Saturday, September 17, 2016

The Ploughshare Institute In Deary, Idaho

Homestead Heritage In The American Redoubt



Homestead Heritage has a growing community based in Deary, Idaho, known as the Ploughshare Institute for Sustainable Culture. They applied for a conditional use permit, that was first denied and then granted, to operate a school on the property. Their stated objective is "to open a center in Idaho that will teach crafts and sustainable living techniques." (Source

Since this time, a growing number of Homestead members have relocated to the surrounding areas. Members run the Pie Safe Bakery and Kitchen,  Brush Creek Creamery and Quality Contractors in Deary. One business sells crafts at Capital City Public Market in Boise. Another member runs an accounting firm in Boise. [Update 7-18-2019: It has been brought to my attention that the owners of the last two businesses above are no longer members of Homestead. I wish them the best as they recover and move on with their new lives.]

The decision to purchase property and start a community in Idaho was preceded by a tragic event. One of Blair Adams' sons lost a child at birth. This was rightfully mourned by the community, but became a catalyst for the message from the pulpit that Homestead was giving stillbirth to the vision God had given them. In a Sunday meeting, people shared dreams such as one about having to pack up and evacuate Waco quickly due to a catastrophic event. Leaders sifted through dreams that members had previously written down and submitted. It was some months later that the congregation was informed that God was directing them to purchase property in Deary, Idaho. One elder specifically said that this area was out of range of most nuclear missile systems. (Judging by these maps, he's not the only one to think so.)

It wasn't until a few years later that I would learn about the American Redoubt.
The American Redoubt: It lies in the rural high country of Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, eastern Washington and Oregon.
For a growing number of people, it's the designated point of retreat when the American economy hits the fan. When banks fail, the government declares martial law, the power grid goes down. When warming oceans flood the coasts and a resurgent Russia takes out targets on the Eastern Seaboard. (Source
I don't thing Homestead is as concerned about the Russians as they are the Muslims, though. They published a book called A Prediction of Islamist Terror.  In it a dream is shared "about a fierce people, symbolized in this dream by their kaffiyehs, scimitars and horses." "But in the dream when they came to our community, there was a blue circle of flame around it; and when they rode into the flame, they disintegrated." (p. 9)

Exactly how popular is this migration to the Redoubt?
It's impossible to say how many have heeded the call -- analysts say it's probably not all that many so far -- but adherents say that's because the need is only now becoming apparent. Boise was home to a survivalist trade show last year [2011] featuring electric generators, dehydrated food and water-purification devices. (Source)
According to a recent Washington Post article,
It is impossible to know exactly how many people have come over the past few years, but newcomers, real estate agents, local officials and others said it was in the hundreds, or perhaps even a few thousand, across all five states. (Source)
 An article in The Economist says that "thousands of families have answered the call," and that the movement "is quietly gaining steam."

 Survivalist blogger, Wesley Rawles, considered to be "the guru of the movement," compiled a list of things to do in preparation for moving to the Redoubt and what to do after the move. Homestead already does many of the things on this list. One item stood out to me for a particular reason:
  • If you buy an existing house, get one with an extra bedroom or two. Some relatives may be joining you, unexpectedly.
 You see, a Homestead elder once told me that, when the economy collapses, our families will spend their precious remaining gasoline to beat a hasty retreat to our doorstep.

9 comments :

  1. If we allow putting aside the question of dreams and how the decisions were made, the idea of setting up in the northwest, Idaho and Montana, is quite sensible. And can be compatible with Christian principles. One of my fav internet radio personalities is from that region, Steven Quayle. You do not have to be a radical weatherman to be concerned with how the winds are blowing. And Waco always seemed like a bit of a holding spot, when Colorado was disbanded.

    btw, one of my posts here never made it through, after one did. (Granted, it might have just been some glitch.) However I felt the reliance on Samuel Martin's research for material on "Spank Until You Draw Blood" was a bit offbase. Since I did not see the comment, I stopped contributing.

    Overall, I would like to make edifying contributions, which at times might agree, or not agree, with the posts! :)

    Steven

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "If we allow putting aside the question of dreams and how the decisions were made"

      I think Homestead's proclivity for conspiracy theories, "end of life as we know it" prophesies, and general manipulation by fear are too relevant to be "put aside." Since one of your "fav internet radio personalities" believes that the Louisiana flooding was the result of a government "Weather Weapon," I'm confident we'll not see eye to eye on this.

      btw, there are no other comments in moderation. However, if the way I moderate my blog will be an issue for you, then perhaps this is not the place for you to comment.

      Delete
  2. And I did pass on posting for five full months. Moderators are always welcome to run their own forums the way they please, and I have been a rather proactive moderator myself, so I sympathize with the plight of the admin.

    If the post on the Samuel Martin research was not acceptable, I would hope to get a note,(if possible) since my post was carefully written (and in that case I did not keep a copy). That way I would know if it was a moderator decision or a tech glitch. Without any feedback on a discarded post, and lacking a contact addy, the situation for a potential poster is frustrating. What happened? (Granted, you may have only had my LinkedIn url here, on another forum they have an email.)

    And while I probably disagree with Steven Quayle on dozens of points, I do think he is quite cutting edge compared to the standard pablum fare. I especially liked in the old days when he used to have "V, the Guerrilla Economist".

    As for the "questions of dreams and how the decisions are made", I would agree that Homestead Heritage has a tendency to spiritualize situations in a cumbersome manner. And they are capable of coming up with explanations of convenience. And I believe one root cause of the problems here are that they are yahweh-centric, making spiritual revelations unreliable.

    That said, I think their moving towards Montana and Idaho makes sense. It is closer to the original Colorado vision than is the way-stop in Waco.

    And it would be nice if they similarly moved to a sound foundational base of Christian belief. (My belief is that they were far more sound in the 1970s into early 1980s.)

    Steven Spencer

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Steven,

      As I've already said, there are no other pending comments. I haven't seen another comment from you to deem unacceptable or otherwise. There is a contact link beneath the blog header that's been there since the blog launched. Also, please read the comment policy. Following in the footsteps of other spiritual abuse bloggers that I respect, I will not initiate contact with a commenter. I have updated the comment policy to reflect that. The discussion on how I moderate ends now.

      I don't know how doctrinally sound Homestead was in the 70s-early 80s. HW prophesied the end of the world would come in 1992. It was difficult to take them seriously after this had happened more than a few times. They kept crying wolf. After the prophesied time came and went, they simply pretended nothing had ever been said.

      Delete
  3. If this is an information page trying to seek all information then why don't you also put up the homestead video that they put refuting the news stories? Or when their next fair is and stuff?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Homestead already does a fine job at self-promotion on their own websites and blogs. They are selective about what information they share. I'm just filling in some gaps. I've written a few posts here and here about their rebuttals.

      Delete
  4. Come live in Deary and see just how "neighborly" the HH clan really is. They've identified who has property they want or might buy their goods and interact with them but if you're not a potential customer or serve a purpose for them, you're not worth a plugged nickel. They screwed over the library when there was an ice cream social at The Pie Safe (charged the library district for their own members coming and eating ice cream). I know a local farrier who took one as an apprentice and loaned him some equipment to learn on. Apprentice went on his own pretending to be a trained farrier working for the guy who lent him the equipment. They plead poverty and can't afford to fertilize their hay crop and expect some non-member to harvest it for shares in the paltry crop (half of nothing is nothing). Yet somehow they have plenty of cash to renovate the old Deary automotive building into the current Pie Safe, purchase the Deary Saw Shop and remodel it into a feed store, and purchase the Whitehorse Cafe and remodel it ..... This all came about because one landowner off Brush Creek Rd sold off his huge property to them for big cash.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. To quote someone who comments frequently on spiritual abuse blogs, "It's a feature, not a bug."

      Delete
  5. HH (not sure what name they've changed to now) is buying up land at ridiculous prices and then developing them to provide housing for the next members coming to Deary. The only folks in Deary that are okay with them are the ones selling them property. Edward Webb French "owns" just about everything - Pie Safe. Land Company. Cattle Company. Registered agent for AISC (formerly held by Dave Halgerson of Boise) - not sure what AISC does but strange they weigh in on things like federal timber sales etc.

    Not good people and we're stuck with them because some dumb ass neighbor of ours sold them the original property with no concern for what it would do to the community. Thanks Craig Dalton

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to read this post. Please read the comment policy before commenting.