7 April 10–16, 2025 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents Twice a year, Homestead members must sign a book called “Confessions for Baptism and Communion,” which recommits them to the church. Yeshiah and his wife had been tossing around the idea of leaving for several months, and when the time came to sign the book again, he told his church leader they “would never sign” it “as long as we lived.” That night, the group disfellow- shipped them. As Yeshiah remembers it, they were told they were “crucifying Je- sus a second time,” that they were guilty of his death and that they would never be a real Christian again. They were told they’d never feel God’s presence “as long as they lived,” he said. Yeshiah and his wife packed what little they owned into a small U-Haul. Saddled with debt and feeling like their hearts were being “ripped out,” they drove away from Homestead Heritage. Like several other former members the Observer spoke with, Yeshiah and his wife began attending Antioch Church in Waco after leaving Homestead. The nondenomi- national church can be “intense,” Alexander said, making it a familiar place to land. With no money to their name, Yeshiah’s family spent their first month in Waco try- ing not to end up under a bridge. Antioch was a chance to decompress in a familiar setting and begin building a new commu- nity. It was just before Christmas, and to- ward the end of the service, the congregation began passing around candles. The lights dimmed. Candles bathed the church in a warm, flickering glow. Softly, slowly, the churchgoers sang the hymn “O’ Holy Night.” Although Homestead recog- nizes the birth of Jesus as a holiday, Santa, elves, stockings and trees are not part of the celebration. Yeshiah had never seen any- thing like that Christmas service before. He can recite the song’s third verse to this day: Chains shall He break, for the slave is our brother; And in His name, all oppression shall cease. Surrounded by strangers and haunted by the song, Yeshiah was certain that the tight feeling in his chest had something to do with God. Years later, he still gets choked up when he remembers the experi- ence. “That feeling, that emotion that they said we’d never feel again, was so thick in the place,” he said. “There was so much pain for the fact that so many of our family and friends were chained slaves 10 miles down the road. And we had no access to them. We could not talk to them. We couldn’t explain this.” For Alexander, leaving Homestead Heritage meant learning simple social cues. She was 26 when she learned how to order from a bar and what a hangover is. She had to Google what to wear to her local com- munity college classes and how a job interview works. She didn’t know how to enroll her children in school. She remem- bers standing in a store “clue- lessly” holding a stack of jeans because she didn’t know her size. She had never worn jeans before. Seven years after leav- ing, she sees Homestead Heritage everywhere. When the movie musical Wicked came out late last year, she saw it multiple times in theaters and “sobbed” every time. “It all just boils down to a weak, power- less man,” she said. “You realize the em- peror has no clothes, and you realize he’s never had any clothes.” Former members describe feeling emo- tionally, socially and educationally stunted when navigating the post-Homestead world. Many have turned away from orga- nized religion altogether. In addition to everything included in this article, former members of Homestead Her- itage detailed witnessing or being victims of extreme corporal punishment and medical malpractice during home births. Once de- fining itself as apolitical, the group, under the leadership of Blair Adams’ son Asi since the founder’s death, has begun espousing politically conservative messaging, former members added. “I don’t think that Homestead would fall into Christianity. I truly believe that they mostly worship Homestead. Homestead is their god,” Joseph said. “My experience tells me that Homestead could get the people there to violate absolutely any moral or bib- lical standard.” According to the Homestead Heritage website, the group sponsors communities in five U.S. states and 10 countries on five con- tinents. There are eight Homestead Heri- tage families in India, 10 in South Africa, seven in New Zealand, 25 in Wisconsin. The group’s website reads: “We are com- mitted to restoring the church as a commu- nity and culture for a wholesome and harmonious life.” A FAQ section adds, “Anyone can join.” Yeshiah Haugh and his wife Noa left Homestead Heritage 10 days before their son’s first birthday.
