When I received training in HUMINT (Human Intellience) Operations, much of this information is covered because leaders of "cells" or "groups" display many of the same characteristics. An obvious goal is to seek them out through knowing what to look for, who to target, and knowing who to has "talent" as we referred to it. It is these types of people who coerce normal folks in their communities to do abnormal things. Example, Former Yugoslavia and the "Ethnic Cleansing" that was carried out there, not only by Military leaders, but by neighbors cleansing neighbors so to speak.

Sorry for the length, I didn't write it.



Profile of a Cult Leader - Peter A Olsson, MD

With the advent of easy computer access, and online communications, people from all walks of life and all over the world have been brought together in an unprecedented-before-in-human-history forum to exchange information, ideas and beliefs. There have been many wonderful benefits and opportunities for people from all different backgrounds and walks of life to share and grow. There are extensive online fellowships and discussion groups, nowhere more proliferate than among the religious community. This has resulted in some fresh exchange of ideas and comparing of interpretations of scriptures that has generated an enlightening unprecedented since the first-century assembly. This is to be greatly respected.

There is a dark side to the internet fellowship however. Especially among religious fellowships, due to the scriptural injunctions to love sacrificially, be forgiving and giving and mutually submit to each other, there has been a distressing tendency for internet ministries to arise that couch their agendas in such flowery and loving prose, and such profoundly esoteric interpretations of scripture that the propensities for spiritual abuse are often very subtle and difficult to see on the surface. When we think of cults and spiritual abuse, we tend to think of groups like the Branch Davidians, Heaven’s Gate, and Jim Jones, and they were some dramatic examples. They were easy to spot and their errors easy to discern. What is happening in many cases now, however; is far more subtle, and, emotionally at least-far more dangerous. For you see, there are groups now that take scripture and use it as a weapon to destroy their victims’ ability to discern what is true and right, using guilt, fear and manipulation/intimidation so subtly and couched in such religious terms, that one can fall prey to the dogma almost before one knows it. And the red flags that come up in the early relationship with such a spiritually abusive leader are explained away, very plausibly it seems, with a glib tossing out of scripture verses and personal revelations.

The purpose of this article is not to point at any one group, but rather to point to distinguishing characteristics of such groups, focusing on the leaders. It is a truism, that a cultic group will have one charismatic leader, only one, and while that one may claim accountability to a governing body of some sort, most often, when that governing body is examined, it is a small group of people under the direct control of the group leader. This is not possible to determine on the internet. Only with personal knowledge can one really ever know the reality of the configuration of any online ministry. It is not difficult for a tiny group with a handful of people to be presented as a world-wide organization with congregations all over the place, on the basis of internet communication. I will state one thing emphatically. A group leader who cannot establish or state objectively and publicly who he is accountable to is very likely a controlling leader with strong cultic tendencies. The rest of this essay will be to list and illuminate some common characteristics of cultic type leaders as pertains particularly to religious groups.

1)Personal charm and ability to use language and words with consummate skill to sway others to one’s own dogma. The potentially cultic leader is most usually a master at word usage, usually highly intelligent, often highly educated. He can manipulate words and contexts with such skill that the listener is either so confused by his rhetoric that he feels he must be the one who is deficient, or he can explain away contradictory behaviors or ideas so convincingly that one wonders why one ever doubted. He can turn a phrase to the degree that he can deliver a blistering and invalidating reprimand, and make the victim feel like it is done in genuine love and concern for the well-being of the victim. Word and language usage is the PRIMARY tool of the cultic leader, the goal being to emotionally and verbally destroy any critic that cannot be swayed to his way of thinking.

2)Emotionally manipulative. While appearing to be sacrificial and loving, a cultic leader will manipulate the emotions of the victim to the place where anything he does or says is warranted and acceptable. Domination and humiliation are the goals of this manipulative behavior. The emotionally manipulative leader strives to control his victims’ emotional responses to his behavior and pronouncements, usually with the induction of guilt. In many religious leaders, this guilt induction and fear is almost always couched in the threat of loss of favor with Yahweh. Such leaders have no compunction about manipulating the dissident or questioning group member into believing that their salvation is at stake if they do not obey them in particular. By implying; that if you do not honor them, your salvation and standing with Yahweh is at stake. This is the stock in trade of the cult leader, guilt if you question, and threat of loss of salvation.

3)The cultic leader has an inflated and grandiose sense of self. He styles himself a prophet and apostle, Messiah’s personal representative on earth, a ruler of grand proportions. They may claim humility and a servant’s heart, but you will find most of their rhetoric obsessively concentrating on their own personal obtaining and maintenance of power and authority. Again, in religious abusive groups, the leaders tend to have a vision of being grand rulers and kings in the Resurrection, and desire, more than anything, to begin that totality in this life. They genuinely feel they are entitled to adoration and total obedience and control of all those in their sphere. The histrionics are obvious with these stereotypical leaders. If they can't have their way they throw an absolute temper tantrum until they get their way.

4)Most cultic leaders have a tendency toward pathological lying. This is so unpleasant that many times, they completely convince themselves of their own lies. They can create and completely buy into a belief system about their own powers and abilities and an unusual phenomenon particular to the internet is the development of whole fictitious personas in the guise of online security. Now, I am not talking about pseudonyms and the guarding of physical location and personal details. One leader of an online ministry has developed fictitious personas complete with personal biographies and histories and plays the characters out as though they were real when presenting online. These leaders have an inability to see or admit the truth even when caught in a lie….there are always extenuating circumstances and viable reasons for their deceits. Another side of this characteristic is to take something that is basically true and combine it with the fabrications to present an aura of credibility. While more subtle, it is, nevertheless, just another side of the deceit coin. They are not beyond plagiarism either! They will obtain other people's writings, make some changes and then use their own name as the author of the stolen work!

5)A defining characteristic of cult leaders is the fact that, no matter what pain or destruction their actions towards others has brought, there is absolutely no shame, remorse or guilt on their part for the consequences of their actions. If they even give it thought, it is only how to rearrange the perspective on events to present themselves as justified and right in their actions. This is frequently combined with the penchant for deceit discussed above in fabricating plausible sounding explanations for their actions. A frequent justification is…”Yahweh told me to…..Yahweh told me not to…..” for all true believers, there is always a reluctance to deny what may well have been instruction from the Master, and these cult leaders know this. No matter what pain they cause others, they have it worked out how it is the victims’ fault, some deficiency on their part that led to their own suffering. Never is it the cult leaders fault the pain and suffering he causes.

6)The cultic leader tends to have very shallow emotions, very insecure. This characteristic is particularly difficult to detect in online communication, for, despite the dearth of real, heartfelt, emotions, the cult leader with the gift of gab frequently presents as eminently loving, gentle, kind and concerned, especially with those he is trying to develop control over. He presents his demands for control as being only in the very best interest of his victims and presents himself as sacrificially taking such control out of love and commitment. This is almost impossible to see clearly online, except in exceptional circumstances, due to the inability to see this person in actual day-to-day interactions with those around him, and due to the inability to see body language and hear tonal inflections in his voice. He can convince his followers that he loves them unconditionally, but that love, if experienced in truth at all, is conditional solely on his victims’ total acceptance of his domination.

7)There is a tendency for this type of leader to be incredibly callous about the pain and distress of his victim, having no regard for the feelings of the victim. In religious groups with this type of leader, there is great emphasis placed on the unreliability of feelings and the necessity to overcome them, thereby invalidating everything the victim is suffering. A common ploy is for the victim to be told that his/her feelings are not valid because no one else feels that way. All the leader’s manipulative skills are utilized to exploit, control and gain power over the victim. Since the victims do not believe that the leader would intentionally hurt them, they rationalize, with the help of the leader, that the infliction of such pain is for their own good…or has some sort of “redemptive” purpose.

8)The cultic leader also tends to have an unrealistic life plan. You will not find such a person working a job during the week and leading the group on the weekends. His sole goal is to gain and consolidate his control of his group, and increase the size of said group. A frequent statement made by such leaders is….”Yahweh will provide….”.Donations from the group are encouraged, and in many groups, members are expected to donate everything they have to the group, utilizing scriptures describing communal living to support such demands. Only, in this type of group, resources are rarely apportioned according to need, but according to the leader’s perception of need. This leader tends to be highly sensitive to their health problems, and they complain often about it.

9)Contempt of those who do not understand him is almost a defining characteristic of the cultic leader. He makes it plain that in his view, those who either cannot understand the complex and usually very esoteric belief system, are flawed spiritually and nowhere near as worthy as he and those who follow him are. He claims to have exclusive revelation to the truth, and is convinced that those who do not share this same revelation are; blinded to truth, in error, or overtly demonized.

10) This leader does not conceive that there is anything at all wrong with him, that there is no possibility at all of error on his part. When confronted with obvious errors on his part, rage ensues and attacks on the credibility of the one voicing the errors are common tactics. And anger plays a monumental part of their character composition. This becomes a tool that the cult leader uses to control their members. In internet groups, such a person will never discuss differences in ideology or areas where his error could be brought out into the open in one on one discussion. This cult leader type, are usually able to maintain their own sense of infallibility without having to answer errors brought out by others.

11) In a cultic environment, the leader almost always evidences a strong, secretive paranoia…..seeing or fearing persecution from all quadrants. They are unusually obsessed about their position and will usually be given to temper tantrums when challenged. There always tends to be secret revelations, secret texts, and secret insights he will share with no one outside the group; the common reason given is the scriptural injunction not to cast one’s pearls before swine. Perhaps the greatest fear of such a leader is that, with exposure to the light, his pet paradigms will be shown for the esoteric creations that they are. Publicly, they give voice to holding to the accepted canons and dogma of the word, but their secret revelations hold far more sway in their minds and beliefs.

12) The goal of the cult leader is total enslavement of the victims. In mind controlling cults, scriptures commanding submission are used to totally dominate and control the victims’ actions, thoughts and beliefs. Victims are repeatedly and emphatically told that they must yield totally to the leader, to throw themselves at his feet. One leader even proposes bowing and prostration and the kissing of his feet from his followers as a sign of total surrender. This is presented as a direct command from Yahweh, and takes the biblical description of authority to such a level that the leader is left with total control of all aspects of the victims’ lives. The victims are then conditioned to believe that only in such total surrender to the leader will they truly be free or happy.

We see, from the characteristics shown above, that there is a definite pattern of thought and behavior for the cultic leader. The underlying purpose for every action and word is power. Language is the chief tool of the cultic leader and he uses it to dominate, control and manipulate those around him. In mind controlling religious cults, the leaders show consummate skill in manipulating scriptures with the sole purpose of consolidating their control over their victims. The induction of guilt and the induction of fear of condemnation are the chief weapons in the cult leader’s arsenal.

An easy determinant of whether or not a group has a cultic and abusive leader is to observe his actions toward one who has left the group. If those who leave remain quiet, and do not voice their knowledge of the workings of the group, the leader concocts his stories about why the person left, and will leave it at that. If, however, the person speaks up about the abuses he suffers, or tries to impart that information to another person who is at risk for the same type of treatment, that person is immediately demonized. Character assassination, interspersed with a voiced concern for the escapee’s spiritual (or mental) health, follows. Since the facts coming out cannot be refuted, the leader resorts to ad hominem attacks and immediately counsels others in his sphere of influence not to have contact with the vocal escapee.

In conclusion; attempts by any group leader to question your salvation, induce feelings of guilt in you, or coerce you into unscriptural actions that you are uncomfortable with is very possibly a spiritually abusive group. Particularly with internet groups, the potential for deceit and error is great. Always do backgrounds check on the leader and ask for organization documentation. Make these leaders prove their ordination(s) and origin of order. Who ordained them, what were their names, where did this group originate. Prove all things. I pray that the information here will be a tool for readers to assist in rational discernment about the real motives and intentions of any such group or leader they may come in contact with.

Blessings
Shannon

[NotFinishedYet]

Shannon: THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR POSTING THIS!!!!


Though I have joked on the "Indoctrination of our Youth" thread about the insane minister who performed my wedding, I am quite serious about what happened. It was a Jim Jones situation in the making (even same denom at the same time). And I thank God He opened my eyes to what was going on and helped my husband and I take a stand against him as he tried a power play in that church. Long story, I won't tell it here.

But it is important as Christians that we learn the difference between correcting in love and manipulation/controlling actions to bend the will. It is only God's will we should bend to. We must be careful in our actions to do all teachings via the Spirit of love, and when we feel someone is going beyond that; to speak out.

Unfortunately, most of us have been taught submission, guilt, even questions of allegiance or faith in our religious lives when we don't accept the teachings of "leaders". We sit back and watch as others are destroyed in the name of God when what is going on sometimes is mind control. The object often is to wear someone down and make them conform. Making people feel unworthy, subtle or not so subtle abuse, continual correction are signs of an issue IMO. And it's hard to act when we've been so well trained into submitting like sheep. However, I think God wants us to be sheep hearing and being led by His voice, not sheep being led off to the slaughter.

We must stand guard against such things and support each other in our fellowship and learning. We must always discern the spirit of the message being presented and take a stand for God's truth as things speak against what our spirits say. If we lose one person from this forum due to this type of activity; I say shame on us all. But I'm kinda uppity and rebellious, aren't I?

Good post Shannon. Maybe it is just me, but aren't some of the "warning signs" common sense?

[Soulheart3]

Originally Posted by LewisM3

Good post Shannon. Maybe it is just me, but aren't some of the "warning signs" common sense?

My stepfather used to say "common sense isnt really all that common".

[christkid777]

I feel myself pulled in two directions by this. On the one hand I can see the benefit in the message presented. I am quite sure there are many such leaders seeking to bulk up their flocks for shearing. On the other hand I see that every church leader I have ever met suffered from at least several of the conditions enumerated. Though I like the idea of checking out the credentials of the leaders of an organization I see that ultimately the only people who could produce successive levels of accreditation would be the large mainstream churches most of us have chosen to leave behind. It leads me back around to centralized authority which is the only way I know to have real accountability. We don't trust men but we need to trust men. What a dilemma!

James, thanks for the repsonse and well put.

From a distance and at first glance, a goat and sheep can look simular. Clear line of site, getting up close, paying attention to the small features that makes the two totally different creatures.

Each having 4 legs is a large simularity, sometimes the same size, possibly the same color, it's the small things they don't have in common that is the key to decernment.

As Lewis said, it seems like common sense. Another said, common sense isn't so common.

Their "prey" isn't the person with 20/20 vision, it is the ones who don't see as well, or pay attenion to the small details.

Again, thanks James.
Blessings,
Shannon

[Amadeus]

The only way to identify a cult is to identify where it goes astray from the teachings of Jesus. The Holy Ghost will lead us if we recognize God's voice and then follow His lead. The identification is made by their fruits. If we are unable to identify fruits, good or evil fruits, we need to check our own connection with God.

If we do not have the necessary faith, then get into the Word of God:

"So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Rom 10:17

We must be able to recognize wolves who come to us in sheep's clothing, but not by the rules cited in the OP:

"Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire." Matt 7:15-19

Many of the fruits, good and evil are mentioned here:

"Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,

Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,

Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law." Gal 5:19-23

Good post shannon, thanks for the reminders.

Originally Posted by Soulheart3

My stepfather used to say "common sense isnt really all that common".

LOL....Good point and thanks for the chuckle...

In light of just reading something. Bumpity Bump.

Blessings,
Shannon