Cached from the Arkansas Democrat, October 15, 1995. Copyright 1995, Little Rock Newspapers, Inc. All rights reserved.
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A primer on cults: Why they're different
By MARY HARGROVE
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Staff Writer
She's heard it all too often, the voices tinged with disdain. "Only crazy, stupid people join cults. No one
could ever talk me into anything like that."
"You wanna bet?" retorts clinical psychologist Margaret Singer, who has studied mind-control groups for nearly
25 years. "Neither age nor education is a vaccine against cults."
An estimated 3,000 cults exist in this country with anywhere from 3 million to 5 million members.
They range from the larger, well-known groups --the Unification Church (The Rev. Sun Myung Moon) and The
Church of Scientology --to hundreds of smaller groups with only 10 to 20 followers. Both the Church of
Scientology and the Unification Church deny that they are cults.
Cults are not, by definition, harmful. They may be based on religious beliefs, politics, self-improvement,
martial arts, even flying saucers.
According to Singer, a cult "becomes destructive" when:
€ It isolates members from family and friends.
€ The group interferes with an individual's ability to think freely.
€ A charismatic figure dominates the group, claiming to have a direct line to God or some secret
knowledge that makes the group elite.
€ The cult persuades members that the group goal is more important than individual needs, using guilt and
shame to keep followers from questioning doctrine.
€ The leader instills fear that something dreadful will happen to anyone who leaves.
Cults are not a 20th-century phenomenon. They flourished after the fall of Rome, the French Revolution, the
Civil War and World War I. In the 1960s, they attracted young people disillusioned by mainline churches and
the Vietnam War, during a time sweeping cultural changes. "Anytime there is a huge breakdown in families and
the structure of society, cults spring up to fill the gap," Singer says.
They have their strongest appeal during high-stress times when people are especially vulnerable: a job change,
a divorce, a death, a transitional period such as going away to college, moving to a new town or retiring.
"If you are not imbedded in a meaningful group or relationship during this time, the cult can take over,"
Singer says.
The initial phase, cult experts say, is "love-bombing." Members compliment potential recruits, assuring them
they are special. They become a constant, overwhelming presence, taking potential members to group meetings
and calling them several times a day. Suddenly, the recruit feels wanted and secure within this new
"family."
"There's so much deception involved at the point of pickup by almost every one of the modern-day cults," says
the 74-year-old Singer, a retired professor from the University of California, Berkeley. She is co-author of
"Cults in Our Midst, The Hidden Menace in Our Everyday Lives."
Recruiting need not be formal. Mothers with babies in strollers seek out other young mothers in shopping
centers for a friendly chat. A neighbor invites the new family on the block to a get-acquainted dinner.
Recruits are found at college bars, senior citizen centers and local theater groups.
Senior citizens are prime targets, says Herbert Rosedale, a New York attorney who has represented hundreds of
former cult members.
"The elderly are lonely and cult members offer a degree of companionship," he said. "They'll visit with you,
shop with you, run errands for you. And, of course, they also offer to manage your Social Security check and
your bank account."
Rosedale represented a man from Albuquerque, N.M., who paid $60,000 -- his life savings -- for a series of
business classes. The man discovered the classes were a front for an aggressive cult.
The victim insisted his attorney try to retrieve the money without a lawsuit because he was afraid his adult
children would find out.
"The elderly are deathly afraid of admitting they've been scammed because it destroys their personal dignity,"
Rosedale says. "They are ashamed. They think they're weak, they're not what they used to be."
Women who are sexually abused in cults face similar feelings of shame.
"They don't want to tell their mothers or their fiances. It's hard to pursue legal remedies because of the
personal vulnerability," Rosedale says.
Cults usually require members to attend frequent lectures and pay for books written by the cult founder.
"It's rare that a lower-educated person gets involved in a cult," explains Larry Pile of the Wellspring
Retreat and Resource Center in Albany, Ohio. Wellspring offers several cult counseling programs, including one
for people who have left Bible-based cults.
"At least 90 percent of our clients have had some college or have graduated," he said.
Often cults are slow in parceling out information about the group's beliefs. Once a recruit is hooked
financially and emotionally, the advanced classes gradually unveil the doctrine.
At that point, those who raise questions are considered traitors and are accused of betraying God -- not the
group. They are intimidated and isolated.
"It's a very subtle process," Pile says. "If you put a frog in boiling water, it jumps out. If you put a frog
in cold water and gradually increase the heat, he'll stay there until he croaks."
