MIND CONTROL CULTS

Not covered in this essay are other types of "cults": Harmless "Cults" (unorthodox faith groups) and Doomsday Cults (highly dangerous, extreme mind control cults).

What is a Mind Control Cult?

One definition of a Mind Control Cult is a religious group that engages in extreme spiritual, physical, mental, and emotional control of its members in order to control their beliefs, thoughts, emotions and behaviour . The critical word here is "extreme". All religious groups require their members to hold specific beliefs, attempt to restrict their behaviors to what is considered acceptable, etc. Members of all churches feel some pressure to conform. Mind control cults are different in degree; their pressure is extreme.

What Control Methods do These Cults Use?

Some techniques that this type of cult often uses to induce conformity in its membership are: Some of the above factors are seen in many non-cultic, strict religious groups. The difference between a harmless church group and a cult is often a matter of degree.

The Counter-Cult Movement (CCM)

An active Counter-cult Movement started in the early 1970's to fight what they regarded as the evils of "mind control cults". Many in the CCM promoted the idea that members of such groups are reduced to "zombie-like" status through severe physical and psychological abuse. These beliefs were supported by testimony from disillusioned former members who had left their religious group in a state of anger. This propaganda was readily believed by the general public who had mistaken beliefs about psychological "programming" derived from movies (e.g. The Manchurian Candidate (1962) ). The public had also adsorbed misinformation about the effectiveness of brainwashing techniques during the Korean war. The American Psychological Association and the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion deny that this level of control is possible. But many people believe that it can be done and is being done inside of cults.

Often influenced by their personal conservative Christian beliefs, the CCM labeled a wide range of emerging religious groups as "mind control cults". The Hare Krishnas (Hindu) and the Unification Church (Christian) were prime targets. Some went further and accused large, established Christian denominations of being evil cults (e.g. the LDS (Mormon) Church , and Jehovah's Witnesses). They used the terms cult or destructive cult to attack many religious groups which simply promoted an untraditional theology.

Much of the propaganda of the counter-cultists is based on a misunderstanding of the role of discipline within religious groups. For centuries, such groups have required their members to submit to a restricted diet, work hard, spend hours in repetitive prayers, live a very simple life without luxuries, conform to the rules of the group, remain celibate, abandon smoking and drinking, etc. Such requirements within convents and monasteries have been long accepted in society. Some within the Counter-cult Movement attacked harmless religious movements for these same practices, and concluded that the groups are profoundly evil, dangerous and manipulative.

The reality is that most people join these groups and stay as long as membership remains a positive experience. Some leave after a few days; others stay only for a few weeks; still others stay for years, but later leave for a variety of reasons. There is no known evidence of any new religious movement which abuses their followers to the point where they are without self-will. People are always free to leave cults. If groups attempted to restrict freedom of movement, they would be vulnerable to a charge of kidnapping or forcible confinement.

However, there can be a potential negative side to membership in religious organizations. Some require their core, dedicated members to accept strong discipline; this can develop a deep commitment to the church. In the case of Unificationists, for example, such members must remain celibate before marriage, abstain from tobacco and alcohol and work long hours. The group can become their whole life, the source of their religious, cultural, social, and other support systems. If they become disillusioned by some aspect of the church, they can find it very difficult to leave the organization and abandon these support networks. When they do leave, they are often angry with themselves and the church, believing that they have wasted perhaps years of their life within the group.

Actual "Mind Control Cults"

There have existed (and continue to exist) many truly abusive mind control cults in North America. Usually, these are headed by a single leader who uses manipulative techniques to control his/her followers. The group is tightly knit and often remains hidden unless some criminal act is discovered. Most are Christian (probably because 85% of the North American population is of this religion). However, they probably exist in all major religions. These groups are rarely targeted by the Counter-cult Movement, perhaps because their activities are not publicly known. Also, they tend to be local groups with a small membership and are virtually undetectable.

Sometimes these mind control cults become known because of their use of physical abuse, particularly of children. A massive study of child abuse funded by the US federal government did uncover a troubling level of what they called "religion-related abuse". Much of this abuse probably occurs within mind control cults. This abuse takes the forms of:

During 1995, two instances of unintentional deaths during exorcisms were widely publicized in North America. One occurred in California; the other in Ontario Canada. One can reasonably assume that there was much unreported abuse during exorcisms that did not lead to death of the victim. Accounts of children needlessly dying of treatable diseases surface from time to time in which the church group required that prayer be used in place of medical intervention.

Danger Signs of Involvement in a Dangerous Cult

We have copied an information sheet from the Institute for First Amendment Studies, Inc. It lists some symptoms to be sensitive to when you, a friend or family member becomes involved with a religious group.

The AFF is another counter-cult group. They have a checklist available to help you determine if you or a friend are involved in a cult.

We have also copied an information sheet from the writings of P.E.I. Bonewits, founder of a Druidic group ArnDraiocht Fein. It lists 15 items to consider when evaluating the potential danger of religious (or similar) groups.

A Non-existent Mind Control Cult

There is one group that up to 90% of Americans believe exist: an inter-generational, underground, international Satanic conspiracy which kidnaps children, abuses them, ritually kills them, eats their flesh and drinks their blood. This is perhaps the longest lasting urban folk tale in existence, having been circulating since about the 2nd century CE. There are a whole range of myths that have arisen about these groups: they allegedly keep thousands of women in prison to generate babies for sacrifice; they kill 50,000 infants in the United States every year; their rituals are inverted, sacrilegious parodies on Christian religious practices, etc. No hard evidence has ever been found to support any of these beliefs. Such groups either exist in very small numbers or don't exist at all. Many of the myths are traceable to the "burning times" during the late Middle Ages and Renaissance, when hundreds of thousands of people suspected of selling their souls to Satan were routinely rounded up, tortured and executed. In a sense, the burning times are still being promoted today.
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References

Return to the OCRT home page; return to the "Not so Spiritual" page.