I don't understand the need people seem to have for letting other people do their thinking. The idea of following what some mortal says as if they are some sort of God is down right insainity.
By the same token I do not understand the christian/ catholic churches need for calling anything NOT a mirror of them satanic. To make matter worse people are stupid enough to believe it.

Yes there are multiple perspectives because we are all individuals. It is impossible for everyone to see the world let alone a higher power in the same way. Reguardless of how articulate someone is their perception of a higher power will be based on their personal perceptions of life.
The sad fact with people joining destructive cults is well, people are stupid. It is unfortunate that it seems to be a human trait that we need to bloody our nose a few times before we learn.
The best you can do if someone joins a "cult" is try to reach them on an intellectual level. If that doesn't work well they have their own mind. You can not control the choices other people make. Our mistakes, those bloody noses of life, are where we learn the most. The best we can hope is that a person will learn before doing any serious or deadly mistake.

Basicly people relax, think for yourself, and do not bow to a church, group, or person. Use your own mind and your own sense of right and wrong. No one is born evil. People are conditioned to thinking and perceiving the world and God in a certain way. It is these conditioned ideas that are where people generally go nuts. That or radical interpretations of an actually good philosophy. Blind Faith is a fools game. Don't be a fool. Think for yourself!

It seems to me, that humans have ancient, biological tendencies to exist within a Dominance Hierarchy, like many other primates.
They also have the tendency to submit to the leader/father of their "tribe" and let the Alpha do the thinking for them.
There are very deep biological and evolutionary roots to all of this, in my view.

Unfortunately, i see no easy answers to the problem of cults.
Frankly, i see it getting much worse, as the technologies are much more widely known now, and the world is more confusing and overwhelming.

Coz

Ever thought that sometimes, you aren't fully capable as far as knowing exactly what is best for yourself? In some situations, I go to someone as I see as an authority, to ask their advice and guidance. But other than that. I'm quite strong minded and I like to act at my own discretion.

But at times, I do question my moves.