The thought of disengaging from
your entire family and friends, following a strict dress-code and schedule, and
submitting yourself to follow under the rule of a “master” may seem absolutely
absurd to the majority of people. Falling into such ritualistic and seemingly
ludicrous behavior is classified as becoming a member of some form of cult.
Cults are not regularly thought of as being found frequently in modern society,
but truthfully “researchers estimate that at least 2,500,000 Americans have
joined a cult within the last 30-40 years” (FAQs). Cults have the power to
brainwash their members, manipulating them into believing anything the cult’s
founder declares is truth and performing any task that they are presented with,
some even violent and malicious. Most Americans do not believe that they could
fall victim to this cult epidemic that has been prevalent for decades, but are
cults more plausible and threatening to a person in everyday life than
anticipated?
According to the American
Heritage Dictionary, a cult can be summarized into two general definitions:
1.
“1. A
religion or religious sect generally considered to be extremist or false, with
its followers often living in an unconventional manner under the guidance of an
authoritarian, charismatic leader.
2. 2. A system or community of religious worship and
ritual.” (Layton).
Cults
are commonly thought of seeking after or “recruiting” members that are mentally
unstable or are struggling through personal issues, when in fact, “research indicates that approximately two-thirds
of cult members are psychologically healthy people that come from normal
families” (Rhoads). This observation opens up the threat to being sucked into a
cult a very real possibility for anyone. People dealing with heightened stress
or experiencing times of change or transition are most commonly more vulnerable
to fall susceptible to a cult.
When fully submerged in a cult, “psychological
growth just stops – cult members are caught in a static life that depends on
not thinking, not questioning, not wondering, not remembering” (Layton).
Falling into the robotic, brainless routine of a cult is, unfortunately, easier
than anticipated by many. During the recruiting process, cult “recruiters often
portray [their intentions] as something mainstream, low-pressure and benign” in
order to captivate their target and gain interest without raising any red flags
(1). Most will adapt their pitch to fit the needs of the desired individual
they are pursuing, allowing that individual to feel more subjected and more likely
to buy into whatever “realization” or “enlightenment” that the recruiter is
offering. Once they have gained interest, “cults typically isolate recruits so
they can’t get a ‘reality check’” and gain insight into the false teachings
they are being exposed to and be made aware of concerning warnings that family
members or friends may vocalize (1).
Cults have been historically
recognized all over the world. Most often, cults are known to emerge in times
of distress and disorder, generally, government related. One of the first
appearances cults made in the United States was the hysteria of the Salem Witch
Trials in 1692. Arguably one of the most prosperous cults in the United States,
in relation to the size of its following, formed in 1865 and titled itself as
the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). Since then, multiple different cults have alarming
caught the public’s eye through their alarming tactics and disturbingly large
followings that they receive.
The presence of cults in society ultimately poses
a sizable threat to individuals, whether they are directly involved in the
cult or have no immediate connections. Throughout history, cults have displayed
their willingness to sacrifice and perform any activity necessary in order to
achieve the fundamental goal that the cult leader established to his followers
(Layton). Mass suicides and murders have resulted out of extreme cult
follower’s devotion to manipulative and dangerous cult leaders on multiple
accounts and can wreak havoc in a community. Some cult rituals and practices
have been shown to relate to terrorist attacks and violent outbursts in nearly
every country across the globe. Ultimately, no one is truly safe from the
dangerous tactics and belief systems cults acquire, no matter what city, state,
or country you reside in.
One of the
most infamous accounts of dangerous cult devotion displayed in history was in
1969 by a cult known as “The Family”, organized under the rule of Charles Manson
(Biography.com). Charles Manson’s cult, consisting of an estimated 100 followers,
is thought to be held responsible nearly 35 murders (1). Many might question
how one man might easily capture the devoutness of so many young adults,
“[including] a small hard-core unit of impressionable young girls”, willing to
carry out his murderous endeavors (1). Manson was born to a “16-year-old girl
who was both an alcoholic and prostitute” who disowned him at a young age
leaving him to live on the streets, drawing him towards committing minor crimes
in order to survive (1). Due to his adaptation to form criminal behavior as a
lifestyle, Manson spent the majority of his young adult life in prison.
When he was finally released from prison in 1967,
Charles Manson captivated young adults “who shared his passion for an
unconventional lifestyle and habitual use of hallucinogenic drugs, such as LSD
and magic mushrooms” (1). Manson then gathered his followers and located
themselves on an isolated ranch in the San Fernando Valley in San Francisco.
The following centered around Manson referred to him often as Jesus or the
Devil, believing his claims that there was to be a race war in the near future
and they would soon be needed to take control of society. When several members
of “The Family” were finally put on trial for the horrific Tate/LaBianca murders,
Manson arrived at court “with an X carved into his forehead [and] some of his
female followers copied the act and shaved their heads” (1). This gruesome act symbolized that even as
Manson and others were being tried and convicted of first-degree murders, the
following he had established had not weakened.
Aside from murders, cults have also been
recognized to lead to the suicides of extremely devoted members. Jim Jones is
the founder of the Peoples Temple, a dangerous cult that leads to “one of the
largest mass deaths in American history” (WGBH American Experience). Jones
gained authority and credibility that played a large role in attracting his
cult members from being actively involved in the church and even establishing
his own ministry (The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica). Jones was said to
“appeal to all demographics, as he was well liked outside of his congregation
by political officials in some of California’s highest rankings” (Pick-Jones).
The foundation of his cult was orchestrated by “Jim’s drug addiction [that]
caused stresses to escalate… and Jones began preaching that he had a ‘vision’
of a nuclear holocaust” and he would lead his followers to safety (2).
Once his cult had immensely grown in strength,
Jones relocated his practice to Guyana where he then “confiscated passports and
millions of dollars and manipulated his followers with threats of blackmail,
beatings, and probable death” (1). Family members and United States authorities
began to raise suspicion of Peoples Temple church and sent down newscasters and
a few family members to do some investigating (1). With the arrival of
outsiders generating doubt and causing Jones’ followers to question his
teachings, Jones ordered the newly arrived group to be assassinated, though
some managed to escape and left Jones fearful of the return of authorities (1).
In fear of his entire “Jonestown” community being uprooted and exposed, Jim
Jones “commanded his followers to drink cyanide-adulterated punch, an order
that the majority of them passively and inexplicably obeyed”, resulting in the
mass suicide of 913 people, 276 of which were children (1).
Cults are often very difficult to
decipher between a strict, harmless practice or religion and a dangerous,
manipulative cult. Since it is so difficult to determine whether an
organization is a true cult, there are limited solutions for ending the cult
epidemic. One small step towards dissolving cult popularity is to express a negative correlation with cults
to the public.
Anti-cult activists and researchers have concluded that steps toward
terminating cults are any “actions
that cover all four of these categories: prevention, assistance,
law-enforcement, and criticism” (Langone). It is nearly impossible to wipe
cults off the face of the earth, the most successful way to cope with the cult
epidemic is to understand how to identify a cult or cult recruiter’s tactics,
how to help others leave a cult, and how break away from a cult if you yourself
have become affiliated with one.
Cult’s gain the majority of their following by
cunningly gaining the attention and trust of unsuspecting victims through a
process of harmless and seemingly average activities or functions (Bluejay). A
cult recruiter could easily captivate their target through an invitation of a
party, some form of spiritual meeting, or a new church. Once the target attends
the function, the “cult member will shower the potential recruit with attention
and praise”, this takes place in order to “create a positive association
between attending the event and having a good feeling” (1). Pretty soon you
will be enthralled with the cult member and their events and some form of prize
or ultimate success will be presented to you. This presentation will become so
enticing to you that you will eventually desire it above anything else, which
is when the cult will encourage “you to do things you might rather not, like
devote more time to the group, pay for more expensive programs, or adopt more
extreme beliefs” any refusal to these “suggestions” from the cult will result
in the member not receiving the ultimate prize (1).
If you
become increasingly suspicious that someone you know may possibly be joining or
already involved in a cult, there are some solutions that can be offered in
attempt to break their ties with their unhealthy involvement. In order to have
any chance of rescuing a cult member successfully, you must maintain some form
of relationship. Maintaining relationships with cult members when you are not
submerged in the cult yourself can be extremely difficult due to the fact that
cults “want to isolate group members from outside relationships which could
draw them away from the cult”, and often will warn members of an outsiders
negative and “sinful” views against the cult (Smith). If you manage to sustain a
healthy relationship with the cult member, it is vital to drive a wedge between
the cult's teachings and reality through exploiting opportunities that are
presented to you. Phone calls, home visits and information shared about the
cult or its leader from the cult member are all opportunities for their loved
ones to “plant little seeds of doubt, [but it is important to] so in ways that
sound like questions (1).
When members of a cult fully recognize that they
are in a cult and potentially harmful environment, one would assume it would be
simple and desired to leave the cult, but this is often not the case. In most
situations “to the truly indoctrinated cult member, leaving means being alone
and starting over”, which can be horrifying to imagine for someone who has been
relying on the cult community for quite some time (Layton). Once the mental
fears and obstacles preventing a member from disengaging from a cult are
subdued, there can be other factors that need to be addressed potentially
halting the member from leaving. The majority of cults do not pose physical
danger other than psychological abuse and possible prevention from contact with
any remaining cult family members, but in some instances “a cult may stop at
nothing to maintain control over its member” causing a person to fear for their
life (1). Leaving a cult needs to be thought out, planned precisely, and an
immense amount of courage.
Albert Camus’ intake on life is ultimately that
is “has no meaning, nothing that exists could ever be a source of meaning, and
hence there is something deeply absurd about the human quest to find meaning”
(Maguire). When people begin to doubt what they know and struggle to find
answers to the questions that accumulate in their head, they fall into a state
of vulnerability that cults effectively take advantage of. The principal of
questioning “the ever-pressing demand for order and meaning in life” that Camus
introduced with his philosophical concept of the Absurd, relates fully to a
cult member’s thought process in joining a cult (Simpson). The whole foundation
that cults rest upon is based on people’s desperation to discover the meaning
of life or to gain insight on their ultimate purpose in the world. Camus would
find humanity finding their true meaning in a cult completely absurd, mostly
because cults are commonly built on some form of twisted religion, which Camus
believed would “provide comfort for many people but could not amount to genuine
meaning…because it involves an illusion” (1).
The cult epidemic falls in line with Camus’
philosophical ideals because it proves the absurd extremes that people will go
to in order to allow themselves to feel as if they have discovered a deeper
meaning within. Camus would be entranced by the cult epidemic due to some cult
members following their leader’s orders of suicide because the idea of suicide
always perplexed Camus. Camus believes that “the only courageous and morally
valid response to the Absurd is to continue living”, so the fact that people
would follow a cult to suicide would disagree with Camus fundamental belief
that the only true answer to absurdity and the meaning of life it to keep on
living it every day (Simpson).
Cults create the opportunity of catastrophe to be
more prevalent and accepted in the minds of its members. The cult epidemic
poses a threat to society, even though they are not regularly thought of as
being a common occurrence in today’s society.
Even though there is currently no insight on how to permanently
terminate cults from being formed or growing in number, there is still hope to
diminish its popularity and ability to capture new victims. Making cults
dangerous and manipulative strategies common knowledge to the public will give
people the power to recognize cult recruitment or if someone in their lives has
fallen into a destructive lifestyle that cults offer.
Citations
Biography.com Editors.
"Charles Manson." Biography.com. A&E Networks Television, 04
Jan. 2017. Web. 06 Mar. 2017.
Bluejay, Michael. "Aesthetic
Realism Is a Cult." How Cults Recruit and Indoctrinate Their Members.
Michael Bluejay Inc., June 2013. Web. 16 Apr. 2017.
"FAQs." International
Cultic Studies Association (ICSA). N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Feb. 2017.
Langone, Michael D. "What
Should Be Done about Cults? A Panel Discussion at the 1999 AFF Annual
Conference May 14 - 16, 1999 St. Paul, Minnesota." Langone, Michael,
Ph.D.: "What Should Be Done about Cults? N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Mar.
2017.
Layton, Julia. "How Cults
Work." HowStuffWorks. N.p., 13 Apr. 2006. Web. 01 Mar. 2017.
Maguire, Laura. "Camus and
Absurdity." Philosophy Talk. N.p., 28 Feb. 2015. Web. 16 Apr. 2017.
Pick-Jones, Antoinette. "Jim
Jones and the History of Peoples Temple." Alternative Considerations
of Jonestown Peoples Temple. N.p., 1 Jan. 2016. Web. 08 Mar. 2017.
Rhoads, Kelton. "Cult
Influence & Persuasion Tactics." Cult Influence & Persuasion
Tactics. N.p., 1997. Web. 27 Feb. 2017.
Simpson, David. "Albert
Camus (1913-1960)." Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. N.p., n.d.
Web. 16 Apr. 2017.
Smith, Steve. "How to Rescue
Someone from a Cult." Liberty for Captives. Uncategorized, 12 Oct.
2013. Web. 11 Apr. 2017.
The Editors of Encyclopædia
Britannica. "Jim Jones." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia
Britannica, Inc., 22 Dec. 2016. Web. 08 Mar. 2017.
"WGBH American
Experience." PBS. Public Broadcasting Service, n.d. Web. 08 Mar. 2017
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