Cult News

A rather interesting group called “The Gentle Wind Project” (GWP) of Maine is being investigated by a nonprofit agency in California.

The Special Investigative Agency (SIA) announced at its website today that it has been asked to investigate the 20-year-old New England group, which provides “healing cards” to the public for rather hefty suggested donations.

SIA stated that they were “contacted by nearly four dozen people from across the United States and the United Kingdom reporting that…the ‘Gentle Wind Project’…bilked many out of thousands of dollars.”

John and Mary “Moe” Miller founded GWP. The Miller group manufactures so-called “instruments” in the form of cards and pucks, which they claim have healing powers.

SIA reported that these claims “are not supported by any scientific evidence.”

Dr. Robert S. Baratz, President of the National Council Against Health Fraud told the San Diego Union Tribune late last year, “They find people who are desperate and ingratiate themselves to these people and then take advantage of them down the road.”

SIA reports, “Experts we have talked to state there would be no value whatsoever in these instruments.”

Whatever result users subjectively feel can be ascribed to a sense of “emotional well being, but that would have nothing to do with the instrument itself.” SIA stated.

The suggested donations for GWP “instruments” can range from “$450.00 to $7,600.00.”

According to GWP their instruments are based upon “high-frequency temporal shifting, matrixed with millions of pre-defined etheric modifications operating in a vertically and horizontally oriented polarization.”

Dr. Baratz called this “gobbledygook…high sounding phrases that mean nothing.”

But the Millers say that they manufacture their instruments based upon knowledge they have received through “telepathic impressions in the form of engineering blueprints” from “a place outside this Earth and its astral system.”

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have not evaluated GWP’s instruments.

GWP claims that 3 million people around the world have used its instruments and that there are 12,000 “instrument keepers” in the United States, hundreds reside in California.

SIA says that its preliminary investigation “reveals that there are serious financial improprieties within the ‘nonprofit’ organization of the Gentle Wind Project.”

“It is our opinion that the Gentle Wind Project has made and is currently making a lot of money to support the extravagant lifestyle of their board of directors. All of this—at the cost of unsuspecting victims,” And SIA reports that it is now “putting a case together to submit to the US Attorney’s Office for review.”

Note: GWP has sued former members and various websites, including the Ross Institute (RI), for either linking to and/or posting comments made by former members. RI and myself are defendants in this action for linking to critical comments about GWP and also for giving GWP a “Flaming Website” award after the group attacked me personally on its website.

Tom Cruise is running in a relay today through LA as an “Olympic torchbearer,” honored for his so-called “humanitarian” work according to a Yahoo Press Release.

Samsung Electronics sponsored the actor citing his supposed “humanitarian” efforts through such organizations as “Applied Scholastics International,” “Hollywood Education and Literacy Project (HELP)” and “The New York Rescue Workers Detoxification Project.”

All these organizations have links to Scientology.

So isn’t Cruise really just shilling for Scientology rather than acting as a “humanitarian”? And running the relay as part of his ongoing personal marathon promoting the controversial church?

One example is the actor’s support of so-called “detoxification.”

Recently the star said, “It’s been almost three years since the attacks [on the World Trade Center] and thousands are still suffering”

The former “Top Gun” turned “Last Samurai” has opened “detoxification facilities” under the banner of the “NY Rescue Workers Detoxification Project,” which is based upon the teachings of L. Ron Hubbard founder of the Church of Scientology.

Cruise’s sister/spokesperson and fellow Scientologist says her brother “will open several more of the facilities through the rest of the year” reported Agence France-Presse.

However, the claims that form the basis for treatment at the clinics Cruise promotes were recently described as “irresponsible” and “pseudo-science,” then subsequently shunned by public schools in California reported the San Francisco Chronicle.

“We’re not going to have cults and religions preaching their line in our schools,” said a California Board of Education President.

The “preaching” he’s talking about is through school programs sponsored by Narconon, another project linked to Scientology.

The key concept behind Narconon treatment, just like Cruise’s clinics, is that the body somehow stores toxins indefinitely in fat. Scientologists preach that these poisons can be purged through a combination of sweating in a sauna along with doses of niacin and cooking oil.

Medical experts publicly repudiated this theory and were quoted at length within the San Francisco Chronicle.

This specific course of treatment is commonly called the “purification rundown,” which is a Scientology religious rite repackaged for sale through various programs linked to the controversial church, such as the Cruise sponsored project in New York.

Cruise tells rescue workers they can rid themselves of toxins picked up by working at Ground Zero trough the “rundown.”

But this approach is “not grounded in science,” a drug counselor told the San Francisco Chronicle.

The Narconon program in California, just like the clinics Cruise touts, claim that residual toxins exit the body in colored ooze.

A California medical doctor dismissed this claim and stated, “I’m not aware of any data that show that going into a sauna detoxifies you from toxins of any kind. ”

But for Mr. Cruise this is not a matter of scientific data, instead the actor relies upon his religious faith.

The Hollywood star like his fellow Scientologist and Narconon spokesperson Kirstie Alley firmly believes in the preaching of L. Ron Hubbard.

Hubbard a Sci-fi writer turned prophet called his “purification rundown” a “tissue-cleansing regimen.”

However, a San Francisco School Superintendent summed it up quite differently. She said, “teaching the kids…a philosophical or religious belief, as opposed to science” is a “no [no].”

So shouldn’t New Yorkers “just say no” to Tom Cruise too?

The chief medical officer for the New York City Fire Department seems to think so. He concluded that there is no “objective evidence” to support Cruise’s clinic crusade.

And since when is promoting “irresponsible” “pseudo-science” without “objective evidence” considered a “humanitarian” endeavor?

Tom Cruise will no doubt doggedly continue in his faithful marathon run for Scientology, but should he be acclaimed for it?

After seven years of wrangling through a process of seemingly endless litigation the wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of Scientologist Lisa McPherson is over.

Some see it as the practical finale of a bitter battle. This view certainly includes the latest judge to sit on the case, who ardently encouraged a settlement to bring him some relief reports the St. Petersburg Times.

However, for former Scientologists who often suffer in silence and others that have placed themselves at risk by opposing the organization Time Magazine once called the “Cult of Greed,” this ending may seem somewhat disappointing.

Many would prefer to see the “cult” face the proverbial music in a court of law, instead of getting off the hook through a settlement in the nick of time.

And this settlement includes the usual “gag order” preferred by Scientology reported the St. Petersburg Times, which prohibits the plaintiffs from disclosing its terms and just how much cash Scientology parted with to essentially buy their silence.

Lisa McPherson is dead and nothing will bring her back, but it would have been meaningful for Scientology to be compelled through a court proceeding to explain its treatment of the 36-year-old woman, which led up to her untimely death.

It appears that millions of dollars have changed hands and the McPherson family has been well provided for.

It is also likely that the plaintiff’s counsel Ken Dandar walked away with at least a million dollars from the settlement, though he offered cryptically, “Things are not always what they appear to be.”

Perhaps suing Scientology is like mud wrestling with a pig, the litigant and his or her lawyer gets covered with mud, while the pig actually has a good time.

The Church of Scientology seems to have turned litigation into something of a religious rite. Its founder L. Ron Hubbard reportedly prescribed litigation as a means of battering and/or silencing critics.

After seven years of battering the McPherson family finally found that a settlement was preferable to wrestling a judgment against Scientology in court.

No doubt Scientology will spin the story its own way.

The organization will probably tell its faithful and anyone else that’s listening that there was never really any substance to support the Lisa McPherson lawsuit.

And loyalists from Tom Cruise to the not so elite “Sea Org” (full-time staffers) will likely accept whatever explanation the organization offers.

The rest of us will never know the details.

We can only surmise that something must have gone terribly wrong to send Ms. McPherson over the edge running naked down a Florida street. And something even more bizarre may have led to her death after many days of confinement under the direct supervision of Scientologists.

Scientology has taken steps recently to make sure its “religious services” are essentially exempt from further lawsuits. Its members now routinely sign documents that largely immunize the organization from meaningful accountability and allow Scientology sweeping prerogatives regarding such things as medical situations and decisions, not to mention confidential files.

This all makes it much more difficult for another Lisa McPherson lawsuit to arise against the organization in the future.

Other than the bad press Scientology endured there will be no reckoning regarding Lisa McPherson.

First criminal charges were dismissed concerning the death of Lisa McPherson and now there won’t even be a civil trial.

Has Scientology topped O.J. Simpson?

But of course there is that undisclosed settlement they had to pay out.

However, given the purported vast wealth of the anointed “Cult of Greed” this may have amounted to little more than a quick dip into petty cash.

The Lisa McPherson wrongful death lawsuit ends, not with a bang, but a whimper

An interesting document has found its way onto the Internet that should be required reading for Church of Scientology celebrities such as Tom Cruise and John Travolta.

Joe Keldani, a long-time Scientologist trained by that organization’s elite “Guardians Office,” is speaking out about the way the church allegedly managed his marriage and family life.

Keldani once headed Narconon in Canada. This is a “drug rehabilitation program” based upon the teachings of L. Ron Hubbard, Scientology’s founder and strongly supported by former Cheers star Kirstie Alley.

Keldani calls his Internet postings “Justice Statements” per church doctrine and shares them publicly at a Google Group.

It seems this veteran Scientologist doesn’t see the church in the glowing light that stars like Travolta and Cruise try to imbue it with.

Keldani claims Scientology leaders once were “coaching [his]…wife’s divorce affidavit.” And that they “deliberately and without care destroyed [his] family and…many others.”

Scientology celebs certainly are familiar with divorce.

Lisa Marie Presley has gone to court three times to cut marital bonds, Tom Cruise twice and Kirstie Alley dumped her husband Parker Stevenson.

Often during these divorces were rumors that Scientology might have been a cause in these breakups.

According to Keldani the organization certainly played a role in his divorce through “relentless past and present efforts to separate [him] from [his] wife and kids.”

Keldani claims Scientology is guilty of an “abuse of human rights.”

Ironic considering the church’s campaign for “human rights” in Germany, which has been ardently espoused by Tom Cruise and John Travolta, complete with full-page ads endorsed by many of their Hollywood friends.

Maybe these stars should start a campaign for Joe Keldani’s “human rights”?

Keldani says his “wife of over 20 years” was “placed (according to her) in a very stressful, concrete, dirty, car exhaust fumes filled room, under [a] garage for more than a day (3 days)…to reconsider her marriage.”

Is this Scientology’s version of marriage counseling?

Keldani purportedly spent “$30,000.00 and almost a year away from [his] family” before he gave up on the process. In the end he says Scientology “executives, [drew] up a formula” for his wife to “legally break up with [him]” that “included paying [the church] another $40,000.00.”

Is it possible that Scientology prescribed “formulas” for the divorces of Nicole Kidman and the first Mrs. Tom Cruise Mimi Rogers?

Hollywood is known for its prenuptial agreements, maybe there is something called a Scientology post-nuptial too?

Keldani explains that Scientology told his kids they didn’t “need a father.” And says the church’s “International management obviously place no value on the family” and want “robotic, unquestioning, unwavering staff.”

The estranged father says he “sold everything…properties…businesses” and ultimately “wasted” “hundreds of thousands of dollars” on Scientology.

However, despite all his sacrifices in the end the church “declared [Keldani} a suppressive person [SP]…making it a crime for [his] daughters to talk to [him]…”

This appears to be the Scientology equivalent of being excommunicated.

And there are more juicy chunks of information from the former insider.

Keldani says Scientology’s top leader David Miscavige’s “sexual exploits, admitted to by his co-worker and personal councilor” include “sleeping with his wife and another woman.”

Is that called a “menage a trois” or a “trio la Scientology”?

He also claims that branches of Scientology have shrunk to “half or even in some cases a fifth or a tenth their size of the late 70’s” while the church reports its “expanding.”

John Travolta and Tom Cruise pride themselves on having reached what Scientologists call “clear” and moving up its spiritual tiers, which are graded from Operating Thetan One (OT1) to Operating Thetan Eight (OT8).

But according to Keldani the stars have nothing to look forward to.

He says, “OT levels have been sabotaged or have been ruined.” And that “the first few hundred OT 8 got ill and had to be recalled for repair.”

Will the former “Top Gun” turned “Last Samurai” soon need repair?

John Travolta’s multi-year string of movie flops may mean he is nearing “recall” time.

Scientology’s stars are pampered within lavish “Celebrity Centers.” But it seems devoted full-time workers are not quite so lucky.

“Thousands of Scientologists are stuck out in the field working their buts off to make enough money to go OT (spiritually free) but can’t afford it,” says Keldani.

He adds that many “are fighting to pay off their incredible debts. Debts they incurred paying for training…The entire package now costing about 300,000.00 [dollars] per person.”

And some Scientology “staff sleep 10 or 12 deep in hotel or motel sized rooms,” he advised.

Meanwhile the church’s top leader “Miscavige, has his own physical fitness trainer while the rest of the common staff are forbidden to use the public facilities,” Keldani says.

Joe Keldani paints a pretty bleak picture of Scientology in general and family life within the group in particular.

Hollywood stars may be treated like royalty, but it seems that the grunts in the group have a decidedly different life within the church that has often been called a “cult.”

A rich “New Age” guru named J.Z. Knight apparently hopes to follow in the footsteps of Mel Gibson with a documentary/movie.

Knight is promoting a film “What the Bleep Do We Know!?” starring Oscar-winner Marlee Matlin and featuring a group of scientists that it seems may have been handpicked by the guru.

The new movie is “a dramatic story” that includes “interviews with leading scientists and mystics” and supposedly offers the audience a “tour through the inner workings of the Universe.”

And of course J.Z. Knight is the featured “mystic, philosopher [and] master teacher.”

The housewife turned “teacher” claims that she “channels” a 35,000-year-old spirit named “Ramtha” who first appeared to her in a Tacoma kitchen during 1977.

Knight runs the so-called “Ramtha School of Enlightenment,” which has been called a “cult.” The school is the hub of a multi-million dollar spiritual empire based upon the sale of books, tapes and pricey seminars.

Dynasty TV star Linda Evans is a long-time Ramtha follower and like many devotees lives near her mentor in Yelm, Washington.

Much like Mel Gibson’s “Passion” J.Z. Knight hopes this mystical movie will be embraced by true believers. It is even being pitched through “street teams.”

Some suspect the project is little more than a vehicle for “cult” recruitment.

“What the Bleep Do We Know!?” is largely being promoted like a subculture event. And it seems to be selling amongst New Agers in Oregon, California, Arizona and Alaska, where it has been shown.

The world premier took place near Knight’s headquarters in Yelm.

It is interesting that Ms. Matlin, an accomplished actor with an Oscar on her shelf, agreed to participate in such a specious project.

Was this an “artistic choice” or can it be that Ramtha has gained yet another celebrity follower?

Maybe Matlin just picked up a hefty paycheck from the wealthy guru.

Madonna was photographed Saturday, exiting the LA Kabbalah Center wearing a T-shirt with “Cult Member” printed boldly across it reports the New York Post.

Well aware of the paparazzi’s penchant for hanging out at her haunts for photo-ops, this was obviously a well-planned ploy to “send a message” to her fans.

Madonna’s T-shirt logo is an apparent attempt to mock the notion that her cherished “Kabbalah Center” is a “cult” and therefore she is a “cult member.”

Of course a “cult member” rarely thinks he or she is in a “cult,” and such denial can be seen as simply a part of the ongoing process of indoctrination within the group used to dismiss criticism and reinforce its mindset.

The group may even choose to define the word “cult” as anyone deeply devoted to almost anything in an effort to obscure its real significance.

Another apologetic tactic is categorizing the word “cult” itself as a form of “persecution,” put forth by “jealous” detractors engaged in pejorative labeling.

Madonna’s Kabbalah Center has used these strategies.

However, the most obvious question remains, “Has Madonna joined a ‘cult’?”

A red flag for the public is the very fact that the group and its foremost benefactor have a need to dismiss and/or denigrate the term.

Another thing is also becoming increasingly evident, don’t expect Madonna to snap out of it any time soon.

The former “Material Girl” who reportedly now goes by the name of “Esther” has largely cast has her lot with the controversial group.

Madonna’s ego has evidently entwined with her religious mentor Philip Berg the founder of the Kabbalah Center. And it seems the star is so deeply invested she feels her personal equity is at stake.

In this sense Madonna is not unlike a “cult member” in a group like “Heaven’s Gate” or the “Waco Davidians,” trapped in a mindset that doesn’t allow the star to see the extent of the group’s influence and control over her life.

Fortunately the Kabbalah Center appears to be more focused on earthly assets and cash rather than stockpiling weapons or escaping this world in some spaceship.

But from her CD “Ray of Light” to recent children’s books and her decision not to perform on the “Sabbath,” each move in Madonna’s life increasingly seems to reflect “cult member” thinking.

The 1980s pop diva’s new persona can be a lesson though to her fans.

That is, if a strong, independent, “street smart” woman like Madonna can become a “cult member,” perhaps almost anyone potentially could.

And as for the Kabbalah Center, its missionary Madonna has made it the “‘cult’ du jour” for celebrities, arguably eclipsing its predecessor the Church of Scientology.

Scientology stars like Tom Cruise and John Travolta are aging and/or fading, but the Kabbalah Center is increasingly the “new religion” chosen by rising young stars and celebrities that seem to crave achieving “cult member” status just like their childhood icon Madonna.

“A Very Merry Unauthorized Children’s Scientology Pageant,” which mocks Scientology and its celebrity stars won an Obie special citation reports Variety.

The Obies honor achievement in Off and Off Off Broadway theater, and are selected by a panel of theater critics and artists in New York City chaired by Village Voice theater editor Charles McNulty.

Promoted as an “ironic masterpiece,” the pageant production was a “completely unauthorized look at the Church of Scientology featuring a cast of children.”

Using the theme of Christmas the play was a parody of the “spectacular life story of L. Ron Hubbard…dissected against the candy-colored backdrop of the a traditional nativity play.”

A cast of 8-12 year-olds portrayed Scientology celebrities such as former sitcom star Kirstie Alley, John Travolta and “Top Gun” Tom Cruise.

The show, which sold out and was extended, was presented by the Les Freres Corbusier theater troupe.

Scientology’s New York representative didn’t seem to appreciate the spoof and no doubt was not amused by the production receiving rave reviews and now an Obie citation.

For former members of Scientology is no laughing matter, but during the New York theater season last year the purported “cult” at least provided the basis for some Christmas cheer.

Note: “A Very Merry Unauthorized Children’s Scientology Pageant” will be playing in the heartland of Scientology this Fall. The curtain goes up on the production in October and it will continue through November at the Powerhouse Theatre, located in Santa Monica, California.

Eileen Barker the founder and impetus behind “INFORM” (Information Network Focus on Religious Movements) has long been considered a leading “cult apologist.”

The British professor of sociology has aligned herself with other “apologists” such as J. Gordon Melton, Massimo Introvigne and the late Jeffrey Hadden.

Barker sits on the board of Introvigne’s CESNUR an organization that regularly attacks cult critics

Hadden cited Barker prominently within a notorious memo that outlined strategies to suppress criticism of “cults.” And he hoped that funding for his proposals would come from groups called “cults.”

This would not have been anything new for Ms. Barker; whom once received funding from Rev. Moon of the Unification Church for a book she wrote about the organization and its members.

Nevertheless the London professor wants the public to believe she is an objective observer and academic.

However, it appears that the Archbishop of Canterbury doesn’t buy it.

The Church of England leader recently “snubbed” Barker’s INFORM organization reports The Guardian.

The English prelate will apparently not follow his predecessors by becoming a patron of the group.

It seems that Barker and her supporters are already busy trying to spin the bishop’s snub as the result of pressure from “evangelicals” that disapprove of “INFORM’s consensual” rather than confrontational approach to so-called “new religions” (a politically correct euphemism for “cults”).

But is this all about style or substance?

Critics of Barker have raised serious questions about the professor’s academic integrity and the substance of her “research.”

And concerned families that have historically sought help from INFORM have complained that its “consensual approach” may have included letting a “cult” know about their expressed concerns.

Maybe the snub from the Archbishop is just evidence that he is informed about INFORM.

NPR offered up its final segment regarding “New Religions” yesterday and featured coverage of the latest fashion in faith often called Neo-Paganism, categorized in this presentation under the heading “Wicca.”

Host Barbara Bradley Hagerty narrated what was billed as an exploration of “Teens and Wicca.”

Various teenagers, mostly girls, came out of the “broom closet” to discuss their fascination with witchcraft, which one expert said really took off through the popular movie “The Craft.”

But in the end it seemed that Hagerty let her own bias show a bit by giving fellow evangelicals largely the last word.

The NPR host reportedly is “on the board of directors for Knowing and Doing, the magazine of the C.S. Lewis Institute, which ‘endeavors to develop disciples who can articulate, defend and live faith in Christ through personal and public life.'”

One evangelical dryly observed on NPR that “playing with Wicca [is] dangerous,” but he failed to offer any specific examples. A “born-again” teen warned Wiccans had “sold [themselves] to Satan.”

According to a critical report about her professional conduct Hagerty “likes to say that God is her ‘employer and audience.'”

Does this mean the reporter does double duty for NPR and “God”?

The “cult apologists” Hagerty promoted through her first piece about “new religious movements” might not appreciate the sentiments expressed in her last one about Wicca.

And most of the public appears to agree that though Wiccans might appear weird they are benign, unlike the previous “cults” essentially given a free pass by Hagerty and NPR.

National Public Radio doesn’t seem to be in touch with its public through this recent programming.

But then again, maybe the only “audience” that concerns Ms. Hagerty is “God”?

NPR offered yet another installment yesterday of its “politically correct” view of so-called “New Religions” titled “Soka Gakkai” on All Things Considered.

This program focused on a controversial group called Soka Gakkai International (SGI); another group that has been called a “cult.”

But listeners didn’t hear the “c” word at any time within this report, which sounded more like an infomercial scripted by SGI than objective reporting.

SGI is a sect controlled by a by a Japanese businessman Daisaku Ikeda.

One of the most powerful men in Japan Ikeda has been both condemned and praised “as a devil and an angel, a Hitler and a Gandhi, a despot and a democrat” reported the Los Angeles Times.

Ikeda also controls the “New Komeito” party in Japan, which has been called the “political arm” of SGI.

However, NPR chose to never say Ikeda’s name or cite his role at any time during its broadcast. This was tantamount to explaining the Roman Catholic Church without mentioning the Pope, though some might observe that Ikeda’s religious significance within SGI might be more akin to Jesus.

NPR featured a plethora of SGI devotees rhapsodizing about how constant chanting helps their lives; one said it puts “gasoline” in her tank.

And of course like many groups called “cults” this one has celebrities too, Tina Turner and jazz musician Herbie Hancock are members.

NPR did mention parenthetically that the SGI teaching, you can chant for whatever you want, has been called “prosperity Buddhism.” However, there was no meaningful critique of the practice.

Former members of SGI have spoken out about the group’s abuses, but those voices were never heard.

“Very little about actual Buddhism is discussed by SGI, as most meetings and publications revolve around Ikeda and his writings, and a constant drama regarding the bad relations between SGI and it’s parent organization, Nichiren Shoshu, which excommunicated SGI several years ago.” said one former member.

NPR never cited this rift, even though they offered a supposed historical background about the group.

The broadcast also touted SGI’s status as a UN NGO (non-governmental organization).

Rev. Moon of the Unification Church also boasts UN NGO status, but as he knows such recognition can essentially be bought by paying dues and generally lubricating that international body financially.

NPR also reported that a liberal arts college was launched by SGI in California.

But nothing was said about the controversy that engulfed the school in its first 18 months. “Allegations of religious preferences” were reportedly the cause for a teacher exodus including its faculty dean and a prominent professor amidst campus protests.

NPR did find time though for two authors to plug SGI friendly books, one called “Soka Gakkai in America: Accommodation and Conversion.”

The Public Radio broadcast at times sounded more like a crusade than a news program.

Note: The introductory host of NPR’s “New Religions” series Barbara Bradley Hagerty seems to have her own critics. CultNews was recently notified that there have been serious questions raised “about Hagerty’s blatant conflict of interest and violation of professional ethics” (see report).