what’s the difference between a religion and a cult? Frank Zappa said it best,
“The only difference between a cult and a religion is the amount of real estate they own.”
Religions that have stood the test of time did so because their value to the people who believed in them were so great that those who disbelieved were outcompeted.
Emotional comfort is central to the allure of cults.
California Institute of Technology psychologist Jon-Patrik Pedersen, in attempting to explain why people are drawn to cults, has argued that the human longing for comfort leads us to seek out people or things that can soothe our fears and anxieties.
A cult is predatory in nature. It is tapping into people’s natural tendency to believe in metaphorical truths and order, and it is extracting resources from them. A cult is something people have a difficult time getting out of because of the prison of the community and the structure of the cult, or because of the prison of the mind.
A Scientologist, whether through internal pressure, or because of their own trapped thought patterns, cannot just stop being Scientologist so easily. There is a HUGE cost, socially, emotionally, often financially, for leaving. Same with Jehovah’s Witnesses. Same with other small “religions” that don’t have the “fitness” to become mainstream. Their teachings and beliefs will always keep them relatively small and isolated, which is what most leaders prefer to avoid scrutiny for example Jim Jones led the Peoples Temple from California to Jonestown, Guyana. Media reports surfaced later on that human rights abuses were taking place in the Peoples Temple in Jonestown.
In a cult, theres a high cost for participation (your entire lifestyle, mindset, and social environment is completely dominated,) and an even HIGHER cost for leaving. A Catholic today, wouldn’t have to endure that, cult members do.
In recent news, Smallville co-star, Allison Mack is facing sex trafficking charges, sex trafficking conspiracy and forced labor conspiracy. Allison Mack got her start in acting as a child, which means “she’s been taught to want to make everybody happy from a young age” Federal prosecutors described Mack in court documents as second-in-command of a sex cult that preyed on vulnerable young women for the benefit of self-help guru Keith Raniere, who was arrested in Mexico of March 2018. Mack is accused of being a leader and prime recruiter for a sorority-esque group of young women who were manipulated into serving as “slaves” for male “masters” Mack’s “slaves were kept seriously sleep deprived and emaciated to the point where they stopped menstruating.” Ceremonies were held where the slaves were branded” Raniere’s Albany N.Y. based Nxivum Corp. billed on its website as a “community guided by humanitarian principals” Those who were led into joining the secret society known as “DOS” which stands for “dominus obsequious sororium” – Latin for “master over the slave women” or “the Vow” had to provide a form of “collateral” in the form of embarrassing photos or written testimonials that could be used against them if they tried to leave and discredit others. Members were continually pressured to divulge more compromising material under the threat that previous items would be publicly released.
In the summer of 2017 R&B solo-singer/songwriter/producer R Kelly was accused of holding women against their will in an abusive sex cult. R Kelly has been accused of having sexual relations with minors dating back to 1994 when Kelly was 27 he married then 15 year old Aaliyah which was soon later annulled. The pair was working on her debut album Age Ain’t nothing but a number. In 1996 R Kelly faced a lawsuit stating that he engaged in group sex with 15 year old Tiffany Hawkins. The lawsuit documents he engaged in inappropriate sexual contact with her, engaging in group sex with her and other minors. She also states she attempted suicide when Kelly broke off their relationship. The Sun-Times reports that the suit was settled for $250,000 in 1998. In 2001 a rumor speculates that R Kelly starred in a sex tape featuring a minor, the police can’t identify the identity or the age of the girl in the tape. The same year, former Epic intern Tracy Sampson files a civil suit against Kelly for $50,000 “I was coerced into receiving oral sex from a girl i did not want to have sex with.” she claims in the suit documents, she was 17 at the time. “I was often treated as Kelly’s personal sex object and cast aside.” The case was settled for an unknown amount. In 2002 another lawsuit is filed against Kelly claiming he had sex with 16 year old Patrice Jones, got her pregnant, and pushed her to have an abortion, the following month Montina Woods files suit, alleging that Kelly taped them having sex without her knowledge. Both cases were settled for undisclosed sums. Jones’ suit was settled out of court; Woods receives money in exchange for a nondisclosure agreement. In addition, another sex tape is sent anonymously to The Sun-Times, this tape leads to Kelly’s indictment on 21 child pornography charges in Illinois. In 2003 when R Kelly is arrested in Florida, the police seize a camera that is also said to contain images of sex with a minor. Florida indicts Kelly on 12 more counts of child pornography. He pleaded Not Guilty. In Florida, circuit judge Dennis Maloney rules that the search of Kelly’s property- which led to the charges of child pornography in that state- were undertaken without sufficient evidence. Those 12 counts were dropped. In 2017 BuzzFeed publishes a story that six women live in properties rented by Kelly in Chicago and suburbs of Atlanta and he controls every aspect of their lives, dictating what they eat, how they dress, when they bathe, when they sleep, and even how they engage in sexual encounters that he records. Since the story broke, multiple women have added their own testimonies of abuse at R Kelly’s hands. Another woman accused R Kelly of knowing and intentionally infecting her with an STD. Despite decades of lawsuits and allegations, kelly’s career has marched steadily on.
The Children of God which was formed in 1968, as a small group of teens and hippies who, who under the direction of David Berg, a charismatic evangelical preacher, devoted themselves to the worship of Jesus Christ and promiscuous sex, according to the New York Attorney general’s office. By early 1969 COG counted 50 converts, and eventually Berg hit the road with his “family”. Over 8 months they grew to 200 members. People dropped what they were doing to join this caravan of pious revolutionaries. In public COG was invoking the name of God. In private, it’s prophets was running a child sex ring. Berg’s own daughter Deborah described her fathers actions in a 1984 expose. She claims he attempted to have sex with her several times, and engaged in continuous sexual relationship with his other daughter, Faith. Child actor River Phoenix’s parents were missionaries for the cult. He had his first sexual encounter at just 4 years old. The Phoenix family traveled across the United states and South America with the cult. For a while the family settled in Venezuela where the cult set up camp. The children sang on the streets for extra money. When the family resettled in Los Angeles, the children kept up their street performing, and that is how River Phoenix got discovered. ” Sex was nearly all that River could think about.” Cory Feldman said. So, he decided to lose his “second-virginity,” you know, because he lost his first when he was four. So, he decided to lose it to this older girl he knew, and strangely enough, he asked his parents for permission. Instead of just saying yes, his parents put a tent in the backyard for their son to get it on in, and they “decorated it to enhance the mood.” River was 15-years old at the time. Phoenix knew fellow child actor, Corey Feldman from the audition circuits in L.A., but the two didn’t become friends until their landmark film, Stand By Me. Phoenix and Feldman first got involved with drugs and alcohol on the set of that film. This path ultimately proved fatal for River, and it nearly destroyed Feldman’s life as well. A technician on the set of the film offered them their first hit of pot. Phoenix’s drug use was far more out of control than he had let on. He gave off the impression of this vegan hippy kid, but he was spiraling downwards into an abyss of intravenous drug use. On October 31, 1993, Phoenix collapsed and died of combined drug intoxication following a drug overdose on the sidewalk outside the West Hollywood nightclub The Viper Room at the age of 23.
American actress Rose McGowan was also a part of this cult. Her father ran an Italian chapter of the Children of God in which both he and his wife held membership until 1978. Her parents returned to the United States when she was 10 years old and settled in Oregon. McGowan had a wayward childhood, living as a teenage runaway in Portland, Oregon and associating with a group of drag queens in the city. When her parents divorced, she lived with her father in Seattle, Washington. At 15, she officially emancipated herself from her parents and moved to Los Angeles.
If common sense was enough to recognize a cult or false religion, nobody would ever be involved in one. Further, you can not expect a cult to admit they are one. Otherwise, why would anyone remain a member, or be interested in joining? Remember, cults will always have some sort of support for their beliefs, and the people involved sincerely believe what they are doing is right.