WHAT IS A CULT?

The word cult originally meant any group whose members held common beliefs. But it has evolved to mean a particularly dangerous kind of religious group with unchecked power.

There is no single set of beliefs or doctrines that define a cult. One of the most readily recognized marks of a cult is a dominating leader who holds an extreme degree of influence over his or her followers.

The danger comes when these leaders begin to believe that they have a special connection with God that no one else has.

The cult leader’s delusion that he has absolute authority leads him to believe he is above biblical moral standards and the laws of the land.

But the cults have made a science of identifying and taking advantage of people’s vulnerabilities. To those who feel broken and traumatized, they hold out the promise of a stable, happy life.

Cult leaders know that open contact with people in the outside world risks breaking their hold over their members, so they shield them from others except for carefully choreographed encounters.

Cults not only cut off their members’ interaction with the world— sometimes breaking up families and severing all outside ties—but they also use abusive methods to weaken psychological defenses. New members may be deprived of food or sleep, denied privacy, or kept in meetings for hours while speakers pound them with relentless repetitions of the leader’s teachings.

As members get deeper into the group, leaders may browbeat and intimidate them. Sometimes followers are required to confess publicly their deepest doubts and most shameful failings—all of which are used against them later. Questioning anything may result in physical or psychological punishment.


For these reasons, cults are dangerous to one’s mental and spiritual health—and to life.