Much appreciation for your post Dogma. AFF does provide some good information such as their "Study Guides" (at least the ones I've read). I particularly like their critical thinking topics which I feel is a nice addition for people interested in the field of cult recovery. Although most of this information is compiled from alternate sources and is not reproduced in full. A
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Pan wrote: QuoteI have a theory. When we're born, we have a built in mechanism to cry for help from big, all-powerful beings outside of ourselves - our parents. They are our perfect problem solvers. Maybe we have an instinct for looking up to powers greater than ourselves, and that instinct is what helps us survive through childhood. When we become adults, the instinct is still there, bu
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Richardmgreen started this thread off with: QuoteJesus preached about love and peace. ... While on the surface his ideas seemed good, his teachings were distorted by self-interested groups ... "Love your enemy as yourself" became twisted and religious discrimination happened. Later on in this thread, Jesus's teachings and he himself came into question. I hope that I can follow
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

The Passion of the Christ is rentable now (at least in the U.S.). I finally watched it recently. South Park's spoof on it, The Passion of the Jew was timed to be released at the same time, which has some pretty funny moments. I'd describe some, but it's funniest when the viewer doesn't know what to expect. So I'll keep my trap shut. It's short (just as long as an ord
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Introduction I know I've been long winded and repetitive in this dialog. Those that are still reading, thanks for your patience. I've also been a bit smart-alecky with some of my comments on religion, and I apologize about that. I also could have been more serious and concise in many areas. In this article (post) I'm finally going to get to the point of why I've made suc
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Tumors and TM As Corboy said, this is an interesting topic that you've brought up. Since TM does mess with brain chemistry, and if one is doing so over a significant period of time, it seems like tumors could be a real possibility. Terence McKenna died of a brain tumor. He was a big proponent of psychedelic use. And as I understand it, psychedelics create similar reactions in the br
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Bear in mind that the SRF Walrus message board is maintained by Yogananda loyalists. The problems that they've experienced with the meditations and teachings, they project exclusively on the SRF organization. Yoganada remains a spotless Savior in their eyes. You can question these issues a little there, but you can't push too far into any significant discourse or you'll find your p
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

I haven't heard of these books -- much appreciation for the links Genkiguy. They sound good. I dug up some relevant quotes from the samples on their sites: “It is evident that we are living in a perpetual humiliating hell, arranged precisely by those preaching of paradise. However, the responsibility for the humiliating conditions we are living in does not belong to our persecutors alone.
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

They may find the full article helpful, "Warning: Meditating may be hazardous to your health", which is a really good article and can be found at: or The following case example from "Thought Reform Programs and the Production of Psychiatric Casualties", might be helpful too: “Kirk illustrates the splitting or doubling of the self that occurs when one drops a
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Corboy wrote: QuoteIts possible to think responsibly and be religiously committed, too. This is a true statement. So I explored a bit to try to get an idea on what causes our menu of choices to shrink (assuming the menu shrinking theory is more or less accurate -- it sounds good, so I'm working with it until I run into, or think of a better model). I tried to take a deeper look into the
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Sylvia wrote: QuoteStopping breathing creates the same effects as starvation. It’s just a little quicker. I’ll put it on my list of tips on ‘How To Become A Crazed Spiritual Leader: You Too Can Ruin People’s Lives’! :D The aim of most spiritual practices is to alter consciousness. Some are more effective and/or more dangerous than others. The goal is generally to experience bliss and
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Claire wrote: QuotePretty gardens Largely maintained by a voluntary labor force that works without pay and with dubious expansion efforts by the organization, at least at their Mount Washington headquarters site: “... SRF ... wants to build as part of a planned $40 million headquarters expansion ... by trying to avoid producing an Environmental Impact Report while naïvely seeking quick ap
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Corboy wrote: QuoteLalich sees the process as driven not by the content of a group's belief system but that the members continue to think rationally and reasonably, but within an increasingly narrow menu of choices. Its that shrinking boundary that makes the cult, not the content of its belief system. What causes this menu of choices to shrink? That should take us a little deeper than s
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Savernake wrote: Quoteif Johnny had been an atheist before joining Cult X, then yes it would be wrong to bring him back as a Christian or Jew. But if he was already Christian, then what's the problem with bringing him back to his original (and presumably less manipulative) beliefs? A lot of people crash out of one cult just to end up joining a new one. Embracing superstition is what got
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

The Self-Realization Fellowship (SRF) cult was founded in 1920 by Paramahansa Yogananda (1893-1952), not long after being invited to speak at the International Congress of Religious Liberals in Boston as an Indian delegate sponsored by the Unitarian Church. After his well received talk at the Congress, Yogananda lectured across the United States, spellbinding audiences with his immense charisma a
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Claire wrote: > “I've noticed that often the response of a cult victim is to turn to atheism ...” If that were the case, I wouldn't have taken the time to make the post on this subject -- the material would be redundant here. I did a search right now on the term 'atheism' and it only showed up in two threads. The first being this very discussion and the next came
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Cult recovery and establishing psychological health is much more serious business than simply replacing unconventional religious beliefs with mainstream beliefs. A dangerous cult can just as easily use the widely accepted and firmly grounded religion of the particular culture that they're setting up shop in, and wreak just as much havoc. This thread asks the question if Christianity (and
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"