Peacemaker and the Twelve Tribes

Yesterday, I worked on getting the Whaler running.  It took about 3/4s of a can of carburetor cleaner, but it finally seemed to be running perfectly.   So I called for Pam and the dogs and we took a spin.

The dogs love the Whaler.  At 13 feet, it's a good size for them.  An inflatable wouldn't be anywhere near as good and I'm glad we decided to keep it.

Up ahead, we could see the Independence, an ICW cruise ship.  Then Peacemaker, a three masted barquentine rigged tall ship that we first saw in Savannah a year ago at the tall ships rally.  Next was a trawler, and then a cargo ship.  Talk about a variety of boats!

Peacemaker looked fascinating, so we decided to go for a closer look.

Look at the size of that garage!

Peacemaker was built in Brazil and launched in 1989.  It is 124 feet length on deck, 33 foot beam, 14 foot draft, and carries 10,000 square feet of sail.  It is owned by the Twelve Tribes, a "rogue" religious group founded in the Jesus movement of the early 1970s in Chattanooga, Tennessee.  The Twelve Tribes is a fundamentalist religious group and believes that all present day churches have "fallen".  

The Twelve Tribes has been described as a cult and has received much negative attention from the media, especially concerning child labor and home schooling practices.  They had financial difficulties at one point and relocated to Island Pond, Vermont.  In 1984, the Vermont State Police and Vermont Social Rehabilitation Services seized 112 of their children, who were released later in the day when the raid was ruled unconstitutional.  Since that time, the group has been accepted by their local communities and has spread to many countries, and they number two or three thousand.  It is against their religious beliefs to evade taxes, and so are listed as a 501(d) corporation and pay property taxes, sales taxes, and income taxes.  They believe that men should have beards and long hair in a pony tail, and that women should be dressed modestly.  They don't own televisions.

The Twelve Tribes owns farms in Vermont, upstate New York, North Carolina, California, and Missouri.  And they own the Peacemaker, which provides apprenticeship opportunities for their young people.  Brunswick has been their homeport since 2001.

This is one interesting ship, and beautiful in many ways.  Check out their photo gallery.

One thing I love about this country is its religious freedom.  As long as no one is being hurt, these folks should be left alone to live their own lives.

Oh.  And on the ride back to Drift Away, the Evinrude died.