Tag Archive | Spiritual abuse
Someone Like Me: Anatomy of a Cult Member
I find this post somewhat embarrassing to write, but they say “our scars become our ministry” and I think God gets all the glory for that. In this blog I have focused often on cult leaders and what makes them tick, and it seems only fair to turn the lens around and focus on what […]
Eight Ways to Identify Religious Brainwashing: Demand for Perfection (Part 3 of 8)
This is the third in an eight-part series on how to identify brainwashing in a destructive group or cult. It is based off of Dr. Robert Jay Lifton’s “Eight-Point Model of Thought Reform” and borrows from several other authorities on the topic of religious mind-control.* 1.) Part One: Milieu Control 2.) Part Two: Mystical Manipulation […]
The Bay of Legalis: A Parable
The chaplain wore dark glasses. He jumped off the ship, his hands full of chains and the chains attached to caskets and in each casket a living human being—100 in all—men, women, and children. On every casket shone a crooked cross. He jumped with a grin on his face and the sun shining and the scent […]
We Swallowed Camels: Reflections of a Legalist
“There are no disputable matters,” my pastor said to the small group of men gathered for fellowship on a Saturday morning in the late 1990s. Mid-October maples flamed outside the church windows while Canada geese honked overhead. Leaf crumbs littered the floor. I liked to sit on the side of the table where I could […]
Wisconsin Faith-Healing Case May Set Precedent
Faith-Healing Case Goes to State Supreme Court In 2008, Wisconsin 11-year-old Madeline “Kara” Neumann died after her parents prayed for her recovery but did not take her to see a doctor. Before her death, Kara’s father saw that she looked dehydrated and so he recommended using Pedialyte. However, her mother said that would “take glory […]
Eight Ways to Identify Religious Brainwashing: Mystical Manipulation (Part 2 of 8)
This is the second in an eight-part series on how to identify brainwashing in a destructive group or cult. It is based off of Dr. Robert Jay Lifton’s “Eight-Point Model of Thought Reform” and borrows from several other authorities on the topic of religious mind-control.* You can see the first post here. 1.) Part One: […]
Mind-Field: Eight Ways to Identify Religious Brainwashing (Part 1 of 8)
Aki Ray, a former child-soldier in Cambodia, is now one of the world’s foremost mine-clearing experts. He walks through the jungle looking for landmines and then defuses them one by one. He’s alive because he knows what to look for in the weeds. Can you identify the subtle signs of mind control? I couldn’t. That’s […]
Criminal Profiles of God
“The most portentous fact about any man is not what he at a given time may say or do, but what he in his deep heart conceives God to be like. We tend by a secret law of the soul to move toward our mental image of God.” – A.W. Tozer Have you ever taken […]
Top Resources for Spiritual Abuse and Cults
When I was in a cult, I ignored anything with the word “cult” in the title; I thought it didn’t apply to me. However, as soon as my cult broke apart, I eagerly sought resources on the topic of spiritual abuse. Through trial-and-error and much Googling I found websites, books, and organizations which met my […]
Faith Healing? Trust in God, but See a Doctor
Missionary doctor Paul Brand related the following story in the November 25, 1983 issue of Christianity Today: David Gilmore told about an illness of his 15-month-old son, Dustin Graham Gilmore, that began in April of 1978. At first the child came down with flu-like symptoms. The Gilmores took him to their church and the pastor […]
Liberty for Captives 