Baby on the witness stand as Gloriavale’s mom tells ‘other side of the story’

A baby has rarely appeared on a court witness stand when a Gloriavale member hit back at those who said women in the religious community have little choice over their lives.

Rachel Stedfast, who is? the Acting Gloriaval Headmaster and has nine children, testified to a case of the labor court in which six women took center stage who claim they should have been recognized as employees, not volunteers, for the housework they did for years with the religious sect.

Stedfast, 39, was born in the Springbank Christian Community, who later moved to the West Coast and became known as Gloriavale.

She began her testimony at the Christchurch hearing on Friday by saying she wanted to “tell the other side of the story from what most people have heard”.

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Stedfast said claims that women in Gloriavale were “ignorant”, “brainwashed” or “robots just doing what we were told” were untrue and intended to discredit everything women in the community had to say about their way of life. to bring.

“It is claimed that everyone living in Gloriavale has suffered tremendous trauma and pain, but this is not true.

“People who have left think they can speak for us. I think those who still live in Gloriavale should be able to speak for them and be heard.”

Shortly after she began her proof, another Gloriavale woman walked over to the witness stand and handed over Stedfast’s baby, which needed attention. Stedfast put the baby down and continued her testimony while holding her baby.

Babies are not unheard of in courts, but are a rare sight on a witness stand. It is more common for them to be handed over to a parent for a hug in a criminal court before the parent is taken to prison.

Having children in Gloriavale

Stedfast said she was offended by the suggestion that she and other Gloriavale women were being forced to have children.

“I love having children and I feel empowered to bear children. Men cannot and will never be able to experience what I can do. I wouldn’t trade the ability and strength to give another life for something the world has to offer,” she said.

She added that the Gloriavale leaders had no say in her choice to have children.

“I never had any of my children for the shepherds’ sake. This is my personal choice and I am offended by the accusations about my choice not to kill my unborn babies.

“I love each of my children and can tell you that they were not born with the aim of becoming financial assets for the leaders of this community.”

When asked about previous testimony of Crystal Loyalwho said she was forced to return to work just a week after giving birth while her baby was placed in a nursery, Stedfast said this was not normal practice.

She said that when women had babies, they had “a full set time off” and then worked just a few hours a day to get their babies into a routine.

When she worked at the early childhood education centers from 2015 to 2020, the youngest baby there was “6 weeks old, maybe 4 weeks,” but only if their mothers worked at the center.

She confirmed that when a baby was registered with the center, the center would receive a government grant.

The leadership

Stedfast repeatedly emphasized that Gloriavale’s leadership did not control her, but rather guided and guided her. She denied that women in the community were submissive to men, but said women chose to submit to their husbands.

“The Bible says that the man is the head of the woman and the head of the man is Christ. Now there is a command and that is called God’s command. True Christians know God’s order. Christ is over the man, the man must submit to Christ. And then the woman must submit to the man, and children submit to their parents,” she said.

“Submission is about voluntarily giving that authority to the person over you. So as a woman I give my husband that authority over me and I put my trust in him.”

When asked if the leaders in Gloriavale were all men, Stedfast said she trusted the community leaders completely. “The spiritual side of leadership can only be through men, that is according to God’s word.”

She said this didn’t mean she shouldn’t disagree with men, but if she questioned the teachings of the servants and shepherds, she should ask her husband if what she was questioning was right.

“So it’s kind of, you don’t just get up and say, ‘I don’t agree with you.'”

She said this was “a humble way of being”.

Stedfast said Gloriavale’s leaders have not taken advantage of their positions of power. “They go to their graves penniless, but surrounded by loved ones. The reality is that our leaders have given up all their worldly goods, their money, their legacies and their lives to make it possible for me to live the life I have chosen without the stress that leaves some of my fellow mothers out of the community. faced daily.”

Working in the community

Stedfast said claims that children as young as 5 were made to eat breakfast before going to school were untrue. She started helping with food when she was 8 because she asked if she could help because it was “so much fun,” she said.

She told the court about her education and work as a teacher and later headmaster, saying it was her choice to become a teacher.

She confirmed she received a government salary for the work, but said she didn’t want to keep the money for herself and chose to have it deposited into an account that would benefit the community as a whole.

“In reading the Bible, I personally see my role as serving God according to His commandments. I love to serve my sisters and brothers in Christ as he served others when he was on earth.

“I want to share this beautiful blessing with others and so I give my time and energy to help others in any way I can.”