Anti-Cult Movement
Encyclopedia
The anti-cult movement (abbreviated ACM and sometimes called the countercult movement) is a term used by academics and others to refer to groups and individuals who oppose cults and new religious movements. Sociologists David G. Bromley
and Anson Shupe
initially defined the ACM in 1981 as a collection of groups embracing brainwashing-theory,
but later observed a significant shift in ideology towards a "medicalization" of the memberships of new religious movement
s (NRMs).
Publications of the International Cultic Studies Association
have disputed the appropriateness of the term "Anti-cult movement"; (see for example Kropveld
) with one writer preferring the label "cult critics" rather than "anti-cult" activists.
s"). This countermovement
has reportedly recruited from family members of "cultists"; former cult members, (or apostates); church groups (including Jewish groups); and associations of health professionals. Although there is a trend towards globalization, the social and organizational bases vary significantly from country to country according to the social and political opportunity structures
in each place.
As are many aspects of the social sciences, the movement is variously defined. A significant minority opinion suggests that analysis should treat the secular anti-cult movement separately from the religiously motivated (mainly Christian) groups.
The anti-cult movement might be divided into four classes:
As is typical in social and religious movements, no unified ideology exists, but most, if not all, the groups involved express the view that there are potentially deleterious effects associated with New Religious Movements.
of Lyons (c.115 - c.202) was the first major Christian heresiologist identifying many groups as Gnostics (from gnostikos "learned"). The greatest, and most persistant, of the early church "heresies" was Arianism
. Though orthodox Christian persecution of non-orthodox Christians
did not start until a century after Arius
. The Dark Ages
saw persecution of Bogomils, Cathar
s and other groups, and the Inquisition
(from the 12th century) formalised the use of torture and execution. Protestantism also combatted heresy with the methods of the Inquisition, most notably the Anabaptists, Calvin
's burning of the Arian Servetus, and the Anglican burning of another Arian, Edward Wightman
(1612). Christian debate on persecution and toleration began from the Enlightenment
.
were progressively reduced during the 18th century, and following the Doctrine of the Trinity Act 1813
removed entirely. However orthodox Christian concern against groups such as Unitarians
, Quakers, and others continued, and unorthodox groups proliferated in America.
against the teachings of perceived fringe groups. More-or-less mainstream churches and groups continue this activity today on various levels of theological expertise, collectively described as the Christian countercult movement
.
Members of this movement normally defined a "cult" as any group which provides its own, unconventional, translation of the Bible or which regards non-canonical writings as equivalent to Biblical teachings. The Calvinist writer Anthony A. Hoekema
(1963) considered that "cults" included Seventh-day Adventist
s, Mormon
s, Christian Scientists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and their splinter-groups, such as the Branch Davidians.) Most proponents of the Christian countercult movement keep a distance from secular opposition to new religious movements.
In the 1960s and early 1970s, middle-class youths and adults started to follow new religious movement
s and other groups (then — as now — usually lumped together as "cult
s"), such as the Children of God, the Unification Church
, the Hare Krishnas
, the Divine Light Mission
, Scientology
, and Synanon
. These movements often stood at odds with traditional middle-class
values and ideas. The families of these young people became worried about the behavior of their children, and about what they (the families) considered bizarre belief-systems. They started to organize themselves into grassroot movements, some of which merged and became regional or national organizations. One of the first such organized groups in the USA, FREECOG
, originated in 1971 with parents whose children had become involved in the Children of God group.
In its early days, some such groups lobbied for conservatorship
-laws to forcibly "treat" cult members. They tried (and failed) to legalize this practice by lobbying for deprogramming
laws.
The opposition to cults soon consisted not only of concerned parents but of a range of people. Protagonists of the 1970s and 1980s included psychiatrists John Gordon Clark
and Louis Jolyon West
, psychologists Margaret Singer
and Michael Langone
, congressman Leo J. Ryan, deprogrammer Ted Patrick
, and lawyers Kay Barney and Herbert Rosedale, as well as former members like Steven Hassan
.
Public opposition to NRMs grew after the mass-suicide of members of the Peoples Temple
at Jonestown
in 1978.
The cult controversies in the 1960s and 1970s also resulted in growing interest in scholarly research on alternative religions, and in the setting-up of academic organizations for their study.
The controversy divided scholars into two opposing camps:
Each camp has in the last twenty years produced not only scientific works but also polemic
s, and some proponents still regard the "other" camp as unscientific. In recent years, though, some scholars in each camp have sought some understanding with the opposing position.
, cult-watching groups (CWGs) disseminate information about "cults" with the intent of changing public and government perception as well as of changing public policy regarding NRMs.
Barker has identified five types of CWG:
Barker is an active participant on the subject of cult watching groups.
sees four distinct classes in the organizational opposition to cults:
about staying or leaving.
, widely known as "the Father of deprogramming
", exemplifies members of this group. The former Cult Awareness Network
(old CAN) grew out of a grassroots
-movement by parents of cult-members. The American Family Foundation ( the International Cultic Studies Association
) originated from a father whose daughter had joined a high-control group.
, John Gordon Clark
, Louis Jolyon West
, Robert Cialdini
, and Louise Samways
.
), made their experiences public in books and on the Internet, or work as expert witnesses or as exit counselors
. Most of them have associations with cult-awareness groups, for example:
Some former members operate in the counter-cult movement, such as Edmond C. Gruss and J. P. Moreland
.
Cult-watching groups often use testimonies
of former members of cults. The validity and reliability of such testimonies can occasion intense controversy amongst scholars:
Anson Shupe
, David G. Bromley
and Joseph Ventimiglia coined the term atrocity tales
in 1979,
which Bryan R. Wilson
later took up in relation to former members' narratives. Bromley and Shupe defined an "atrocity tale" as the symbolic presentation of action or events (real or imaginary) in such a context that they come flagrantly to violate the (presumably) shared premises upon which a given set of social relationships should take place. The recounting of such tales has the intention of reaffirming normative boundaries. By sharing the reporter's disapproval or horror, an audience reasserts normative prescription and clearly locates the violator beyond the limits of public morality
.
Massimo Introvigne
argues that the majority of former members hold no strong feelings concerning their past experience
s, while former members who dramatically reverse their loyalties and become "professional enemies" of their former group form a vociferous minority. The term "atrocity story" has itself become controversial as it relates to the opposing views amongst scholars about the credibility of the accounts of former cult-members.
Phillip Charles Lucas came to the conclusion that former members have as much credibility as those who remain in the fold. Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi, a professor of psychology at the University of Haifa
, argues that in the cases of cult-catastrophes such as People's Temple, or Heaven's Gate, allegations by hostile outsiders and detractors matched reality more closely than other accounts, and that in that context statements by ex-members turned out more accurate than those offered by apologists and NRM-researchers.
(CCM). The CCM offers two basic arguments for opposition to cults and new religious movement: one based mainly on theological differences; the other based on defending human self-determinism and targeting mainly groups (religious and non-religious) with alleged cultic behavior (according to the definition of the secular opposition to cults).
The trend focusing on theological differences has a very long tradition in Christian apologetics
. Since the 1970s, "countercult apologetics" has developed, out of which the Christian countercult movement
grew. The "CCM" label does not actually designate a movement but a conglomerate of individuals and groups of very different backgrounds and levels of scholarship. Other designations include countercult ministries, discernment ministries (mainly used by such groups themselves) or "heresy hunters" (mainly used by their critics).
Countercult ministries mainly consist of conservative Christians — the majority of them Protestant, but also including Catholics and Orthodox. They express concerns about religious groups which they feel hold dangerous, non-traditional beliefs, especially regarding the central Christian doctrines (which they define according to conservative views in their respective denomination). These ministries appear motivated by a concern for the spiritual welfare of people in the groups that they attack. They believe that any group which rejects one or more of the historical Christian beliefs poses a danger to the welfare of its members. Such ministries include:
The secular opposition to cults and to new religious movements operates internationally, though a number of sizable and sometimes expanding groups originated in the United States. Some European countries, such as France, Germany, Belgium and Switzerland, as well as China, have introduced legislation or taken other measures against cults or "cultic deviations."
, Andreas Heldal-Lund
, Hank Hanegraff, Steven Hassan
and Tilman Hausherr
, as well as anti-cult organizations such as Infosekta in Switzerland, UNADFI (National Association for the Defense of Families and Individuals Victims of Cults) in France, and the AGPF (Action for Mental and Psychological Freedom) in Germany.
Specific cult-watching government agencies
exist (for example) in France (MIVILUDES
) and in Belgium (CIAOSN: Centre d'information et d'avis sur les organisations sectaires nuisibles).
of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
, KGB
, the Counsel about religions. There was no background for any ACM as a social initiative. But some party functionaries thought that all the religions were reaction force and “sects” were especially dangerous.
In Russia
“anticultism” appeared in early 1990s. Some Russian protestants used to take part in criticizing of foreigner missionaries, sects and new religious movements. Their chiefs hoped that taking part in anti-cult declarations could demonstrate that they were not “sectarians”.
Now anti-cult movements, better known as “anti-sectarian movements” take part in making laws about religion in Russia.
Some religious studies have shown that anti-cult movements, especially with support of the government, can provoke serious religious conflicts in Russian society.
All academics agree that some groups have become problematic and sometimes very problematic; but they disagree over the extent to which new religious movements in general cause harm.
Scholars come from a variety of fields, many of them sociologists of religion, psychologists, or researchers in religious studies. Eileen Barker
, David G. Bromley
, Anson Shupe
, J. Gordon Melton
, Benjamin Beith-Hallahmi, Benjamin Zablocki
, and Philip Zimbardo
have a research-orientation. Some like John Gordon Clark
, Margaret Singer
, Stephen A. Kent
and David C. Lane
are opposed to cults, and promote "cult-awareness". Others such as J. P. Moreland
or Edmond C. Gruss are considered "counter-cult". Jeffrey Hadden and Douglas E. Cowan
focus on the human rights of members of religious groups. Other scholars studying and researching NRMs include Irving Hexham
, James R. Lewis, and James T. Richardson.
Several scholars have questioned Hadden's attitude towards NRMs and cult critics as one-sided.
Scholars in the field of new religious movements confront many controversial subjects:
Janet Jacobs expresses the range of views on the membership of the perceived ACM itself, ranging from those who comment on "the value of the Cult Awareness Network, the value of exit therapy for former members of new religious movements, and alternative modes of support for family members of individuals who have joined new religions" and extending to "a more critical perspective on [a perceived] wide range of ACM activities that threaten religious freedom and individual rights."
Compare conspiracy-theory
.
Both sympathizers and critics of new religious movements have found the topic(s) of brainwashing or mind-control
extremely controversial. The controversy between sympathizers and critics of new religious movements starts with discrepancies regarding the definition and concept of "brainwashing" and of "mind-control," extends to the possibility or probability of their application by cultic groups and to the state of acceptance by various scholarly communities.
Some members of the secular opposition to cults and to new religious movements have argued that if brainwashing has deprived a person of their free will, treatment to restore their free will should take place — even if the "victim" initially opposes this.
Precedents for this exist in the treatment of certain mental illness
es: in such cases medical and legal authorities recognize the condition(s) as depriving sufferers of their ability to make appropriate decisions for themselves. But the practice of forcing treatment on a presumed victim of "brainwashing" (one definition of "deprogramming
") has constantly proven controversial, and courts have frequently adjudged it illegal. Human-rights
organizations (including the ACLU and Human Rights Watch
) have also criticized deprogramming. While only a small fraction of the anti-cult movement has had involvement in deprogramming, several deprogrammers (including a deprogramming-pioneer, Ted Patrick
) have served prison-terms for the practice, while courts have acquitted others.
The anti-cult movement in the USA has apparently abandoned deprogramming in favor of the voluntary practice of exit counseling
. However, this remains a subject of controversy between sympathizers and critics of new religious movements, who continue to debate deprogramming's basic assumptions and its relation to rights of freedom of religion.
coined by David Bromley and Anton Shupe in the 1980s, has since proven useful mainly to people criticizing the opposition against cults. Often the expression "anti-cultist" occurs as well, which makes opposition to cults sound like a cult itself.
" and "commie" served in the past to denigrate blacks and Communists
.
CESNUR
’s president Massimo Introvigne
, writes in his article "So many evil things: Anti-cult terrorism via the Internet",
that fringe and extreme anti-cult activists resort to tactics that may create a background favorable to extreme manifestations of discrimination
and hate against individuals that belong to new religious movements. Critics of CESNUR, however, call Introvigne a cult
-apologist who defends harmful religious groups and cults. Professor Eileen Barker
points out in an interview that the controversy surrounding certain new religious movements can turn violent by a process called deviancy amplification spiral
.
In a paper presented at the 2000 meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, Anson Shupe and Susan Darnell argued that although the International Cultic Studies Association
(ICSA, formerly known as AFF or American Family Foundation) has presented "slanted, stereotypical images and language that has inflamed persons to perform extreme actions," the extent to which one can classify the ICSA and other anti-cult organizations as "hate-group
s" (as defined by law in some jurisdictions or by racial/ethnic criteria in sociology) remains open for debate. See also Verbal violence in hate groups.
An article on the categorization of new religious movements in US media published by The Association for the Sociology of Religion (formerly the American Catholic Sociological Society, criticizes the print media for failing to recognize social-scientific efforts in the area of new religious movements, and its tendency to use anti-cultist definitions rather than social-scientific insight, and asserts that The failure of the print media to recognize social-scientific efforts in the area of religious movement organizations (as our previous research [van Driel and Richardson, 1985] also shows) impels us to add yet another failing mark to the media report card Weiss (1985) has constructed to assess the media's reporting of the social sciences.
David G. Bromley
David G. Bromley is a professor of sociology at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA and the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA. He has written extensively about "cults", new religious movements, apostasy, and the anti-cult movement.- Education and career :Bromley received his...
and Anson Shupe
Anson Shupe
Anson D. Shupe is an American sociologist noted for his studies of religious groups and their countermovements, family violence and clergy misconduct.-Work:...
initially defined the ACM in 1981 as a collection of groups embracing brainwashing-theory,
but later observed a significant shift in ideology towards a "medicalization" of the memberships of new religious movement
New religious movement
A new religious movement is a religious community or ethical, spiritual, or philosophical group of modern origin, which has a peripheral place within the dominant religious culture. NRMs may be novel in origin or they may be part of a wider religion, such as Christianity, Hinduism or Buddhism, in...
s (NRMs).
Publications of the International Cultic Studies Association
International Cultic Studies Association
The International Cultic Studies Association , formerly the American Family Foundation, describes itself as an "interdisciplinary network of academicians, professionals, former group members, and families who study and educate the public about social-psychological influence and control,...
have disputed the appropriateness of the term "Anti-cult movement"; (see for example Kropveld
) with one writer preferring the label "cult critics" rather than "anti-cult" activists.
The concept of an ACM
The anti-cult movement is conceptualized as a collection of individuals and groups, whether formally organized or not, who oppose new religious movements (or "cultCult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
s"). This countermovement
Countermovement
By definition, a countermovement in sociology means a social movement opposed to another social movement. Whenever one social movement starts up, another group establishes themselves to undermine the previous group. Many social movements start out as an affect of political activism towards issues...
has reportedly recruited from family members of "cultists"; former cult members, (or apostates); church groups (including Jewish groups); and associations of health professionals. Although there is a trend towards globalization, the social and organizational bases vary significantly from country to country according to the social and political opportunity structures
Opportunity structures
Opportunity Structures, in sociology and related social science disciplines, are exogenous factors which limit or empower collective actors...
in each place.
As are many aspects of the social sciences, the movement is variously defined. A significant minority opinion suggests that analysis should treat the secular anti-cult movement separately from the religiously motivated (mainly Christian) groups.
The anti-cult movement might be divided into four classes:
- secular counter-cult groups;
- Christian evangelical counter-cult groups;
- groups formed to counter a specific cult;
- organizations that offer some form of exit counseling.
As is typical in social and religious movements, no unified ideology exists, but most, if not all, the groups involved express the view that there are potentially deleterious effects associated with New Religious Movements.
Heresy in Christianity
Concern against heretical teaching and heretical groups is part of Christianity from the New Testament onwards. The apostle Paul rebukes the Galatians for accepting "another Gospel," and the Corinthians for "another Jesus." IrenaeusIrenaeus
Saint Irenaeus , was Bishop of Lugdunum in Gaul, then a part of the Roman Empire . He was an early church father and apologist, and his writings were formative in the early development of Christian theology...
of Lyons (c.115 - c.202) was the first major Christian heresiologist identifying many groups as Gnostics (from gnostikos "learned"). The greatest, and most persistant, of the early church "heresies" was Arianism
Arianism
Arianism is the theological teaching attributed to Arius , a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt, concerning the relationship of the entities of the Trinity and the precise nature of the Son of God as being a subordinate entity to God the Father...
. Though orthodox Christian persecution of non-orthodox Christians
History of persecutions by Christians
The History of persecutions by Christians started with the Persecution of Pagans by the Christian Roman Empire, and includes phenomena like the Crusades , and the Roman Catholic Church Inquisition , the suppression of heresy, Crypto-Judaism, Witch-hunt and the Witch trials in the Early Modern...
did not start until a century after Arius
Arius
Arius was a Christian presbyter in Alexandria, Egypt of Libyan origins. His teachings about the nature of the Godhead, which emphasized the Father's divinity over the Son , and his opposition to the Athanasian or Trinitarian Christology, made him a controversial figure in the First Council of...
. The Dark Ages
Dark Ages
The "Dark Ages" is a historical periodization emphasizing the cultural and economic deterioration that supposedly occurred in Europe following the decline of the Roman Empire. The label employs traditional light-versus-darkness imagery to contrast the "darkness" of the period with earlier and later...
saw persecution of Bogomils, Cathar
Cathar
Catharism was a name given to a Christian religious sect with dualistic and gnostic elements that appeared in the Languedoc region of France and other parts of Europe in the 11th century and flourished in the 12th and 13th centuries...
s and other groups, and the Inquisition
Inquisition
The Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , was the "fight against heretics" by several institutions within the justice-system of the Roman Catholic Church. It started in the 12th century, with the introduction of torture in the persecution of heresy...
(from the 12th century) formalised the use of torture and execution. Protestantism also combatted heresy with the methods of the Inquisition, most notably the Anabaptists, Calvin
Calvin
Calvin may refer to:People with the surname Calvin:* John Calvin, theologian, founder of Calvinism* Idelette Calvin, wife of John Calvin, founder of Calvinism* Melvin Calvin, American chemist* Samuel Calvin, U.S. geologist...
's burning of the Arian Servetus, and the Anglican burning of another Arian, Edward Wightman
Edward Wightman
Edward Wightman was an English radical Anabaptist, executed at Lichfield for his activities promoting himself as the divine Paraclete and Savior of the world...
(1612). Christian debate on persecution and toleration began from the Enlightenment
Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment was an elite cultural movement of intellectuals in 18th century Europe that sought to mobilize the power of reason in order to reform society and advance knowledge. It promoted intellectual interchange and opposed intolerance and abuses in church and state...
.
18th and 19th Centuries
In both Britain and America civil penalties against English DissentersEnglish Dissenters
English Dissenters were Christians who separated from the Church of England in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries.They originally agitated for a wide reaching Protestant Reformation of the Established Church, and triumphed briefly under Oliver Cromwell....
were progressively reduced during the 18th century, and following the Doctrine of the Trinity Act 1813
Doctrine of the Trinity Act 1813
The Doctrine of the Trinity Act 1813 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
removed entirely. However orthodox Christian concern against groups such as Unitarians
Unitarianism
Unitarianism is a Christian theological movement, named for its understanding of God as one person, in direct contrast to Trinitarianism which defines God as three persons coexisting consubstantially as one in being....
, Quakers, and others continued, and unorthodox groups proliferated in America.
20th and 21st centuries
In the first half of the 20th century, some conservative Christian scholars, mostly Protestants, conducted apologetics defending what they saw as Christian mainstream theologyTheology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
against the teachings of perceived fringe groups. More-or-less mainstream churches and groups continue this activity today on various levels of theological expertise, collectively described as the Christian countercult movement
Christian countercult movement
The Christian countercult movement is a social movement of Christian ministries and individual Christian countercult activists who oppose religious sects thought to either partially abide or do not at all abide by the teachings that are written within the Bible. These religious sects are also known...
.
Members of this movement normally defined a "cult" as any group which provides its own, unconventional, translation of the Bible or which regards non-canonical writings as equivalent to Biblical teachings. The Calvinist writer Anthony A. Hoekema
Anthony A. Hoekema
Anthony Andrew Hoekema was a Calvinist minister and theologian who served as professor of Systematic theology at Calvin Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids, for twenty-one years.- Biography :...
(1963) considered that "cults" included Seventh-day Adventist
Seventh-day Adventist Church
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ...
s, Mormon
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
s, Christian Scientists, Jehovah's Witnesses, and their splinter-groups, such as the Branch Davidians.) Most proponents of the Christian countercult movement keep a distance from secular opposition to new religious movements.
In the 1960s and early 1970s, middle-class youths and adults started to follow new religious movement
New religious movement
A new religious movement is a religious community or ethical, spiritual, or philosophical group of modern origin, which has a peripheral place within the dominant religious culture. NRMs may be novel in origin or they may be part of a wider religion, such as Christianity, Hinduism or Buddhism, in...
s and other groups (then — as now — usually lumped together as "cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
s"), such as the Children of God, the Unification Church
Unification Church
The Unification Church is a new religious movement founded by Korean religious leader Sun Myung Moon. In 1954, the Unification Church was formally and legally established in Seoul, South Korea, as The Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity . In 1994, Moon gave the church...
, the Hare Krishnas
International Society for Krishna Consciousness
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness , known colloquially as the Hare Krishna movement, is a Gaudiya Vaishnava religious organization. It was founded in 1966 in New York City by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada...
, the Divine Light Mission
Divine Light Mission
The Divine Light Mission was an organization founded in 1960 by guru Shri Hans Ji Maharaj for his following in northern India. During the 1970s, the DLM gained prominence in the West under the leadership of his fourth and youngest son, Guru Maharaj Ji...
, Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
, and Synanon
Synanon
The Synanon organization, initially a drug rehabilitation program, was founded by Charles E. "Chuck" Dederich, Sr., in 1958, in Santa Monica, California, United States...
. These movements often stood at odds with traditional middle-class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
values and ideas. The families of these young people became worried about the behavior of their children, and about what they (the families) considered bizarre belief-systems. They started to organize themselves into grassroot movements, some of which merged and became regional or national organizations. One of the first such organized groups in the USA, FREECOG
FREECOG
FREECOG, or Free the Children of God , originally named The Parents' Committee to Free Our Children from the Children of God was founded in 1971. Scholars consider it the first Anti-cult movement group...
, originated in 1971 with parents whose children had become involved in the Children of God group.
In its early days, some such groups lobbied for conservatorship
Conservatorship
Conservatorship is a legal concept in the United States of America, where an entity or organization is subjected to the legal control of an external entity or organization, known as a conservator. Conservatorship is established either by court order or via a statutory or regulatory authority...
-laws to forcibly "treat" cult members. They tried (and failed) to legalize this practice by lobbying for deprogramming
Deprogramming
Deprogramming refers to actions that attempt to force a person to abandon allegiance to a religious, political, economic, or social group. Methods and practices may involve kidnapping and coercion...
laws.
The opposition to cults soon consisted not only of concerned parents but of a range of people. Protagonists of the 1970s and 1980s included psychiatrists John Gordon Clark
John Gordon Clark
John 'Jack' Gordon Clark was a Harvard psychiatrist and authority in research on the alleged damaging effects of cults.He was the target of harassment from Scientologists after he testified against them to the Vermont congress in 1976....
and Louis Jolyon West
Louis Jolyon West
Louis Jolyon West was an American psychiatrist, human rights activist and expert on brainwashing, mind control, torture, substance abuse, post traumatic stress disorder and violence....
, psychologists Margaret Singer
Margaret Singer
Dr. Margaret Thaler Singer, was a clinical psychologist and a part-time Adjunct Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, U.S....
and Michael Langone
Michael Langone
Michael D. Langone, is an American counseling psychologist who specialises in research about "cultic groups" and alleged psychological manipulation. He is executive director of the International Cultic Studies Association, editor of the journal Cultic Studies Review.Langone is author and co-author...
, congressman Leo J. Ryan, deprogrammer Ted Patrick
Ted Patrick
Theodore Roosevelt Patrick, Jr. is widely considered to be the "father of deprogramming." Some criminal proceedings against Patrick have resulted in felony convictions for kidnapping and unlawful imprisonment.-Early life:...
, and lawyers Kay Barney and Herbert Rosedale, as well as former members like Steven Hassan
Steven Hassan
Steven Alan Hassan is a licensed mental health counselor and an exit counselor. Hassan was an early advocate of exit counseling, and is the author of two books on the subject of "cults", and what he describes as their use of mind control, thought reform, and the psychology of influence in order...
.
Public opposition to NRMs grew after the mass-suicide of members of the Peoples Temple
Peoples Temple
Peoples Temple was a religious organization founded in 1955 by Jim Jones that, by the mid-1970s, included over a dozen locations in California including its headquarters in San Francisco...
at Jonestown
Jonestown
Jonestown was the informal name for the Peoples Temple Agricultural Project, an intentional community in northwestern Guyana formed by the Peoples Temple led by Jim Jones. It became internationally notorious when, on November 18, 1978, 918 people died in the settlement as well as in a nearby...
in 1978.
The cult controversies in the 1960s and 1970s also resulted in growing interest in scholarly research on alternative religions, and in the setting-up of academic organizations for their study.
The controversy divided scholars into two opposing camps:
- The first camp Langone describes as a "religion coalition", which defended the right of (new) religions and religious groups to continue with their beliefs and practices. This coalition consisted mainly of scholars of religion.
- The second camp comprised the "individual rights coalition", which defended the rights of individuals against abuse by religious or non-religious groups and individuals. This coalition consisted mainly of psychologists and psychiatrists. Sociologists surfaced in both camps.
Each camp has in the last twenty years produced not only scientific works but also polemic
Polemic
A polemic is a variety of arguments or controversies made against one opinion, doctrine, or person. Other variations of argument are debate and discussion...
s, and some proponents still regard the "other" camp as unscientific. In recent years, though, some scholars in each camp have sought some understanding with the opposing position.
Religious and secular critics
Commentators differentiate two main types of opposition to cults:- religious opposition (related to theologicalTheologyTheology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
issues). - secular opposition (generally more concerned about emotional, social, financial, and economic consequences of cultic involvement, where "cult" can refer to a religious or to a secular group). For this type of opposition against cults (which covers a wide variation of backgrounds and motives), Bromley and Hadden coined in the 1980s the designation anti-cult movement (ACM). Secular critics of cults realize the diversity of the groups popularly filed under the "cult" label and do not express concerns with all of those groups, but differentiate (for example) between harmful and harmless "cults", using allegations or evidence of communal totalism, authoritarianismAuthoritarianismAuthoritarianism is a form of social organization characterized by submission to authority. It is usually opposed to individualism and democracy...
, charismaCharismaThe term charisma has two senses: 1) compelling attractiveness or charm that can inspire devotion in others, 2) a divinely conferred power or talent. For some theological usages the term is rendered charism, with a meaning the same as sense 2...
tic leadershipLeadershipLeadership has been described as the “process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task". Other in-depth definitions of leadership have also emerged.-Theories:...
, manipulative and heavy-handed indoctrinationIndoctrinationIndoctrination is the process of inculcating ideas, attitudes, cognitive strategies or a professional methodology . It is often distinguished from education by the fact that the indoctrinated person is expected not to question or critically examine the doctrine they have learned...
, deceptive proselytization, violenceViolenceViolence is the use of physical force to apply a state to others contrary to their wishes. violence, while often a stand-alone issue, is often the culmination of other kinds of conflict, e.g...
and child-abuseChild abuseChild abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
, sexual exploitationSexual exploitationSexual exploitation may refer to:*Sexual slavery*Sexual exploitation and abuse in humanitarian response...
, emotional intensity in group lifeGroup behaviourGroup behaviour in sociology refers to the situations where people interact in large or small groups. The field of group dynamics deals with small groups that may reach consensus and act in a coordinated way...
, and the use of mind-controlMind controlMind control refers to a process in which a group or individual "systematically uses unethically manipulative methods to persuade others to conform to the wishes of the manipulator, often to the detriment of the person being manipulated"...
. Some individual groups get criticized for alleged taxTaxTo tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
-privileges, public solicitationSolicitationLiterally, solicitation means: 'urgently asking'. It is the action or instance of soliciting; petition; proposal. In criminal law, it most commonly refers to either the act of offering goods or services, or the act of attempting to purchase such goods or services...
, faith-healingFaith healingFaith healing is healing through spiritual means. The healing of a person is brought about by religious faith through prayer and/or rituals that, according to adherents, stimulate a divine presence and power toward correcting disease and disability. Belief in divine intervention in illness or...
and rejection of modern medicine, mental health jeopardy to participants, and corporal punishmentCorporal punishmentCorporal punishment is a form of physical punishment that involves the deliberate infliction of pain as retribution for an offence, or for the purpose of disciplining or reforming a wrongdoer, or to deter attitudes or behaviour deemed unacceptable...
.
Barker's five types of cult-watching groups
According to sociologist Eileen BarkerEileen Barker
Eileen Vartan Barker OBE, born in Edinburgh, UK, is a professor in sociology, an emeritus member of the London School of Economics , and a consultant to that institution's Centre for the Study of Human Rights...
, cult-watching groups (CWGs) disseminate information about "cults" with the intent of changing public and government perception as well as of changing public policy regarding NRMs.
Barker has identified five types of CWG:
- cult-awareness groups (CAGs) focusing on the harm done by "destructive cults"
- counter-cult groups (CCGs) focusing on the (heretical) teaching of non-mainstream groups
- research-oriented groups (ROGs) focusing on beliefs, practices and comparisons
- human-rights groups (HRGs) focusing on the human rights of religious minorities
- cult-defender groups (CDGs) focusing on defending cults and exposing CAGs
Barker is an active participant on the subject of cult watching groups.
Hadden's taxonomy of the anti-cult movement
Jeffrey K. HaddenJeffrey K. Hadden
Jeffrey K. Hadden was an American professor of sociology who began teaching at the University of Virginia in 1972. Hadden earned his Ph.D...
sees four distinct classes in the organizational opposition to cults:
- Religiously grounded opposition
- opposition usually defined in theological terms
- cults viewed as engaging in heresy
- sees its mission as exposing the heresy and correcting the beliefs of those who have strayed from a truth
- prefers metaphors of deception rather than of possession
- opposition serves two important functions:
- protects members (especially youth) from heresy
- increases solidarity among the faithful
- Secular opposition
- regards individual autonomy as the manifest goal — achieved by getting people out of groups using mind control and deceptive proselytization.
- identifies the struggle as about control, not as about theology.
- organized around families who have or have had children involved in a cult.
- has a latent goal of disabling or destroying NRMs organizationally.
- Apostates
- apostasy = the renunciation of a religious faith
- apostate = one who engages in active opposition to their former faith
- the anti-cult movement has actively encouraged former members to interpret their experience in a "cult" as one of being egregiously wronged and encourages participation in organized anti-cult activities.
- Entrepreneurial opposition
- individuals who take up a cause for personal gain
- ad hoc alliances or coalitions to promote shared views
- broadcasters and journalists as leading examples.
- a few "entrepreneurEntrepreneurAn entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
s" have made careers by setting up organized opposition.
Cult-watching groups and individuals, and other opposition to cults
Most critics of cults share the belief that the public merit warning about the actions of such groups and that current members should become as well informed of the negative sides of their group as the positive so they can make an informed choiceChoice
Choice consists of the mental process of judging the merits of multiple options and selecting one of them. While a choice can be made between imagined options , often a choice is made between real options, and followed by the corresponding action...
about staying or leaving.
Family-members of adherents
Some opposition to cults (and to new religious movements) started with family-members of cult-adherents who had problems with the sudden changes in character, lifestyle and future plans of their young adult children who had joined NRMs. Ted PatrickTed Patrick
Theodore Roosevelt Patrick, Jr. is widely considered to be the "father of deprogramming." Some criminal proceedings against Patrick have resulted in felony convictions for kidnapping and unlawful imprisonment.-Early life:...
, widely known as "the Father of deprogramming
Deprogramming
Deprogramming refers to actions that attempt to force a person to abandon allegiance to a religious, political, economic, or social group. Methods and practices may involve kidnapping and coercion...
", exemplifies members of this group. The former Cult Awareness Network
Cult Awareness Network
The Cult Awareness Network was founded in the wake of the November 18, 1978 deaths of members of the group Peoples Temple and assassination of Congressman Leo J. Ryan in Jonestown, Guyana. CAN is now owned and operated by associates of the Church of Scientology, an organization that the original...
(old CAN) grew out of a grassroots
Grassroots
A grassroots movement is one driven by the politics of a community. The term implies that the creation of the movement and the group supporting it are natural and spontaneous, highlighting the differences between this and a movement that is orchestrated by traditional power structures...
-movement by parents of cult-members. The American Family Foundation ( the International Cultic Studies Association
International Cultic Studies Association
The International Cultic Studies Association , formerly the American Family Foundation, describes itself as an "interdisciplinary network of academicians, professionals, former group members, and families who study and educate the public about social-psychological influence and control,...
) originated from a father whose daughter had joined a high-control group.
Clinical psychologists and psychiatrists
From the 1970s onwards some psychiatrists and clinical psychologists accused cults of harming some of their members. These accusations were sometimes based on observations made during therapy, and sometimes were related to research regarding brainwashing or mind-control. Examples include Margaret SingerMargaret Singer
Dr. Margaret Thaler Singer, was a clinical psychologist and a part-time Adjunct Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, U.S....
, John Gordon Clark
John Gordon Clark
John 'Jack' Gordon Clark was a Harvard psychiatrist and authority in research on the alleged damaging effects of cults.He was the target of harassment from Scientologists after he testified against them to the Vermont congress in 1976....
, Louis Jolyon West
Louis Jolyon West
Louis Jolyon West was an American psychiatrist, human rights activist and expert on brainwashing, mind control, torture, substance abuse, post traumatic stress disorder and violence....
, Robert Cialdini
Robert Cialdini
Robert B. Cialdini is Regents’ Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Marketing at Arizona State University.He is best known for his popular book on persuasion and marketing, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion. Influence has sold over 2 million copies and has been translated into twenty-six...
, and Louise Samways
Louise Samways
- Dangerous Persuaders:Penguin Books published Samways's book Dangerous Persuaders in 1994.Samways included comments on Landmark Education in her book on personal development courses and cults, Dangerous Persuaders...
.
Former members
Some former members have taken an active stance in opposition to their former religion/group. Some of those opponents have "affiliated" with the ACM. Some have founded cult-watching groups (often with an active presence on the InternetInternet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
), made their experiences public in books and on the Internet, or work as expert witnesses or as exit counselors
Exit counseling
Exit counseling, also termed strategic intervention therapy, cult intervention or thought reform consultation, is an intervention designed to persuade an individual to leave a group perceived to be a cult...
. Most of them have associations with cult-awareness groups, for example:
- Steven HassanSteven HassanSteven Alan Hassan is a licensed mental health counselor and an exit counselor. Hassan was an early advocate of exit counseling, and is the author of two books on the subject of "cults", and what he describes as their use of mind control, thought reform, and the psychology of influence in order...
- Arnie Lerma
- Robert Vaughn YoungRobert Vaughn YoungRobert Vaughn Young commonly known by his initials RVY, was a whistleblower against the Church of Scientology after working high inside their organization for over twenty years.-In Scientology:...
- Lawrence Wollersheim
- Jan GroenveldJan GroenveldJan Groenveld was a former member of the LDS Church and the Jehovah's Witnesses. She spent a total of fifteen years in these organizations before leaving them in 1975...
Some former members operate in the counter-cult movement, such as Edmond C. Gruss and J. P. Moreland
J. P. Moreland
James Porter Moreland , better known as J. P. Moreland, is an American philosopher, theologian, and Christian apologist...
.
Cult-watching groups often use testimonies
Testimony
In law and in religion, testimony is a solemn attestation as to the truth of a matter. All testimonies should be well thought out and truthful. It was the custom in Ancient Rome for the men to place their right hand on a Bible when taking an oath...
of former members of cults. The validity and reliability of such testimonies can occasion intense controversy amongst scholars:
Anson Shupe
Anson Shupe
Anson D. Shupe is an American sociologist noted for his studies of religious groups and their countermovements, family violence and clergy misconduct.-Work:...
, David G. Bromley
David G. Bromley
David G. Bromley is a professor of sociology at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA and the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA. He has written extensively about "cults", new religious movements, apostasy, and the anti-cult movement.- Education and career :Bromley received his...
and Joseph Ventimiglia coined the term atrocity tales
Atrocity story
The term atrocity story as defined by the American sociologists David G. Bromley and Anson D. Shupe refers to the symbolic presentation of action or events in such a context that they are made flagrantly to violate the shared premises upon which a given set of social relationships should be...
in 1979,
which Bryan R. Wilson
Bryan R. Wilson
Bryan Ronald Wilson, , was Reader Emeritus in Sociology at the University of Oxford and President of the International Society for the Sociology of Religion 1971-75.-Academic life:...
later took up in relation to former members' narratives. Bromley and Shupe defined an "atrocity tale" as the symbolic presentation of action or events (real or imaginary) in such a context that they come flagrantly to violate the (presumably) shared premises upon which a given set of social relationships should take place. The recounting of such tales has the intention of reaffirming normative boundaries. By sharing the reporter's disapproval or horror, an audience reasserts normative prescription and clearly locates the violator beyond the limits of public morality
Public morality
Public morality refers to moral and ethical standards enforced in a society, by law or police work or social pressure, and applied to public life, to the content of the media, and to conduct in public places...
.
Massimo Introvigne
Massimo Introvigne
Massimo Introvigne is an Italian sociologist and intellectual property consultant. He is the founder and managing director of the Center for Studies on New Religions , an international network of scholars who study new religious movements. Introvigne is the author of tens of books and articles in...
argues that the majority of former members hold no strong feelings concerning their past experience
Experience
Experience as a general concept comprises knowledge of or skill in or observation of some thing or some event gained through involvement in or exposure to that thing or event....
s, while former members who dramatically reverse their loyalties and become "professional enemies" of their former group form a vociferous minority. The term "atrocity story" has itself become controversial as it relates to the opposing views amongst scholars about the credibility of the accounts of former cult-members.
Phillip Charles Lucas came to the conclusion that former members have as much credibility as those who remain in the fold. Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi, a professor of psychology at the University of Haifa
University of Haifa
The University of Haifa is a university in Haifa, Israel.The University of Haifa was founded in 1963 by Haifa mayor Abba Hushi, to operate under the academic auspices of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem....
, argues that in the cases of cult-catastrophes such as People's Temple, or Heaven's Gate, allegations by hostile outsiders and detractors matched reality more closely than other accounts, and that in that context statements by ex-members turned out more accurate than those offered by apologists and NRM-researchers.
Christian countercult movement
A somewhat similar movement, generally not considered part of the ACM, exists within a recognized religion: the Christian countercult movementChristian countercult movement
The Christian countercult movement is a social movement of Christian ministries and individual Christian countercult activists who oppose religious sects thought to either partially abide or do not at all abide by the teachings that are written within the Bible. These religious sects are also known...
(CCM). The CCM offers two basic arguments for opposition to cults and new religious movement: one based mainly on theological differences; the other based on defending human self-determinism and targeting mainly groups (religious and non-religious) with alleged cultic behavior (according to the definition of the secular opposition to cults).
The trend focusing on theological differences has a very long tradition in Christian apologetics
Apologetics
Apologetics is the discipline of defending a position through the systematic use of reason. Early Christian writers Apologetics (from Greek ἀπολογία, "speaking in defense") is the discipline of defending a position (often religious) through the systematic use of reason. Early Christian writers...
. Since the 1970s, "countercult apologetics" has developed, out of which the Christian countercult movement
Christian countercult movement
The Christian countercult movement is a social movement of Christian ministries and individual Christian countercult activists who oppose religious sects thought to either partially abide or do not at all abide by the teachings that are written within the Bible. These religious sects are also known...
grew. The "CCM" label does not actually designate a movement but a conglomerate of individuals and groups of very different backgrounds and levels of scholarship. Other designations include countercult ministries, discernment ministries (mainly used by such groups themselves) or "heresy hunters" (mainly used by their critics).
Countercult ministries mainly consist of conservative Christians — the majority of them Protestant, but also including Catholics and Orthodox. They express concerns about religious groups which they feel hold dangerous, non-traditional beliefs, especially regarding the central Christian doctrines (which they define according to conservative views in their respective denomination). These ministries appear motivated by a concern for the spiritual welfare of people in the groups that they attack. They believe that any group which rejects one or more of the historical Christian beliefs poses a danger to the welfare of its members. Such ministries include:
- Reachout TrustReachout TrustReachout Trust is a British evangelical Christian organisation. Its stated aims are to "Examine in the light of the Christian gospel the beliefs and spirituality of people within the cults, occults, new age and all not upholding to biblical truth."...
- Christian Apologetics and Research MinistryChristian Apologetics and Research MinistryThe Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry is an Evangelical Christian apologetics ministry founded in 1995. The proprietor of the website is Matt Slick. The organization's materials may be accessed on the Internet, through its website at www.carm.org. The ministry is registered as a 5013...
- Probe Ministries
- Watchman FellowshipWatchman FellowshipThe Watchman Fellowship is, according to its website, an independent, nondenominational Christian research and apologetics ministry focusing on new religious movements, cults, the occult and the New Age...
- Walter Martin
National and international entities
- For more details see: Cults and governments and the European Federation of Centres of Research and Information on SectarianismFECRISFECRIS - European Federation of Centres of Research and Information on Sectarianism - is a non-profit association that serves as an umbrella organization for groups which investigate the activities of cults or cult-like organizations in...
.
The secular opposition to cults and to new religious movements operates internationally, though a number of sizable and sometimes expanding groups originated in the United States. Some European countries, such as France, Germany, Belgium and Switzerland, as well as China, have introduced legislation or taken other measures against cults or "cultic deviations."
Cult-watchers
Cult-watchers include Rick RossRick Ross (consultant)
Rick Alan Ross works as a consultant, lecturer, and intervention specialist, with an interest in exit counseling and deprogramming of former cult members. He runs a blog at CultNews.com, and in 2003 founded the Rick A...
, Andreas Heldal-Lund
Andreas Heldal-Lund
Andreas Heldal-Lund is a Norwegian anti-Scientology activist best known for operating the website Operation Clambake.-Activist:...
, Hank Hanegraff, Steven Hassan
Steven Hassan
Steven Alan Hassan is a licensed mental health counselor and an exit counselor. Hassan was an early advocate of exit counseling, and is the author of two books on the subject of "cults", and what he describes as their use of mind control, thought reform, and the psychology of influence in order...
and Tilman Hausherr
Tilman Hausherr
Tilman Hausherr is a German citizen living in Berlin, Germany. Hausherr is well-known among critics of Scientology for his frequent Usenet posts and for maintaining a website critical of Scientology...
, as well as anti-cult organizations such as Infosekta in Switzerland, UNADFI (National Association for the Defense of Families and Individuals Victims of Cults) in France, and the AGPF (Action for Mental and Psychological Freedom) in Germany.
Specific cult-watching government agencies
Government agency
A government or state agency is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an intelligence agency. There is a notable variety of agency types...
exist (for example) in France (MIVILUDES
MIVILUDES
MIVILUDES , a French government agency, has the task of:* observing and analyzing movements perceived as constituting a threat to public order or that violate French law*...
) and in Belgium (CIAOSN: Centre d'information et d'avis sur les organisations sectaires nuisibles).
Anti-cult movement in Russia
In USSR all the important questions of the state-religious relations were resolved by Central CommitteeCentral Committee
Central Committee was the common designation of a standing administrative body of communist parties, analogous to a board of directors, whether ruling or non-ruling in the twentieth century and of the surviving, mostly Trotskyist, states in the early twenty first. In such party organizations the...
of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union
Communist Party of the Soviet Union
The Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the only legal, ruling political party in the Soviet Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the world...
, KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
, the Counsel about religions. There was no background for any ACM as a social initiative. But some party functionaries thought that all the religions were reaction force and “sects” were especially dangerous.
In Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
“anticultism” appeared in early 1990s. Some Russian protestants used to take part in criticizing of foreigner missionaries, sects and new religious movements. Their chiefs hoped that taking part in anti-cult declarations could demonstrate that they were not “sectarians”.
Now anti-cult movements, better known as “anti-sectarian movements” take part in making laws about religion in Russia.
Some religious studies have shown that anti-cult movements, especially with support of the government, can provoke serious religious conflicts in Russian society.
Polarized views among scholars
Social scientists, sociologists, religious scholars, psychologists and psychiatrists have studied the modern field of cults and new religious movements since the early 1980s. Cult debates about certain purported cults and about cults in general often become polarized with widely divergent opinions, not only among current followers and disaffected former members, but sometimes even among scholars as well.All academics agree that some groups have become problematic and sometimes very problematic; but they disagree over the extent to which new religious movements in general cause harm.
Scholars come from a variety of fields, many of them sociologists of religion, psychologists, or researchers in religious studies. Eileen Barker
Eileen Barker
Eileen Vartan Barker OBE, born in Edinburgh, UK, is a professor in sociology, an emeritus member of the London School of Economics , and a consultant to that institution's Centre for the Study of Human Rights...
, David G. Bromley
David G. Bromley
David G. Bromley is a professor of sociology at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA and the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA. He has written extensively about "cults", new religious movements, apostasy, and the anti-cult movement.- Education and career :Bromley received his...
, Anson Shupe
Anson Shupe
Anson D. Shupe is an American sociologist noted for his studies of religious groups and their countermovements, family violence and clergy misconduct.-Work:...
, J. Gordon Melton
J. Gordon Melton
John Gordon Melton is an American religious scholar who was the founding director of the Institute for the Study of American Religion and is currently a research specialist in religion and New Religious Movements with the Department of Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara...
, Benjamin Beith-Hallahmi, Benjamin Zablocki
Benjamin Zablocki
Benjamin Zablocki is and American professor of sociology at Rutgers University where he teaches sociology of religion and social psychology. He has published widely on the subject of charismatic religious movements and cults....
, and Philip Zimbardo
Philip Zimbardo
Philip George Zimbardo is an American psychologist and a professor emeritus at Stanford University. He is president of the Heroic Imagination Project...
have a research-orientation. Some like John Gordon Clark
John Gordon Clark
John 'Jack' Gordon Clark was a Harvard psychiatrist and authority in research on the alleged damaging effects of cults.He was the target of harassment from Scientologists after he testified against them to the Vermont congress in 1976....
, Margaret Singer
Margaret Singer
Dr. Margaret Thaler Singer, was a clinical psychologist and a part-time Adjunct Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Berkeley, U.S....
, Stephen A. Kent
Stephen A. Kent
Stephen A. Kent, is a Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. He researches new and alternative religions, and has published research on several such groups including the Children of God , the Church of Scientology, and newer faiths...
and David C. Lane
David C. Lane
David Christopher Lane is a professor of philosophy and sociology at Mt. San Antonio College, in Walnut, California. He is most notable for exposing Eckankar as a cult and its founder, Paul Twitchell, as a plagiarist in his book The Making of a Spiritual Movement: The Untold Story of Paul...
are opposed to cults, and promote "cult-awareness". Others such as J. P. Moreland
J. P. Moreland
James Porter Moreland , better known as J. P. Moreland, is an American philosopher, theologian, and Christian apologist...
or Edmond C. Gruss are considered "counter-cult". Jeffrey Hadden and Douglas E. Cowan
Douglas E. Cowan
Douglas E. Cowan is a Canadian academic in religious studies and the sociology of religion and currently holds a teaching position at Renison College, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada...
focus on the human rights of members of religious groups. Other scholars studying and researching NRMs include Irving Hexham
Irving Hexham
Irving Hexham is a Canadian academic and writer who has published twenty-three books and numerous articles, chapters, and book reviews in respected academic journals. Currently, he is Professor of Religious Studies at the University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, married to Dr...
, James R. Lewis, and James T. Richardson.
Several scholars have questioned Hadden's attitude towards NRMs and cult critics as one-sided.
Scholars in the field of new religious movements confront many controversial subjects:
- the validity of the testimonies of former members (see Former members)
- the validity of the testimonies of current members
- the validity of and differences between exit-counselingExit counselingExit counseling, also termed strategic intervention therapy, cult intervention or thought reform consultation, is an intervention designed to persuade an individual to leave a group perceived to be a cult...
and coercive deprogrammingDeprogrammingDeprogramming refers to actions that attempt to force a person to abandon allegiance to a religious, political, economic, or social group. Methods and practices may involve kidnapping and coercion... - the validity of evidence of harm caused by cults, for example: post-cult trauma
- ethical concerns regarding new religious movements, for example: free willFree will"To make my own decisions whether I am successful or not due to uncontrollable forces" -Troy MorrisonA pragmatic definition of free willFree will is the ability of agents to make choices free from certain kinds of constraints. The existence of free will and its exact nature and definition have long...
, freedom of speechFreedom of speechFreedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship. The term freedom of expression is sometimes used synonymously, but includes any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used... - opposition to cults vs. freedom of religionFreedom of religionFreedom of religion is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance; the concept is generally recognized also to include the freedom to change religion or not to follow any...
and religious intoleranceReligious intoleranceReligious intolerance is intolerance against another's religious beliefs or practices.-Definition:The mere statement on the part of a religion that its own beliefs and practices are correct and any contrary beliefs incorrect does not in itself constitute intolerance... - the objectivity of all scholars studying new religious movements (see cult apologistCult apologistThe term cult apologist is used by opponents of cults and new religious movements to describe social scientists, religious scholars, and other persons who write about cults and new religious movements whose writings they consider as uncritical or not sufficiently critical. Scholars have referred to...
s) - the acceptance or rejection of the APA taskforce on Deceptive and Indirect Techniques of Persuasion and Control report (Amitrani & di Marzio, 2000, Massimo IntrovigneMassimo IntrovigneMassimo Introvigne is an Italian sociologist and intellectual property consultant. He is the founder and managing director of the Center for Studies on New Religions , an international network of scholars who study new religious movements. Introvigne is the author of tens of books and articles in...
), see also Scholarly positions on mind-control
Janet Jacobs expresses the range of views on the membership of the perceived ACM itself, ranging from those who comment on "the value of the Cult Awareness Network, the value of exit therapy for former members of new religious movements, and alternative modes of support for family members of individuals who have joined new religions" and extending to "a more critical perspective on [a perceived] wide range of ACM activities that threaten religious freedom and individual rights."
Compare conspiracy-theory
Conspiracy theory
A conspiracy theory explains an event as being the result of an alleged plot by a covert group or organization or, more broadly, the idea that important political, social or economic events are the products of secret plots that are largely unknown to the general public.-Usage:The term "conspiracy...
.
Brainwashing and mind-control
- For details, see Brainwashing controversy in new religious movements and cults
Both sympathizers and critics of new religious movements have found the topic(s) of brainwashing or mind-control
Mind control
Mind control refers to a process in which a group or individual "systematically uses unethically manipulative methods to persuade others to conform to the wishes of the manipulator, often to the detriment of the person being manipulated"...
extremely controversial. The controversy between sympathizers and critics of new religious movements starts with discrepancies regarding the definition and concept of "brainwashing" and of "mind-control," extends to the possibility or probability of their application by cultic groups and to the state of acceptance by various scholarly communities.
Deprogramming and exit-counseling
- For details, see DeprogrammingDeprogrammingDeprogramming refers to actions that attempt to force a person to abandon allegiance to a religious, political, economic, or social group. Methods and practices may involve kidnapping and coercion...
, Exit counselingExit counselingExit counseling, also termed strategic intervention therapy, cult intervention or thought reform consultation, is an intervention designed to persuade an individual to leave a group perceived to be a cult...
Some members of the secular opposition to cults and to new religious movements have argued that if brainwashing has deprived a person of their free will, treatment to restore their free will should take place — even if the "victim" initially opposes this.
Precedents for this exist in the treatment of certain mental illness
Mental illness
A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
es: in such cases medical and legal authorities recognize the condition(s) as depriving sufferers of their ability to make appropriate decisions for themselves. But the practice of forcing treatment on a presumed victim of "brainwashing" (one definition of "deprogramming
Deprogramming
Deprogramming refers to actions that attempt to force a person to abandon allegiance to a religious, political, economic, or social group. Methods and practices may involve kidnapping and coercion...
") has constantly proven controversial, and courts have frequently adjudged it illegal. Human-rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
organizations (including the ACLU and Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
) have also criticized deprogramming. While only a small fraction of the anti-cult movement has had involvement in deprogramming, several deprogrammers (including a deprogramming-pioneer, Ted Patrick
Ted Patrick
Theodore Roosevelt Patrick, Jr. is widely considered to be the "father of deprogramming." Some criminal proceedings against Patrick have resulted in felony convictions for kidnapping and unlawful imprisonment.-Early life:...
) have served prison-terms for the practice, while courts have acquitted others.
The anti-cult movement in the USA has apparently abandoned deprogramming in favor of the voluntary practice of exit counseling
Exit counseling
Exit counseling, also termed strategic intervention therapy, cult intervention or thought reform consultation, is an intervention designed to persuade an individual to leave a group perceived to be a cult...
. However, this remains a subject of controversy between sympathizers and critics of new religious movements, who continue to debate deprogramming's basic assumptions and its relation to rights of freedom of religion.
Reaction of the anti-cult movement
Some sociologists and scholars of religion use the term anti-cult movement as an expression covering the whole secular opposition against cults and/or the phrase anti-cult activist to classify anyone opposing cults for secular reasons. The term,coined by David Bromley and Anton Shupe in the 1980s, has since proven useful mainly to people criticizing the opposition against cults. Often the expression "anti-cultist" occurs as well, which makes opposition to cults sound like a cult itself.
Responses of targeted groups and scholars
The Foundation against Intolerance of Religious Minorities, associated with the Adidam NRM, sees the use of terms "cult" and "cult leader" as detestable and as something to avoid at all costs. The Foundation regards such usage as the exercise of prejudice and discrimination against them in the same manner as the words "niggerNigger
Nigger is a noun in the English language, most notable for its usage in a pejorative context to refer to black people , and also as an informal slang term, among other contexts. It is a common ethnic slur...
" and "commie" served in the past to denigrate blacks and Communists
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
.
CESNUR
CESNUR
CESNUR , is an organization based in Turin, Italy. It was established in 1988 by a group of religious scholars from universities in Europe and the Americas, working in the field of new religious movements. Its director is the Italian sociologist and attorney Massimo Introvigne...
’s president Massimo Introvigne
Massimo Introvigne
Massimo Introvigne is an Italian sociologist and intellectual property consultant. He is the founder and managing director of the Center for Studies on New Religions , an international network of scholars who study new religious movements. Introvigne is the author of tens of books and articles in...
, writes in his article "So many evil things: Anti-cult terrorism via the Internet",
that fringe and extreme anti-cult activists resort to tactics that may create a background favorable to extreme manifestations of discrimination
Discrimination
Discrimination is the prejudicial treatment of an individual based on their membership in a certain group or category. It involves the actual behaviors towards groups such as excluding or restricting members of one group from opportunities that are available to another group. The term began to be...
and hate against individuals that belong to new religious movements. Critics of CESNUR, however, call Introvigne a cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
-apologist who defends harmful religious groups and cults. Professor Eileen Barker
Eileen Barker
Eileen Vartan Barker OBE, born in Edinburgh, UK, is a professor in sociology, an emeritus member of the London School of Economics , and a consultant to that institution's Centre for the Study of Human Rights...
points out in an interview that the controversy surrounding certain new religious movements can turn violent by a process called deviancy amplification spiral
Deviancy amplification spiral
Deviancy amplification spiral is a media hype phenomenon defined by media critics as a cycle of increasing numbers of reports on a category of antisocial behavior or some other "undesirable" event, leading to a moral panic...
.
In a paper presented at the 2000 meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion, Anson Shupe and Susan Darnell argued that although the International Cultic Studies Association
International Cultic Studies Association
The International Cultic Studies Association , formerly the American Family Foundation, describes itself as an "interdisciplinary network of academicians, professionals, former group members, and families who study and educate the public about social-psychological influence and control,...
(ICSA, formerly known as AFF or American Family Foundation) has presented "slanted, stereotypical images and language that has inflamed persons to perform extreme actions," the extent to which one can classify the ICSA and other anti-cult organizations as "hate-group
Hate group
A hate group is an organized group or movement that advocates and practices hatred, hostility, or violence towards members of a race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation or other designated sector of society...
s" (as defined by law in some jurisdictions or by racial/ethnic criteria in sociology) remains open for debate. See also Verbal violence in hate groups.
An article on the categorization of new religious movements in US media published by The Association for the Sociology of Religion (formerly the American Catholic Sociological Society, criticizes the print media for failing to recognize social-scientific efforts in the area of new religious movements, and its tendency to use anti-cultist definitions rather than social-scientific insight, and asserts that The failure of the print media to recognize social-scientific efforts in the area of religious movement organizations (as our previous research [van Driel and Richardson, 1985] also shows) impels us to add yet another failing mark to the media report card Weiss (1985) has constructed to assess the media's reporting of the social sciences.
See also
- Cult apologistCult apologistThe term cult apologist is used by opponents of cults and new religious movements to describe social scientists, religious scholars, and other persons who write about cults and new religious movements whose writings they consider as uncritical or not sufficiently critical. Scholars have referred to...
- Cults and governments
- Parliamentary Commission about Cults in France (1995)
- Cult Awareness NetworkCult Awareness NetworkThe Cult Awareness Network was founded in the wake of the November 18, 1978 deaths of members of the group Peoples Temple and assassination of Congressman Leo J. Ryan in Jonestown, Guyana. CAN is now owned and operated by associates of the Church of Scientology, an organization that the original...
- International Cultic Studies AssociationInternational Cultic Studies AssociationThe International Cultic Studies Association , formerly the American Family Foundation, describes itself as an "interdisciplinary network of academicians, professionals, former group members, and families who study and educate the public about social-psychological influence and control,...
- Ronald EnrothRonald EnrothRonald M. Enroth is Professor of Sociology at Westmont College, Santa Barbara, California, and a prominent evangelical Christian author of books concerning what he defines as "cults" and "new religious movements"....
- Project ChanologyProject ChanologyProject Chanology is a protest movement against the practices of the Church of Scientology by members of Anonymous, a leaderless Internet-based group that defines itself as ubiquitous...
Further reading
- Anthony, D. Pseudoscience and Minority Religions: An Evaluation of the Brainwashing Theories of Jean-Marie Abgrall. Social Justice Research, Kluwer Academic Publishers, December 1999, vol. 12, no. 4, pp. 421–456(36)
- Bromley, David G.David G. BromleyDavid G. Bromley is a professor of sociology at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA and the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA. He has written extensively about "cults", new religious movements, apostasy, and the anti-cult movement.- Education and career :Bromley received his...
& Anson ShupeAnson ShupeAnson D. Shupe is an American sociologist noted for his studies of religious groups and their countermovements, family violence and clergy misconduct.-Work:...
Public Reaction against New Religious Movements article that appeared in Cults and new religious movements: a report of the Committee on Psychiatry and Religion of the American Psychiatric Association, edited by Marc Galanter, M.D., (1989) ISBN 0-89042-212-5 - Introvigne, MassimoMassimo IntrovigneMassimo Introvigne is an Italian sociologist and intellectual property consultant. He is the founder and managing director of the Center for Studies on New Religions , an international network of scholars who study new religious movements. Introvigne is the author of tens of books and articles in...
, Fighting the three Cs: Cults, Comics, and Communists – The Critic of Popular Culture as Origin of Contemporary Anti-Cultism, CESNUR 2003 conference, Vilnius, Lithuania, 2003 http://www.cesnur.org/2003/vil2003_introvigne.htm - Introvigne, Massimo The Secular Anti-Cult and the Religious Counter-Cult Movement: Strange Bedfellows or Future Enemies?, in Eric Towler (Ed.), New Religions and the New Europe, Aarhus University Press, 1995, pp. 32–54.
- Thomas RobbinsThomas RobbinsThomas Robbins may refer to:* Thomas Robbins , Congregational minister, bibliophile and antiquarian* Thomas Robbins , independent scholar of sociology of religion* Tom Robbins , author...
and Benjamin ZablockiBenjamin ZablockiBenjamin Zablocki is and American professor of sociology at Rutgers University where he teaches sociology of religion and social psychology. He has published widely on the subject of charismatic religious movements and cults....
, Misunderstanding Cults: Searching for objectivity in a controversial field, 2001, ISBN 0-8020-8188-6 - AD Shupe Jr, DG Bromley, DL Olive, The Anti-Cult Movement in America: A Bibliography and Historical Survey, New York: Garland 1984.
- Langone, MichaelMichael LangoneMichael D. Langone, is an American counseling psychologist who specialises in research about "cultic groups" and alleged psychological manipulation. He is executive director of the International Cultic Studies Association, editor of the journal Cultic Studies Review.Langone is author and co-author...
D. Ph.D., (Ed.), Recovery from cults: help for victims of psychological and spiritual abuseRecovery from Cults (book)Recovery from Cults: Help for Victims of Psychological and Spiritual Abuse a 1995 book edited by Michael Langone, director of the International Cultic Studies Association , published by W. W. Norton & Company, treats the theories of mind control as related to cults.The book has 22 contributors...
(1993), a publication of the American Family Foundation, W.W. Norton & Company, ISBN 0-393-31321-2