorporating some
Hebrew vocabulary. The problem is that label itself Hebrew Israelite
(13:50):
or sometimes even black Hebrew Israelite. Andre says, it's a
bit loaded.
Speaker 8 (13:55):
I tend to use Israelite more unless I'm purposely wanting
to show that the term Hebrews are life isn't all
of the stereotypes of people associate with it, not all
Hebrews Liites or even black. So yeah, it's kind of
a boogeyman word that was cooked up in the media to,
you know, invote fear that there was a horde of
(14:18):
angry black Hebrews LIFs coming into the pillageon plunder their
white congregations.
Speaker 2 (14:24):
This is a really important point. The media has hyped
up a stereotype of who Hebrew Israelites are, and that
stereotype is not so great. You may have seen, either
on YouTube or in real life, a group called Israel
United in Christ Jeremi.
Speaker 6 (14:39):
Chapter fourteen and verse.
Speaker 4 (14:40):
Two and the news.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
They often stand on street corners or outside of subway
stops in big cities, just in regal Purple Tunics with gold.
Speaker 1 (14:48):
Fringe Jeremiah chapter fourteen and verse two, Juna Mona and
the Gate step Up Black Wish.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
Sometimes their sidewalk preaching comes with a megaphone and some
really offensive language.
Speaker 8 (15:02):
They engage in these public debates where they're loud, they're brashed,
they use abusive language, and it's I'm a big wrestling fan,
so I compare it to k fabe in wrestling, which
is this is how you act to get attention. Now,
if this is how they act when they're at home,
I'll be shocked and surprised. If this is how they
(15:23):
act when they're at work, I'll be shocked in surprise.
Speaker 2 (15:26):
Their street performances can get really heated, and this group
in particular is known for saying disparaging things about white
people and using anti Semitic and homophobic language. Andre says
these kinds of public displays are by design, the more
views the better, kind of like Dowell and his YouTube channel.
Speaker 8 (15:46):
So again, to me, it's a performance. Now if you're
on the receiving and end of that performance, I'm quite
sure it's not a pleasant experience. But the idea they
really do hate white people, or they really do hate
white Jews, or they really do hate anybody is probably
far from the truth.
Speaker 2 (16:03):
But because they're so brash in their approach, people take notice,
and this reputation they develop for themselves sticks, And since
most people are unfamiliar with Israelite groups, these ideas get
applied to all Israelite groups, when in fact they're all different.
So how does Straightway Truth Ministry fit into all of this? Surprise?
(16:23):
It's complicated. Straightway calls themselves a nation of Hebrew Israelites,
but Andre says their beliefs and practices don't look like
a lot of other Israelite groups.
Speaker 8 (16:33):
It just has far more in common with white right
wing identity movements than it actually does with other Israelite congregations.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Before we reach out to him, Andre was pretty unfamiliar
with Straightway and Dowell, so we sent him some other
literature and asked him to take a look again.
Speaker 8 (16:51):
I don't want to say they're not really Israelites, but
it's almost like the whole Hebrew is like claim is
tangential to what his actual program is like it's far
more rooted in certain forms of fundamentalist Pentecostalism, and the
use of I'm a Israelite is a way to bolster
(17:12):
his authority as being a prophet or a you know,
someone chosen by God to spread the message.
Speaker 2 (17:19):
Andre told me that he sees Straightway's theological core as Pentecostal,
with quote and overly of Hebrew Israelate rhetoric and afrocentric dress.
Speaker 8 (17:28):
I always find it like a little red flag when
people don't say how they became the Israelite, because unless
they were born into the tradition, which he clearly wasn't,
it's not something that just falls out the sky on you.
Speaker 2 (17:42):
It's important to note that Straightway is not representative of
all Hebrew Israelite groups. One difference, Straightway welcomes members of
any race. Kabir says that before he found Straightway, he
had an opportunity to get involved with a different black
Hebrew Israelite group. Kabir ended up not joining because a
friend who to recruit him said he'd need to divorce
his wife, Eileen, because she's not black. Straightway is more inclusive.
(18:06):
Dowell is black and looking at the Straightway website there
are many melanated faces, but the ministry is open to all.
Speaker 4 (18:14):
As a matter of fact, we are very diverse ministry, Black, White, Mexican,
Puerto Rican, Chinese, Japanese, Koreans, Europeans, all over the place.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Starting a new religious movement gives its founders a blank canvas,
an opportunity to pull together elements from different belief systems
to fit their needs. This is what Dowell did. He
mixed together parts of different religions from his past to
create Straightway. It's a pastiche He added hints of Judaism.
Straightway celebrates Passover and they respect the Sabbath. He picked
(18:49):
from parts of the Old Testament, like Biblical views about
women and polygyny, but he also chose elements from the
New Testament. Straightway does believe Jesus is the Messiah, the
conduct baptisms, and he called his followers the Sins.
Speaker 4 (19:02):
People don't like what we stand for, and what we
stand for is keeping the Commandments, not Sunday. We keep
the Sabbath. We believe in keeping set apart, days, living
sanctified and holding set apart and just trying to do
our best enter into the Kingdom. And for most people
they get offended.
Speaker 2 (19:20):
People get offended because Dowell says some pretty offensive things
in YouTube videos. Dowel claims that the Jewish people are
masquerading as Israelites and that they've stolen the identity of
God's people that really belongs to black people. He speaks
out against gay marriage and homosexuality.
Speaker 4 (19:37):
So guess what Straightway and the whole entire ministry of
Straightway we reject the abominable lifestyle of a man lying
with another man because it is an abomination and it
will get you to burn for all of eternity. What
I like these evolving churches, and.
Speaker 2 (19:57):
He uses his channel to share his criticism.
Speaker 4 (19:59):
Of what women are selfish, sent them self focused, self absorbed,
but they had it under a cloak of maliciousness. Her
love is best demonstrated in obedience. She can't obey you,
she don't love you.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
Donwell tries to pass off his hateful views by saying,
I'm coming from a biblical perspective, but to outsiders it's worrisome.
Members of the community also share a lot of the
same ideology, beliefs, and practices as sovereign citizens, people who
are not bound by the rules of the state.
Speaker 4 (20:30):
This state marriage license has nothing to do with God,
the Bible, and only live and right in anybody.
Speaker 2 (20:38):
It's more than not wanting to pay taxes or have
a license played on your car. It's a set of
beliefs that's hardcore pro gun rejects the authority of the government,
and promotes being very well armed and prepared to use
those guns. As of twenty twenty, the Southern Poverty Law
Center had received three tips about Straightway Truth Ministry as
the potential hate group. SPLC didn't talk to for the podcast,
(21:01):
but they did provide information for the original story back
in twenty twenty. Their main reasons for looking into Straightway
their anti LGBTQ and anti Semitic ideology, and concerns that
Dowell is a dangerous leader. As of recording, Straightway is
not classified as a hate group, though in twenty twenty
s PLC said that they were periodically monitoring their actions.
(21:24):
Dowell repackaged all of these elements and beliefs into this
new religion, and he sprinkled in a few debunked conspiracy
theories like flat earth and the connection between five G
and coronavirus, and people wanted to be part of what
he was creating. We don't know exactly how many people
consider themselves a part of Straightway, but we do know
that Dowell has over two hundred thousand YouTube subscribers. We
(21:47):
also know from their website that Straightway has at least
fourteen satellite groups around the country, including Mirror and Mathis's
outpost in Indiana and the main community in Tennessee. We've
personally spoken to about a dozen people who joined the movement,
sometimes uprooting their entire lives to be part of Dabel's vision.
Speaker 6 (22:05):
It's like, hey, and sister Lisa, go ahead and.
Speaker 10 (22:07):
Move on down there.
Speaker 2 (22:08):
More. After the break, we flew.
Speaker 6 (22:12):
Into Nashville and this guy picked us up and there
was like there was like a haka just laying in
his back seat. I'm like, oh, that's kind of cool.
Speaker 2 (22:19):
A few months after the gathering in Fresnew Josh and
his mom decided to visit the Straightway property in Tennessee.
It was Passover, an important holiday for the community.
Speaker 4 (22:30):
Lord of the King. The king otta lujah, sure it
is not to be born again.
Speaker 6 (22:39):
People were like bouncing off the walls and We're like, oh,
you know, this is pretty passionate, you know, for our
little modest, white selves. It was a black church like
that in of itself, you see a lot of stereotypes
of everyone kind of getting up and moving and like
being all powerful. That was a huge change of pays
and like people not just standing there clapping kind of still.
Speaker 2 (22:59):
For Lisa, that long weekend they spent at Straightway had
a big impact.
Speaker 6 (23:04):
Our biggest thing was Wow, like minded people, they work the.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
Land, grow their own food, live communally. It seemed like
a good fit. And at some point Lisa didn't want
to just be taking it all in virtually from her
home in Bakersfield.
Speaker 6 (23:18):
She started wondering, Hey, like, are we supposed to move
down there? It's that kind of like what we're supposed
to do.
Speaker 2 (23:25):
And then the way Josh remembers it during one of
Pastor Dowell's Tuesday night Bible studies.
Speaker 6 (23:31):
Okay, and soster Lisa, go ahead and move on down there.
So that was like our thumb and stamp of approval
to head on down to Tennessee. I guess that was
the sign from God I needed.
Speaker 2 (23:44):
Once Josh's mom, Lisa decided to move to Tennessee, she
put their house on the market, loaded up the car,
and it was time for Josh to say goodbye to
the life he knew in California.
Speaker 6 (23:54):
I just remember like a way and just bawling.
Speaker 2 (23:57):
Lisa, Josh, and their dog piled into their Honda Ridgeline
for the two thousand mile drive. And they weren't just
heading to a different home in a different place. They
were heading to a community Lisa wanted the lifestyle. Straightway
prided themselves on living off the land with like minded
people who prioritize faith and traditional gender roles. Even though
(24:18):
Josh was sad to leave, he was pumped for the adventure.
Speaker 6 (24:21):
Yeah, off the rip, it was pretty Uh, it was
pretty cool. They were very, very warm and welcoming.
Speaker 2 (24:27):
Lisa and Josh moved into an apartment building just a
short drive from Straightway's gates. Lisa kept homeschooling Josh and
they spent a lot of time on the Straightway campus.
They were at Sabbath services every Saturday, and they would
listen to Pastor Dowell and his fiery sermons. They had
the intensity of a coach giving a pregame pep talk.
Speaker 6 (24:45):
No, you felt attacked, but it's like if you felt attacked,
that was like a good thing, because it's like, oh, Hey,
you're supposed to work on yourself here kind of deal.
Speaker 4 (24:53):
You only get one pass it, just like one chance
to pass through his life.
Speaker 1 (24:57):
Only one, and.
Speaker 4 (24:58):
Don't miss it, because that's do ovals. There are a
lot of people burning in hey, wishing they could had
a chance of repenting and do it all over again.
This is our time.
Speaker 5 (25:10):
Here are now.
Speaker 6 (25:13):
Our time.
Speaker 2 (25:15):
You did, but this macho persona, it didn't work for everyone.
Speaker 10 (25:21):
My wife just had a hard time accepting your reality
that this is where I wanted to go.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
That's Kabir on his YouTube channel. This religion that Kabir
had become a part of. It wasn't something he could
just do at church outside of his home. It was
a whole shift in his life, in Eileen's life, in
the way their family worked. A big part of this
was that Kabir's expectations of Eileen to be an obedient
wife got to be too much for her. She agreed
(25:49):
with the idea that men and women had different roles
in the house.
Speaker 11 (25:53):
And I saw how God created a husband and wife,
and there's to submit to each other, but there is
the order and there is a headship. But the way
that God intended is beautiful. I mean, it's just like
a well oiled machine.
Speaker 2 (26:08):
But this was more than that. This felt different.
Speaker 11 (26:11):
As we kept on going on a relationship, he would
make it a point to like tell people, yeah, I'm
the head, this is how Krishian marriage is, and like
I call the shots.
Speaker 2 (26:20):
The new requirements. The way he told everyone he was
in charge, and the fact that he was introducing their
kids to Straightway when she had read so many things
about them that didn't sit well with her. It was
all too much, so she left.
Speaker 4 (26:34):
I know, I'm a very famous man who is going
through an ordeal right now. He's discovered that he's the
head of his house, and all he wanted to do
was just come down and visit Straightway.
Speaker 2 (26:47):
In July twenty seventeen, on his YouTube channel, Pastor Dwell
weighed in on Aileen and Kabir's situation.
Speaker 4 (26:53):
This very successful man has a very large family, and
he loves his wife his children, but he's quickly discovering
that his wife has never loved him. So she takes
the children while he's at work, and then she turns
around and leaves him.
Speaker 2 (27:11):
When a pregnant Eileen left Green Bay with her seven children,
she took them to a town called Stephen's Point, about
an hour and a half away. She was hoping that
this was just a blip that she and Kabir would reconcile,
but they ended up spending the summer apart. When it
came time to go back to school, Eileen decided to
return to Green Bay. She didn't want to go back
(27:32):
to Kabir, though, so she and all seven kids and
the bun in the oven moved into a condo. It
was a squeeze compared to Praise Land, but they made
it work. Kabir agreed to try marriage counseling. They made
it through three sessions, but at the fourth he was
a no show, and he told Eileen that Dowell was
the only person who could save their sixteen year marriage.
(27:53):
And then, finally, in a YouTube video from April twenty.
Speaker 10 (27:56):
Eighteen, we are in the process of getting a divorce.
There does not seem to seem like there's an irreconsolable
difference or it's just not reconcilable right now. My wife
feels that I need to acqueouce and capitulate to her desires,
and she feels that I need to do that.
Speaker 2 (28:13):
It turns out Eileen wasn't the only one who was
worried about Dowell, And once I did a little digging,
I found out that the story of Straightway isn't as
clear cut as Dowell has made it out to be.
He didn't create Straightway on his own. He studied under
someone else, someone who was also a fiery preacher and
who had his own issues with the law.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
Ojay h the pie up and the word of the
Lord would come to the citizens of the world. Your
deal of reckoning is now here. Yay, my word had God.
Speaker 2 (28:47):
That's next time. On Spiraled, we tried to reach Lisa
Josh's mom. She and Josh have been out of contact
(29:09):
and we were unable to contact her. Spiraled as a
production of Sports Illustrated Studios, iHeart Podcasts and One on
One Studios Podcasts. The show was reported by me Kaylen Kaylor,
with additional reporting by senior producer Buffy Gorilla. Writing service
provided by Buffy Gorilla and Jen Kinney, sound design, mixing
and mastering by Charlie Kaier. Sarah Sneath is our fact checker,
(29:32):
Scott Stone is our executive producer, and Daniel Waxman is
Director of Podcast Development and podcast Production Manager at one
on one Studios. At iHeart Podcasts, Shawn Tutone is our
executive producer. Special thank you to Michelle Newman, David Glasser,
and David Hudgin from One on One Studios. For more
shows from iHeart Podcasts, go visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,
(29:52):
or wherever you get your podcasts
Host
Kalyn Kahler
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