Spirituality
HEGE Series
See — Anthropology - Anthropology of Antichristianity
Forget “Enchantment”: In Praise of the Spooky
Henry Poole Is Here | Wikipedia
The Global Religious Landscape | Pew Research Center
Jews — 14 million, 0.2% (plurality (44%) live in North America)
Buddhists — 500 million, 7%
Hindus — 1000 million, 15%
Muslims — 1600 million, 23.2%
Christians — 2200 million, 31.5% of world population (13% live as minority)
Roman Catholic — 1376 million, 55% of total Christians
Pentecostals — 644+ million, 26+% of Christians
Orthodox — 260 million
Lutherans — 80 million
Baptists — 51 million
Religion in the United States | Wikipedia
The Religious Makeup of America | Map
World Religions Map
Atheism
Atheism: A Very Short Introduction (2nd edn
— “Atheism: A Very Short Introduction discusses the case for atheism. Atheism is often seen as simply a rejection of theism, but it encompasses so much more [and is in fact a religion, a belief system in itself]. Atheists are typically naturalists, who believe that meaning and morality are possible in a finite, natural world. ‘New Atheism’, a powerful new movement in atheism in the early 21st century, driven by books from authors such as Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris, has left a legacy. There is an important question to consider: whether East Asia has been historically atheist or not. Atheism can be located in recent European history. What is the position of atheists around the world today?”
Chapter 5 Atheism in history
— “‘Atheism in history’ traces the origins and history of atheism. Atheism has its origins in Ancient Greece and although there have always been people who did not believe in God, atheism did not emerge as an overt and avowed belief system until late in the Enlightenment [following upon the Wars of Western Relgion from which people became disgusted with the prevailing theism of Roman Catholicism. See — Fr. John Strickland]. Since the Enlightenment, almost all atheists have advocated state secularism, which has been one of the great triumphs of Western civilization. It is important to remember, however, that the history of Western atheism is not the history of global atheism. Despite the growth of atheism, suspicion, and even fear, of atheists remains widespread.”
The New Atheists: An Eastern Orthodox Critique
— “The new atheists criticize Christianity according to assumptions that are native to the Western understanding of religion. Those assumptions — theological, ecclesiological, and even anthropological and cosmological — originate in the occidental Middle Ages. The new atheists (and all atheists) are unwilling to confess that their worldview is indebted to Western Christian thought; indeed, their atheism is product of this religion.
There would be no science without it.
Moreover, the new atheists are ignorant of what we call Eastern Christianity (Eastern Orthodoxy). If they knew that truth was not the product of reason, they would have encountered God, the one true God, not the abstract deity (supreme being) of Western thought. Unfortunately, the argument of theists delineated in public debates only strengthens the position of the new atheists. In himself, God is unknown and unknowable. We know him because he reveals himself to those who seek him, that is, the Holy Trinity. Of course, the knowledge of God is not cognitive but gnostic, spiritual knowledge, something impossible for materialists.
Also, the new atheists examine the nature and history of the church with false assumptions derived from the history of the West. They a priori deny the existence of the supernatural and, therefore, the validity of the gospel, spoken and written. Into all this is thrown a false theology and, therefore, of Incarnate Lord and his place in history.
And, of course, the new atheists have no knowledge of the Eastern Church for no other reason than that they deny the supernatural, holding that all forms of Christianity are fundamentally the same and that access to God and his will comes to the holy.”
Atheism and the Experience of God [1], [2]
Christian Nationalism is the New New Atheism
ALL atheist arguments answered in 10 minutes | YouTube
Reacting to atheist posts/memes | YouTube
I’m not a believer, but there’s a distinction between being a believing Christian and being a cultural Christian. — Richard Dawkins Every living thing seeks love: man, animals and plants. All people seek God and long for Him, regardless of whether they are believers or unbelievers. Some people call themselves atheists, but they do not know that in their hearts they long after God. For when someone yearns for justice, love and truth, he is really yearning after God. All people long for love that never changes and justice that is always the same. All living things long for God. The only difference is that some oppose Him and others don’t, some yearn after Him consciously while others are not aware that their yearning is really after God. — Elder Thaddeus of Serbia, Our Thoughts Determine our Lives Chapter Eleven: On The Faith, 6. pp 148-9
Christianity
Christianity | Wikipedia
See— Protestantism, Catholicism, Orthodoxy
Overview
Not the best, but better than nothing —
Every Religion Explained in 4 Minutes
How EACH Christian denomination formed
All Christian denominations explained in 12 minutes
What each Christian denomination believes (in under 10 minutes)
The best thing about each Christian denomination
Every HERESY explained in 9 minutes
Every SIN explained in 10 minutes
Every Church Father explained in 10 minutes
The best thing about each Christian denomination
— The Orthodox Church is The Church as legacy of Pentecost and the apostles, not yet another Christian “denomination”.
Baptists —
“Personal Relationship” with God
Believer‘s Baptism, baptism as sign of personal conversion experience, how Jesus changes people’s lives
Individual Bible study
Methodists —
True faith must be spiritually active
Service to others (helping the poor, working for justice in the world)
All Christians are soldiers for God’s Kingdom
Use Kingdom, military, analogies often (e.g. The Salvation Army, started by Methodists)
Presbyterians —
Intellectual approach
Believe God gave us brains to use to undersand and worship God, and to study the things of God
Also like to study God’s creation in fields of math and science
Founded important universities, e.g. Princeton
Try to creat intellectually stimulating worship environment (very formal and calm worship style, old church library)
One of several types of Calvinist churches
Dutch Reformed —
Agree with Presbyterians on almost everything,
Have even more intellectual approach to theology
Congregationalists —
Similar to Presbyterians
More simple style for focus on God without distractions,br>
Descended from the Puritans, believed God in control of everything
Lutherans —
Focus on the Gospel
Distinguish between the law and the gospel
Law says do, gospel says done
Gospel brings salvation, purpose of law only to show need for salavation
Salvation by faith alone, nothing we can do to be saved
God gives the gospel in the sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion
Forgiveness of sins proclaimed, then given in sacraments
Create sacred worship environment
Have the best music
Catholics —
Institution of the church is the kingdom of God on Earth
Role of church is to make Christianity visible to the world
Founded some of most important hospitals and universities
Created some of the best art and music
Medieval Catholic thinkers laid groundwork for modern science
Most charitiable organization in the world, promote good morals
Anglicanism —
Melting pot of different Christian traditions
As ornate and beautiful as the Catholic Church
Sermons as passionate as Protestant ones
When founded, couldn’t decide between Catholic or Reformed, so became a middle way
A lot of diversity of faith
Orthodox —
Reverence for tradition
Rejection of corruption of the modern world
Showcases the beauty of traditon
Faith handed down from apostles themselves
Kept the fire of Pentecost going throughout time
Connection to the past literally plastered all over the walls
Tradition of painting icons under Church domes
Show great cloud of witnesses looking down from heaven
Oriental Orthodox —
Have shown Christian humility and forgiveness throughout centuries of persecution
Spent most of their existence as islands of Christianity in a vast sea of Islam
Suffered a lot of persecution over the years which has refined faith as fire refines gold
Some of the most kind and humble people
Connected but developed differently with unique characteristics
Coptic church has heritage of Saint Athanasius, most important saint for Christian theology
Armenian Apostolic Church - Armenia first country to make Christianity the state religion
Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church supposedly has the real Ark of the Covenant, not allowed to see
Syriac Orthodox Church probably survived the most intense persecution
Pentecostalism —
Best at focusing on the Holy Spirit
Person of the Trinity talked about least; problematic because every aspect of faith is only down by power of Holy Spirit
Fastest growing form of Christianity
Moravians —
Focus on being warriors for Christ
Started before Martin Luther was even born
Have a lot of missions
Focus on community
Assyrian Church —
More obscure group, cut off from the rest of Christianity for most of history
Have planted seeds of Christianity in non-Christian lands
Brought Christianity to China as early as the 600s
Salvation History
Christian worldview is biblically based — the historical perspective of the One, True Living God and His Providence, His provision for humanity and All Creation.
Human history, and all history, is properly “His Story”, the story of Him, of the Living God and His revelation of Himself to humanity, and of His plan of salvation for humanity and All Creation.
Looking at History from God's Perspective
— “The true interpretation of history is God's interpretation.”
Adventuring Through The Bible - Home Edition Biblical Timeline (see table below)
The Five Key Covenants God Makes With Humans in the Bible
Partnerships Between God and People
History and the Biblical Worldview
Biblical Timeline Overview
Bible History Timeline
Outline of Biblical History
The Bible Timeline
Looking at History from God's Perspective
When Bible History and Ancient History Meet Face to Face | The Mystery of History
Synchronicity & Divine Providence
| TIME | EVENT | BIBLE |
|---|---|---|
| 0 BC | Creation of the World | Genesis 1 |
| Creation of humanity | Genesis 2-3 | |
| Birth of Adam & Eve's sons Cain & Abel, first murder of Abel by Cain | Genesis 4 | |
| Cain builds a city | Genesis 4:17-18 | |
| Cain‘s descendent Tubal-Cain becomes father of technology (blacksmith) | Genesis 4:22 | |
| 3000-2100 BC | Noah, the Flood, Noahic Covenant: God promises never again to destroy Creation by flood, Construction of the Tower of Babel *WORLD EVENTS: Rise of the Egyptian dynasties and Mesopotamian civilizations of Sumer, Elam, Akkad, the Amorites, Assyria, the Hittites, and Chaldea (Babylonia) |
Genesis 6-11 |
| 2100 BC | God calls Abram out of Ur in Chaldea (Modern Iraq) and leads him to Canaan (modern Israel/Palestine), changes his name to Abraham, and makes Abrahamic Covenant with him promising he will be father of a great, enduring nation *WORLD EVENTS: Bronze Age and the Old Kingdom in Ancient Egypt |
Genesis 11-25 |
| 2000 BC | Birth of Abraham’s son Isaac *WORLD EVENTS: Age of the Pharaohs in Egypt, and Minoan civilization in Crete; writing of The Epic of Gilgamesh in Mesopotamia |
Genesis 21-35 |
| 2000 BC | Birth of Isaac’s son Jacob (father of the 12 tribes of Israel) who steals birthright from his brother Esau | Genesis 26-49 |
| 1800 BC | Life of Joseph, son of Jacob, sold into slavery in Egypt by his brothers, where he eventually achieves prominence as prime minister; Joseph saves his father Isaac, and his brothers from a famine by inviting them to move from Canaan to Egypt where he provides for them | Genesis 37-50 |
| 1450-1400 BC | Moses leads the Israelites in their exodus out of Egypt to Mt. Sinai, where God establishes Mosaic Covenant giving His people the law (Ten Commandments, Exodus 19-24), the tabernacle, and the ark of the covenant, then on to the border of Canaan, but because of disobedience the nation of Israel is made to return to the desert and wander for 40 years, ending with the death of Moses | Exodus & Deuteronomy Exodus 2: Birth of Moses Exodus 3: God speaks to Moses from the Burning Bush Exodus 7-12: Ten Plagues of Egypt Exodus 19-24: Mosaic Covenant (Ten Commandments) |
| 1400 BC | Joshua leads Israel in the invasion and conquest of Canaan (the promised land), thereby establishing Israel as a sovereign nation | Joshua |
| 1375-1050 BC | Israel is ruled by judges whom God sends to deliver Israel from oppression of surrounding nations *WORLD EVENTS: Rise of civilization in India and the Trojan War begins |
Judges & Ruth Judges & Messianic Hope |
| 1050 BC | Time of judges ends; Saul becomes Israel’s first king and reigns about 40 years *WORLD EVENTS: Destruction of Troy, 1020 BC |
1 Samuel 8-15 |
| 1010 BC | Davidic Covenant; David becomes king of Israel and expands the territory of the nation. He reigns for about 40 years *WORLD EVENTS: Iron Age begins; rice cultivated in Japan; development of Chavin culture in the Andes of South America; world population estimated at 50 million |
1 Samuel 16-31; 2 Samuel & 2 Chronicles |
| 998 BC | King David establishes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital city | |
| 970 BC | Solomon becomes king of Israel and reigns 40 years; constructs the first temple and dramatically expands the power, splendor, and global influence of Israel as a nation *WORLD EVENTS: The rise of the Mayan dynasties in Central America |
1 Kings 1-11; 2 Chronicles 1-9 |
| 940 BC | Completiion of first temple by Solomon | |
| 931 BC | Solomon dies in Jerusalem; his son Rehoboam is unable to hold the nation together; Israel divides innto northern kingdom (Israel) and southern kingdom (Judah, including Jerusalem; the 2 kingdoms exist in a perpetual state of war against each other | 1 Kings 12-22; 2 Kings; 2 Chronicles 10-36 |
| 850 BC | *WORLD EVENTS: Homer writes The Iliad and The Odyssey | |
| 750 BC | Book of Amos (likely the first prophetic book of the Old Testament) is written during reign of Jeroboam II; events in book of Jonah take place; books of Isaiah, Hosea, and Micah are written sometime around mid-700s BC *WORLD EVENTS: City of Rome (and Roman Empire) founded in 753 BC |
|
| 722 BC | Assyrians attack the Northern Kingdom of Israel, brutally torturing, raping, and slaughtering many Israelites; majority of those who survive are exiled to live in other nations *WORLD EVENTS: Sparta conquers Messenia in 725 BC; Upanishads (Hindu philosophy) are written in India around 700 BC |
2 Kings 18 |
| 600s BC | Prophecies of Jeremiah, Obadiah, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah are recorded *WORLD EVENTS: Laws of Solon and Aesop’s Fables are written in Greece |
|
| 612 BC | Babylon conquers Nineveh, capital of the Assyrian Empire, in fulfillment of a prophecy spoken by the prophet Nahum | |
| 500s BC | Prophecies of Daniel, Ezekiel, and Joel are written *WORLD EVENTS: Ionian Greek philosopher and mathematician Pythagoras (after whom the Pythagorean theorem is named) travels to Egypt, Arabia, India, and Babylon seeking knowledge; some historians blieve Pythagoras studied under the exiled prophet Ezekiel in Babylon |
|
| 597 BC | Babylon, under leadership of King Nebuchadnezzar, attacks Judah, pillages Jerusalem and the temple, and disperses about 10,000 Jews throughout the Babylon Empire; one captive is the prophet Ezekiel, who declares that God has allowed Babylon to punish Judah because of the nation’s unfaithfulness to Him | 2 Kings 24; Ezekiel |
| 587 BC | Babylon’s second attack against the nation of Judah; the city and what remains of Solomon’s temple are destroyed, and more Jews are deported to Babylon (2nd Babylonian Exile) | 2 Kings 25 |
| 583 BC | Gedaliah, Babylonian-appointed governor of Judea, is assassinated. Possible third deportation of Jews to Babylon. Many ews flee to Egypt instead | 2 Kings 25 |
| 539 BC | *WORLD EVENTS: Cyrus the Great and the Persians conquer Nabonidus and the Neo-Babylonian Empire—thereby establishing the Medo-Persian Empire. | |
| 538 BC | Cyrus decrees that Jews in Babylon may return to Jerusalem to rebuild their home; Though Judah is now a province of the Medo-Persian Empire, Cyrus permits more freedom (including religious freedom) than Babylonians allowed *WORLD EVENTS: Confucius lived in China 551-479 BC |
2 Chronicles 26; Ezra, Nehemiah, and Esther |
| 536 BC | Construction of the second temple begins. Prophecies of Zechariah and Haggai written. *WORLD EVENTS: Gautama Buddha founds the Buddhist religion in India in 528 BC. |
|
| 520-515 BC | Many Jews return to Judah under Zerubbabel and the high priest Joshua. Under their leadership, the foundations of the second temple are laid. | |
| 516 BC | Second temple dedicated and consecrated for worship seventy years after it was destroyed by the Babylonians. | |
| 500-400 BC | *WORLD EVENTS: The advent of the Persian Wars, the Peloponnesian War, and the influence of the orator Pericles in Athens (447-438 BC), and the lives of Socrates, Plato, and Euripides all take place during the fifth century BC. | |
| 420 BC | Prophecy of Malachi written. | |
| 333 BC | *WORLD EVENTS: Greece, under Alexander the Great, defeats the Medo-Persian Empire, bringing Israel under Greek control leading to the Hellenization (Greek influence) of Jewish culture. | |
| 250 BC | The translation of the Septuagint (Greek language edition of the Old Testament Scriptures) begins in Alexandria, Egypt. The work of translation is carried out from the third to first centuries BC. *WORLD EVENTS: The rise of the Roman Republic. |
|
| 200-100 BC | First books of the Old Testament Apocrypha are written. *WORLD EVENTS: Establishment of the Han dynasty in China as Rome conquers Greece, Carthage, and Asia Minor. |
|
| 167-160 BC | *WORLD EVENTS: The revolt of the Maccabees, which brings about a period of Jewish independence and the establishment of the Hasmonean dynasty (164-63 BC). This period elevates the Jewish religion expands the land of Israel, and reduces Greek influence in the nation. | |
| 63 BC | *WORLD EVENTS: The Roman army, under Pompey the Great (Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus), lays siege to Jerusalem for three months. Twelve thousand Jews die and Jerusalem falls. The Roman Republic seizes control of Israel and the Hasmonean kingdom is dismantled. Remnants of the dynasty continue to rule as high priests of Judea. | |
| 3-5 BC | Jesus the Messiah is born in Bethlehem, as foretold by the prophets. He begins His public ministry around the age of thirty, at which time He begins to preach, prophesy, and perform miracles. After three years of ministry, Jesus presents himself in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday as the Messiah, the King of the Jews. A week later, He is falsely accused by His enemies, tried, and crucified outside of Jerusalem. On the third day after His death, He rises from the dead and is seen by many witnesses. In response, His followers begin spreading the good news about the resurrection across Israel and throughou the Roman world. | |
| AD 36-70 | The story and message of Jesus is orally transmitted in the early church. The great fire of Rome (AD 64) provides Emperor Nero with an opportunity to intensify the persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire. Peter is martyred around AD 67. | |
| AD 70 | The Roman army, under the leadership of Titus, destroys Jerusalem. To ensure there will be no uprising of the Jews, the Romans raze the temple built by Herod. The Jewish historian Josephus records that over one million Jews were slaughtered in the battle, and many more were led away in chains. | |
| AD 80 | The gospel of Matthew is written. | |
| AD 90-95 | The gospels of Luke and John, the three epistles of John, and the book of Revelation are written. The writing of the Bible, which began during the time of Moses, is no complete. From the opening chapters of Genesis to the final wordsof Revelation, this great book has one subject: Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, our Lord and Savior. |
Babylonian Exile 2 Kings, Daniel
Assyrian Conquest 2 Kings
Solomon
Divided Kingdom
Roman Captivity
New Covenant
Incarnation
Ministry
Transfiguration
Last Supper
Betrayal
Crucifixion
Resurrection
Ascension
Antichrist
Armageddon
Parousia
Final Judgement
Eternal Reign of The Kingdom of Heaven over all
Layout of the Bible —
Old Testament
Intertestamental Period — Second Temple period (516 BC-70 AD), age of Hellenistic Judaism
New Testament
The Messianic Covenant
— “The story of the Bible is the account of the accomplishment of God’s eternal plan, despite the fall, to form a people for eternal communion with Himself. That plan, of course, centers on the work, in time and space, of God’s own Son, who before the foundation of the world offered Himself as an obedient Son to redeem His chosen people. He who was eternally God the Son was born the Servant of the Lord (Isaiah), the head of his people (Paul), the representative of the new humanity.
The Messianic covenant was established in order to undo the consequences of the breaking of Adam’s covenant, by restoring man to fellowship with God through identification with the second Adam in his death and resurrection. By union with Christ, the great covenant keeper, man may again experience union and communion with his Maker and Redeemer.
Already in the delay of final judgment on Adam and his seed in Genesis 3 we observe the grace of God in operation. This ‘common’ grace of God is the prologue to the proto-evangelium in Genesis 3:15, which offers the first intimation in Scripture that God will intervene and Himself provide another Adam — the Son of Man, the Last Adam.
In Romans 5:12–21, Paul draws an analogy between the first and second Adams. He declares that Adam is the federal head of the human race, and that ‘through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, for that all sinned’ (Rom. 5:12).”
The Church as Israel
— This is not “Replacement Theology”
Messianic Confusion Delusion —
Should Christians Support Israel?
The Eight Covenants of the Bible
New Religious Movements
New religious movement | Wikipedia
The Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements
Mormonism
See — Gnosticism, Christian Heresy
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah‘s Witnesses | Wikipedia
JWs deny the divinity of Christ — modern day reincarnation of 4th century heresy of Arianism.
See — Christian Heresy
New Thought
New Thought | Wikipedia
— “modern-day adherents of New Thought share some core beliefs:
God or Infinite Intelligence is "supreme, universal, and everlasting";
divinity dwells within each person, that all people are spiritual beings;
"the highest spiritual principle [is] loving one another unconditionally... and teaching and healing one another"; and
"our mental states are carried forward into manifestation and become our experience in daily living".”
Christian Science | Wikipedia
Unity Church | Wikipedia
Church of Divine Science | Wikipedia
Religious Science (Science of the Mind) | Wikipedia
Focolare Movement
Focolare Movement | Wikipedia
The Practice and Meaning of Communitarian Spirituality in the Focolare Movement
Cults
See — The Bruderhof, Crises, Ron Jones, Ayn Rand, Cult of Ayn Rand, Cult of Celebrity
Anti-cult movement | Wikipedia
Knots: A Forced Marriage Story
Christian Patriarchy Movement
The Patriarchy Movement: Five Areas of Grave Concern
Spiritual Abuse in the Christian Patriarchy Movement
Checklist of Cult Characteristics
Cults and Cultism in American Religion
BITE Marks — left by blood sucking cult leaders
Jen Kiaba
The Illusion of Choice
What’s so bad about growing up in a cult? Lessons on Leaving — Important!
— “According to Alexandra Stein, author of “Terror Love and Brainwashing: Attachment in Cults and Totalitarian Systems,” the grooming process to lure someone into a cultic group is also very similar to the grooming process seen with domestic violence. The victim may be subjected to “love bombing,” a process of inundating a person with adoration and attention, which can trick them into thinking they have found a safe space. But then the switch occurs, where the abuser begins to isolate the victim from their friends and family, and a person is then engulfed in a new, abusive system. Now, when someone is born into this abusive system, they are born within that isolation.
According to Stein that isolation within the abusive system paves the way for “terror” tactics to be utilized. This can range from the abuser threatening the victim, teaching them to fear the outside world, instilling the fear of an apocalyptic event, or causing the victim to walk on eggshells in fear of being criticized by the leader or the group.
Stein says, “I believe attachment theory provides a good theoretical approach for understanding brainwashing, and it holds that people run to a safe haven when they are afraid. If the group has been successful, the recruit, now having had fear instilled by the group, runs to the only safe haven available—the group itself.”
With children in the cultic system, I believe that there is another layer to this. Oftentimes parents are in the position of abuser, or allow for others within the cult abuse the children. In my case other adults and second generation members acted as abusers when my parents weren’t present. When children have been programmed with “terror” tactics from a young age, it means that they are that much more likely to run to the “safe haven” of the abusive parents/members and the cultic system.”
Attachment theory | Wikipedia
Alexandra Stein Ph.D. Understanding Cults and Extremist Groups
Terror, Love and Brainwashing: Attachment in Cults and Totalitarian Systems | Amazon
Second-Generation Religious Cult Survivors: Implications for Counselors
Cyndi H. Matthews
International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA)
Janja Lalich | Wikipedia
Dr. Janja Lalich — Cults, Extremism, & Undue Influence | About
Promoting a deeper, more accurate understanding of cults with the intent to avoid their manipulation, exploitation, and abuse.
Bounded Choice: True Believers and Charismatic Cults | Amazon
Steven Hassan | Wikipedia
The Definitive Guide to Helping People Trapped in a Cult
— Learn how to help friends and family being influenced by harmful cults.
Freedom of Mind Resource Center
The BITE Model of Authoritarian Control: Undue Influence, Thought Reform, Brainwashing, Mind Control, Trafficking and the Law
Combating Cult Mind Control: The #1 Best-selling Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults | Amazon, Wikipedia
Freedom of Mind: Helping Loved Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults, and Beliefs | Amazon
Cult Education Institute — Index
Cults Inside Out — Rick Alan Ross
Rick Alan Ross is one of the leading experts on cults in the world today. He has consulted with the FBI, the BATF, and various other law enforcement agencies, as well as the governments of Israel and China, on the topic of cults.He has been qualified and accepted as an expert court witness in eleven different states, including the US federal court. He has also worked as a professional analyst for CBS News, CBC of Canada, and Nippon and Asahi in Japan.
Recovery from Cults: Help for Victims of Psychological and Spiritual Abuse | Amazon, Wikipedia, Book Review
Rebecca Davis Trauma informed author and book coach who helps abuse victims heal and tell their story
Cult membership: What factors contribute to joining or leaving?
How to talk someone out of a damaging cult
How To Leave A Cult — Spoiler alert: it isn't easy.
How to Avoid Cults That May Try to Convert You
Cult Thinking (And How To Avoid It) — 10 Ways to Make Double Sure You're Not In a Cult
How to protect yourself from mind control techniques and cult recruitment (it’s not as far-fetched as you think)
Eight steps to mind control: How cults suck ordinary people in
Recognizing and Combating Cults
Psychotherapy with Former Cult Members
Dr. Natalie Feinblatt Compassionate Addiction & Trauma Therapy
How to Leave a Cult: Tips to Get Your Life Back
healingwithdrnatalie | Instagram
EnCourage Survivors of Cults and Abuse
How To Investigate Destructive Cults and Underground Groups: An Investigator's Manual
Paul Morantz | Wikipedia
Escape: My Life Long War Against Cults | Amazon
— Paul Morantz is an attorney living in Pacific Palisades, CA. His legal career focuses almost exclusively on the issues of cults and brainwashing. He is the only attorney ever certified to testify in court as an expert witness on these subjects.
Paul Morantz dies; L.A. attorney nearly killed when cult planted rattlesnake in his mailbox
SLG Skolnik Legal Group
Free Speech and Cultic Litigation Interview With Attorney Peter Skolnik
A front for legislative defense to protect cults, under guise of “religious liberty” —
Bitter Winter
— A magazine on religious liberty and human rights
Dissolve the Anti-Cult Lawyer Group, Not the Unification Church. 1. Attorneys Against Religious Liberty
The Problems with Elder-Rule Church Government
— “... First, the initial elders in an Elder-Rule church government appoint themselves to be elders; they are not appointed by a higher authority. Any additional elders appointed by these initial elders are appointed by what I consider to be an illegitimate process, since at no point was there a higher authority which appointed the initial elders. The initial elders were not appointed by a higher authority and had no authority given to them by which they could appoint additional elders.
This poses a problem which some elders in Elder-Rule churches seek to address by claiming they were given their authority by God himself and are accountable to God directly. In my opinion, claims like these are the exclusive right of the apostles [apostolic succession]. One might ask, of both the apostles and Elder-Rule elders, “When did God give you this authority?” The apostles might answer, in the Eleven’s case, by pointing to the Great Commission. In Paul’s case, he can point to his meeting with Christ on the Damascus road and his recognition by the other apostles. Elders today who claim to have been given their authority by God will never have as convincing a story of when they were given this authority. ...”
Post-Cult Recovery and Forgiveness
— “When I think back over the beliefs and behaviors of the leaders I followed, I see people who, fundamentally, don’t know what they’re doing. They don’t know how to honestly assess themselves. They don’t know how to relate to people with kindness and patience. They don’t know how to respond to criticism without defensiveness and manipulation. They are not happy people and their lives don’t seem to be going in positive directions. Perhaps, on the surface, when they interact with people who venerate them, it seems like all is well. But if you have come into conflict, big or small, with people like this, you have met their interior brokenness and likely been hurt by it.
I don’t have the power, knowledge, or love to bring my former leaders to account. The work involved to heal their antisocial pathologies is beyond anything I have the capability to accomplish. Even the work involved to expose them to their followers would be monumental. So, the only option I have left is very similar to Jesus’. I have to entrust my claims for justice and accountability to a person who actually has the ability to bring about both: my heavenly Father.
In this place, where I’d tend toward hoping for punishment and retribution, I see Jesus’ heart for forgiveness and healing. It is God’s heart for harmful people who don’t know what they’re doing that they repent and become whole.
I don’t think this means minimizing the harm abusive people do to others. In fact, I think doing so prevents forgiveness from happening by taking away the need for forgiveness. I’ve seen friends and family fight to blind themselves from the harm they or other people have suffered in an effort, I believe, to shield themselves from the world’s fallenness. ...”
μετάνοια (Greek: metanoia): repentance; a change of mind, a reorientation, a fundamental transformation of outlook, of man's vision of the world and of himself, and a new way of loving others and God
Gaslighting | Sandstone Care
— [G]aslighting is “the act or practice of grossly misleading someone, especially for one’s own advantage.”
Gaslighting is a form of psychological manipulation and type of ABUSE that makes a person question their own reasoning and sanity.
A gaslight apology is an apology given that often appears sincere but the person is actually not taking any responsibility for what they have caused.
Gaslighting | Psychology Today
— Gaslighting is an insidious form of manipulation and psychological control. Victims of gaslighting are deliberately and systematically fed false information that leads them to question what they know to be true, often about themselves. ...
Who becomes a gaslighter?
Those who employ this tactic often have a PERSONALITY DISORDER [aka mental illness], narcissistic personality disorder and psychopathy chief among them. Manipulators have a tendency to present one face to their prey and another to the rest of the world, leading victims to assume that if they ask for help or speak out, no one will believe that they have been manipulated and emotionally ABUSED. Gaslighters typically repeat the tactics across several relationships.
How to Turn the Tables on a Gaslighter
— 10 Avoid falling for their “love bombing” tactics.
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