GDT Ministry’s Treatment of Women

In this article, we investigate the manner in which the leadership of the Golden Dawn Tabernacle ministry treats women both within the church and in broader society. This church has frequently faced criticism for its hostile marginalization of women. The doctrinal tenets of the church imply that women hold a lesser status compared to men, leading some critics to argue that it promotes the idea of women as second-class citizens deserving of subordinate treatment. The situation is particularly concerning as females significantly outnumber males, particularly because of the increasing number of young men leaving the church. Through this investigation, we aim to reveal some concerning realities regarding the church’s approach to its female congregants.

GDT Ministry’s Position on Women & Male Guardianship

Pastor Isaac Noriega asserts that women bear the responsibility for the downfall of humanity, assigning blame solely to them. He views women as second-class citizens due to their perceived status as the “weaker vessel.” Consequently, he promotes the notion that all women within the church must adhere to a “headship,” essentially implying submission to a male figure and the presence of male guardianship for all female members. Unmarried women are instructed to submit to their fathers headship through their 20s, 30s, and well until their 40s if they do not marry (or to their pastor if the father is not a member of the church, in good standing with the church, or has passed away), while married women are expected to submit to their husbands. Widowed women are guided to submit to their pastor. This stringent Male Guardianship approach bears an unsettling resemblance to the treatment of women in certain predominantly Muslim countries that follow Sharia law, as interpreted within their specific contexts.

The GDT Ministry espouses the belief that women were created by God to serve as partners to men, assuming submissive roles as companions, mothers, and homemakers. Consequently, the church maintains that women need only a rudimentary education. As a result, most female congregants do not complete education beyond middle school or partially through high school, with the majority lacking a high school diploma or GED. This stems from the belief that women’s participation in the workforce is unnecessary, as their primary duty lies in raising children at home.

This philosophy leads to a reality where the lives of female congregants within the Golden Dawn Tabernacle are heavily regulated and controlled by men. Even seemingly simple tasks such as grocery shopping or purchasing clothing necessitate permission from a male guardian. These guardians are charged with overseeing the spiritual and physical welfare of the female church members, leaving the women with no choice but to comply, lest they face excommunication from the church. This potential consequence is particularly daunting for women in the congregation, as their limited education, narrow range of career skills beyond homemaking, and primary reliance on their male guardians’ income make them especially vulnerable.

GDT Ministry’s Sexualization of Women

The leadership of the GDT Ministry exerts considerable effort to sexualize various aspects of female congregants’ appearances, seemingly as a means to extend their control over them. In doing so, they often sexualize completely innocent behavior or apparel.

Pastor Isaac Noriega advocates for a dress code among female church members that are supposed to be so “modest” it prevents men from experiencing lustful thoughts. As a result, certain limitations have been put in place, including the requirement for dresses and skirts to be worn below the ankle, loose and shapeless clothing, and a ban on clothing that reveals one’s “body shape”. This principle has been taken to such an extreme that women face strict limitations on clothing and hairstyles. Shoes must be closed-toed, and high heels are prohibited, with only flat-soled shoes allowed. This raises questions about the underlying motivations behind such restrictions (as ridiculous as this sounds, it is suspected by some former members that Rey Aguirre may have a foot fetish given how often he has pulled aside girls wearing open-toed shoes or sandals to inspect them under the guise of enforcement). The rules have led some families to adopt even more stringent measures. For example, some women avoid tweezing their eyebrows, shaving arms or legs, or using curling irons, as they see it as a form of hair-cutting, which is not permitted.

Despite the intention of these guidelines, the GDT Ministry leadership regularly scrutinizes young girls for dress code violations, resulting in an uncomfortable dynamic where older men inappropriately examine young female congregants. Even though a higher standard for women is required in regard to modesty and how they dress, they are required to kneel at the altar in front of the entire congregation at every service as part of the pre-service public prayer ritual. The men are also required to do this but they do so in a much less visible area of the church altar. The women are usually segregated to pray in the front center altar underneath Isaac Noriega’s pulpit. Any male who looks up during this early part of the service and looks a little to long in the directions of the praying females would usually get in trouble by the deacons who stare with no impunity at the backsides of the women as they take their turn kneeling and praying before the start of service. The deacons at the front door who are greeting usually stare up and down at the sisters who walk in, making sure that they meet the standard of modesty that is required. Many women feel uncomfortable and sexualized when the deacons do this. According to a former church member, “Deacons are sexually perverted for staring at a women’s dress and checking them out.” In some cases, they have been known to send young girls back home to change their outfits if they are considered inappropriate. This measure is both absurd and humiliating for the young girls involved.

Isaac Noriega exhibits a peculiar tendency to sexualize even the most trivial matters, often linking the behavior of the female congregants to that of harlots. For instance, he argues that outspoken women are unruly and akin to harlots, leading to the teaching that female congregants should remain silent and submissive. In another example, he declared that scarves had been revealed to him as a harlot’s attire, resulting in their prohibition within the church. Moreover, when he observed elder female congregants residing in the Elder Residential Compound walking laps around the church parking lot for exercise, he became incensed, comparing their actions to those of prostitutes, and consequently banned them from continuing this activity.

Regrettably, this behavior permeates the church school as well, with both teachers and students frequently monitoring each other’s adherence to dress codes. As mentioned in a previous article about the church school, female students are not allowed to innocently hold hands as friends, as this is perceived as a manifestation of a lesbian “spirit.” Rey Aguirre, who serves as the school principal and head elder, is particularly notorious for enforcing these minor rules. There were instances where female students were suspected of wearing nail polish. According to one of the former students, Rey went so far as to take these girls out of the classroom, asking them to remove their shoes in order to inspect their feet for any signs of nail polish application (further supporting some former member’s suspicion that he has a foot fetish). What is concerning is the invasion of privacy of these young girls, and the alarming misconduct of a grown male interacting with these underage girls in this sexualized manner. To further his objectives, he often enlists his daughters to monitor dress code compliance and gather information for him, particularly among the younger girls. They go so far as to physically adjust the younger girls’ clothing if they deem it to be inappropriate. Ironically, it has been observed that some daughters of deacons and elders are among the most boisterous members, frequently laughing, snorting, and dressing tightly. However, due to their familial connections, this behavior is overlooked.

GDT Ministry’s Abusive Practices For Female Congregants

Work and Education

Married women within the Golden Dawn Tabernacle are prohibited from working outside the home, even if they wish to. They must remain at home as housewives, focusing on cooking, sewing, and pleasing their husbands, with their primary role being to care for their spouse and raise children. This leaves them completely reliant on their husbands for financial support, potentially trapping them in abusive situations, and in some reported instances, domestic violence.

Single women are discouraged from pursuing education, as it is deemed unnecessary for a housewife’s role. Regrettably, some women never marry and remain dependent on their fathers for life. Upon their fathers’ passing, these women fall under the direct guardianship and control of Isaac Noriega.

While single and widowed women are permitted to work, their options are severely limited and closely controlled. They are typically restricted to jobs within the church itself, such as teaching at the church school or housekeeping positions, where they can be supervised by fellow church members. Consequently, they often face intense scrutiny and control from other congregants who dictate their every action.

A few older, unmarried women in the church have historically been allowed to work in traditional clerical or administrative roles. However, this practice has become increasingly restricted as the high-ranking fathers of these women pass away and Isaac assumes greater control over their lives. As discussed in a previous article, the progressive revelation argument is often employed to justify why some of these unmarried women were permitted to hold higher-paying jobs, while younger unmarried women are not.

Basic Errands

Widows at the Golden Dawn Tabernacle represent some of the most susceptible and poorly treated individuals within the congregation. Their lives are often regulated to such an extent that they require permission from Isaac even for mundane tasks like grocery shopping, running errands or visiting their family members. This degree of control is inhumane, intolerable and constitutes a blatant infringement on fundamental human rights. The treatment of widows will be examined in more detail in an upcoming article.

Not Missing Church Services Above Serious Illnesses and Pregnancies

A worrisome aspect of the treatment of women in the congregation is the expectation for them to be resilient, pious, and refrain from complaining. According to the rules, they must attend church even when sick or on the verge of giving birth. It is widely recognized among current and former GDT members that displaying signs of pain or admitting to suffering from any ailment during church services is highly discouraged. As a result, inhumane actions stem from these dehumanizing requirements and immense peer pressure.

Numerous incidents have occurred where pregnant mothers went to extreme lengths to demonstrate their devotion and comply with the rules and peer pressure. For example, a mother in labor during a church service, experiencing contractions and fully dilated, waited until the service concluded before going to the hospital to deliver her baby. Another mother gave birth on a Wednesday morning, refused to stay in the hospital or at home to rest, and attended the Wednesday evening service that very same day. This kind of public display of devotion often results in positive recognition from Isaac Noriega, as they are “tough” enough to attend church services despite having just given birth. A former member recalls Isaac praising a pregnant mother for her extreme efforts to not miss church, comparing her to women in the “old days” who allegedly gave birth in fields and immediately resumed work. Women are under pressure to compete with each other to demonstrate their level of holiness and sanctity, but in doing so, they expose themselves and their children to potential harm.

There is immense pressure to attend church regardless of serious illness or situations that would warrant bed rest. We explore several examples below:

In one instance, a husband informed Isaac Noriega that he and his wife could not attend a church service due to her getting severely ill. Isaac coldly instructed him to leave her at home and attend church anyway as that should be his top priority. The husband was shocked by Isaac’s response, and refused his directive and took his wife to the hospital emergency room instead where she received critically needed medical attention. This example does an excellent job of demonstrating Isaac’s lack of empathy for the congregation and his narcissistic personality.

There have been cases where older female and male church members with dementia were confined to a janitor’s closet or bathroom during service if they spoke out of line, often for the entire service duration (3-3.5 hours).

Multiple female congregants were pressured to attend church despite suffering from terminal illnesses. Many recall a recent case where an older congregant with terminal cancer was brought to church despite being comatose. Sadly, she was not the only one, as there have been numerous others who attended services despite being on the brink of death or comatose, all due to the pressure to be present for service.

In a particularly upsetting instance, a female congregant suffered severe pain caused by pregnancy complications. Rather than taking precautions and potentially staying in bed, she attended church services. For the following 3-4 hours, she alternated between sitting and standing while tending to her other children. Tragically, she experienced a miscarriage in the nursery bathroom. It remains uncertain whether a more cautious approach could have led to the survival of the child, but if being more cautious meant missing a church service, it was not even considered as an option due to church attendance being a higher priority than a pregnant mother’s health.

Speaking out about these abuses is strictly forbidden, despite the pervasive knowledge of their cruelty and unnecessary nature. Due to this culture of dismissing women’s feelings and comfort, countless cases will likely remain unknown, as fear continues to hold these women captive.

GDT Ministry’s Misogyny towards Non-Congregant Women

The mistreatment by GDT Ministry extends beyond their female congregants, affecting even women who are not members of the church. In certain situations, visitors have been denied entry for failing to comply with the dress code. Isaac has also been known to disparage women drivers, at times elevating his views to the level of doctrine. He frequently launches into diatribes during sermons, blaming women’s rights for the nation’s decline. Some church members recall Isaac expressing his desire to change the fire alarm system due to its female voice providing audible warnings. The system was eventually replaced with one featuring a male voice, which was confirmed when an electrical fire triggered the alarms.

Several years ago, during a church construction project, a female inspector from Pima County arrived on site for a scheduled inspection. Since it is a predominantly male-dominated industry, the church trustees were taken aback by the presence of a woman. They proceeded to ridicule and criticize her, stating that it was not a place for a woman and that she was not welcome. Consequently, the female inspector was unable to carry out the inspection and was compelled to leave.

Conclusion

The mistreatment of women within the Golden Dawn Tabernacle church is a pressing concern that demands attention. Female congregants face numerous restrictions that many women might take for granted. They are tightly controlled by male guardians, be it their husbands, fathers, brothers, or pastor. Even executing a mundane and harmless errand requires permission from a male guardian. Their education is highly regulated and restricted. Women are taught and trained to primarily serve as child-bearing mothers and housewives within the church.

The women in this church should not be subjected to any level of control, let alone these extreme levels. This kind of abusive treatment is not only unethical, but also bigoted, sexist, and a blatant violation of human rights. We call upon the church to reassess its treatment of women and take steps to ensure that all members are treated with dignity and respect. We believe that the differences between males and females should complement and complete each other, rather than grant one gender more power over the other.

In closing, we would like to share this Bible verse with you:

Galatians 3: 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

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