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ICSA E-Newsletter (formerly AFF News Briefs)
Volume 1, Number 9, 2002
Table of Contents
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CSR - New Postings
News Article Feed on AFF Online Bookstore Call for Papers - Janja Lalich AFF Bookstore Specials Education and Research News Books and Articles Brought to Our Attention Meeting with China Anti-Cult Association Members - Please Donate
In order to make it easier for you to peruse this document we have added bookmarks and hyperlinks. Click on a content area above that interests you and it will bring you to that section. Click on an up arrow in the text and it will bring you back to the contents list. If you see words in the text (not titles/headers) that are bold and in teal (your
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We continue to post materials to the Web version of Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 1, Number 3, the abridged print version of which is due for completion in December 2002.
Subscribers may go to Cultic Studies Review and click on “Table of Contents (Coming Issue)”. This will bring you to the contents page for number 3.
Scroll down and you will come to the articles, guest columns, news summaries, book reviews, etc. that have thus far been posted. News summaries are organized by most recent posting date, so you can keep track of recent news by going back to the site on a regular basis.
Only subscribers to Cultic Studies Review with valid pass codes will be able to access the articles. If you are not a CSR subscriber and wish to subscribe.
If you click on the Table of Contents for Vol. 1, No. 2 you will find, in addition to several dozen summaries of group-related news and seven book reviews, the following articles:
Teenage Spirituality and the Internet (A. Lutz and Rev. D. Borgman) Lying in Court and Religion: An Analysis of the Theocratic Warfare Doctrine of the Jehovah's Witnesses (Dr. Jerry Bergman) The Spread of Ásatrú in Vinland (Detective Thomas Coghlan) The Death of a Leader: Homicide as a Means of Group Disengagement (J. Haines, Ph.D. et al.) Cults, Conversion, Science, and Harm (M. D. Langone, Ph.D.) Column: Getting Help (L. Bardin, M.S.W.)
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The index page for our free newsletter, AFF News Briefs, includes a flashing news feed at the top. Recent news articles flash in this box. Click on those that interest you and go directly to the site that
contains the article. Since most newspapers only keep articles on the Web for short periods of time, the articles in this news feed change daily. Moreover, since it is an automatic function based on search words, some "junk" gets interspersed with real news. Although the news feed is useful, if you really want to keep abreast of cult-related news, subscribe to CSR, which contains dozens of news summaries each issue.
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Janja Lalich is organizing a panel for the June 2003 AFF conference in Southern California on the topic of “Gender and Cults.” Topics to include issues related to men, women, sex, sexuality, relationships, intimacy, power, or gender roles. These can be papers with either a sociological or psychological framework. If you are interested in
presenting, send a 50 – 100 word abstract of your paper by e-mail to Janja at JLalich@csuchico.edu Deadline for submissions: December 15, 2002. Include title, abstract, your name and location, and 1 or 2 sentences of background about the presenter.
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AFF Bookstore items are on sale (scroll down the page to find the items that interest you):
Coping with Cult Involvement: A Handbook for Families and Friends. Livia Bardin.
Releasing the Bonds. Steve Hassan.
Recovery From Cults: Help for Victims of Psychological and Spiritual Abuse. Michael D. Langone, Ph.D.
Cults on Campus: Continuing Challenge. Marcia Rudin.
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Passing of Jan Groenveld
Australian cult educator, Jan Groenveld, passed away on October 21st. We will miss her, and extend our sympathies to her family. ^
American Psychological Association Program
Former members of cultic groups and Alan Scheflin, Professor of Law at Santa Clara University and co-author of the award-winning Memory, Trauma Treatment, and the Law, participated in a panel discussion at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association in Chicago in August. In addition to Professor Scheflin,
speakers included Steve Hassan, author of Combatting Cult Mind Control and Releasing the Bonds (both available on the AFF bookstore); Kerry Noble, former member of Covenant, The Sword,
and the Law; Deborah Layton, former member of Jim Jones's People's Temple; and Stephen J. Morgan, a faculty member with the American Management Association/Management Centre Europe in Brussels, who as an international leader for an extremist political cult in the 1980s held office in the British Labour Party,while working as a spy carrying out activities against the state.
New Support Groups in California
Mary Jo Cysewski, M.A., L.M.F.T., a former member of an abusive group, facilitates support groups for families and ex-members in Beverly Hills, California. For more information: maryjo-lmft@attbi.com; 310-963-4000 ^
Healing from Spiritual Abuse
The New College of Berkeley and Trinity Lutheran of Pleasanton will present a one-day program at Trinity Lutheran Church, 1225 Hopyard Road, Pleasanton, CA 94566 on February 15, 2003 ($50 individuals; $80 couples). Speakers include Dr. Margaret Singer, Michelle Campbell, Tony
Fieni, and Joel Kleinbaum. ^
Reformed Theological Seminary Program
Laura Weber, who will graduate soon with a Master's in Counseling from Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida spoke at her school about manipulation, spiritual abuse, and related subjects on November 5, 2002.
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Free Minds Program for Ex-Members
Steve Hassan and Randall Watters will conduct a program entitled, "Former Member Healing Workshop," regarding the Watchtower and Other Undue Influence Groups (Cults)." The program will take place March 15-16, 2003 in Los Angeles.
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Dean Borgman Activities
Rev. Dean Borgman of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary attended Lilly Endowment Peer Collaboration on Theological Education and Personal Vocational Exploration held at Louisville (KY) Seminary, October 10-11, 2002. He spoke to 200 high school students at a Young Life weekend Nov. 9-11 and will attend the International Association for the Study of Youth Ministry's
bi-annual conference, Oxford, England, Jan. 5-8, 2003. He and his staff have also been working on updates for the Encyclopedia of Youth Studies. ^
Rachel Bernstein Activities
Rachel Bernstein, MSEd., MFT spoke about religious cults twice to students in the Religious Studies Department of the California State University at Northridge, and lectured on Cults and Missionaries, and Moving from Faith to Fanaticism, to members of Adult Education Programs in the San Fernando Valley. She also appeared on the new Fox talk-show, the Rob
Nelson Show, where the topic was therapists who abuse their patients. She was interviewed by Channel 4 News when a fire believed to be started during a Santeria ritual was burning out of control, by September films (based in the U.K.), who were doing a story on cults and the Hollywood connection, and by a radio station in San Diego.
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Books and Articles Brought to Our Attention
Heartbreak and Rage
Gordon Neufeldt's Heartbreak and Rage: Ten Years Under Sun Myung Moon, A Cult Survivor's Memoir is now available ($12.95 plus shipping). ^
The Spiritual Assessment Inventory
Hall, T. W., & Edwards, K. J. (2002). The Spiritual Assessment Inventory: A Theistic Model and Measure for Assessing Spiritual Development. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 41(2), 341-358. A relationally-based measure designed to assess awareness of God and quality of relationship with God. Describes psychometric development of this
measure.
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The Psychodynamics of Terrorism
Casoni, D. & Brunet, L. (2002) The Psychodynamics of Terrorism. Canadian Journal Of Psychoanalysis, 10(1). 5-24 ^
Available from Dissertation Abstracts International
Lalich, Janja. Bounded choice: The fusion of personal freedom and self-renunciation in two transcendent groups. Dissertation Abstracts International Section A: Humanities & Social Sciences. Vol 61(2-A), Aug 2000, pp. 789. This is an in-depth, comparative study of the Democratic Workers Party, a Marxist-Leninist-feminist group, and Heaven's Gate, a
'New Age' group based on a blend of Theosophy, Christianity, and ufology. Both were authoritarian; each advanced a worldview that required personal transformation, deep commitment, and self-sacrifice. The purpose of the study is to explore the effects of cultic systems on their participants, while taking into account issues of structure, agency, knowledge, and power.
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Cassidy, James Patrick. The Stockholm Syndrome, battered woman syndrome and the cult personality: An integrative approach. Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: The Sciences & Engineering. Vol 62(11-B), Jun 2002, pp. 5366. This dissertation explores the bond that forms between the abused and an abuser in a situation where a person is
being harmed. Three distinct scenarios are examined; when a hostage forms a bond with his/her captor, when a battered woman becomes very attached to her abusive mate, and when a cult member establishes an unhealthy connection with a cult leader.
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Fennimore, Julie Frances. Life after a cult experience: In-depth interviews with women. Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: The Sciences & Engineering. Vol 61(5-B), Dec 2000, pp. 2816. This study explores the lives of women who were involved in the Rajneesh community. The goal was to increase understanding about the role the group
served for them and to what extent they were able to integrate their experiences after leaving.
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Jensen, Lori Jolene. (Re)discovering Fundamentalism in the Cultural Margins: Calvary Chapel Congregations as Sites of Cultural Resistance and Religious Transformation. Dissertation Abstracts International, A: The Humanities and Social Sciences, 2001, 62, 6, Dec, 2254-A. This dissertation examines the changing face of the Calvary Chapel
movement, a religious "awakening" that began among the hippies of the 1960s and has continued to appeal to a new generation of "alternative" youth involved in various subcultures. The focus of the study is four Calvary Chapel congregations in the Southern California area, in which I conducted participant observation and in-depth interviews for four years. I conclude that these churches are sites
of symbolic resistance and transformation, similar to the Gramscian model, where resistance is mounted against the hegemonic religious and cultural establishment.
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Anderson, Terri Lynne. Conversion and Community: Reconstructing Self and Relationships following Religious Conversion. Dissertation Abstracts International, A: The Humanities and Social Sciences, 2000, 61, 6, Dec, 2470-A. This study explores both the processual post-conversion redevelopment of personal and social identity and the related social
process of the convert's social reintegration with previously significant others, with a particular focus on family members. I explore how the convert develops an understanding of, socially negotiates, and maintains her new identity, the role significant others have in the shaping of that identity, and the processes through which a post-conversion renegotiation of social order develops.
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What Would Jesus Think?
Douglas Groothuis, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Philosophy at Denver Seminary, has published an article in the October 4, 2002 issue of The Chronicle of Higher Education on Jesus as philosopher. Dr. Groothuis is the author of several books on the New Age Movement.
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What Jews Know About Salvation
Rabbi Elliot B. Gertel recently published a book, What Jews Know About Salvation (Eakin Press, Austin, 2002, 112 pp.). The last chapter, "Salvation for the Earth" is a subtle polemic against neo-pagan, New Age doctrine.
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Government Report on Religious Liberty
The U.S. government report on religious liberty is available.
Dr. Jean-Francois Mayer, who directs religioscope.com writes about the report and the controversies it has generated in: "Liberté Religieuse: Après le Rapport Américain 2002 sur la Situation Internationale, une Controverse Inattendue." ^
Recent Publications of Miguel Perlado
Miguel Perlado of A.I.S. in Barcelona has presented at recent AFF conferences; his paper from the 2002 conference will be published in a coming Cultic Studies Review. He has had several recent publications on mental health issues related to cults in Spanish and Catalan:
Perlado, M. (2002a). Intrusismo profesional y abuso terapéutico: grupos de manipulación en salud mental. Revista del Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos de Cataluña, julio 2002. Perlado, M. (2001). Psicoterapias dogmáticas y perversión de la transferencia. Libro de ponencias, I Jornadas sobre el Trastorno de Dependencia Grupal en los Grupos de Manipulación Psicológica. Barcelona, 30 de noviembre de 2001. Perlado, M. (2000). Psicoterapias saludables vs. Psicoterapias no saludables. Tesina para la obtención del grado de especialista en psicoterapia psicoanalítica. Biblioteca de la FVB. Blanqué, J.M., Perlado, M. y Marsó, E. (2000). Psicoteràpia grupal, consum de fàrmacs i valoració de les recidives. Comunicació presentada al II Congrés d´Atenció Primària i Salut Mental, 24-25 de febrer de 2000. Gallego, J., Perlado, M. y Sallés, M. (1998). Proyecto de grupos de asistencia al paciente renal, al personal médico y a los familiares. Barcelona: ADER. ^
Addiction Model in Treatment of Ex-Cult Members
Ron Burks, Ph.D. of Wellspring Retreat and Resource Center has written a chapter, "The Place for the Addiction Model in the Treatment of Ex- members of Cults," to be published this winter in Substance Abuse: A Comprehensive Textbook, 4th edition, Loinson, Ruiz, Millman, Langrod (eds), published by
Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins. Here is the abstract: Fanaticism, an extreme devotion to a person or cause, resembles addiction. Some observers of the cult phenomenon connect the control exercised over followers by certain leaders to an addiction in the follower. Others suspect certain combinations of behavior and belief on the part of the leader, combined with the inherent ability
of groups to reinforce behavior change, are responsible for the unusual level of control over personal choice observed in some groups. Still other observers point to the contribution of family background and pre-existing emotional problems as primary factors in the decision to involve oneself in a high demand group. The size of this volume is an indication that the behavior of those among us
whose focus on inner experience, whether induced by a substance, a relationship, an image or the service of a leader in a cause, that has significant negative life consequences, is complex. Failure to appreciate that complexity, just as in every area of medicine, can lead to treatment failure. Clinicians must be aware of their own assumptions to be able to respond appropriately to the range of
experience and symptoms presented by ex-members of cults. This chapter seeks a synthesis of these three perspectives and their respective contributions to understanding the phenomenon of cults in order to facilitate treatment decision making. ^
Herbert Rosedale, President of AFF, hosted a meeting at his New York office in which visiting leaders of the China Anti-Cult Association
met with cult experts associated with AFF. Chinese interest in cults has increased in recent years due in large part to the government's banning and suppression of the Falun Gong movement, actions that have generated considerable criticism among International human rights observers. The meeting illuminated cultural differences about common concerns related to cultic groups. In
China, for example, many members of the association are associated with scientific and technological organizations; one doesn't see organizations such as New York's Interfaith Coalition of Concern About Cults. And while Chinese mental health professionals offer some input on cult-related controversies, it is limited, but apparently growing. Such differences are among the many that
underlie the far greater politicization of cult issues in China compared to the United States, where most cult criticism emanates from the private sector and focuses on helping victims and educating the public to become wiser "consumers" of religion.
Participants included: Dr. Philip Abramowitz, Co-chairman, New York Interfaith Coalition for Concern About Cults; Zixian Deng, Chief
Methodologist MMC, NOP World and a Ph.D. candidate in political science at the University of North Texas; David Halperin, M.D., a psychiatrist at Mt. Sinai Hospital and professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice; Mr. Ou Jiancheng, Director of Administrative Office, China Museum for Science and Technology; Michael LeBlanc, a former member of the Bruderhof; Cynthia Lilly, parent of a former
cult member and a cult educator; Ronald Loomis, a cult awareness educator; Arnold Markowitz, C.S.W., Director, Cult Hotline & Clinic of the New York Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services; Ms. Cheng Ningning, Engineer and Executive Secretary of China Women's Association for Science and Technology; Dr. Sylvia Raskin, a New York psychologist; Fred Tang, President of the New York Chinese
Community Relations Council; Ms. Dana Wehle, C.S.W., a psychotherapist of the Cult Hotline & Clinic of New York's JBFCS; Mr. Wang Wenzhong, Assistant Researcher, Institute of Psychology, China Academy of Sciences; Professor Xi Wuyi, Institute of World Religions, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; and Dr. Wang Yusheng, President, China Museum for Science & Technology, Secretary General of China
Anti-Cult Association.
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