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Beth Granger

Born and Razed : Surviving the Cult Was Only Half the Battle Kindle Edition

by Beth Granger (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

101 ratings

4.6 on Goodreads

99 ratings

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Thousands have read the headlines. Few know the inside story.

What happens when religion and power collide in the wrong hands? At Grenville Christian College, once one of Canada’s most prestigious private religious schools, the result was thousands of broken lives.

Born and Razed recounts the author's gripping and deeply personal journey. Beth's life began at Grenville, where her parents were teachers. The picturesque campus on the banks of the St. Lawrence River masked a dark reality: behind its idyllic facade lay a world of strict control, religious zealotry, and emotional abuse.

Beth was the first baby born at Grenville, but her childhood was far from blessed. When the Mothers, founders of the Benedictine-inspired Community of Jesus in Cape Cod, brought their rigid and punitive vision to the school, life took a devastating turn. For Beth, “repentance” came with public humiliation, relentless criticism, and separation from her family. By age five, she was living apart from her parents, accused of gluttony, and placed on restrictive diets—laying the foundation for a lifelong battle with eating disorders, low self-esteem, and mental health struggles.

Throughout her adolescence, Beth endured emotional torment under the guise of religious instruction. Attempts to seek help were met with harsh judgment, not compassion. Like her family, she was tightly bound by cult-like indoctrination, isolated, and forced to endure the unendurable.

Yet, even in the face of such profound trauma, Beth found the strength to fight back. Her path to freedom began with an act of quiet rebellion—admitting the truth about the institution she had been conditioned to revere. That truth set her on a journey of healing, activism, and justice.

As Beth uncovered the stories of others who suffered at Grenville, her voice became a rallying cry. She played a key role in one of the largest class-action lawsuits in Canadian history, proving that collective resilience can triumph over systemic abuse.

Born and Razed is a powerful memoir of survival, courage, and the long road to recovery. It’s a testament to the human spirit’s ability to overcome unimaginable challenges and rebuild a life from the ashes of the past. For anyone who has ever struggled under impossible expectations or been silenced by authority, Beth’s story offers both a cautionary tale and a beacon of hope.

With unflinching honesty and poignant detail, Born and Razed will leave you moved, inspired, and reminded that healing—even after the deepest scars—is possible.

Print length

367 pages
Language

English
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Publication date

Feb. 14 2025
File size

6.6 MB
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From the Publisher

Hidden Truth Behind Grenville Christian College

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Review

"It takes considerable courage to leave a cult, and even more to speak out about such an experience."

- Rick Alan Ross, Cult Education Institute

"Beth Granger shows how much emotional damage a cult can cause, and how difficult it is to overcome the experience."

- Nori Muster, Betrayal of the Spirit: My life behind the headlines of the Hare Krishna Movement

"Beth Granger provides readers with an insightful and self-reflective journey into, then eventually out of, a debilitating cultic environment ..."

- Stephen A. Kent

"... a stunning contribution to the growing recognition of the impact and trauma of growing up in a cult."

- Janja Lalich, Take Back Your Life: Recovering from Cults and Abusive Relationships

"This well-written, explosive Canadian memoir will have you on the edge of your seat."

- Janice Selbie, RPC, Divorcing Religion: A Memoir and Survival Handbook

"You'll cringe, cry, and cheer for Granger as you read her compelling story. I did."

- Charlene L. Edge, Undertow: My Escape from the Fundamentalism and Cult Control of The Way International

"Beth Granger's beautifully written, searingly honest and heartrending account ... is a must read."

- Gillie Jenkinson, PhD, Walking Free from the Trauma of Coercive, Cultic and Spiritual Abuse: A Workbook for Recovery and Growth

"Born and Razed is a haunting memoir ... shining a powerful spotlight on institutional spiritual abuse. It left me enraged-and in awe of her fight for justice and recovery."

- Anke Richter, Cult Trip: Inside the World of Coercion and Control

"This book is an excellent read for those looking to peel back the layers of cults in Canada."

- Caitlin Erickson, public education advocate

"She offers hope that healing is possible-though it doesn't always look like we would expect."

- Erin Harrop, PhD, LICSW, eating disorders researcher, therapist, and advocate

"... an essential read for those seeking to understand the darker side of institutional authority and its lasting consequences."

- Meg Appelgate, Becoming UN SILENCED: Surviving and Fighting the Troubled Teen Industry

"Granger bravely shares a heartrending survivor account of religious and institutional abuse, well worth the witnessing."

- Jessica Willis Fisher, Unspeakable: Surviving My Childhood and Finding My Voice

"Anyone who loves the stories of women who have advocated for themselves and survived against impossible odds will want to read this powerful story."

- Cait West, Rift: A Memoir of Breaking Away from Christian Patriarchy

"Beth Granger's spirit was not broken. In fact, its vibrancy is woven into every page. This book is a triumph and a must read."

- Gerette Buglion, An Everyday Cult

"... at once captivating and heartbreaking. A must read!"

- Sarah Edmondson, Scarred: The True Story of How I Escaped NXIVM, the Cult That Bound My Life

"If you are lost in the pain and isolation of religious trauma and spiritual abuse, this book will remind you that you're not alone."

- Rebekah Monroe, co-founder of North American Research Collective - Religious Trauma

--This text refers to the paperback edition.

About the Author

Beth Granger was the first staff child born at Grenville Christian College, an elite private boarding school in Canada. In truth, it was a cult. After her escape at age thirty-one, she didn't become a drug addicted streetwalker or go straight to hell, as her cult leaders predicted. Instead, she earned her Bachelor of Education at Queen's University, got hired after her first teacher interview, married a police officer, and became a mother of two. She's been recovering from complex PTSD, benzo withdrawal, and a lifelong eating disorder. She also helped spearhead a sixteen-year landmark class action lawsuit against her abusers. Beth is dedicated to shedding light on the long-term impact of trauma inflicted by weaponized religion. Born and Razed: Surviving the Cult was Only Half the Battle is her first book. --This text refers to the paperback edition.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0DQ68117H
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Ingenium Books Publishing Inc.
Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
Publication date ‏ : ‎ Feb. 14 2025
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 6.6 MB
Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 367 pages
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1990688331
Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
�鶹�� Rank: #80,079 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #16 in Educator Biographies (Kindle Store)
- #35 in Educator Biographies (Books)
- #67 in Christian Church History (Kindle Store)
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101 ratings

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Beth Granger

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Beth Granger is dedicated to shedding light on the long-term impact of religious trauma and helping its survivors heal. Beth grew up in a Christian cult, believing that she’d become a drug addicted streetwalker and go to hell if she ever left. Instead, after her escape at age 31, she forged a seemingly successful life for herself as a teacher, a wife and a mother. She also spearheaded a 16-year landmark class action lawsuit against her abusers. Writing her memoir played an essential part of Beth’s healing when it became clear that she couldn’t outrun her trauma. Beth resides near Ottawa with her family and her three cavaliers, Harry, Hermione, and Ron.

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Mike Morley
A Harrowing, Courageous Memoir of Survival and Resistance
Reviewed in Canada on February 14, 2025
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"Born and Razed" is a gripping, unflinching memoir that reads like the chilling prequel to The Handmaid’s Tale—except every word is painfully real. Beth Granger’s story of growing up within the ruthless mind-control cult of Grenville Christian College and the Community of Jesus is a testament to resilience in the face of relentless psychological and physical abuse.

As someone who attended the now-disgraced Grenville Christian College for two years, I can personally attest to the disturbing practices Beth recounts. But while I only endured them for a short time, Beth was born into this world of forced public confessions, degrading "light sessions," and soul-crushing discipline. She did not have the option to leave—only the impossible task of surviving.

Granger’s memoir is both deeply personal and universally relevant, shedding light on the devastating impact of authoritarian religious control—not just on individuals but on entire families and communities. She vividly exposes how charismatic leaders, under the guise of righteousness, justify their cruelty in the pursuit of absolute power.
Yet, despite the horrors she endured, Born and Razed is ultimately a story of courage. Beth’s unwavering spirit and determination to hold onto her identity, even as she was systematically broken down, is profoundly moving. And her fight didn’t end when she left. She chose to speak out, taking a stand in a class-action lawsuit against the school’s leadership—facing down their continued efforts to silence, isolate, and shame her long after Grenville had closed its doors.

Beth Granger survived. And through this book, she outshines the darkness of her past by telling her truth. Born and Razed is an essential read for anyone seeking to understand the insidious nature of cult control, the resilience of the human spirit, and the power of speaking out against abuse.

Highly recommended for readers of powerful survivor memoirs, investigative non-fiction, and anyone seeking insight into how authoritarian control—whether in religious institutions, political movements, or social ideologies—uses coercion, public shaming, and manipulation to demand obedience, making this book highly relevant to our times.

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Grace Olivia
A beautiful and vulnerable story of survival
Reviewed in Canada on February 18, 2025
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A ripped-from-the-headlines true story of an abusive religious cult that operated a boarding school in Ontario for decades. Purporting to be an Anglican prep school, Grenville Christian College enjoyed a public reputation as pristine as the property it occupied along the St Lawrence river. Granger writes with unflinching honesty of her experiences in the religious group, which was itself run by The Community of Jesus in Massachusetts (still operating). She offers a look behind the scenes from someone who was raised and lived in the group for thirty years, and subsequently spent many years fighting for justice within the Canadian legal system.

It is an at-times harrowing story of trauma and abuse, but also of resilience. Granger doesn’t shy away from the more painful aspects of her life at the school, which included family separation, coercive control by various cruel means, and a lifelong struggle with disordered eating tracing back to a preoccupation with her size by the leaders of this group, beginning at age five. After freeing herself, Granger eventually becomes a representative plaintiff for former students of the school in a class action lawsuit, ultimately making history and setting legal precedent in Canada.

Granger also writes compellingly about the lawsuit and the years she spent after leaving the school as she tries to build a “normal” life and put her past behind her. So many survivor stories imply a rosy future after “getting out” or living through particular traumatic events, perhaps doing a disservice to the many survivors who have found their lives irrevocably altered. Granger offers the reader a rare look into what it is to actually *live with* trauma that has imprinted on you.

She details the ways that her trauma has continued to impact her daily life in material ways - the toll on her physical and mental health; fractured relationships with her family of origin; and the monumental task of undoing her decades of “programming”. She writes poignantly of the sincere grief she feels for the students who unwittingly attended Grenville and their families. You can feel the weight of their stories on her.

This is a powerful memoir about growing up in and getting out of a cult. It is also a fascinating and all too recent historical account of a coercive religious group operating in plain view and given cover by many prominent Canadians. Anyone interested in the history of this school and the lawsuit that followed its closure will find this a riveting read. A tragically cautionary tale about the power of belief and religious indoctrination and the havoc that unchecked power can wreak. Above all it is a story of the author’s survival against all odds, and her powerful moral clarity, which stands as a searing rebuke to her abusers and the school’s apologists. I highly recommend this book. It is an obvious must-read for anyone who is connected to Grenville. Survivors of abuse in general will find much to relate to in Granger’s journey. The rest will be humbled by her tenacity. She is not fearless, she is terrified, which makes her story all the more inspiring.

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Sophie
A heart wrenching first-account of a brave soul who escaped a cult and sued their a**
Reviewed in Canada on March 30, 2025
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Everyone should read this book. It was eye opening.

This book left me shocked and numb. Simultaneously, I was horrified and sobbing through the recounting of it all. It is not an easy read - Beth paints a painful picture with her brave words - but it is worthwhile.

It is such a well written account of a life that was altered by religious trauma. I felt like I was there, experiencing the beautiful campus that hid so many dark secrets.

I don’t have proper words. A friends mom is a key player in the lawsuit that took place in this book. I have hard time reconciling that these stories are so close to me, and her so far. This is the first time I’m hearing of the whole ordeal despite living within an hours drive of the campus where so many students had their lives ripped from them.

I have a sense of pride for the author, and all the individuals involved in the class action against GGC. Setting a precedent in Canadian law is a hard path full of pitfalls and heartbreak. Ultimately, I’m happy that things settled the way they did. Our system is so deeply flawed.

Beth if you’re reading this, thank you for sharing your story and publishing your book. I had no clue about the systemic abuse that happened in my backyard for so long I hope your healing continues and you’re able to find peace.

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Top reviews from other countries

Olivia Shakespear
So inspiring!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 15, 2025
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I loved this book! That might seem strange, given its harrowing subject matter, but the authenticity shines through from start to finish and it was hard to put down. Even though, thank goodness, being born into and growing up in a cult is not something many people can relate to directly, it’s hard to read without resonating deeply with Beth’s story in a less direct way. You’ll find yourself cheering along as she bravely frees herself and takes on challenge after challenge. One of the most inspiring stories I’ve read!

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Michael P. Phelan
Gripping and timely!
Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2025
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I can’t recommend “Born and Razed” highly enough, a powerful and stunning memoir. Using her heartbreaking yet ultimately hopeful story as the through line, she seamlessly weaves in stories of fellow survivors. In unflinching detail, she also digs in to her experience with eating disorders that were caused by the trauma and abuse she experienced starting from a very young age. Beth gives the reader a unique opportunity to go on a journey with her from childhood to adulthood as she evocatively brings to life the bizarre world in which she was raised. You feel the heartbreak acutely. You root for her to stand up to the bullying and abuse. You cheer for the hard fought victories. This is a book that will linger with you long after the final passages. It is simply incredible.

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Mel McDaniel
Takes a Warrior to Write this Book
Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2025
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When someone writes a memoir it is often a glimpse into a life you can only imagine. This is a very different situation because there are countless readers who are not imagining but rather reliving because they also lived life in the same setting. This is true for myself and what a surreal experience it was to read this book and find myself back in the dining room during a summer lunch listening to the vitriol spewed from the head table upon the heads of the adults. Or find myself laying on the floor of the chapel balcony mesmerized by the costumes and sounds coming from the stage below during a G&S practice.

Beth had the admirable strength to write her story (her own singular and horrifying story) but simultaneously she allowed so many of us to find our story. To hold in one’s hand a book that tells a story you seldom speak of and struggle to make any sense of is a precious gift. It is a life line, a printed defender, a solid object that holds truth you do not know how to share with your own words.

To anyone who has interest in religious abuse - here you will find a devastating account of the many tactics used to break spirits and destroy souls. Until these tactics are known and understood, spiritual abuse will continue to run rampant. Whether it is innocent children or spiritually sensitivity adults, these types of manipulators have to be stopped. When one reads about cults it is shocking to see the same tactics at use over and over. These tactics must be shared and discussed and exposed so they can be identified sooner by both witness and victim.

Beth is a warrior. Her spirit and strength are the brightest takeaways from this book. Read this book and please join the fight in recognizing and standing against spiritual abuse.

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Natalie A.
Brilliant, Heartbreaking, Beautifully Written
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 18, 2025
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As a former GCC student, this book is an extraordinary account of an almost unbelievable context. It is compelling reading with vulnerability and truth. It has answers questions for me about what I saw and validated what I experienced. Read the book in one sitting. For anyone who has read the headlines about Grenville and wants a deep dive into the hidden world of this elite boarding school, this is the book for you.

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Ian J. Maxwell
Uncommon courage
Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2025
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My husband I both attended Grenville Christian College. He was there for five years and I was there for two. We both experienced much of what Beth had tried to put into words, which seems impossible. They tried to crush us, and while they did break us, together we broke free. At the age of 61 I still panic when someone asks to have a private meeting with me - assuming that will be berated or humiliated. Well done Beth. Thank you for having the courage to speak for so many of us who felt mute.

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