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margin: 0 0 0.5em 0.5em; text-align:left; border: 1px solid #380000; width:175px;"> <tbody><tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; text-align:center; color:White; background-color:#380000"><b>Drink the Kool-Aid</b><br /><a class="mw-selflink selflink"><font size="4" color="White"><b>Cults</b></font></a> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="background-color:#FFFFFF;" align="center"><a href="/wiki/Category:Cults" title="Category:Cults"><img alt="RW Cult Template.png" src="/w/images/thumb/8/81/RW_Cult_Template.png/100px-RW_Cult_Template.png" decoding="async" width="100" height="100" srcset="/w/images/thumb/8/81/RW_Cult_Template.png/150px-RW_Cult_Template.png 1.5x, /w/images/8/81/RW_Cult_Template.png 2x" data-file-width="200" data-file-height="200" /></a> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:White; background-color:#380000; text-align:center;"><b>But you <i>WANT</i> to stay!</b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#FFFFFF;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Aum_Shinrikyo" title="Aum Shinrikyo">Aum Shinrikyo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Temple_of_Set" title="Temple of Set">Temple of Set</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kool-Aid" title="Kool-Aid">Kool-Aid</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/UCADIA" title="UCADIA">UCADIA</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Deep_Adaptation" title="Deep Adaptation">Deep Adaptation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Moral_Majority" title="Moral Majority">Moral Majority</a></li></ul> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; color:White; background-color:#380000; text-align:center;"><b>Cults of personality</b> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="font-size: 95%; background-color:#FFFFFF;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Abu_Bakr_al-Baghdadi" title="Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi">Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Donald_Trump" title="Donald Trump">Donald Trump</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Enver_Hoxha" title="Enver Hoxha">Enver Hoxha</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Christopher_Langan" title="Christopher Langan">Christopher Langan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Augustus" title="Augustus">Augustus</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nick_Fuentes" title="Nick Fuentes">Nick Fuentes</a></li></ul> <div class="vte plainlinks" style="font-size:smaller; text-align:center;"><a href="/wiki/Template:Cult" title="Template:Cult">v</a> - <a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Cult" title="Template talk:Cult">t</a> - <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Template:Cult&action=edit">e</a></div> </td></tr></tbody></table> <table style="margin: auto; border-collapse:collapse; border-style:none; background-color:transparent;" class="cquote"> <tbody><tr> <td><div style="padding:4px 50px;position:relative;"><span style="position:absolute;left:10px;top:-6px;z-index:1;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif;font-weight:bold;color:#B2B7F2;font-size:36px">“</span><span style="position:absolute;right:10px;bottom:-20px;z-index:1;font-family:'Times New Roman',serif;font-weight:bold;color:#B2B7F2;font-size:36px">”</span>There’s a lot of power inherent in enlightenment — or the perception of it — and spiritual power is no less corrupting than any other power. In fact, it may be even more corrupting. I remember the first time I became conscious of this: I started teaching at thirty-three; most everybody was older than me, and more educated, and smarter. They had better jobs and all that. As I was driving home from teaching one night, it suddenly hit me: I could go in there and say almost anything and make them believe it. I saw, all at once, the incredible frailty of human beings. And I understood how intelligent, well-educated people can get involved in cults and the most ridiculous ideas: when we are in the grasp of ego, we’re extraordinarily vulnerable.</div> </td></tr> <tr> <td style="padding:4px 10px 8px;font-size:smaller;line-height:1.6em;text-align:right;"><cite style="font-style:normal;position:relative;z-index:2">—Adyashanti<sup id="cite_ref-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-1">[1]</a></sup></cite> </td></tr></tbody></table> <p>A <b>cult</b> (not to be confused with <a href="/wiki/Occult" title="Occult">occult</a>) is any <a href="/wiki/Religion" title="Religion">religious</a> or <a href="/wiki/Political" class="mw-redirect" title="Political">political</a> group too small <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_language_is_a_dialect_with_an_army_and_navy" class="extiw" title="wp:A language is a dialect with an army and navy" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: A language is a dialect with an army and navy">to have its own army and navy</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup> or without political power. When used as a pejorative or <a href="/wiki/Snarl_word" class="mw-redirect" title="Snarl word">snarl word</a>, it can mean "a new religion, that isn't mine, which I don't like." In popular culture, the term is generally applied to religions that are controlling, typically in a detrimental fashion,<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-2">[note 1]</a></sup> and extreme. </p><p>The media narrative is that cults are scary groups where lost children go to be <a href="/wiki/Rape" title="Rape">raped</a> and murdered, where the recruits wander through airports chanting various 'ohms', and of course, where people are (ooga booga) <a href="/wiki/Brainwashing" title="Brainwashing">brainwashed</a>. </p><p>A bit more formally, the term is usually used to refer to religions (or other movements) whose beliefs or practices are heterodox and regarded by the larger population as bizarre. In the academic discipline of <a href="/wiki/Religious_studies" title="Religious studies">religious studies</a>, recently developed religions have been called "<a href="/wiki/New_religious_movement" class="mw-redirect" title="New religious movement">new religious movements</a>," or "NRMs," as a scholarly attempt to avoid the pejorative connotations of "cult." </p> <div id="toc" class="toc" role="navigation" aria-labelledby="mw-toc-heading"><input type="checkbox" role="button" id="toctogglecheckbox" class="toctogglecheckbox" style="display:none" /><div class="toctitle" lang="en" dir="ltr"><h2 id="mw-toc-heading">Contents</h2><span class="toctogglespan"><label class="toctogglelabel" for="toctogglecheckbox"></label></span></div> <ul> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-1"><a href="#Usage_in_recent_decades"><span class="tocnumber">1</span> <span class="toctext">Usage in recent decades</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-2"><a href="#New_religious_movement"><span class="tocnumber">2</span> <span class="toctext">New religious movement</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-3"><a href="#Warning_signs_of_a_potentially_destructive_cult"><span class="tocnumber">3</span> <span class="toctext">Warning signs of a potentially destructive cult</span></a> <ul> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-4"><a href="#Warning_signs_of_a_potentially_unsafe_group.2Fleader"><span class="tocnumber">3.1</span> <span class="toctext">Warning signs of a potentially unsafe group/leader</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-5"><a href="#Warning_signs_regarding_people_involved_in.2Fwith_a_potentially_unsafe_group.2Fleader"><span class="tocnumber">3.2</span> <span class="toctext">Warning signs regarding people involved in/with a potentially unsafe group/leader</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-6"><a href="#The_Cult_Danger_Evaluation_Scale"><span class="tocnumber">3.3</span> <span class="toctext">The Cult Danger Evaluation Scale</span></a></li> </ul> </li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-7"><a href="#Groups_considered_to_be_coercive_cults"><span class="tocnumber">4</span> <span class="toctext">Groups considered to be coercive cults</span></a> <ul> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-8"><a href="#Religious_groups"><span class="tocnumber">4.1</span> <span class="toctext">Religious groups</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-9"><a href="#Political_groups"><span class="tocnumber">4.2</span> <span class="toctext">Political groups</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-10"><a href="#Self-help_movements"><span class="tocnumber">4.3</span> <span class="toctext">Self-help movements</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-11"><a href="#Criminal_organizations"><span class="tocnumber">4.4</span> <span class="toctext">Criminal organizations</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-12"><a href="#Accused_by_fundamentalists"><span class="tocnumber">4.5</span> <span class="toctext">Accused by fundamentalists</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-2 tocsection-13"><a href="#Cult_of_personality"><span class="tocnumber">4.6</span> <span class="toctext">Cult of personality</span></a></li> </ul> </li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-14"><a href="#See_also"><span class="tocnumber">5</span> <span class="toctext">See also</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-15"><a href="#References"><span class="tocnumber">6</span> <span class="toctext">References</span></a></li> <li class="toclevel-1 tocsection-16"><a href="#Notes"><span class="tocnumber">7</span> <span class="toctext">Notes</span></a></li> </ul> </div> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Usage_in_recent_decades">Usage in recent decades</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: Usage in recent decades">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div class="thumb tright"><div class="thumbinner" style="width:252px;"><a href="/wiki/File:Jonestown_entrance.jpg" class="image"><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0f/Jonestown_entrance.jpg/250px-Jonestown_entrance.jpg" decoding="async" width="250" height="176" class="thumbimage" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0f/Jonestown_entrance.jpg/375px-Jonestown_entrance.jpg 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0f/Jonestown_entrance.jpg/500px-Jonestown_entrance.jpg 2x" data-file-width="5827" data-file-height="4107" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"><div class="magnify"><a href="/wiki/File:Jonestown_entrance.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"></a></div>Welcome to Jonestown. <a href="/wiki/Hell" title="Hell">Abandon hope all ye who enter here.</a></div></div></div> <p>The term "cult" gained currency — and deeper pejorative connotations — during the 1960s and 1970s due to the criminal activities of groups like the <a href="/wiki/Charles_Manson" title="Charles Manson">Manson Family</a>. Outsiders considered that various NRMs exercised a coercive control over members' lives; on the other hand, such NRMs proved especially attractive to young people in search of <i>meaning</i>. Adherents often segregated themselves from society, including from prior friends and family, and adopted non-mainstream lifestyles. Recruitment tactics like <a href="/wiki/Love_bombing" title="Love bombing">love bombing</a> and offering an environment of stability via identification with, and dedication to, the group aroused alarm in non-adherents. </p><p>Anti-cult hysteria during the 1970s and since has had an air of <a href="/wiki/Moral_panic" title="Moral panic">moral panic</a>. In at least one case — the <a href="/wiki/Branch_Davidians" title="Branch Davidians">Branch Davidians</a> — this unreasonable fear led to preemptive law-enforcement actions far out of proportion to any danger the group actually posed, if any, and ended in disaster. Moreover, the <a href="/wiki/Satanic_Panic" title="Satanic Panic">Satanic Panic</a> mania of the 1980s and 1990s infected law enforcement and prosecutors, leading to wrongful convictions of many for supposed ritual abuse of children, events which in all likelihood never occurred. </p><p>On the other hand, some cults have posed a genuine threat to society or to themselves; well-known examples include the <a href="/wiki/Jim_Jones" title="Jim Jones">People's Temple</a> and <a href="/wiki/Heaven%27s_Gate" title="Heaven's Gate">Heaven's Gate</a> mass <a href="/wiki/Suicide" title="Suicide">suicides</a>, the sarin-gas attacks on the Tokyo subway by the <a href="/wiki/Aum_Shinrikyo" title="Aum Shinrikyo">Aum Shinrikyo</a> cult under the orders of <a href="/wiki/Shoko_Asahara" title="Shoko Asahara">Shoko Asahara</a>, the spreading of <i>Salmonella</i> at salad bars in The Dalles, <a href="/wiki/Oregon" class="mw-redirect" title="Oregon">Oregon</a> by the <a href="/wiki/Bhagwan_Sree_Rajneesh" class="mw-redirect" title="Bhagwan Sree Rajneesh">Rajneesh movement</a> in order to influence local elections and to take over the city, and criminal harassment of critics and ex-members by <a href="/wiki/Synanon" title="Synanon">Synanon</a> and by the <a href="/wiki/Church_of_Scientology" title="Church of Scientology">Church of Scientology</a>. </p> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="New_religious_movement">New religious movement</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: New religious movement">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div class="thumb tright"><div class="thumbinner" style="width:227px;"><a href="/wiki/File:Jim_Jones_in_front_of_the_International_Hotel.jpg" class="image"><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Jim_Jones_in_front_of_the_International_Hotel.jpg/225px-Jim_Jones_in_front_of_the_International_Hotel.jpg" decoding="async" width="225" height="150" class="thumbimage" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Jim_Jones_in_front_of_the_International_Hotel.jpg/338px-Jim_Jones_in_front_of_the_International_Hotel.jpg 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/8d/Jim_Jones_in_front_of_the_International_Hotel.jpg/450px-Jim_Jones_in_front_of_the_International_Hotel.jpg 2x" data-file-width="1504" data-file-height="1000" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"><div class="magnify"><a href="/wiki/File:Jim_Jones_in_front_of_the_International_Hotel.jpg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"></a></div><a href="/wiki/Jim_Jones" title="Jim Jones">Jim Jones</a>, of Jonestown infamy.</div></div></div> <p>The term "new religious movement" is a euphemism for "cult". They are young and have a novel mix of teachings and practices. </p><p>The question "what is new" is not fixed. One rule of thumb is that they came into a country after <a href="/wiki/World_War_II" title="World War II">World War II</a>. New religious movements are very diverse. They tend to be small, unpopular, and generally receive little support from society. A notable exception to this is the <a href="/wiki/Sathya_Sai_Baba" title="Sathya Sai Baba">Sathya Sai Baba</a> movement that is supported by many high-ranking Indian politicians. Japan has some large new religious movements. </p><p>Many of them were founded by living charismatic leaders, in the sense used by Max Weber. Living charismatic leaders tend to be unpredictable. </p><p>One important practical question is how to deal with a family member or friend who joins a movement. The degree of involvement may vary greatly for each individual: not all new religious movements demand strong commitment. </p><p>Individual problems with a movement may only appear on leaving for a committed adherent, especially when the adherent lives in an intentional community. </p><p>Some countries, like France and Belgium, have special laws against new religious movements. The UK has a government-sponsored public education institute, called Inform. Other countries like the USA and the Netherlands have no special laws or institutes at all. </p><p>New religious movements may become less radical and less demanding over time. For example, in <a href="/wiki/ISKCON" class="mw-redirect" title="ISKCON">ISKON/Hare Krishna</a>, not so much pressure is put on converts to live in an intentional community anymore. </p> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Warning_signs_of_a_potentially_destructive_cult">Warning signs of a potentially destructive cult</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: Warning signs of a potentially destructive cult">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div class="thumb tright"><div class="thumbinner" style="width:302px;"><a href="/wiki/File:Emergency_personnel_respond_to_the_Tokyo_subway_sarin_attack.png" class="image"><img alt="" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Emergency_personnel_respond_to_the_Tokyo_subway_sarin_attack.png/300px-Emergency_personnel_respond_to_the_Tokyo_subway_sarin_attack.png" decoding="async" width="300" height="237" class="thumbimage" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Emergency_personnel_respond_to_the_Tokyo_subway_sarin_attack.png/450px-Emergency_personnel_respond_to_the_Tokyo_subway_sarin_attack.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Emergency_personnel_respond_to_the_Tokyo_subway_sarin_attack.png/600px-Emergency_personnel_respond_to_the_Tokyo_subway_sarin_attack.png 2x" data-file-width="1056" data-file-height="835" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"><div class="magnify"><a href="/wiki/File:Emergency_personnel_respond_to_the_Tokyo_subway_sarin_attack.png" class="internal" title="Enlarge"></a></div>Authorities respond to <a href="/wiki/Aum_Shinrikyo" title="Aum Shinrikyo">Aum Shinrikyo</a>'s sarin gas attack in the Tokyo subway system.</div></div></div> <p>With that said, there are several warning signs that can be used to indicate when a religious group has gone from "harmless, quirky <a href="/wiki/Woo" title="Woo">woo</a>-meisters" to an active threat to its membership and even to others.<sup id="cite_ref-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-3">[2]</a></sup> </p> <h3><span id="Warning_signs_of_a_potentially_unsafe_group/leader"></span><span class="mw-headline" id="Warning_signs_of_a_potentially_unsafe_group.2Fleader">Warning signs of a potentially unsafe group/leader</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: Warning signs of a potentially unsafe group/leader">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <ol><li>Promises are made of a new life, a "spiritual resurrection," and a rejection of one's former life, which are simply irresistible to many desperate people. Therefore, it's easy to be pulled in.</li> <li>There is no legitimate reason to leave. Former followers are always wrong in leaving, negative, or even <a href="/wiki/Evil" class="mw-redirect" title="Evil">evil</a>. Therefore, it is <i>extremely</i> hard to leave.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Authoritarianism" title="Authoritarianism">The leader's authority is absolute</a>, without meaningful accountability.</li> <li>There is no tolerance for questions or critical inquiry.</li> <li>There is no meaningful financial disclosure regarding budget or expenses, such as an independently audited financial statement.</li> <li>There exists an unreasonable fear about the outside world, such as impending catastrophe, evil <a href="/wiki/Conspiracy_theory" title="Conspiracy theory">conspiracies</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Persecution_complex" title="Persecution complex">persecutions</a>.</li> <li>Former members often relate the same stories of abuse and reflect a similar pattern of grievances.</li> <li>There are records, books, news articles, or television programs that document the abuses of the group/leader.</li> <li>Followers feel they can never be "good enough".</li> <li>The group/leader is always right.</li> <li>The group/leader is the exclusive means of knowing "<a href="/wiki/Truth" title="Truth">truth</a>" or receiving validation; no other process of discovery is really acceptable or credible.</li></ol> <h3><span id="Warning_signs_regarding_people_involved_in/with_a_potentially_unsafe_group/leader"></span><span class="mw-headline" id="Warning_signs_regarding_people_involved_in.2Fwith_a_potentially_unsafe_group.2Fleader">Warning signs regarding people involved in/with a potentially unsafe group/leader</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: Warning signs regarding people involved in/with a potentially unsafe group/leader">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <p><a href="/wiki/Rick_Ross" title="Rick Ross">Rick Ross</a>'s Cult Education Institute lists the following warning signs for followers of a cult:<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-4">[3]</a></sup> </p> <ol><li>They are extremely obsessive regarding the group/leader, resulting in the exclusion of almost every practical consideration.</li> <li>Individual identity, the group, the leader, and/or God as distinct and separate categories of existence become increasingly blurred. Instead, in the follower's mind, these identities become substantially and increasingly fused – as that person's involvement with the group/leader continues and deepens.</li> <li>Whenever the group/leader is criticized or questioned, <a href="/wiki/Persecution_complex" title="Persecution complex">it is characterized as "persecution"</a>.</li> <li>They engage in uncharacteristically stilted and seemingly programmed conversation and mannerisms, effectively cloning the group/leader in their personal behavior.</li> <li>They are dependent upon the group/leader for problem solving, solutions, and definitions without meaningful reflective thought. A seeming inability to think independently or analyze situations without group/leader involvement.</li> <li>They have a hyperactivity centered on the group/leader agenda, which seems to supersede any personal goals or individual interests.</li> <li>They lose their spontaneity and sense of humor in dramatic fashion.</li> <li>They are increasingly isolated from family and old friends unless they demonstrate an interest in the group/leader.</li> <li>They can justify anything the group/leader does, no matter how harsh or harmful.</li> <li>Former followers are at best considered negative, and at worst, they are considered evil and/or under bad influences. They can not be trusted, and personal contact is avoided.</li></ol> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="The_Cult_Danger_Evaluation_Scale">The Cult Danger Evaluation Scale</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: The Cult Danger Evaluation Scale">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <div class="thumb tright"><div class="thumbinner" style="width:352px;"><a href="/wiki/File:Palmar_Cathedral.jpeg" class="image"><img alt="" src="/w/images/thumb/f/fe/Palmar_Cathedral.jpeg/350px-Palmar_Cathedral.jpeg" decoding="async" width="350" height="263" class="thumbimage" srcset="/w/images/thumb/f/fe/Palmar_Cathedral.jpeg/525px-Palmar_Cathedral.jpeg 1.5x, /w/images/thumb/f/fe/Palmar_Cathedral.jpeg/700px-Palmar_Cathedral.jpeg 2x" data-file-width="1000" data-file-height="750" /></a> <div class="thumbcaption"><div class="magnify"><a href="/wiki/File:Palmar_Cathedral.jpeg" class="internal" title="Enlarge"></a></div>The <a href="/wiki/Palmarian_Catholic_Church" title="Palmarian Catholic Church">Palmarian Catholic Church</a> cathedral. The wall surrounding it is a good example of <b>#12: Isolation</b> in action.</div></div></div> <p>Isaac Bonewits, a <a href="/wiki/Neo-pagan" class="mw-redirect" title="Neo-pagan">neo-pagan</a> writer and <a href="/wiki/Magic" title="Magic">magician</a>, proposed the following 'Cult Danger Evaluation Scale' in the 1970s: </p> <ol><li><b>Internal Control</b>: Amount of internal political and social power exercised by leader(s) over members; lack of clearly defined organizational rights for members.</li> <li><b>External Control</b>: Amount of external political and social influence desired or obtained; emphasis on directing members’ external political and social behavior.</li> <li><b>Wisdom/Knowledge Claimed by leader(s)</b>: amount of infallibility declared or implied about decisions or doctrinal/scriptural interpretations; number and degree of unverified and/or unverifiable credentials claimed.</li> <li><b>Wisdom/Knowledge Credited to leader(s) by members</b>: amount of trust in decisions or doctrinal/scriptural interpretations made by leader(s); amount of hostility by members towards internal or external critics and/or towards verification efforts.</li> <li><b><a href="/wiki/Dogma" title="Dogma">Dogma</a></b>: Rigidity of reality concepts taught; amount of doctrinal inflexibility or "<a href="/wiki/Fundamentalism" title="Fundamentalism">fundamentalism</a>"; hostility towards relativism and situationalism.<sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-5">[note 2]</a></sup></li> <li><b>Recruiting</b>: Emphasis put on attracting new members; amount of proselytizing; requirement for all members to bring in new ones.</li> <li><b><a href="/wiki/Front_group" title="Front group">Front Groups</a></b>: Number of subsidiary groups using different names from that of main group, especially when connections are hidden.</li> <li><b>Wealth</b>: Amount of money and/or property desired or obtained by group; emphasis on members’ donations; economic lifestyle of leader(s) compared to ordinary members.</li> <li><b>Sexual Manipulation of members by leader(s) of non-tantric groups</b>: amount of control exercised over sexuality of members in terms of sexual orientation, behavior, and/or choice of partners.</li> <li><b>Sexual Favoritism</b>: Advancement or preferential treatment dependent upon sexual activity with the leader(s) of non-tantric groups.</li> <li><b><a href="/wiki/Censorship" title="Censorship">Censorship</a></b>: Amount of control over members’ access to outside opinions on the group, its doctrines, or leader(s).</li> <li><b>Isolation</b>: Amount of effort to keep members from communicating with non-members, including family, friends, and lovers.</li> <li><b>Dropout Control</b>: Intensity of efforts directed at preventing or returning dropouts.</li> <li><b>Violence</b>: Amount of approval when used by or for the group, its doctrines or leader(s).</li> <li><b><a href="/wiki/Paranoia" title="Paranoia">Paranoia</a></b>: Amount of fear concerning real or imagined enemies; exaggeration of perceived power of opponents; prevalence of <a href="/wiki/Conspiracy_theory" title="Conspiracy theory">conspiracy theories</a>.</li> <li><b>Grimness</b>: Amount of disapproval concerning jokes about the group, its doctrines, or its leader(s).</li> <li><b>Surrender of Will</b>: Amount of emphasis on members not having to be responsible for personal decisions; degree of individual disempowerment created by the group, its doctrines, or its leader(s).</li> <li><b><a href="/wiki/Hypocrisy" title="Hypocrisy">Hypocrisy</a></b>: amount of approval for actions which the group officially considers immoral or unethical, when done by or for the group, its doctrines, or leader(s); willingness to violate the group’s declared principles for political, psychological, social, economic, military, or other gain.<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6">[4]</a></sup></li></ol> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Groups_considered_to_be_coercive_cults">Groups considered to be coercive cults</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: Groups considered to be coercive cults">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <p>Note: the groups listed below below are not necessarily cults, though they have been accused of being so. </p> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Religious_groups">Religious groups</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: Religious groups">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <div class="div-col columns column-count column-count-2" style="-moz-column-count: 2; -webkit-column-count: 2; column-count: 2;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Harun_Yahya" title="Harun Yahya">Adnan Oktar (Harun Yahya)</a> Community</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Al-Qaeda" title="Al-Qaeda">Al-Qaeda</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tony_Alamo" title="Tony Alamo">Alamo Christian Foundation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Aggressive_Christianity_Missionary_Training_Corps" title="Aggressive Christianity Missionary Training Corps">Aggressive Christianity Missionary Training Corps</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Aryan_Nations" title="Aryan Nations">Aryan Nations</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Aum_Shinrikyo" title="Aum Shinrikyo">Aum Shinrikyo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bhagwan_Sree_Rajneesh" class="mw-redirect" title="Bhagwan Sree Rajneesh">Bhagwan Sree Rajneesh</a> (Osho)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Branch_Davidians" title="Branch Davidians">Branch Davidians</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Children_of_God" title="Children of God">Children of God</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Christian_Identity" title="Christian Identity">Christian Identity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Christian_Science" title="Christian Science">Christian Science</a></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_God_Restoration" class="extiw" title="wp:Church of God Restoration" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Church of God Restoration">Church of God Restoration</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_Wells" class="extiw" title="wp:Church of Wells" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Church of Wells">Church of Wells</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/DAESH" title="DAESH">DAESH</a></li> <li>The <a href="/wiki/Discipling_and_Shepherding" title="Discipling and Shepherding">Discipling and Shepherding</a> movement, and denominations that practice it such as the International Church of Christ/ The Boston movement.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Eckankar" title="Eckankar">Eckankar</a></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evangelical_Baptist_Church_of_Korea" class="extiw" title="wp:Evangelical Baptist Church of Korea" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Evangelical Baptist Church of Korea">Evangelical Baptist Church of Korea</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Fundamentalist_Mormonism" title="Fundamentalist Mormonism">Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints</a></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_Road_Church" class="extiw" title="wp:Grace Road Church" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Grace Road Church">Grace Road Church</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Heaven%27s_Gate" title="Heaven's Gate">Heaven's Gate</a></li> <li>Hebrew Israelites</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Yahweh" class="extiw" title="wp:House of Yahweh" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: House of Yahweh">House of Yahweh</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Iglesia_ni_Cristo" title="Iglesia ni Cristo">Iglesia ni Cristo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/International_Society_for_Krishna_Consciousness" title="International Society for Krishna Consciousness">International Society for Krishna Consciousness</a> (ISKCON) (a.k.a. the <a href="/wiki/Hare_Krishna" class="mw-redirect" title="Hare Krishna">Hare Krishna</a> movement)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jehovah%27s_Witnesses" title="Jehovah's Witnesses">Jehovah's Witnesses</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mormonism" title="Mormonism">Mormonism</a></li> <li>Movement for Inner Spiritual Awareness</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nation_of_Islam" title="Nation of Islam">Nation of Islam</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nation_of_Yahweh" title="Nation of Yahweh">Nation of Yahweh</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Nuwaubianism" title="Nuwaubianism">Nuwaubianism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Order_of_Nine_Angles" class="mw-redirect" title="Order of Nine Angles">Order of Nine Angles</a></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Solar_Temple" class="extiw" title="wp:Order of the Solar Temple" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Order of the Solar Temple">Order of the Solar Temple</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Palmarian_Catholic_Church" title="Palmarian Catholic Church">Palmarian Catholic Church</a></li> <li>The <a href="/wiki/Jim_Jones" title="Jim Jones">People's Temple</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Plymouth_Brethren_Christian_Church" title="Plymouth Brethren Christian Church">Plymouth Brethren Christian Church</a></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Providence_(religious_movement)" class="extiw" title="wp:Providence (religious movement)" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Providence (religious movement)">Providence/Jesus Morning Star</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Quiverfull" title="Quiverfull">Quiverfull</a><sup id="cite_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-7">[5]</a></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ra%C3%ABlism" title="Raëlism">Raëlism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ramtha%27s_School_of_Enlightenment" class="mw-redirect" title="Ramtha's School of Enlightenment">Ramtha's School of Enlightenment</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Reyna_Chicas" title="Reyna Chicas">Reyna Chicas</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sathya_Sai_Baba" title="Sathya Sai Baba">Sathya Sai Baba</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Satanism" title="Satanism">Satanism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Scientology" class="mw-redirect" title="Scientology">Scientology</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Seventh_Day_Adventism" class="mw-redirect" title="Seventh Day Adventism">Seventh Day Adventism</a></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shincheonji_Church_of_Jesus_the_Temple_of_the_Tabernacle_of_the_Testimony" class="extiw" title="wp:Shincheonji Church of Jesus the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Shincheonji Church of Jesus the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony">Shincheonji Church of Jesus the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li>Sicesca</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Taliban" title="Taliban">Taliban</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Transcendental_Meditation" title="Transcendental Meditation">Transcendental Meditation</a></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/True_Russian_Orthodox_Church" class="extiw" title="wp:True Russian Orthodox Church" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: True Russian Orthodox Church">True Russian Orthodox Church</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Twelve_Tribes" title="Twelve Tribes">Twelve Tribes</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Unarius_Academy_of_Science" title="Unarius Academy of Science">Unarius Academy of Science</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Unification_Church" title="Unification Church">Unification Church</a> (Moonies)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Fred_Phelps#Westboro_Baptist_Church" title="Fred Phelps">Westboro Baptist Church</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/World_Mission_Society_Church_of_God" title="World Mission Society Church of God">World Mission Society Church of God</a></li></ul></div> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Political_groups">Political groups</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: Political groups">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <div class="div-col columns column-count column-count-2" style="-moz-column-count: 2; -webkit-column-count: 2; column-count: 2;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Black_Hammer" class="mw-redirect" title="Black Hammer">Black Hammer</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Caleb_Maupin#The_Rise_and_Fall_of_CPI" title="Caleb Maupin">Center for Political Innovation</a><sup id="cite_ref-8" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-8">[6]</a></sup></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_Action_Everywhere" class="extiw" title="wp:Direct Action Everywhere" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Direct Action Everywhere">Direct Action Everywhere</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Straight_edge#Hardline" title="Straight edge">Hardline</a> movement</li> <li>International Workers Party/New Alliance Party (see <a href="/wiki/Social_Therapy" title="Social Therapy">Social Therapy</a>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/John_Birch_Society" title="John Birch Society">John Birch Society</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Juche" title="Juche">Juche</a>, the national "religion" of North Korea. Among other things, Juche features the worship of the father <a href="/wiki/Kim_Il_Sung" class="mw-redirect" title="Kim Il Sung">Kim Il Sung</a>, the son <a href="/wiki/Kim_Jong_Il" class="mw-redirect" title="Kim Jong Il">Kim Jong Il</a>, and the grandson <a href="/wiki/Kim_Jong-un" title="Kim Jong-un">Kim Jong-un</a>, adding a strong religious component to the officially purely political and <a href="/wiki/Atheist" class="mw-redirect" title="Atheist">atheist</a> ideology</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ku_Klux_Klan" title="Ku Klux Klan">Ku Klux Klan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lord%27s_Resistance_Army" title="Lord's Resistance Army">Lord's Resistance Army</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lyndon_LaRouche" title="Lyndon LaRouche">Lyndon LaRouche</a> movement</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Men%27s_rights_movement" title="Men's rights movement">Men's rights movement</a><sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-9">[7]</a></sup></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOVE" class="extiw" title="wp:MOVE" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: MOVE">MOVE</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li>Mujahideen-e Khalq (or <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/People%27s_Mujahedin_of_Iran" class="extiw" title="wp:People's Mujahedin of Iran" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: People's Mujahedin of Iran">People's Mujahedin of Iran</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/National_Labor_Federation" title="National Labor Federation">National Labor Federation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Objectivism" title="Objectivism">Objectivism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/PETA" title="PETA">PETA</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/QAnon" title="QAnon">QAnon</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Alex_Jones" title="Alex Jones">Alex Jones</a>'s and <a href="/wiki/Mark_Dice" title="Mark Dice">Mark Dice</a>'s "Resistance" movement</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Revolutionary_Communist_Party_(US)" title="Revolutionary Communist Party (US)">Revolutionary Communist Party</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shining_Path" title="Shining Path">Shining Path</a></li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symbionese_Liberation_Army" class="extiw" title="wp:Symbionese Liberation Army" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Symbionese Liberation Army">Symbionese Liberation Army</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tea_party_movement" class="mw-redirect" title="Tea party movement">Tea party movement</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Trans-exclusionary_radical_feminism" class="mw-redirect" title="Trans-exclusionary radical feminism">Trans-exclusionary radical feminism</a><sup id="cite_ref-10" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-10">[8]</a></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Workers_Revolutionary_Party" title="Workers Revolutionary Party">Workers Revolutionary Party</a></li></ul></div> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Self-help_movements">Self-help movements</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: Self-help movements">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <div role="note" class="hatnote">See the main article on this topic: <a href="/wiki/Self_help" title="Self help">Self help</a></div> <div class="div-col columns column-count column-count-2" style="-moz-column-count: 2; -webkit-column-count: 2; column-count: 2;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Actualized.org" class="mw-redirect" title="Actualized.org">Actualized.org</a><sup id="cite_ref-11" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-11">[9]</a></sup></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Alcoholics_Anonymous" title="Alcoholics Anonymous">Alcoholics Anonymous</a> (and some derivative <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelve-step_program" class="extiw" title="wp:Twelve-step program" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Twelve-step program">Twelve-step program</span>s</a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Amway" title="Amway">Amway</a> (and similar <a href="/wiki/Pyramid_scheme" title="Pyramid scheme">pyramid schemes</a><sup id="cite_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-12">[10]</a></sup>)</li> <li><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar_Course" class="extiw" title="wp:Avatar Course" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Avatar Course">Avatar Course</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup><sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-13">[11]</a></sup></li> <li>Chuluaqui-Quodoushka/Deer Tribe Medicine Society</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kabbalah" title="Kabbalah">Kabbalah</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Erhard_Seminars_Training" title="Erhard Seminars Training">Erhard Seminars Training</a><sup id="cite_ref-14" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-14">[12]</a></sup> (with successive re-branding, including as Landmark Education<sup id="cite_ref-15" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-15">[13]</a></sup>/Landmark Forum<sup id="cite_ref-16" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-16">[14]</a></sup>/<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landmark_Worldwide" class="extiw" title="wp:Landmark Worldwide" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: Landmark Worldwide">Landmark Worldwide</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Falun_Gong" title="Falun Gong">Falun Gong</a>, which borders on a few categories more</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Multilevel_marketing" title="Multilevel marketing">Multilevel marketing</a> (especially health MLMs such as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/doTerra" class="extiw" title="wp:doTerra" rel="nofollow"><span style="color:#477979 !important;" title="Wikipedia: doTerra">doTerra</span></a><sup><img alt="Wikipedia" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/12px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" srcset="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/18px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5a/Wikipedia%27s_W.svg/24px-Wikipedia%27s_W.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="128" data-file-height="128" /></sup> and <a href="/wiki/Young_Living" title="Young Living">Young Living</a>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/NXIVM" title="NXIVM">NXIVM</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Re-evaluation_Counseling" title="Re-evaluation Counseling">Re-evaluation Counseling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Scientology" class="mw-redirect" title="Scientology">Scientology</a> ("[<i>any problem</i>]? Scientology can help you with that.")</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Social_Therapy" title="Social Therapy">Social Therapy</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Synanon" title="Synanon">Synanon</a></li> <li>some <a href="/wiki/Large_group_awareness_training" title="Large group awareness training">large group awareness trainings</a> (if not already included here)</li> <li>some forms of <a href="/wiki/Wilderness_therapy" title="Wilderness therapy">wilderness therapy</a></li></ul></div> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Criminal_organizations">Criminal organizations</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=11" title="Edit section: Criminal organizations">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <div role="note" class="hatnote">See the main article on this topic: <a href="/wiki/Organized_crime" title="Organized crime">Organized crime</a></div> <ul><li>Bratva (also commonly known as the Russian Mafia)</li> <li>Cosa Nostra (also commonly known as the Sicilian Mafia in <a href="/wiki/Italy" title="Italy">Italy</a> or the American Mafia in the <a href="/wiki/United_States" title="United States">United States</a>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/La_Familia_Michoacana" title="La Familia Michoacana">La Familia Michoacana</a></li> <li>Mexican cartels</li> <li><a href="/wiki/NSDAP" class="mw-redirect" title="NSDAP">NSDAP</a> (German Nazi Party) and such subsidiary organizations as the <a href="/wiki/Gestapo" class="mw-redirect" title="Gestapo">Gestapo</a> and <a href="/wiki/SS" class="mw-redirect" title="SS">SS</a></li> <li>Triad</li> <li>Yakuza</li></ul> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Accused_by_fundamentalists">Accused by fundamentalists</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=12" title="Edit section: Accused by fundamentalists">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <p>According to many <a href="/wiki/Christian" class="mw-redirect" title="Christian">Christian</a> <a href="/wiki/Fundamentalist" class="mw-redirect" title="Fundamentalist">fundamentalists</a>, any sect that does not agree with their doctrines is a cult, though they are less pernicious than many of the above groups. Examples of such sects include: </p> <div class="div-col columns column-count column-count-2" style="-moz-column-count: 2; -webkit-column-count: 2; column-count: 2;"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Buddhism" title="Buddhism">Buddhism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Church_of_the_SubGenius" title="Church of the SubGenius">Church of the SubGenius</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Herbert_W._Armstrong" title="Herbert W. Armstrong">Herbert W. Armstrong</a> and <a href="/wiki/Garner_Ted_Armstrong" title="Garner Ted Armstrong">Garner Ted Armstrong</a>-related groups</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Islam" title="Islam">Islam</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jehovah%27s_Witnesses" title="Jehovah's Witnesses">Jehovah's Witnesses</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Local_Church" title="Local Church">Local Church</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mormonism" title="Mormonism">Mormonism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/New_Age" title="New Age">New Age</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Satanism" title="Satanism">Satanism</a> (including <a href="/wiki/LaVeyan_Satanism" class="mw-redirect" title="LaVeyan Satanism">LaVeyan Satanism</a> and <a href="/wiki/The_Satanic_Temple" title="The Satanic Temple">the Satanic Temple</a>)</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Seventh-day_Adventism" title="Seventh-day Adventism">Seventh-day Adventism</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shinto" title="Shinto">Shinto</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wicca" title="Wicca">Wicca</a></li> <li>The <i>really</i> wacky ones consider the <a href="/wiki/Unitarian_Universalist_Church" class="mw-redirect" title="Unitarian Universalist Church">Unitarian Universalist Church</a><sup id="cite_ref-17" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-17">[15]</a></sup> and possibly even <a href="/wiki/Liberal" class="mw-redirect" title="Liberal">liberal</a> <a href="/wiki/Protestant" title="Protestant">Protestant</a> churches to be cults.</li> <li>A few, such as <a href="/wiki/Jack_Chick" title="Jack Chick">Jack Chick</a>, might accuse the <a href="/wiki/Roman_Catholic_Church" title="Roman Catholic Church">Roman Catholic Church</a> of being a <a href="/wiki/Pope" title="Pope">papal</a> cult of some sort (see <a href="/wiki/Anti-Catholicism" title="Anti-Catholicism">Anti-Catholicism</a>). Catholicism <i>circa</i> (say) 1200 CE might seem more cultish than Catholicism <i>circa</i> 2015 CE.</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Darwin_Fish" title="Darwin Fish">Darwin Fish</a> regards any famous evangelist other than himself as a cult leader.</li></ul></div> <h3><span class="mw-headline" id="Cult_of_personality">Cult of personality</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=13" title="Edit section: Cult of personality">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h3> <div role="note" class="hatnote">See the main article on this topic: <a href="/wiki/Personality_cult#Examples" title="Personality cult">Personality cult § Examples</a></div> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="See_also">See also</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=14" title="Edit section: See also">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Fun:Starting_a_new_religion" title="Fun:Starting a new religion">Fun:Starting a new religion</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/New_religious_movement" class="mw-redirect" title="New religious movement">New religious movement</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Secret_society" title="Secret society">Secret society</a></li></ul> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="References">References</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=15" title="Edit section: References">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div class="references-small" style="-moz-column-count:2; -webkit-column-count:2; column-count:2; font-size:80%;"> <div class="mw-references-wrap mw-references-columns"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-1">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">Who Hears This Sound? Adyashanti On Waking Up From The Dream Of “Me” <a rel="nofollow" class="external free" href="https://www.thesunmagazine.org/issues/384/who-hears-this-sound">https://www.thesunmagazine.org/issues/384/who-hears-this-sound</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-3">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.neopagan.net/ABCDEF.html">The Advanced Bonewits' Cult Danger Evaluation Frame (ABCDEF) by Isaac Bonewits, useful since 1979</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-4">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.culteducation.com/warningsigns.html">The Cult Education Institute's warning signs</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-6">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">Quoted at <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://afterthetruth.blogspot.com/2008/05/bonewits-cult-danger-scale.html">After the Truth</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-7">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><span class="citation web">Vyckie. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.patheos.com/blogs/nolongerquivering/what-is-quiverfull/">"What Is Quiverfull?"</a>.</span><span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=What+Is+Quiverfull%3F&rft.atitle=&rft.aulast=Vyckie&rft.au=Vyckie&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.patheos.com%2Fblogs%2Fnolongerquivering%2Fwhat-is-quiverfull%2F&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Cult"><span style="display: none;"> </span></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-8">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://medium.com/@cpimembersspeakout/caleb-maupins-former-comrades-speak-out-his-abuses-must-stop-4167bc1c2c">Caleb Maupin’s Former Comrades Speak Out, His Abuses Must Stop!</a> 20 Aug 2022 (<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20221030232927/https://medium.com/@cpimembersspeakout/caleb-maupins-former-comrades-speak-out-his-abuses-must-stop-4167bc1c2c">Archived</a>) <i>Medium</i></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-9">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">Lee, Teresa. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.cracked.com/blog/how-mens-rights-activists-use-cult-tactics-its-members/">"6 Ways the MRA Indoctrinate New Members With Cult Tactics."</a> <i><a href="/wiki/Cracked.com" title="Cracked.com">Cracked.com</a></i>, 6 March 2017 (recovered 6 March 2017).</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-10"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-10">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.autostraddle.com/former-terfs-and-swerfs-are-fleeing-the-cult-movements-known-for-being-terrible-and-wrong/">Former TERFs and SWERFs are Fleeing The “Cult” Movements Known For Being Terrible and Wrong</a>, Riese, <i>Autostraddle</i> 20 May 2020</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-11"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-11">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external free" href="https://youtu.be/aQTWor_2nu4">https://youtu.be/aQTWor_2nu4</a></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-12"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-12">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><span class="citation book">Dolan, Sean (1999). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=t06pyNHEmXIC">"Understanding Cults Today"</a>. <i>Everything You Need to Know About Cults</i>. The Need to Know Library. New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. p. 34. ISBN <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9780823932306" title="Special:BookSources/9780823932306">9780823932306</a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved 4 July 2021</span>. "Commercial cults promise their members riches, usually through the sale of a specific special product. In many cases, what the cult is actually selling is itself. The cult often functions as little more than a pyramid scheme [...]."</span><span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=Understanding+Cults+Today&rft.atitle=Everything+You+Need+to+Know+About+Cults&rft.aulast=Dolan&rft.aufirst=Sean&rft.au=Dolan%2C%26%2332%3BSean&rft.date=1999&rft.series=The+Need+to+Know+Library&rft.pages=p.%26nbsp%3B34&rft.place=New+York&rft.pub=The+Rosen+Publishing+Group%2C+Inc&rft.isbn=9780823932306&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3Dt06pyNHEmXIC&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Cult"><span style="display: none;"> </span></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-13"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-13">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><span class="citation book">Benjamin, Elliot (2013). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=hZcUAwAAQBAJ"><i>Modern Religions: An Experiential Analysis and Exposé</i></a>. p. 346. ISBN <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781257082612" title="Special:BookSources/9781257082612">9781257082612</a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved 4 July 2021</span>. "[...] Avatar's cult dangers cannot be ignored. We have here a very expensive alternative spiritual organization with a highly organized and effective recruitment and marketing strategy. [...] Avatar has been described as 'the new est,' [...]. We see here another LGAT (Large group Awareness Training Program) at work."</span><span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Modern+Religions%3A+An+Experiential+Analysis+and+Expos%C3%A9&rft.aulast=Benjamin&rft.aufirst=Elliot&rft.au=Benjamin%2C%26%2332%3BElliot&rft.date=2013&rft.pages=p.%26nbsp%3B346&rft.isbn=9781257082612&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DhZcUAwAAQBAJ&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Cult"><span style="display: none;"> </span></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-14"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-14">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><span class="citation book">Lewis, James R. (2014). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=JWJ_BAAAQBAJ">"Controversial Groups and Movements: An Expanded Glossary"</a>. <i>Cults: A Reference and Guide</i> (3 ed.). London: Routledge. p. 129. ISBN <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781317545132" title="Special:BookSources/9781317545132">9781317545132</a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved 4 July 2021</span>. "Erhard Seminars Training, more commonly known as est [...] has often been accused of being a cult."</span><span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=Controversial+Groups+and+Movements%3A+An+Expanded+Glossary&rft.atitle=Cults%3A+A+Reference+and+Guide&rft.aulast=Lewis&rft.aufirst=James+R.&rft.au=Lewis%2C%26%2332%3BJames+R.&rft.date=2014&rft.pages=p.%26nbsp%3B129&rft.edition=3&rft.place=London&rft.pub=Routledge&rft.isbn=9781317545132&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DJWJ_BAAAQBAJ&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Cult"><span style="display: none;"> </span></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-15"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-15">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><span class="citation book">Cohen, Tammy (2007). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=GyGtDwAAQBAJ">"Father of the Year"</a>. <i>Deadly Divorces</i>. Kings Road Publishing. ISBN <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781843586890" title="Special:BookSources/9781843586890">9781843586890</a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved 4 July 2021</span>. "[...] Landmark Education. Variously described by detractors as a 'cult', a brainwashing technique and a way of raising bucket loads of cash from emotionally vulnerable people [...]."</span><span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.btitle=Father+of+the+Year&rft.atitle=Deadly+Divorces&rft.aulast=Cohen&rft.aufirst=Tammy&rft.au=Cohen%2C%26%2332%3BTammy&rft.date=2007&rft.pub=Kings+Road+Publishing&rft.isbn=9781843586890&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DGyGtDwAAQBAJ&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Cult"><span style="display: none;"> </span></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-16"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-16">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><span class="citation book">Cooke, Kaz (2009). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://books.google.com/books?id=ltGsBAAAQBAJ"><i>The Rough Guide To Girl Stuff</i></a>. Rough Guides. Rough Guides UK. p. 334. ISBN <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781848362505" title="Special:BookSources/9781848362505">9781848362505</a><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved 4 July 2021</span>. "Examples of cults include the Exclusive Brethren, the Jehovah's Witnesses, Scientology (one of the many based on ideas about aliens) and Landmark Forum."</span><span class="Z3988" title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=The+Rough+Guide+To+Girl+Stuff&rft.aulast=Cooke&rft.aufirst=Kaz&rft.au=Cooke%2C%26%2332%3BKaz&rft.date=2009&rft.series=Rough+Guides&rft.pages=p.%26nbsp%3B334&rft.pub=Rough+Guides+UK&rft.isbn=9781848362505&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fbooks.google.com%2Fbooks%3Fid%3DltGsBAAAQBAJ&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Cult"><span style="display: none;"> </span></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-17"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-17">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://contenderministries.org/unitarianuniv.php">Unitarian Universalism</a> Contender Ministries</span> </li> </ol></div></div> <h2><span class="mw-headline" id="Notes">Notes</span><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=Cult&action=edit&section=16" title="Edit section: Notes">edit</a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></h2> <div class="references-small" style="font-size:90%;"> <div class="mw-references-wrap"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-2">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">It could be argued that <i>all</i> religion is controlling, and this isn't necessarily a bad thing; much like secular law, religion can be used to hold people back from hurting each other over petty squabbles, conflicts, and competitions. Religion also serves to encourage people to be kind to one another, to cooperate, and to help each other where help is needed. Where religion's penchant for being controlling becomes a bad thing is when the people in charge of the religion abuse their power for their own gain at their followers' expense.</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><a href="#cite_ref-5">↑</a></span> <span class="reference-text">One thing Isaac forgot to mention cults tending to disapprove of is <a href="/wiki/Heresy" title="Heresy">disagreement with the leader's word or established doctrine</a>.</span> </li> </ol></div></div>    </div></div><div class="printfooter">Retrieved from "<a dir="ltr" href="https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Cult&oldid=2676851">https://rationalwiki.org/w/index.php?title=Cult&oldid=2676851</a>"</div> <div id="catlinks" class="catlinks" data-mw="interface"><div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a href="/wiki/Special:Categories" title="Special:Categories">Categories</a>: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Cults" title="Category:Cults">Cults</a></li><li><a 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