Leaving the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church: The Experiences of Multi‐Generational Adults Exiting a Closed Religious Community

Abstract

The Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, better known as the Exclusive Brethren, are a closed religious movement with over 50,000 members across Australia, New Zealand, Europe, the Americas and UK. Most members have been born into the community and have been socialised into a way of life which emphasises the rejection of mainstream society in order to maintain moral purity. Those who leave, whether by choice, or due to the Brethren’s disciplinary procedures, are faced with rebuilding a new life, usually without family, social support, or knowledge of common social conventions and popular culture. This study used a qualitative research design, analysing data gathered primarily from semi‐ structured interviews with former Brethren members. Theories from the field of structural symbolic interactionism which explain the interaction of society and the self in the development of identity are used to interpret the former members’ accounts of the challenges they faced as they adjusted to their new way of life in mainstream society. The findings of this research suggest the former members had developed an identity and self‐concept that was deeply intertwined with their membership in the Brethren community. Due to the all‐encompassing nature of the lifestyle, loss of their Brethren identity often occurred simultaneously with the loss of their employment, home, social circle, and marriage and other family connections. Immediately after leaving, they faced practical concerns such as securing accommodation and employment in an unfamiliar environment, while adjusting to these multiple losses. Longer term, developing a new identity that reflected their changed circumstances required them to overcome internalised beliefs about themselves and the outside world, an undertaking which presented ongoing difficulties for many of the participants who reported struggling to form close connections, feeling stigmatised due to their past, and suffering lasting effects to their mental health.