Cult News

Falun Gong staged what seemed like a carefully coordinated public event for “master” Li Hongzhi, reports the Orange County Register.

Hongzhi’s devotees have become adept at creating media and photo ops for their vaunted spiritual leader.

The man who says he can “levitate,” “become invisible” and knows the “top secret of the Universe” made a personal public appearance in the Anaheim Convention Center before 1,500 of his followers.

Though his disciples claimed they didn’t know if Li would come, it appears more than likely that this event was carefully planned and members knew in advance that Hongzhi would arrive.

One devotee said, “Everyone had a ticket. Everyone knew each other.”

A seemingly transfixed disciple observed, “He spent four hours answering questions and didn’t even open a water bottle. He didn’t need a break. He didn’t need to stop and think to answer. His compassion never changed. For us to see him was amazing.”

Doesn’t this sound a bit like Unification Church members at a mass wedding rhapsodizing about their “master” Rev. Moon?

In a somewhat cryptic statement an ardent follower said, “This was a very special occurrence, and we know Orange County will benefit from his presence.”

Falun Gong members believe Li Hongzhi actually has a personal impact on the stability of the universe. Not unlike many groups called “cults,” Falun Gong appears to be defined and driven by its leader’s persona.

What the Orange County Register failed to report about is Li Hongzhi’s racist writings and bigoted public rants. This certainly would not have gone down well in politically correct Disneyland.

Moreover, the Falun Gong leader has made sensational supernatural claims about himself and his supposed superhuman powers that easily define him as either a megalomaniac, a charlatan or both.

According to Hongzhi he can “personally install” falun (a wheel of law) in his followers abdomens, which in turn provides for their good health.

This would be a neat trick for a stage show in Las Vegas. And maybe Vegas would be the best venue for a man like Hongzhi in the United States.

David Copperfield move over, and make room for the real “Master” of “Grand Illusion”!

The Independence Party of New York arguably swung one election, for the mayor of NYC, in favor of Michael Bloomberg.

But soon there may be “a seismic change in NY politics” facilitated by the party, which notably includes former “New Alliance Party” presidential candidate and Fred Newman disciple Lenora Fulani.

Pundits claim this planned change could make New York “a three-party state,” reports PoliticsNY.com.

NY law currently requires that voters enroll as a Democrat, Republican or Independence party member to be eligible to vote in party primaries. However, a proposed change would allow 2.5 million additional independent voters to vote in the Independence party’s primary.

This would be ten times the 260,00 Independence Party registration now.

What this ultimately may mean is the makeover of Fred Newman’s disciples, who occupy pivotal positions in the Independence Party’s power structure, into potential “king makers.”

Instead of just helping out a local benefactor like “Mayor Mike,” Newman and his “Social Therapy” crowd could garner much heavier statewide political connections and corresponding largesse.

Fred Newman and his following have often been called a “cult.”

Will this possible shift in NY voter registration provide for political power sharing with a “cult”?

Maharishi Mahesh Yogi of Transcendental Meditation (TM) seems to be building a kind of self-contained world within Iowa.

Some might see this as a kind of “cult compound,” rather than a conventional city.

However, six new modular dormitories will soon provide space at “Vedic City” for 1,600 more of the guru’s devotees, reports the Fairfield Ledger.

Maharishi’s public relations people say this will bring the community to some magic number, which they call “super radiance.”

The guru’s spokespeople also claim that some TM members can “fly,” based upon special flying lessons mandated by Maharishi. They are called “yogic flyers.”

Apparently within this special world created amidst Iowa farmland reality is a bit fuzzy. Could that be the result of living within a bubble created and controlled by one man? And will that bubble ever burst?

Well, probably not for the foreseeable future.

Expect to see more yogic flyers and other TM types landing in Iowa soon to take up residence within this strange domain and alternate reality.

A Mormon scholar says the Book of Mormon, which is supposedly historical, is actually only “inspirational fiction,” reports Christianity Today.

Thomas W. Murphy is a Mormon, but also the chairman of the anthropology department at Edmonds Community College in Lynnwood, Washington. Murphy wrote within a published paper “DNA research lends no support to traditional Mormon beliefs about the origins of Native Americans.”

This college professor like other Mormon scholars before him, who have questioned the historicity of their faith’s scriptures, is now subject to excommunication and expulsion for his views. This has frequently been the fate of Mormon academics that in some way question the church’s teachings.

Joseph Smith supposedly translated the Book of Mormon from ancient “golden plates,” which conveniently later disappeared. Smith claimed these plates were the historical record of an ancient people that once thrived in America. However, no archaeological or historical evidence has ever proven this.

Nor does science substantiate Smith’s claim that ancient Hebrews migrated to North America. Murphy wrote, “To date no intimate genetic link has been found between ancient Israelites and the indigenous peoples of the Americas.”

So what do you do if you are a faithful Mormon?

Denial seems to be the preferred response.

Mormon leaders continue to spin apologetics to explain their lack of historical proof. Though increasingly it seems like they are running on empty.

In a prepared response to Murphy a professor at Brigham Young University stated, “We didn’t think the arguments were good enough to respond to,” reports BYU News. He then spun apologies rather than respond to the substance of Murphy’s points.

Needless to say that most faithful Mormons seem willing to accept whatever their leaders say. One BYU student who sat through the presentation commented, “I thought it was very effective.”

Here is the rub.

If Joseph Smith made up the Book of Mormon, which appears to be the case, where does this leave the religion he created that now includes millions of adherents?

This would mean Smith was not a “prophet,” but rather a clever con man. And Mormonism’s claim that it is “the restored Word of God,” based upon Smith’s revelation, then collapses.

Certainly Mormons have the right to believe whatever they want, but history is based upon proven objective facts, not subjective beliefs.

When Mormonism entered the realm of purported history it became subject to the type of scrutiny not typically applied to spiritual claims.

The Scientology drug rehabilitation program known as Narconon, which is the basis for a pilot project now operating within a Mexican prison, will not be adapted and/or funded for any prisoners within Nevada, reports the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Narconon has drawn considerable criticism and controversy over the years. The program is based upon the teachings of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard.

Not even an offer for a free trip to Mexico could convince the overwhelming majority of state legislators to support a proposal by Reno Republican Representative Sharon Angle to bring the program to Nevada.

Angle first claimed it was partisan resistance by Democrats that doomed her proposal. However, when the Republican Governor of Nevada nixed her effort it seemed virtually no one was really interested.

So Scientology will not receive a reported $15,000.00 per inmate for treatment, from either Nevada or any other government source to implement its regimen of saunas, vitamins and oil rub downs that somehow are supposed to cure drug addiction.

Perhaps the controversial church, which has been called a “cult,” should stick with Scientology celebrities like Kirstie Alley, Lisa Marie Presley and Tom Cruise, who have plenty of extra cash–instead of trying to get taxpayer’s money.

It looks like church and state remains essentially synonymous and virtually seamless in Salt Lake City. That is, it’s difficult to see where one stops and the other begins.

Mayor Rocky Anderson has largely caved in to Mormon Church (LDS) demands that freedom of speech be ended around its historic temple area.

The controversy began some time ago when the city sold the church a block adjacent to its Temple Square, but that sale did not include the easement, which provided for free access and expression.

Never mind.

The church strictly enforced its own rules anyway prohibiting any speech or activity it didn’t appreciate, such as born-again Christians speaking critically about the LDS and handing out tracts.

Enter the American Civil Liberties Union.

A court decision later forced the church and the city to allow free expression on the block.

Never mind.

The Mormon Church used its considerable muscle to pressure the city into a solution it sought to circumvent the court decision. That is, sell LDS the easement through a land swap.

Now it seems that church and state are again united in Utah and single minded regarding how best to run Salt Lake City, reports the Salt Lake City Tribune.

The deal to swap property owned by the church for the easement has received the blessings of the church and city council, which is completely composed of Mormons. In a seamless media event both made the appropriate pronouncements and announcements for the plan.

But is likely there will be more litigation.

Never mind.

City coffers will no doubt spill forth the funds necessary to defend the LDS solution.

What Salt Lake City residents have learned, is even though approximately half are now non-Mormon, what the LDS wants it gets.

So much for democracy, free speech and pluralism in Utah. Brigham Young would no doubt be proud of Mayor Anderson for bowing before a higher authority.

Incredibly, four million Americans now believe they were once abducted by beings from outer space.

And these alleged kidnap victims share a “common recipe,” reports the BBC.

Researchers say people that make such claims typically have a similar profile of “pre-existing new-age beliefs…bio-energetic therapies, past lives, astral projection, tarot cards” and very often suffered “episodes of apparent sleep paralysis accompanied by hallucinations.”

Many then saw therapists who “would frequently suggest alien abduction as a cause–an explanation.”

Of course there is no objective evidence to prove such claims.

But nevertheless, these anecdotal stories have become the premise for urban legends, television programs and a fixture within American pop culture.

You then might ask, “What is a ‘UFO researche’ then'”? This may seem like something of an oxymoron?

Why?

Because UFO enthusiasts appear to be simply “true believers” and not really concerned with science, other than science fiction.

And alien beings from outer space have become principle players that animate their belief system, which is based upon subjective stories about strange encounters, alleged cover-ups and abductions, rather than scientific facts.

But those who believe, truly believe.

Researcher and Harvard Professor Richard McNally noted the “power of emotional belief” within his presentation before the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

McNally said, “If you genuinely believe you’ve been traumatized and recall these memories, you’ll show the same psycho-physiologic emotional reactions as people who really have been traumatized.”

This conclusion may also explain “faith healers,” though repeatedly proven to be frauds, still produce apparent results through those that believe they have been “healed.” They too “genuinely believe,” regardless of the absence of any objective physical evidence.

Likewise, millions of true believers around the world follow cult leaders that claim some supernatural power, but actually rely upon the same “emotional power” McNally has identified.

This is certainly a “common recipe” within most cults.

Ayn Rand only wrote two books, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged and died more than twenty years ago. But her idiosyncratic philosophy called “Objectivism” lives on and seems to perennially draw a renewed cult following amongst many college students.

Rand’s books still sell 300,000 copies annually.

However, when Modern Library surveyed publishers for its top 100 books of the 20th Century, Rand wasn’t even mentioned. But when they asked everyday readers to make their picks she came in number one, reports the Baltimore Sun.

Interestingly, sci-fi writer and founder of Scientology L. Ron Hubbard had three books in the top ten of that same popular listing.

What does this mean? Did the publishers somehow neglect or ignore the genius of these authors?

Some might conclude that the pop picks only reflected the devotion and organized efforts of those obsessed with their personal favorites.

Author of the Sun article and Pulitzer Prize winner Ray Jenkins points out the dark side of Rand. This includes, “megalomania,” self-centered indulgences and a humorless, dogmatic driven nature.

Does this sound familiar?

Is it possible that Ayn Rand actually had more in common with purported “cult leader” L. Ron Hubbard, than authors like Hemmingway or Joyce?

Wait a minute. No one is “deprogramming” Rand’s rapt readers.

But it’s interesting to note the parallels between “cults” and some aspects of Rand and her erstwhile acolytes.

A mystery that still persists about the Oklahoma City bombing that claimed the lives of 168 people, is who cooperated with Timothy McVeigh to perpetrate or plan the mass murder?

FBI files now being discussed seem to indicate McVeigh may not have acted alone and perhaps conspired with members of a white supremacist group named “Elohim City” in Oklahoma, reports the Oakland Tribune.

Racist Robert Millar who died in 2001 led the group often called a “cult.”

McVeigh and Millar seemingly have taken secrets to their graves.

What is not secret is the milieu, which brought forth the mindset of the convicted murderer McVeigh.

He submerged himself within a subculture that included anti-government extremists and “militias” for some time before bombing the Murrah Building. His hatred was fed by conspiracy theories, most of all about the Waco Davidian standoff.

Millar like David Koresh maintained an isolated compound. Did he or some of his followers fear the FBI would scrutinize them next after the Waco cult leader’s rule ended in tragedy?

The murky paranoid subculture that transformed Timothy McVeigh from army veteran to mad bomber still exists within America.

The followers of “Brother Julius” Schacknow who died in 1996 seem intent upon carrying on their leader’s penchant for outrageous behavior, reports the Hartford Courant.

Some group members have surfaced in Connecticut in an apparent organized effort to crash local church services.

One member stood up abruptly as an uninvited speaker during a Sunday service and proclaimed himself the “Prophet Peter.” He then proceeded to make pronouncements and warnings of impending judgement. When asked to leave the “prophet” resorted to curses.

Sound bizarre?

Well not for the followers of Julius Schacknow, who was born in Brooklyn, but claimed he was “Jesus.”

During Schacknow’s “ministry” he was often referred to as a “cult leader,” but cast himself as a “sinful messiah” and repeatedly exploited his female followers for sexual favors.

He also built lucrative businesses through the hard labor of his disciples, which eventually collapsed.

But it seems despite their leader’s death; Schacknow still has a faithful remnant that refuse to move on. And following in his footsteps they are apparently intent upon adding to the legacy of lunacy wrought by their “Jesus” from Brooklyn.

Groups like this often feed upon confrontation and claims of “persecution,” which bind members together and keep them dependent. The current activities probably reflect a desperate need to energize the flock.

Local ministers and church ushers in Connecticut are now watching theirs doors for the next uninvited “prophet.”