I can't find out a lot on this but it seems very culty. I've lost a family member to mental health and they've joined this group. Has this member just joined a cult? They've cut family off since joining

My friends family are all members of a group called Aryurveda and I think it may be a cult. They spend money on practices called yogic flying where they bounce around and think one day they will fully be able to fly. You can find plenty of videos of it on youtube. When you search Aryurveda cult lots of things appear and there is some old articles calling it a cult bot nothing recent. I also found this weird youtube channel. https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCaZnfay6Is8IPPh08qLUKfg there is also videos like this https://youtu.be/9XeAS7OA_1M?si=OepIjr3QGlN5xSMj and the group promises you can achieve it. They sell expensive products and they really believe it. The mom said she had photo proof you can fly but it ended up being a painting. I usually wouldn’t care but the mom has a job where she influences mentally unwell young people into trying the practices and I worry it could be harming these people.

The FLDS song library got me to my fav cult music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MFIwTEgicYk

Lead by the rather awful narcissist Mike Metelica (nowhere near Warren Jeffs bad though- just your average charming narcissist who destroys everyone's lives through drugs, AIDS, sleeping with all women incl. those he groomed and forcing everyone on rallies on their knees to protest the "persecution" of the members by normal "straight"/"bourgeois" society).

Which brings me to the question: what's your fav cult with a band/band with a cult? I hate Father Yod as a man/asshole/pedo rapist with a passion, but liked their music.

Also: how on earth can I not find a SINGLE post about the Brotherhood of the Spirit/Renaissance Community (Mike Metelica's cult) on here?! Not a single one!

https://brotherhoodofthespiritblog.wordpress.com/

Unfortunately I can't link to the wiki article - someone seems to have deleted like two thirds of the article recently, incl. the parts on how Metelica organized these insane fake protests and forced people to do absolutely bizarre stuff. Picture of one of the earlier rallyes (later there were more signs against persecution): https://credo.library.umass.edu/view/zoom/muph011-bin-i123

The former members of the cult wrote a book, which I unfortunately haven't been able to get a hand on yet.

Cults are a huge danger to our society as a whole for many reasons. The individuals life who has been destroyed mentally by the destructive belief systems created and lies told to them as truth. They then cause a huge unnecessary divide between people and their families, creating more conflict. Stripping people away from having healthy relationships with others, because now they don’t know how to and that in its self could be for many other reasons aside from the obvious. They cause so much trauma to the individual physically through some unpaid labour of some sort. Which then can cause potential health problems down the line because their body has been under so much stress and pressure for such a long time. On top of that it ends up getting ignored while at its peak. Then the individual has to unintentionally suffer with something that could have been prevented in the first place. Instead if an individual shows distress because of these conditions they get punished.

Or if they want to destroy your mind they gaslight, reprogram or cause mental confusion, so then you don’t know how to think outside of what you know. This then has the individual so enclosed into one way of thinking as if there is no other way or that things can’t be synonymous. It’s like they (cult) can only be right about every single thing, and (non members) have every single thing wrong from the way they speak to the way they choose to dress. No freedom of choice is given, which then causes “acts of rebellion” whether within being in the cult still or having left. Controlling an individual so much causes such an effect because they have no control of their own lives and then have a hard time making their own decisions. It’s true we all need advice once in a while or some guidance in some way, but their way is to the extremes.

Their website is incredibly vague, and their pics on any of their socials don't give much away. I'm talking to another survivor from the cult that I escaped and we both agree it has similar vibes. Any insights here?

https://youtu.be/KOQFNXVLNhQ

Hey, anyone go to this "internship?"

Cults know our society is always dying down in some way or another, they know people are lost. They see that many lack genuine community, so they try to create their own. They know people struggle mentally, so they convince them they have a solution or are one. Or even worse in fact gaslight the individual into thinking it’s all in their head, or it’s something spiritual, like possession of some sort. They know most people don’t have life guidance or any chosen life philosophy to live by so, they implement their own. But according to them it’s the only truth. They know most individuals have some sort of conflict regarding personal relationships like, family, friends or partners. So they convince them that they are the “devil” or a “enemy” destroying their lives so much so that they have no choice but to cut them off completely and isolate themselves from them. This is how the cult/control group can easily step in and have more authority and intervention into the victim’s life, because well… according to them they are the only safe option.

Title says it all…is there another doc or long form YouTube video on Katie Griggs, Kundalini or Guru Bhajan? I feel like I’ve seen all of this before but I can’t find anything else online. Did it get wiped?

Hi has anybody been in a cult in the past I need to interview someone with some questions over a Skype/zoom call it would be really appreciated if anyone would be interested in doing this. It’s for my school documentary on “the phycology of cults” 🙃

One year ago on this day I quit my missionary position and shortly after I had my name removed from the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Today I reflect on that choice and the impact the church had on my life and the freedom that I now feel being away from an insatiable institution that never could have enough.

For ten years my wife and I began work as unpaid missionaries teaching English in Ukraine. From that point on, we took various calls in places like Nile Union Academy in Egypt and the Quinault Indian Reservation. In Queets we served for two two year terms. The second two year term was unpaid. We were given housing, however.

During my time in the SDA church, I was told to “never question, never research, never read anything that could be perceived as negative towards the prophetess known as ELLEN G WHITE.” After twenty years and after training at Adventist Frontier Missions, I started to question the things that I was learning about her and the church. When I came up with questions, I was told to be silent, keep my head down, and continue the work. My job was to reach into other Christ-following churches and bring them to the remnant church, which was said to be the Seventh-day Adventist church. The one that had the truth as proclaimed by ELLEN G WHITE.

When I looked into www.nonegw.org I was horrified and elated by what I saw. For years I used to read about how I was supposed to eat, how I was supposed to dress, compose myself, what I was supposed to watch, how I could not read fiction (because it would lead to insanity). I was not supposed to have too much sex or masturbate as if I did those things God would not hear my prayers. I was to make sure to give everything left over to the church, avoid amusement, carnivals, not play chess, not vote. My food could not be spicy, too delicious. Sensation of any type was to be avoided because if I did not avoid such things God would not hear my prayers and I would not survive the “time when Christ stops interceding for us.”

When I saw that ELLEN G WHITE could not follow her own rules, ate unclean meats, ate cheese and duck, ate oysters and herring, ate butter and eggs, wore fancy clothing, traveled first class, lived with servants, and traveled the world, I was elated because it meant that I could do those things without feeling intense guilt. When I brought these things up to the pastors and leaders of the church, including Native Ministries Director Steve Huey and Conrad Vine of Adventist Frontier Missions, they made excuses. I was told to keep believing and play the game. When that did not work I was threatened by Steve Huey and Monte Church. I was told that my views had bothered the local Forks Church, ran by Jay Coon at the time. As punishment, Jay Coon stopped paying the electric bill on the Queets SDA church (which was under his jurisdiction as pastor) and instead had us, unpaid missionaries, foot the bill. He would also no longer speak to us or answer our emails. Instead, he diverted Queets funds to pay for his Creation Park in Forks, WA. 

I finally had enough and left the work at this point. We were never worth paying or supporting in the eyes of the church. Rather, the name of the game was to make us stop asking questions. If you are a Seventh-day Adventist and start to question ELLEN G WHITE, you will be thrown out. Many people do not follow the Bible and “TEST THE PROPHETS” but instead are complacent because the SDA church says that ELLEN G WHITE is a prophet of God. No. She. Is Not.

Prophets don’t plagiarize. Prophets do not say over and over again that Jesus will come back in their lives. Prophets do not live lives that are the opposite of what they say to do on everything. Reading fiction leads to insanity (no it doesn’t), but Ellen White could have a library of such books that the rest of us were not supposed to read. Hypocrisy! 

Dear SDA church. You DEMANDED perfection from me in every aspect of life, yet you can’t even support your workers. You are one of the richest churches in the world, yet you hoard money like a dragon. Dear SDA church, you can’t stand someone questioning. You hide child and s*xual abuse. You only care about protecting the image of your institutions. You recruit people from other Christ-following churches claiming you are the remnant church. NO YOU ARE NOT. 

The Seventh-day Adventist church is a death cult. It is a racket made to get certain key figures wealth and power. It is hungry and insatiable. It never knows when to stop. There is little good, and nothing heavenly about this dark church.

Since leaving the SDA church I have been totally free to live my life as I choose. I am now far healthier, ironically, since I was breathing the miasma of ELLEN G WHITES health rules. ELLEN  G WHITE loathed entertainment and fun of any type. My child is now happier than ever. My relationship and marriage is now better than ever. Steve Huey and Monte Church of Native Ministries can not find a single person to put in that parsonage and run the Queets Church. Last I heard Adventist Frontier Missions was an internal mess! Adventism is a wreck!

Dear Seventh-day Adventist CULT, I am so happy to be free of you! Never again cult!  Never again! ONE YEAR FREE!!!!!

Does anyone know anything about a small religious cult in Bivins? Have had some interactions with this group in the past, and there were many red flags. They are in a horse endurance racing business and live together on a ranch.

If this webpage from the main Bahai website doesn't give you culty vibes, I don't know what will: https://www.bahai.org/beliefs/bahaullah-covenant

A leader from the 1800s that somehow had some spiritual revelations that modern day people must follow, and they also must obey the current leaders to create "unity"?

Here's a link to the exbahai subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/exbahai/comments/rrc5bf/behind_the_facade_cultlike_tendencies_in_the/

I was speaking to a bahai yesterday, and almost everything he said was the same as what Jehovah's Witnesses says about their religion (I'm exjw). It seems there is a lot about Bahai that isn't written down in public, but rules that are hidden before you join.

Here is the whole story: ⬇️

https://drive.google.com/file/d/12TsIcdvFhWhulR6lldFLnkNtX6uB3FNo/view?usp=drivesdk

Context: my best friend met a woman and subsequently cut off his entire family and friends, including his three year old daughter. This has been going on for 12 months. He recently unblocked me from WhatsApp to tell me the relationship was ending, but a week later blocked me again. Sometimes I wonder if his emails or messages aren't actually written by him. He sounds brainwashed / some cult like behaviours and language.

The email below is his response to me after I called him out on blocking, and suggested it was because he didn’t want his partner to see our conversations. This was also written directly after he told another mutual friend he was going to "bin her off, because she's got too many issues".

I just wondered if anyone here recognises any of this language as being akin to any cult they are aware of.

Thanks

——

Hey man,

Every one is so obsessed with WhatsApp.

What's the big deal?

Before mobiles, people wrote, it's all good.

I like a quiet life without interruption.

I started to block people and then I realised it was only fair to block everyone.

Nobody has done anything wrong.

I just decided I wanted to focus on <new partner's name> without interruption.

Instant messaging is just a bit much tbh.

Our fathers aren't constantly getting messages from their friends.

It's nice to hear from you and a few others, but man, my life is very different now.

My bird has been through a lot and needs a solid lad. I am being a solid lad because she deserves it. I'm prioritising her over everything because she's fricking awesome.

I finally found love and I'm jumping at it. I've been waiting for this moment. No more escaping myself, drinking, smoking, pissing around. I am comfortable in my own skin now because I have met someone that truly loves me, has made me a better person, I have been willing to work on myself for. I've never been anything but selfish, because I've never met anyone that I've loved. Therefore I've always been on a path of self destruction because it was a way of escaping the reality I was in. I no longer need to, because I am finally happy. I don't need anything, I just want to be with <new partner's name>.

It's not been easy going through a metamorphosis. I have really hurt <new partner's name> at times because I wasn't a man when I met her. I was a kid in a man's body. I wanted to grow up, so I did. I wanted to do right by myself and her. She has been incredibly patient with me and helped me along the way, while going through so much change herself. We are both getting to the place where we want to be, it's exciting.

I'm not forbidden to do anything. What sort of pussy do you think I am? I love being with her all the time, and she loves being with me the whole time. Priorities have changed and I like pledging myself to her.

I used to live my life at 100mph and I don't now.

When I'm not with <new partner's name> , I want to be, I wait for her, because thats what I'd like from her. It's loyalty, devotion and respect. I enjoy my own time now, whereas I didn't before. I live by myself, my life is simple and I enjoy it. I stay healthy and don't miss being unclean.

You are a good friend <my name>. I need to give my all to this relationship.

I hope this helps you understand a little better where Im at.

I hope you and your family are doing well.

All to the!

X

From what I can see online, it seems culty.

I'm definitely not wanting to join, but just curious to know if anyone here has had a run in with it.

I just want to know if I can do something to help some of those unknowing innocents who are embedded in that cult, it must be very sad for some of them... especially the children. Is there anything I can do for them, even if it’s just to bring them joy somehow?? I know that I obviously can’t help them leave or anything like that, and I don’t want to patronize the Twelve Tribes themselves by being a customer… but I really feel awful and just went down a rabbit hole of all of the bad things that group is seemingly associated with.

Also, if there is a better group than this for this type of post, please help to direct me if possible!

Hi everyone. I just finished a PhD in Religious Studies, and my dissertation focused on a militant Pentecostal church. I specialize in fundamentalism, religious violence, and extremist ideology. But I'm equally interested in the slightly separate but overlapping topics of cults/high control groups and charismatic leadership. Like many of you I'm sure, I watch every documentary and series I can find on Netflix, HBO, etc. Some of my favorites have been The Vow, Keep Sweet Prey and Obey, Escaping Twin Flames, The Deep End, the Leah Remini docuseries about Scientology, and pretty much everything else I can get my hands on, so to speak. I've considered researching cults as I move forward in my academic career, though I haven't decided on much or found the right topic.

It strikes me that many of my friends, who are much less interested in religion, ideology, sociology, etc. than I am, are often up to date on the latest cult shows as well. The general public is interested enough in cults that the series often make the top 10 on streaming apps. They hold a very significant place in pop culture.

I'm wondering why? What's our fascination about?

Note, I think this overlaps with our cultures' obsession with true crime stories. There is a hilarious SNL skit/song about how women love to watch murder shows.. and like so many other things I see on social media, it reminded me that I am not unique in my interests and quirky behaviors, including morbid fascination with super dark stories and shows.

So if you're a true crime junkie, a cult show connoisseur, or both, why do these stories intrigue you? Why are you on this reddit sub? Do you have thoughts about why U.S. and/or other cultures are so curious about cults? I have my own thoughts and ideas about this but am curious what other people think.

Note: obviously cults have caused a tremendous amount of harm to people, and I know some folks on this sub are survivors of horrible experiences. I don't intend to be flippant about this. I watch cult and true crime series with a ton of emotion and empathy for the victims. I think most or at least many people do. But sometimes the way people get together and talk about cults and true crime can come off as flippant or feel like sensationalizing or even fetishizing, even though that's not the intent - an interesting feature of the cultural morbid curiosity.