Dozens ‘Walk For Truth’ At Rock Harbor

ORLEANS – Under a chilly drizzle last Friday, dozens of people held signs and walked around the parking lot at Rock Harbor in what was billed as a “Walk for Truth,” held adjacent to the Community of Jesus compound.

 Speaking from the bed of a pickup truck, Anne Buchs, one of the event organizers, said the goal of the walk was to “shine light [on] a very important matter. And we are here doing it with love, with compassion, with support and with nothing but peace,” she said. “We want people to heal, to move forward to know that they matter, to know that there is life beyond fear.”

 In a news release announcing the Good Friday event, organizers said their aim was to support people affected by “coercive, high-control religious environments.” Buchs and co-organizer Daneen Law did not mention the Community of Jesus by name, except to remind participants not to trespass on their property.

 Previously, Law said organizers were inspired to host the event out of concern over allegations raised over the years against the Community of Jesus. Most recently, Oliver Ortolani, a former Community member, filed suit in U.S. District Court against the Community and two affiliated arts organizations alleging that he and other children in the Community were subject to unpaid child labor and trafficking through their involvement in helping build the Community’s performing arts center in Brewster.

 The Community has consistently denied any wrongdoing and filed a countersuit against Ortolani’s parents. In a paid advertisement published elsewhere in this edition, the Community argues in an open letter to the public that it is following its Christian faith, and that its members “participate actively in Cape Cod’s economic, civic and philanthropic lives, and devote themselves as volunteers to so many good causes, including local governance.” Its arts programs are a means of building bridges and touching hearts, the advertisement reads. 

 The Community believes in human decency, the open letter continues. 

 “In that regard, we must say that the hatred, the falsehoods, and the venom that certain individuals have directed our way for years now, particularly on social media, is a source of profound hurt for us, and more than a little bit of concern. We have been the object of vandalism, of desecration of harassment, of bullying, of threats, and even of assaults,” they wrote.

 Orleans police confirmed that Friday’s demonstration was peaceful and that no problems were reported. Police Chief Scott MacDonald estimated the crowd to be around 100 people.

 “It’s so impressive that all of you are here today to walk in peace and hope and to share the truth,” Law told the group. “When I first heard about everything that was going on here at a book group, I couldn't help but [think] with a mother’s heart, that these poor children have no choice and no voice. And that’s what we want to stop.”

 A number of people at the walk identified themselves as family members or supporters of former Community members. Jeanne Cole said her sister lived at the Community for three years when she was a young person, and spent the remainder of her life suffering ill effects of the experience.

 “People are damaged for the rest of their lives,” Cole said. When her sister, Kim, passed away two years ago at the age of 65, she had spent much of her life suffering from insecurity and a lack of self-worth that she had been taught at the Community, Cole said. While she rarely shared her experiences with family, “I think she lived with that her whole life,” Cole said.

Cole said she was heartened by the work of the local nonprofit Rock Harbor Truth and individuals who speak out against the Community’s practices, saying they will encourage more people to come forward with their stories.

 “Now people are getting the help that they need,” Cole said.