Greetings,

This is my first posting on this site.

I spent a few months "working" with a Pathwork helper. I found him pretty well grounded in basic psych stuff. But over time his past lives/channeling worldview got in the way. It was subtle and I didn't notice how much I'd absorbed of that side of it until I "found" myself joining a bi-weekly group processing. There was a lot of talk about "working for god" and being light beings who developed their capabilities through group consciousness. I dropped out after the third session in a seven session block. Some months prior to this group processing experience I attended a weekend workshop, a "sampler" as they call it. It was a polyglot of psycho-spiritual stuff: Byron Katie stuff; spilling your guts in group; regressing to contact, feel and heal original splits, etc.

I don't recall at any time being "sold" anything, until I got to the bi-weekly group sessions and found the mix was mostly old timers from Pathwork, with a couple of newbies. Once the "working for god" motif became more overt, and the suggestion that our success as light beings in the world depended on recharging in the group consciousness, I was done.

I'm happy to share more info and details about this group, and to hear of any recent experiences by others. I was always curious about who was/is behind Pathwork. It appears to me to be a fairly benign organization, especially as compared to other more notorious LGATs. But since I’m not willing to enroll in their four year program to find out their end game, I’ll have to allow my curiosity on this matter to go unsatisfied.

JB

Hi JB,

Probably the only reason your experience with the group was fairly 'benign' was the very fact that you are not willing to enroll in their four year progam.

No doubt after four years it would end up being the same old schtick, with you doing devoted menial service for little or no material reward in the interest of saving humanity from itself, replete with the usual intense personal struggle over high exit costs after the 'high' has worn off and you want out.

... Oh, and being told that people on the 'outside' will say things like this about them because we are not spiritually conscious or aware enough and that you are 'helping' them indirectly by staying in the group.

These groups are typical - doing supposedly psycho-therapeutic work with absolutely zero psychotherapeutic training.

I hope that you do trust your instincts and avoid this 'program' they are offering. The benefits gained will probably end up being heavily outweighed on the other end if you find yourself posting on this board after approximately ten lost years as an ex-member :)

Thanks for your response, Solea.

I agree that it would be a high cost indeed if I enrolled in the four year program only to come out the other end as you described. Since I withdrew, I've gotten a phone call from the facilitator, offering me a free "exit session" to help with my closure. Fortunately, I don't feel the need for it. I still get emails with lectures attached and offers to return.

One note: in my last group session, there was a young man who was complaining about the voices in his head and wondering how he could keep them from entering his body. The young man feared that these were demon voices. The facilitator did nothing to dissuade him from that notion. Instead, he guided the young man through a variety of body postures intended to keep him from leaking his spiritual energy (presumably because a body empty of spiritual energy is a vessel ready to be taken over by demon voices).

That was the final straw in terms of breaking any remaining benefit of the doubt over this facilitator's claim to psychotherapeutic expertise. I was horrified that this young man could spend many years chasing "demons" from his mind rather than sorting out these "voices" through mainstream psychotherapy.

I also feel a little silly that I fell for this facilitator's initial front of therapeutic expertise. Oh, well. I learned my lesson at not too great an expense of time or money (and before I stepped over the line and started suggesting this "therapy" to friends or family) In a way it feels like a close call.

Thanks again for your supportive words.

J

No, JB, don't feel silly ... I quoted ten years because that was the average time people spend in cults if they do become involved, according to Steve Hassan, (if I remember correctly ... I've done a lot of reading!)

These groups are truly expert in appealing to people's highest ideals and longing for a better world for themselves and for other people. You are right that it is a great learning lesson.

As for the man who thought he was hearing demonic voices ... *sigh* Our mediitation group had a technique for exorcising 'demons' by holding the big toes !!! You think you feel silly!

I hope that you receive more feedback from others who have been involved with your group.

Best of luck!

In case y'all don't know, someone made a post about the Pathwork here several years ago:

[[url=http://forum.culteducation.com/read.php?5,8558]The Cult Called The Pathwork and Religion[/url]]

Yes. Thank you for pointing to that post. I read it and appreciate you putting the religious backdrop into perspective. As I recall, during my initial phone sessions with the "helper" there was never any mention of those lectures that dealt with Jesus, God, Lucifer, or any supernatural beliefs. It was all psych stuff. A few months into it, the casual mention of getting it right in "this lifetime" led to the introduction of the idea of past lives and that I better get to work purifying myself in earnest or (it was inferred) I'd be back again in another life and would have to "rediscover" the path so I could finish what I'd set out to do in this life.

Funny (but not in a ha ha sort of way) how these concepts creep into the discourse until, if you're not paying attention, you find yourself sitting in a group setting watching people basically ask the facilitator for help exorcising demonic voices that have infiltrated their body.

Just to put things in perspective, I have found the Pathwork teachings very helpful in my life and not at all what I consider a cult. While cults often encourage isolation from family and friends who are not involved with the cult, I found that my relationship with my daughters and my mother and sister(none of whom are interested in the Pathwork) has improved significantly from my work in the Pathwork. My relationships in general became deeper and more authentic. I found the teachers particularly open to confrontation and challenge, and that they were quick to admit to mistakes if they made them. While I respected them, I never saw them as infallible. I was never required to believe or accept any of the spiritual and religious teachings, but rather to have an open mind and consider them and see if they worked in my life. To this day I do not believe all of the teachings, nor do I agree with all the beliefs of some of the teachers or other students of the Pathwork, but the wonderful thing is I don't have to. I was taught to think for myself, and let others have their own beliefs. I do, however, have a deeper connection with God as a result of my experience with the Pathwork. I had a bad experience with organized religion before coming to the Pathwork, and was able to work through that and even return to organized religion with a new perspective and understanding that I am grateful for. Anytime you have an international religious or spiritual organization, there are bound to be individuals who have distorted the teachings for power or profit or some other less than admirable motive. We have seen this in politics, in therapy, and in organized religion. But I do not believe that makes the whole organization corrupt.

dolphin:

In your experience what do you think Pathwork did wrong?

What could they potentially do differently to improve their teachings and/or correct mistakes?

You say, "To this day I do not believe all of the teachings, nor do I agree with all the beliefs of some of the teachers."

What beliefs or teachings do you specifically disagree with that were taught to you by Pathwork?

Please be more specific and explain this in greater detail.