List your favorite wackadoodle religion or cult!

[contrary]

Link plz? Google didn't help me out :(

mormonhair.tumblr.com/

[CanticleoftheTurning]

God this is about the biggest load of shit I have ever read! Only people who get DF'ed are usually people that don't repent from a wrong doing, doesn't matter if it's smoking, drugs, sex...but usually its one of those things. Painting hearts? really? :lol:

And I am sorry I grew up a JW...yes I believe that they, like every.other.religion seek to control their members.

I was 4th generation JW. I may not agree with everything they preach, but I still have close ties to several people there. What people preceive and assume is usually sooo far off base with what is the truth about JW's is crazy!

http://www.amazon.com/Awakening-Jehovah ... 1573929425

Page 60-61 of "Awakening of a Jehovah's Witness" by Diane Wilson. She had fixed up some old furniture to make it look nicer.

Excited over the successful outcome of my project, I enthusiastically pointed out my showpieces to a Witness couple who stopped by to visit. Shortly thereafter, one of the elders unexpectedly came to our house, asking to see the furniture I had painted. He said that although he could appreciate how much effort I had put into creating these decorative pieces, since hearts were included in the intricate designs, I would have to sand off my artwork and repaint the furniture. The Witness couple had reported me to the elders, complaining that the shape of a decorative heart was a pagan symbol, and my having them in my house was “stumbling†them, i.e., could cause them to conclude Jehovah’s Witnesses were not the true religion after all. My heart sank. I didn’t know that Jehovah’s Witnesses believed that the shape of a heart was an ancient pagan symbol; I certainly didn’t think of it that way when I looked at the heart designs. I associated hearts with the feelings of love, kindness, and caring; but regardless of what they meant to me, because painting the hearts on my bedroom furniture offended the conscience of this couple, the elders left me no choice but to remove the artwork I had labored to produce.

Some weeks later, my husband and I stopped by this same couple’s house for a short visit. They enthusiastically showed us an old recliner that they had reupholstered and covered with new fabric. They were so proud of their handiwork! The fabric they used was covered with a tiny design which looked strangely familiar; upon close examination, I realized the design was none other than little hearts! I pointed out my discovery, and told them the elders required me to sand off the heart designs from my furniture because of their complaint. Unembarassed, they muttered that they had not realized the design was tiny hearts, and that they were so small that it was hard to tell at a distance what they were; and besides, it had been so much work and expense to reupholster the chair that they were going to leave it as it was.

I later reported to an elder that this couple’s recliner was covered in tiny hearts, and demanded to know the reason why they were allowed to decorate their home using the heart symbol, yet I was not. He answered, “Because they are new in the Truth and we don’t want to do anything to stumble them out of the T ruth; whereas you are mature in the Truth and can handle such things.†But I couldn’t just “handle such thingsâ€==the elders’ having two sets of rules was totally unfair. I had to give up a lot to be obedient to the Society in all aspects, and so I felt that others should be required to do the same. I was extraordinarily angry at the elders’ double standard, and at being their little pawn.

[Terrie]

Pretty sure it's the SSPX (Priestly Fraternity of Pius X, sometimes called Society of St. Pius X) that Mel Gibson is involved with (as an adherent, not a member since he is not a priest), not Opus Dei. They are in essence more Catholic than the Pope in a very literal way - they refuse anything to do with any of the post-Vatican II reforms and many even quietly question the legitimacy of the current version of Mass. They are in a de facto state of schism with the Roman Catholic Church, but believe themselves to be its most loyal people. I have always found it deliciously ironic that the SSPX rails against us Protestants while themselves being on very bad terms with the Pope.

SPLC also considers them to be a hate group. They have a good overview of the movement at http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/i ... itionalist. (Not breaking, because they're not a fundie blog).

[Terrie]

A question: does anyone remember when the "moonies" (Unification Church) was the latest cult that would take all the children? What happened to this group - are they mainstream?

I'd hardly call them mainstream, but they're still around. These days, their biggest impact is probably in owning the Washington Times.

[CanticleoftheTurning]

SPLC also considers them to be a hate group. They have a good overview of the movement at http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/i ... itionalist. (Not breaking, because they're not a fundie blog).

Never knew they were a hate group--but I can completely see why. Random fact. I babysat for some kids last year--their priest uncle used to be SSPX, but he thought that it was too liberal (!) for him and so joined a splinter Catholic group that was even more conservative.

[Black Aliss]

None of those people [Opus Dei]are living the lives of austerity and simplicity that Opus Dei demands of even its highest members.

Austerity and simplicity? Only for the priests, and for the nummeraries and nummary assistants (male and female laity, respectively)who do live celibate, semi-cloistered lives of service, going out only to work (turning over their paychecks to their "community"), severing ties with their families and friends. This is what makes OD a cult in my mind. Oh, and practicing mortification of the flesh, in addition to much praying and piety. They make up about 20% of the membership of Opus Dei.

Most lay members are called super nummeraries, and the only requirements of them are piety and making lots of donations to the organization.

ETA: Time magazine, some years ago did a pretty objective feature on OD. For anyone who is interested: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/artic ... -1,00.html.

[SouthCarolinaGirl79]

I'm most fascinated by FLDS and mainstream LDS. I'm done alot of reading about JW too. Those are interesting to me because I don't know too many LDS or JW personally. My most personal experience with hardcore fundamentalism are through churches affiliated with Jack Hyles. There are also some wacky True Lights where I live too. Oh and I can't leave out the Church of God people where I live who speak in tongues and are "holy rollers" and snake handlers. I have a minor in religious studies so all of this fascinates me. I still struggle with my upbringing in hardcore fundamentalism. I do label myself as a Christian fundamentalist because to me all that means is I believe the Bible is the inspired word of God. I've grown much more open minded than I was raised however.

[CanticleoftheTurning]

Austerity and simplicity? Only for the priests, and for the nummeraries and nummary assistants (male and female laity, respectively)who do live celibate, semi-cloistered lives of service, going out only to work (turning over their paychecks to their "community"), severing ties with their families and friends. This is what makes OD a cult in my mind. Oh, and practicing mortification of the flesh, in addition to much praying and piety. They make up about 20% of the membership of Opus Dei.

Most lay members are called super nummeraries, and the only requirements of them are piety and making lots of donations to the organization.

ETA: Time magazine, some years ago did a pretty objective feature on OD. For anyone who is interested: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/artic ... -1,00.html.

Out of curiosity (I swear, I'm not trolling--I'm curious bc it's so hard to find that line between sane and batshiat insane) what would separate the Opus Dei cult from regular convents or monasteries?

To me, I think a lot of it has to do with Opus Dei's secrecy, and the practice of mortification. Those are the two things that ring the alarm bells that scream "CULT!" while convents and monasteries I've seen are more open about how they operate. Also, the money issue. Anytime anyone keeps emphasizing money (like Opus Dei or Caritas of Birmingham) I run like hell in the other direction.

Franciscan monastery in town, in contrast to Opus Dei--they send out a newsletter to anyone on their mailing list giving detailed updates, among other information openness practices they do. That makes the Franciscans merely a religious group, and not a cult, IMO.

[Jessica]

I would LOVE to go to the church in Jolo, WV where they handle the snakes. I'd just sit at the back and watch. I've read that they're very welcoming of people just wanting to ask questions.

[contrary]

for those of you interested in snake handlers, I highly recommend Dennis Convington's "Salvation on Sand Mountain".

[MaroonMandy]

The snake handling gives me the heebee jeebees just thinking about it, so I'll pass. My Nana does goes to a church where they will occasionally speak in tongues though. It is, to say the least, interesting.

[Black Aliss]

Out of curiosity (I swear, I'm not trolling--I'm curious bc it's so hard to find that line between sane and batshiat insane) what would separate the Opus Dei cult from regular convents or monasteries?

To me, I think a lot of it has to do with Opus Dei's secrecy, and the practice of mortification. Those are the two things that ring the alarm bells that scream "CULT!" while convents and monasteries I've seen are more open about how they operate. Also, the money issue. Anytime anyone keeps emphasizing money (like Opus Dei or Caritas of Birmingham) I run like hell in the other direction.

Franciscan monastery in town, in contrast to Opus Dei--they send out a newsletter to anyone on their mailing list giving detailed updates, among other information openness practices they do. That makes the Franciscans merely a religious group, and not a cult, IMO.

Definitely the secrecy. And the idea that numeraries and the assistants are expected to sever all ties with their family and friends, but to still be turning they paychecks over to the organization. To me this puts them in the same category as the Moonies, rather than, say, the semi-cloistered Benedictines who are able to go out into the world for recreation and shopping, have friendships outside their order, and to take a yearly two week vacation with their families.

[CanticleoftheTurning]

Definitely the secrecy. And the idea that numeraries and the assistants are expected to sever all ties with their family and friends, but to still be turning they paychecks over to the organization. To me this puts them in the same category as the Moonies, rather than, say, the semi-cloistered Benedictines who are able to go out into the world for recreation and shopping, have friendships outside their order, and to take a yearly two week vacation with their families.

Good point about the numeraries and assistants severing ties--that's definitely cultic behavior to cut off all access to family and friends, who might otherwise make it easier for them to escape the cult. It's kind of like how some fundies shelter their kids too much from other kids...otherwise they might come to realize that some families don't actually beat their kids with a plumbing line. That's probably also why they can't actually GO to college. Or if they do, it's a college that 100% aligns with the family's view.

(Huh. Kinda like my friend who got suckered up into the Americans for Prosperity movement. Went to a college her dad picked out for her. )

[chiccy]

Children of God/Family are definitely wacked. If you poke around a little bit, you can find their instructional comic books and pamphlet texts designed to promote sex to children and teens. It's gross and fascinating. There is a TON of material on the web about them; xfamily.org is a good place to start. None of it is for the faint of heart.

I'm also pretty into Mormons/Shriners and some ultra-Orthodox groups in Israel, such as Neturei Karta. Gerrer Hasids are pretty interesting. Breslovers, too, in a totally different way.

[Witsec7]

Its hard to find folks interested in Gerrer Hasids I grew up near their enclave in NJ, my cousin has lots of 'contact' (if you could call it that, considering she's a goy female) on a daily basis.

[clover_leigh]

Ancient Astronaut Theorists :lol:

[onlyorganic]

Cults from history fascinate me. To say I have "a favorite" feels shady but one that intrigues me in terms of brain-washing and the human psyche was The People's Temple. Hands-down. Especially the little group with the mom and daughter who stabbed each other to death because Jim told them to. Eek. (If you don't know the story of The People's Temple, it's heartbreaking...and a good history lesson, there are a lot of good documentaries about it, including interviews with survivors).

I am also fascinated by the Branch Davidians who still believe David Koresh is going to come back from the dead and take them to paradise. I mean, there are only a few of them left who believe the Koresh-way of thinking (Branch Davidian as far as I know is a legit religion and the original-Rodenites produced a group of people who split from David Koresh, so there are people out there with Seventh-Day Adventist-Davidian beliefs who weren't involved in the stand-off in 1993). There are a group of about 10 people who still meet up and follow David Koresh's teachings and think he's coming back anyday now. Most of them lost close relatives, which saddens me.

[jenny_islander]

The Unification Church owns a successful restaurant and a large fish-processing company in my town. They have a humongous, ungainly house called (inside the cult) the Northern Palace, where Rev. Moon and his designated heir(s) often stay. (Technically it's not a residence, and they got the building permit on the understanding that it wouldn't be. Then they put in a bajillion bathrooms.) They regularly annoy local people by bringing in dozens of visitors to go combat fishing along the most popular salmon streams. The visitors are rude slobs who treat local people like peons, but the local Moonies are generally pretty nice. Occasionally newly arrived couples pretend to be church shopping and visit local churches in an attempt to find dissatisfied parishioners who might want to join the cult. Otherwise they announce meetings of groups with names like "Women's Federation for World Peace" at which people sit around nibbling refreshments and agreeing gravely that people ought to be nicer to each other. I would respect them more if they actually did something besides talk.

The worldwide UC organization is infamous for its nesting series of dummy corporations. When I worked for a mortgage broker, I had to help somebody who had worked for a Moonie company before coming to the island try to get his end-of-year tax withheld summary form (forgot the name). He couldn't complete his mortgage application without it. There was no way to contact his former boss. None. The place had an online presenc,e but every contact number just led to some other Moonie business. IIRC my boss had to explain to her boss that the poor guy had been working for the Moonies and didn't know it, so we would have to give him an exemption because now that he didn't work in that building under the eye of the Moonie boss he was automatically an outsider, an enemy, and would get no info ever.

[violeta]

I used to follow snake handlers in GA and TN. I travel to see them handle snakes and drink arsenic.

I SOOOOOOO want to go to one of those churches! Will they let anyone in?

[Witsec7]

I SOOOOOOO want to go to one of those churches! Will they let anyone in?

No its hard, I scoped them out for years. I started before Covington wrote his book and they were a bit more accessible. You could hit a couple of tent revivals and eventually run into one. Its all mystifying to me, and not supernatural, more induced mass hysteria (thats as close to an explanation I can give). I do think its not limited to TN or GA. When I was a kid growing up my Uncle had a summer place in VT and we'd go up and off to the woods to a Holiness Church and watch the show. Sometimes the music is totally kick as, ya can dance, but no booty shakin'. I knew of some in the Pines of NJ, and saw a few services in the early 70's.

[stonefruit]

Order of Christ/Sophia. The daughter of a family friend got sucked into that nonsense, moved across the country, and changed her name; she's not allowed to talk to her mother (and wasn't allowed to talk to her father, who has since passed away). It's terrible for the mother, and for her siblings, and I wish I could work up the courage to go out to the local branch and see if she's still there.

[mnb357]

I remember my mother waking all of us up in Nov. of 1978, to tell us to come downstairs to watch the news and see what happened in Jonestown. Shielded from organized religion as a child, I was fascinated! I had no idea HOW a church could have that much influence over anybody! That led to a lifelong interest in Jim Jones and the People's Temple. I think I've read everything ever written in an attempt to understand how on earth it happened.

[GeoBQn]

I read a book on faith healing and children that had a lot of scary cults. The Followers of Christ Church in Oregon has a death rate for children that is 26 times higher than the general population, and the majority of the church's children died from causes that were curable or treatable. One study found a two-year-old girl who died because her parents sat and prayed with other adults while the girl choked on a piece of banana for an hour.

Then there was "The Body," a Massachusetts cult in which a member was ordered to eat only almond milk and breastfeed her 10-month-old, who had started eating solid foods. The baby starved to death after 51 days.

http://childrenshealthcare.org/wp-conte ... layout.pdf

[Alecto]

Tony Alamo Ministries - not only because they were behind this huge fashion fad in the 80's, but also because we get Tony Alamo tracts on our cars at the mall.

[Jezebel]

I was fascinated by Jonestown, too.

And Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh.

And the Hare Krishnas--my BIL's mom has been one for decades, and he was raised in it. She gave him a very long Hindu name at birth, which he had legally changed to a totally vanilla normal-guy name as soon as he turned 18.

When I was a kid, I grew up not far from a UFO cult called the Unarius Academy of Science, founded by Ruth Norman (aka "Spaceship Ruthie," or Uriel) and her husband Ernest. During the '80s, Ruthie had a public-access TV show in which she'd dress up in crazy, glittery costumes representing her past lives on other planets. Imagine Dame Edna, with Liberace as her stylist, and you'll get the picture. The Unarians also bought a piece of rural property they intended to be the landing spot for the Space Bretheren who would soon come to raise humanity to a higher level. Ruthie died in the early '90s, leaving the world just a little less sparkly and fabulous, but Unarius still exists. Needless to say, I found them endlessly fascinating as a kid.

I'm mostly into some of the New Age-y cults, especially those that center on trance channelers, and most especially JZ Knight/Ramtha. I remember my dad and former stepmother attending a couple of weekend audiences with the Ram way back in the mid-'80s, when the message was still "Remember that you are God, the creator of your reality" stuff. Then it started to become a creepy doomsday cult.. I had friends who originally moved to Washington State to be closer to Ramtha's School of Enlightenment, and both ended up broke and disillusioned.