I noticed that the fellowshipping was almost completely segregated among male-female lines. There were a few men in our area who insisted their wives stand right beside them every moment. The wife was not allowed to talk to another woman without her husband's approval, he had to be right there to hear every word said to her, and she could not give an opinion unless it was his opinion. It was a horrible abuse of power from tiny little men with tiny little brains and tiny little masculinities, who were big losers in real life, but on Saturday they could put on a polyester baby-blue leisure suit and pretend to be important by browbeating their wives. In general, women just did not talk to men in PCG because men knew their brains were created superior, and that women did not have the reasoning ability they did, which is why God put them in charge. 

I also remember a lot of women reading plenty of "stand-by-your-man -right-or-wrong" books, which is absolutely the wrong thing to read in an abusive situation.

Then there was the sexual aspect to it. It was considered shocking to just walk up to a married man and start talking about politics or anything serious, because that's too much like an overt sexual invitation. I know that the ministry considered it adultery if I sat next to a man in services (yes, the subject of adultery in connection with me sitting next to a male friend at services was called adultery because, even though I was divorced, Flurry hadn't decided to let me date), so talking to a man would have also been bordering on the adulterous side of life. 

By Miranda
August 25, 2003 

Note: Be sure and read ESN article: Do Philadelphia Church of God Husbands Abuse Their Wives?