Cult suicide
Encyclopedia
A cult suicide is a term used to describe the mass suicide
by the members of groups that have been considered cult
s.
In some cases, all or nearly all members have committed suicide at the same time and place. Groups that have committed such mass suicides and that have been called cults include Heaven's Gate
, Order of the Solar Temple
, and Peoples Temple
(in the Jonestown
incident). In other cases, such as the Filippians
, a group has apparently supported mass suicide without necessarily encouraging all members to participate.
-related incidents, including 909 members of the Temple, led by Jim Jones
, in Jonestown
, Guyana
. The dead included 303 children. A tape of the Temple's final meeting in a Jonestown pavilion contains repeated discussions of the group committing "revolutionary suicide," including reference to people taking the poison and the vats to be used. On that tape, Jones tells Temple members that Russia
, with whom the Temple had been negotiating a potential exodus for months, would not take them after the Temple had murdered Congressman Leo Ryan
, NBC reporter Don Harris and three others at a nearby airstrip. When members apparently cried, Jones counseled "Stop this hysterics. This is not the way for people who are Socialists or Communists to die. No way for us to die. We must die with some dignity." At the end of the tape, Jones concludes: "We didn't commit suicide, we committed an act of revolutionary suicide protesting the conditions of an inhumane world." The people in Jonestown died of an apparent cyanide poisoning, except for Jones (injury consistent with self-inflicted gunshot wound) and his personal nurse. The Temple had spoken of committing "revolutionary suicide" in prior instances, and members had previously drunk what Jones told them was poison at least once before, but the "Flavor Aid" drink they ingested contained no poison. Concurrently, four other members died in the Temple's headquarters in Georgetown
.
's members began a series of mass suicides, which led to roughly 74 deaths. Farewell letters were left by members, stating that they believed their deaths would be an escape from the "hypocrisies and oppression of this world." Added to this they felt they were "moving on to Sirius
." Records seized by the Quebec
police showed that some members had personally donated over $1 million to the cult's leader, Joseph Di Mambro.
There was also another attempted mass suicide of the remaining members, which was thwarted in the late 1990s. All the suicide/murders and attempts occurred around the dates of the equinoxes and solstices, which likely held some relation to the beliefs of the group.
died in a mass suicide in Rancho Santa Fe, California
, which borders San Diego
to the north. These people believed, according to the teachings of their cult, that through their suicides they were "exiting their human vessels" so that their souls could go on a journey aboard a spaceship they believed to be following comet Hale-Bopp
. Some male members of the cult underwent voluntary castration
in preparation for the genderless life they believed awaited them after the suicide.
On March 30, 1997, Robert Leon Nichols, a former roadie for the Grateful Dead
, was discovered dead in his California trailer, with a note nearby that read in part "I'm going to the spaceship with Hale-Bopp to be with those who have gone before me." Using propane gas to end his life, Nichols, like the members of Heaven's Gate, had his head covered by a plastic bag and his upper torso covered with a purple shroud. Nichols' connection with the cult is unknown.
In May 1997, two Heaven's Gate members who had not been present for the mass suicide attempted suicide, one completing in the attempt, the other going into coma
for two days and then recovering. In February 1998 the survivor, Chuck Humphrey, committed suicide.
ended with an assault and subsequent firestorm
that destroyed the compound and killed most of the inhabitants. During the siege, highly concentrated C.S. gas and pyrotechnic "flash-bang" grenades were fired.
Some believe these devices ignited the gasoline stockpiled inside the building.
Richard L. Sherrow, a fire and explosion investigator hired by plaintiffs in a civil lawsuit to investigate the cause of the fire stated in his conclusion that "the fire originated in the southeast corner tower from the tipping of a lit Coleman-type lantern which fell onto combustible materials, most likely bedding materials, as the room was utilized as sleeping quarters, and was most likely caused by violent contact or mechanical shock associated with the CEV
removing the corner of the southeast tower directly under the point of origin."
The mainstream media reported immediately after the fire that the Branch Davidians, when being overrun, started fires, and therefore this incident was a "cult suicide" or even a murder-suicide
perpetrated by the leaders. However, some independent journalists, academics, and other experts contend that the fires could have been an accident or result of a panic.
of former member Ricky Rodriguez, biological son of current leader Karen Zerby
and informally adopted son of the group's founder, David Berg
. It revived allegations that the group is abusive and inciting of suicidal ideation. Thus his death was widely called a "suicide of a cult member", or "cult suicide", though this view was far from universal. The event made it to popular culture in oblique references in NBC
shows Third Watch
and Law & Order
.
Defenders of the group contend that Rodriguez's behavior was not typical of the group, and that there is no evidence their members are more suicidal than those in mainstream society.
with a plot of murder-suicide
in which 32 group members, including five children, were to ingest poison. After the suicides, they were told they would be picked up by a spaceship and taken to an unspecified destination. Suicide was to take place in the Teide National Park
. It seems that the sect had an official name, although the means of comunidación referred to as "Heide" in honor of its founder. However a more recent article in Tenerife News casts doubt that there was any intention on the part of the group to commit suicide.
died in Uganda
. The theory that all of the members died in a mass suicide was changed to mass murder when decomposing bodies were discovered in pits with signs of strangulation while others had stab wounds. The group had diverged from the Roman Catholic Church
in order to emphasize apocalypticism
and alleged Marian apparitions
. The group had been called an inward-looking movement that wore matching uniforms and restricted their speech to avoid saying anything dishonest or sinful. On the suicide itself locals said they held a party at which 70 crates of soft drinks and three bulls were consumed.
This version of events has been criticized, most notably by Irving Hexham, and a Ugandan source states that even today "no one can really explain the whys, hows, whats, where, when, etcetera."
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
by the members of groups that have been considered 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.
In some cases, all or nearly all members have committed suicide at the same time and place. Groups that have committed such mass suicides and that have been called cults include Heaven's Gate
Heaven's Gate (religious group)
Heaven's Gate was an American UFO religion based in San Diego, California, founded and led by Marshall Applewhite and Bonnie Nettles...
, Order of the Solar Temple
Order of the Solar Temple
The Order of the Solar Temple also known as Ordre du Temple Solaire in French, and the International Chivalric Organization of the Solar Tradition or simply as The Solar Temple was a secret society based upon the modern myth of the continuing existence of the Knights Templar...
, and 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...
(in the 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...
incident). In other cases, such as the Filippians
Filippians
Filippians or Philippians was a soglasiye of the Bespopovtsy strain of Old Believers. They detached themselves from Pomortsy under the leadership of a "teacher" Filipp at the beginning of the 18th century...
, a group has apparently supported mass suicide without necessarily encouraging all members to participate.
Peoples Temple
On November 18, 1978, 918 Americans died in Peoples TemplePeoples 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...
-related incidents, including 909 members of the Temple, led by Jim Jones
Jim Jones
James Warren "Jim" Jones was the founder and leader of the Peoples Temple, which is best known for the November 18, 1978 mass suicide of 909 Temple members in Jonestown, Guyana along with the killings of five other people at a nearby airstrip.Jones was born in Indiana and started the Temple in...
, in 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...
, Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
. The dead included 303 children. A tape of the Temple's final meeting in a Jonestown pavilion contains repeated discussions of the group committing "revolutionary suicide," including reference to people taking the poison and the vats to be used. On that tape, Jones tells Temple members that 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...
, with whom the Temple had been negotiating a potential exodus for months, would not take them after the Temple had murdered Congressman Leo Ryan
Leo Ryan
Leo Joseph Ryan, Jr. was an American politician of the Democratic Party. He served as a U.S. Representative from California's 11th congressional district from 1973 until he was murdered in Guyana by members of the Peoples Temple shortly before the Jonestown Massacre in 1978.After the Watts Riots...
, NBC reporter Don Harris and three others at a nearby airstrip. When members apparently cried, Jones counseled "Stop this hysterics. This is not the way for people who are Socialists or Communists to die. No way for us to die. We must die with some dignity." At the end of the tape, Jones concludes: "We didn't commit suicide, we committed an act of revolutionary suicide protesting the conditions of an inhumane world." The people in Jonestown died of an apparent cyanide poisoning, except for Jones (injury consistent with self-inflicted gunshot wound) and his personal nurse. The Temple had spoken of committing "revolutionary suicide" in prior instances, and members had previously drunk what Jones told them was poison at least once before, but the "Flavor Aid" drink they ingested contained no poison. Concurrently, four other members died in the Temple's headquarters in Georgetown
Georgetown, Guyana
Georgetown, estimated population 239,227 , is the capital and largest city of Guyana, located in the Demerara-Mahaica region. It is situated on the Atlantic Ocean coast at the mouth of the Demerara River and it was nicknamed 'Garden City of the Caribbean.' Georgetown is located at . The city serves...
.
Solar Temple
From 1994 to 1997, the Order of the Solar TempleOrder of the Solar Temple
The Order of the Solar Temple also known as Ordre du Temple Solaire in French, and the International Chivalric Organization of the Solar Tradition or simply as The Solar Temple was a secret society based upon the modern myth of the continuing existence of the Knights Templar...
's members began a series of mass suicides, which led to roughly 74 deaths. Farewell letters were left by members, stating that they believed their deaths would be an escape from the "hypocrisies and oppression of this world." Added to this they felt they were "moving on to Sirius
Sirius
Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky. With a visual apparent magnitude of −1.46, it is almost twice as bright as Canopus, the next brightest star. The name "Sirius" is derived from the Ancient Greek: Seirios . The star has the Bayer designation Alpha Canis Majoris...
." Records seized by the Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
police showed that some members had personally donated over $1 million to the cult's leader, Joseph Di Mambro.
There was also another attempted mass suicide of the remaining members, which was thwarted in the late 1990s. All the suicide/murders and attempts occurred around the dates of the equinoxes and solstices, which likely held some relation to the beliefs of the group.
Heaven's Gate
On March 26, 1997, 39 followers of Heaven's GateHeaven's Gate (religious group)
Heaven's Gate was an American UFO religion based in San Diego, California, founded and led by Marshall Applewhite and Bonnie Nettles...
died in a mass suicide in Rancho Santa Fe, California
Rancho Santa Fe, California
Rancho Santa Fe known locally as ″The Ranch″, is one of the most exclusive and affluent communities in Southern California. It is also a census-designated place in San Diego County, California and an unincorporated bedroom community of San Diego County...
, which borders San Diego
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
to the north. These people believed, according to the teachings of their cult, that through their suicides they were "exiting their human vessels" so that their souls could go on a journey aboard a spaceship they believed to be following comet Hale-Bopp
Comet Hale-Bopp
Comet Hale–Bopp was perhaps the most widely observed comet of the 20th century, and one of the brightest seen for many decades...
. Some male members of the cult underwent voluntary castration
Castration
Castration is any action, surgical, chemical, or otherwise, by which a male loses the functions of the testicles or a female loses the functions of the ovaries.-Humans:...
in preparation for the genderless life they believed awaited them after the suicide.
On March 30, 1997, Robert Leon Nichols, a former roadie for the Grateful Dead
Grateful Dead
The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in the San Francisco Bay Area. The band was known for its unique and eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, bluegrass, blues, reggae, country, improvisational jazz, psychedelia, and space rock, and for live performances of long...
, was discovered dead in his California trailer, with a note nearby that read in part "I'm going to the spaceship with Hale-Bopp to be with those who have gone before me." Using propane gas to end his life, Nichols, like the members of Heaven's Gate, had his head covered by a plastic bag and his upper torso covered with a purple shroud. Nichols' connection with the cult is unknown.
In May 1997, two Heaven's Gate members who had not been present for the mass suicide attempted suicide, one completing in the attempt, the other going into coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
for two days and then recovering. In February 1998 the survivor, Chuck Humphrey, committed suicide.
Branch Davidians
On April 19, 1993, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms siege of the Branch Davidians near Waco, TexasWaco, Texas
Waco is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas. Situated along the Brazos River and on the I-35 corridor, halfway between Dallas and Austin, it is the economic, cultural, and academic center of the 'Heart of Texas' region....
ended with an assault and subsequent firestorm
Firestorm
A firestorm is a conflagration which attains such intensity that it creates and sustains its own wind system. It is most commonly a natural phenomenon, created during some of the largest bushfires, forest fires, and wildfires...
that destroyed the compound and killed most of the inhabitants. During the siege, highly concentrated C.S. gas and pyrotechnic "flash-bang" grenades were fired.
Some believe these devices ignited the gasoline stockpiled inside the building.
Richard L. Sherrow, a fire and explosion investigator hired by plaintiffs in a civil lawsuit to investigate the cause of the fire stated in his conclusion that "the fire originated in the southeast corner tower from the tipping of a lit Coleman-type lantern which fell onto combustible materials, most likely bedding materials, as the room was utilized as sleeping quarters, and was most likely caused by violent contact or mechanical shock associated with the CEV
Combat engineering vehicle
Military engineering vehicles are vehicles built for the construction work or for the transportation of combat engineers on the battlefield. These vehicles can range from civilian equipment to purpose built military vehicles....
removing the corner of the southeast tower directly under the point of origin."
The mainstream media reported immediately after the fire that the Branch Davidians, when being overrun, started fires, and therefore this incident was a "cult suicide" or even a murder-suicide
Murder-suicide
A murder–suicide is an act in which an individual kills one or more other persons before or at the same time as killing himself or herself. The combination of murder and suicide can take various forms, including:...
perpetrated by the leaders. However, some independent journalists, academics, and other experts contend that the fires could have been an accident or result of a panic.
The Family International
At the beginning of 2005, The Family International gained renewed media attention due to the premeditated murder-suicideMurder-suicide
A murder–suicide is an act in which an individual kills one or more other persons before or at the same time as killing himself or herself. The combination of murder and suicide can take various forms, including:...
of former member Ricky Rodriguez, biological son of current leader Karen Zerby
Karen Zerby
Karen Elva Zerby is the current leader of the group formerly called the Children of God, a new religious movement. The group is now called The Family International...
and informally adopted son of the group's founder, David Berg
David Berg
David Brandt Berg , frequently known by the pseudonym Moses David, was the founder and leader of the New Religious Movement formerly called Children of God, now called "The Family International".-Early years :Berg was born to Hjalmer Emmanuel Berg and Rev...
. It revived allegations that the group is abusive and inciting of suicidal ideation. Thus his death was widely called a "suicide of a cult member", or "cult suicide", though this view was far from universal. The event made it to popular culture in oblique references in NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
shows Third Watch
Third Watch
Third Watch is an American television drama series which first aired on NBC from 1999 to 2005 for a total of 132 episodes, broadcast in 6 seasons of 22 episodes each....
and Law & Order
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
.
Defenders of the group contend that Rodriguez's behavior was not typical of the group, and that there is no evidence their members are more suicidal than those in mainstream society.
Heide
Heide Fittkau-Garthe, a German psychologist, and a previously high-profile Brahma Kumaris, were charged in the Canary IslandsCanary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
with a plot of murder-suicide
Murder-suicide
A murder–suicide is an act in which an individual kills one or more other persons before or at the same time as killing himself or herself. The combination of murder and suicide can take various forms, including:...
in which 32 group members, including five children, were to ingest poison. After the suicides, they were told they would be picked up by a spaceship and taken to an unspecified destination. Suicide was to take place in the Teide National Park
Teide National Park
Teide National Park is a national park located in Tenerife . It is centered around 3718m Mount Teide, the highest mountain of Spain and the islands of the Atlantic...
. It seems that the sect had an official name, although the means of comunidación referred to as "Heide" in honor of its founder. However a more recent article in Tenerife News casts doubt that there was any intention on the part of the group to commit suicide.
Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God
On March 17, 2000, 778 members of the Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of GodMovement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God
The Movement for the Restoration of the Ten Commandments of God was a breakaway religious movement from the Roman Catholic Church founded by Credonia Mwerinde, Joseph Kibweteere and Bee Tait in Uganda. It was formed in the late 1980s after Mwerinde, a brewer of banana beer, and Kibweteere, a...
died in Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
. The theory that all of the members died in a mass suicide was changed to mass murder when decomposing bodies were discovered in pits with signs of strangulation while others had stab wounds. The group had diverged from the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
in order to emphasize apocalypticism
Apocalypticism
Apocalypticism is the religious belief that there will be an apocalypse, a term which originally referred to a revelation of God's will, but now usually refers to belief that the world will come to an end time very soon, even within one's own lifetime...
and alleged Marian apparitions
Marian apparitions
A Marian apparition is an event in which the Blessed Virgin Mary is believed to have supernaturally appeared to one or more people. They are often given names based on the town in which they were reported, or on the sobriquet which was given to Mary on the occasion of the apparition...
. The group had been called an inward-looking movement that wore matching uniforms and restricted their speech to avoid saying anything dishonest or sinful. On the suicide itself locals said they held a party at which 70 crates of soft drinks and three bulls were consumed.
This version of events has been criticized, most notably by Irving Hexham, and a Ugandan source states that even today "no one can really explain the whys, hows, whats, where, when, etcetera."
See also
- Destructive cultDestructive cultA destructive cult is a religion or other group which has caused or has a high probability of causing harm to its own members or to others. Some researchers define "harm" in this case with a narrow focus, specifically groups which have deliberately physically injured or killed other individuals,...
- Doomsday cultDoomsday cultDoomsday cult is an expression used to describe groups who believe in Apocalypticism and Millenarianism, and can refer both to groups that prophesy catastrophe and destruction, and to those that attempt to bring it about...
- Mass suicideMass suicide- Examples :Mass suicide sometimes occurs in religious or cultic settings. Defeated groups may resort to mass suicide rather than being captured. Suicide pacts are a form of mass suicide unconnected to cults or war that are sometimes planned or carried out by small groups of frustrated people...
- Victims of poisoning
External links
- "Global charts" World Health Organisation
- "The Creativity Movement" ReligiousTolerance.org
- "From Silver Lake to Suicide: One Family's Secret History of the Jonestown Massacre" by Barry Isaacson