Yes!! My ex’s mom was part of this church, it was where she met my ex’s father. Some of the things she told me were very uncomfortable and 100% is considered by us to be a cult. Women cannot wear pants, skirts must cover the ankles, cutting your hair (as a woman) is not allowed. Dates were chosen by the church and each date was meticulously planned, with a chaperone who would join along to ensure things stayed appropriate. I should ask her to remind me about her stories… I remember it being really hard for her to get away. When I moved to Lakeside, she took me to that exact community center and told me all about it.

The International Church of Christ was pretty culty. They’re distinct from other places with church of Christ in the name, but always name themselves City Church of Christ. They were expanding rapidly while your dad was a member.

I know about them because I had a roommate who joined them in 1995 and tried to recruit me. I remember her yelling and crying at her dad on the phone about how she would have to cut ties with him if he wouldn’t join.

I think they may have become less extreme since the early 2000s. You can google international church of Christ or Kip McKean, their charismatic leader during the period your dad and my roommate were members.

I thought it was going to be the “Unairians” in El Cajon when I first read it. Arielle was an interesting character.

Hey OP! My parents were involved in this church when I(34F) was really young. I’m pretty sure it was while I was a baby up until 7 or 8 years old. My brother doesn’t remember much as he was younger than me. They wouldn’t just use the rec center in Lakeside, but also the rec center in La Mesa and the San Diego convention center as well. My parents got pretty high up there in status and were even considered leaders in the community. My dad hated being in it. The church would charge you “interest” on your donation to the church. He said they used extremely abusive manipulation tactics to get people to join to the point that people would cut off their families and loved ones. Also the men and women weren’t allowed to sit together in the congregation, and kids had to be in Sunday school away from their parents. After realizing that all of this wasn’t normal, my parents decided to leave. It took them a while to get all of their friends out, but they did it successfully! This resulted in my dad and myself no longer being religious. My mom and my brother still are, but with a church of their choosing. Sadly because of this I have residual religious trauma associated with Christianity, but I don’t remember all of it because I think I blocked it out to protect myself. My dad did mention that there was a claim that one of the members assaulted me in Sunday school when I was about 3 or 4 years old, but I have zero recollection of any of that. My parents are divorced now, but when I ask my mom she doesn’t like to bring it up at all for fear of triggering me to remember. What I think is even more wild, is that most of my mom’s closest/longest known friends are people we used to go to church with. My mom thinks it’s because they’re trauma bonded together. I think it’s pretty rad that they saw through the bullshit and worked hard to save and prevent others from staying. I’m very sure that their leaving was the catalyst for others to take action and leave themselves. After all of that Christianity and institutionalized religion didn’t feel right to me. By the time I was 18 and my parents were divorcing, I was done with it for good and felt so much better being away from all of that.

Thanks for the question OP, I've been living in SD for 25+ years and didn't know any of this

In 1999 and 2000, the San Diego Church of Christ was widely characterized as a cult due to its discipling hierarchy that exerted totalitarian control over the private lives of its members. The group likely utilized the Lakeside Community Center for their meetings because the organization strategically refused to purchase permanent church buildings. They preferred to rent inexpensive public recreation centers to maximize the financial flow back to central leadership and maintain strict control over scattered sectors of the city. This financial strategy accompanied a theology claiming they were the only true Christians, meaning anyone outside their specific movement was condemned. Once recruited, members faced an environment of high pressure conformity where a personal discipler demanded full obedience regarding daily decisions, such as whom to date and how to spend money. This often led to psychological manipulation and isolation from family.

There’s many cult type churches and other organized groups. Steer clear of the big production type places and the charismatic folks. Money is their priority.

Everyone knows San Diego has one cult in east county that reigns over all the others:

https://youtu.be/FL65rpg_TJ0?si=CLtv8SI5nLytlieG

Man, we also had Heaven's Gate here, too. Are other cities like this?

Isn't Lakeside itself a cult, now?

All churches are cults

The only cult I ever heard of in San Diego was that one in Encinitas I believe, somewhere in the area anyway. They found all the bodies in that house which eventually got condemned and torn down if I remember right

This also sounds like Lighthouse Baptist that was out in Valley Center/Escondido area around the same time. I know a couple people that were involved as children. Lots of child abuse.

Every church is a cult. Some just try to control their members with more direct force than others.

Another lakeside tale lol

Wait so this church operated for 1 year? Never heard of it. How many members did it have?

if you go to any church...your're in a cult