The Essence of a Religious Cult
Diocesan Press Service. October 6, 1975 [75336]
Richard Brewster
( This essay was written by Richard Brewster, member of Cathedral of All Saints, Albany, following an experience of being a member of the Children of God for three weeks. He has since made a study of this and other religious cults. It must be noted that it is virtually impossible for a youngster to leave a cult on his own. Richard and his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Brewster, will try to be of assistance to those who might need it. )
Unification Church, Children of God, Hare Krishna, Divine Light Mission, and many other "religious " cults have one thing in common. They are money-making operations for the benefit of a few select leaders using mind control techniques to attract and maintain membership. Preaching love, brotherliness, and spiritualness, they appeal to the frustrations, insecurities, rough times, and loneliness facing young people growing up in today's complex and overwhelming world. Once in the clutches of the group, however, these young people, mainly 18-25, give up their possessions (to the group), school, work, friends, parents, and the world to go live their lives for "God. "
Living a life for "God" in reality means becoming a brainwashed zombie that thinks only as far as the "divine " words of the group's self-appointed prophet, messiah, or guru. It also means slaving long hours on the streets, begging, peddling (literature, candles, flowers, incense, etc.), and coming for as much money as possible, all to be turned over to the leaders of the group. The leaders live in luxury while the members generally live in austere communal or dormitory eating and sleeping arrangements. The exact financial status of these groups has been hard to prove, however, due to first amendment protection and refusals to reveal financial records.
Mind control or brainwashing is a slow, scarcely recognizable process. At first a possible convert encounters smiling, friendly people of one of these groups, exhibiting great concern for him. The cult members sincerely look the prospect right in the eyes and due to a prayerful meditative state cult members subject themselves to in a process explained scientifically concerning brainwaves, a certain level of hypnosis is attained. The atmosphere relaxes the prospect and lowers his defenses; however, the existence alone of the happy people to the eyes of the unsure youth often makes him agreeable. While in this suggestible state, the group members begin to preach to him truthful and accepted facts recognizable to anyone. Then the truth is twisted a little at a time, although hardly recognizable, and Bible scriptures taken out of context and Bible passages misinterpreted are possibly used to support points. The smiling group members, themselves brainwashed, believe 100 percent in what they are doing and sell themselves extremely well. Like good salesmen they can sell even when their product is not really wanted. The preaching goes on often without space for refutation, but if doubts and questions are raised, smooth, confident, loving answers offered with a smile make tricky and questionable material sound convincing.
The cults twist the truth and slip misinformation into their speeches to establish certain beliefs in the possible convert's mind. Most important are beliefs that the end times are coming, the members of the cult are God's saved people, the cult's leader is divine, speaking the word of God, and the cult's doctrine is God's way and will. Reverend Sun Myung Moon of the Unification Church says that God appeared to him when he was sixteen and told him he would fulfill man's salvation by being the second coming of Christ. David Berg, known as Moses David to the Children of God, says he has received visions from God and misinterprets Ezekiel 34 from the Old Testament to explain himself as the shepherd. The cult tries to get the prospect to accept the leader or doctrine, which supplants the prospect's thinking mind if they succeed, and thereby reaps a convert.
New converts and prospects are usually sent to indoctrination programs called seminars, lectures, or Bible studies, etc. These last one to four weeks accomplishing alienation from the world and psychological dependency on the group. During this period converts are totally immersed and surrounded by the group's doctrine. Mornings begin with prayer time and classes which quell doubts that might have arisen overnight and to put the converts in the right frame of mind for the day. The classes continue all day. Kept under close scrutiny by their "spiritual leaders," "shepherds," or "overseers," converts are not allowed to express fears or doubts.
Alienation occurs as converts are taught that the world is evil and to mistrust it. By taking a Bible verse out of context, such as Matthew 10:36 which says "and a man's enemies will be the members of his household, " converts are alienated from their parents and friends. The scripture is interpreted that the devil works on the strongest through those closest to the convert to try to destroy his faith. This offsets parents and friends in the convert's mind who naturally are concerned about his well-being and might have the strongest influence on his leaving the cult. The convert's own mind is learned to be mistrusted. Doubts and longings for the old world are interpreted as the devil working from within.
As converts learn to mistrust the world they become robots to the leadership of the group. They are told everything and given the interpretations for every situation they confront. They no longer think, judge, or assess for themselves but only remember back to the lecture, Bible scripture, group doctrine, or leader that gave them the answer. Explicit obedience to leadership is a fundamental rule as members are told that their leaders are ordained to their positions by God. If an order sounds morally wrong the member is not to question but obey as the leader alone will be held accountable to God. For example, members are encouraged to lie and make up stories on the streets if it will distribute wares and bring in more money. The justification is anything goes if it's for the Lord.
An element of fear is used to bind the members of the cult. Members are taught that their group is God's chosen people and insinuate that God's wrath might strike them down if they leave. Ironically, they are told they are free to leave anytime they wish, the idea expressed suggesting that the group is good if they are willing to say they will not hold anyone against their will. The members are so psychologically dependent on the group by the time they hear this, however, their chances of even considering leaving are slim.
The doctrine in the various religious cults are sometimes radically different but the element of mind control to attract and maintain a membership that slaves at the disposal of the millionaire leaders is the same. Thousands of young adults who are sensitive to the world around them and only wished to make it a better place have been duped. They have been transformed into unthinking robots, with the dilated pupils and pasted on smiles