Let me get this right...

[www.culteducation.com]

[www.culteducation.com]

This cult was investigated by the Control (or translated as Investigation) Yuan of Taiwan while the main follower of the cult turns out to be the Premier of the Executive Yuan. Yuan means "top government office".

I don't know anything about this cult. But, from what I read, I think the Taiwanese government may have just saved its Premier’s overseas travel budget...

There are still many Chinese Cults in this region. As a whole, those spiritual groups blossomed around China's Qing Dynasty during the Manchurian ruling period.

Hsuchi

Here is an abstract by Researcher C.F.Chuang:

"From the beginning of the Qing dynasty, social fragmentation led to the formation of many underground societies. Secret religious sects and secret societies were conspicuous forms of communal organizations among the lower social strata as well as religions and organizations that promoted family and clan values.

Secret religious societies modeled themselves on the father-son family relationship to establish the teacher-disciple relationship as paramount. Serving and supporting the teacher was therefore a display of virtue equal to the exhibition of filial piety in caring for one’s parents. In order to tap the financial resources of the rest of society, secret societies promoted various activities, such as soliciting donations that would repay the donor with blessings in this life or merit in the afterlife. The funds generated by these activities were controlled solely by the sects’ leaders , who also by tradition served as the administrative head of the organization. Sect leaders were therefore often able to become rich with the accumulation of religious funds.

Membership in secret societies, on the other hand, was modeled on traditional Chinese fraternal relationships and thus emphasized horizontal bonds of pseudo-kinship. Initiation fees were collected upon entering the brotherhood and the resulting funds were seen as the common property of the brothers. Disbursements made from those funds were evenly distributed and in general finances were run quite reasonably and fairly.

However, the financial resources amassed by both sect religious sects and secret societies were actually means of exploiting the wealth of larger society."

Taiwan is considered as a renegade province by the Chinese government. Most of the mainlanders come to this island after Ming Dynasty. Spiritual activities, like pilgrimage, are still very active across the Taiwan Strait today.

Hsuchi