**content warning: mentions of SA and eating disorders/food restriction** Also, certain words have been censored for the reason of not triggering YT to put restrictions on this video. We want it to reach as many people as possible. Our plan is to go live with Liz in the next few days! Drop any questions you have for her. Thanks!
@@katiempojer Totally agree, people have had to go through this stuff and are being brave enough to speak about it and youtube won't even let them use the proper terms for things. And the video is already with a trigger warning at the beginning so people who don't want to don't have to watch
This happened to pop- up in my feed. Maybe because recently I was watching videos regarding the Mormons and the movie currently trending about OUR. Just wanted to say that I experienced this many years ago when I was a young mother in an abusive relationship. A group came to my door. We chatted talking scripture. We just stayed on the porch. They asked if they could come back and did several times. Finally they asked if I wanted to do Bible study. So they started coming and we started doing Bible study. What it took me a few months to realize was that they were Jehova Witnesses and that they had some very different beliefs then the traditional Christianity I was used to. But I continued to study with them for a few years. But I became so confused reading back and forth between my Good News Bible and ' their Bible. I finally realized I simply did not share their beliefs and did not want to convert. They dropped me then. Anyway, I understand that place of confusion and crying - out to God to give you understanding. Oh, one more thing. By the time I decided that the JW' s were a cult, I had also become utterly confused about my general beliefs due to going back and forth between bibles that I literally backed completely away from any thoughts about God and spirituality for ten years.
It truly repulses me that we cannot say rape or sexual assault on RU-vid because they say it will offend people. Um the word rape and sexual assault should be offensive to us,because the act is offensive. Call it out, say it loud. It is what it is if listening ears are repulsed they are supposed to be.
I don’t know if it’s because of the offensiveness or because of the bots that are constantly scanning videos to see which are offensive. They won’t be able to differentiate between which ones are talking about rape or murder with horror and which ones are talking about it in gleeful way.
So it's not because it could offend some people, It's because some people who have suffered those things. Just seeing the word or hearing the word can set them off. It took me a long time to be able to see and hear the word rape and without physically being ill because of what happened to me.
The documentary Liz was in -- "In the Name of God: A Holy Betrayal" is super eye-opening and also interviewed other victims. It's nice to see at least one channel covering cults that are not in western countries as its important that all cults need to be brought to the world's attention just the same. Thank you Liz for continuing to speak up.
I have never been in a religion or cult, but as an abuse survivor this hits hard.. no f.o.g. I am going to try and remember that, thank you! I hope you find kindness on your journey. ❤
This one got to me even more than all the others because I could see myself in so many things she was saying! I so wish that things like this channel would have existed when I got out of the group I was in 28 years ago! People didn’t even have a clue about sect or gnosis back in those days, I had a long way to recovery and absolutely no one to talk to about it because no one could understand. I am so proud of both of you for speaking up and dedicating your lives to helping people get better after being through all of that! Sending both of you lots of love!
Thank you both! I know people in the NAR evangelical cult, and some in Jesus Christians (A Voice in the Desert) - all Australians. It is awesome to hear from a young Australian woman who can talk straight talk in a way that is so relatable. And how awesome is your Mum!
What a badass mom! To look out for her daughter like that? Wow! It must have cost so much time, love, and money to keep visiting, to research, to book the deprogrammer (twice!) How lucky she is to be loved like that. Also, I HATE the book story with the line about brides!! 🤮 So horrifying that we can have such terrible ideas confirm in such unbelievably random ways.
Its weird that someone with that offense is only imprisoned for 10yrs. If i remember Jung myeong seok was imprisoned in 2009 then set free in 2019. Now hes back to prison AGAIN for the same reason. WTH right?
I had never heard of this cult until now. And I will be checking out the Netflix docs on this cult as soon as I can too. Take care, be safe, and be blessed!
I'm so glad that I found your channel. I lived in SE NC, smack in the middle of the bible belt. I am 61 yrs old, from birth to age 16, i grew up in Pentecostal, Freewell Baptist, Nazarene with my mother drug me to but I could never understand things in the bible. I'm agnostic, a realist & I do not understand religion, nor do I believe in the churches. I feel like Christianity is a cult & all they want is your money. I have seen my mother send money to these churches on TV & pay 10% to the churches she went to. I bet she has paid over the years a $1,000,000+ to these churches. It's insane to me. I don't understand her. I believe in my Native American spiritual roots. I feel like the bible is a book that man wrote where he tells stories. I don't get mad or turn my nose up to people that believe in God, Jesus & the bible but those people are real quick to judge me. When I try to explain to my mother how I see things in the bible, she looks at me like I'm a spawn of Satan (if Satan is real). I'm surrounded by Christian people. I'm really excited to see that there are other people in this world that think like I do. I honestly could go on a rant right now. Your speaker tonight & her mother are rock stars in my book. I'm so proud of her. She has gone through a lot. I have a lot of respect for them both. She is really lucky that she has a mother that is there for her & that loves her. I don't really know how that feels. The 3 people that I could talk to, that loved me, cared for me & that was there for me are no longer here. My Grandaddy & Grandma passed from old age in 1996 & 1999. I lost my Daddy to Breast & Lung Cancer in 1999, he was 57 yrs old. I have gone down the Breast & Lung Cancer roads, like my daddy. When I went through Breast Cancer 9 1/2 yrs ago I had to drive myself to my chemo appointments for a year, guys. My Lung Cancer treatments the 1st 3 weeks I drove myself 5 days a week to Chemo & Radiation. The last 3 weeks, 5 days a week my cousin stepped up & helped me out. The rest of the year I drove myself for the remainder of my chemo. My mother has never been there to help me out. Don't get me wrong, she has helped out if I needed money for things but money isn't everything always. I'm not trying to gain sympathy from anyone, it is what it is. I have peace about it. It just feels good to get it off my chest to others that probably know exactly how I feel. I don't have that in my tiny, little world here. But I do have my 4 pack of dogs, Georgia, Rhea, Graycee & Izzie. And I love them with all my heart & they love me with all their hearts. So I do have a lot of love in my life, it's just from my fur babies. Sorry for the rant but thanks for reading.
Ok offering synonym options: Repugnant Offensive Atrocious Grotesque Crapweasel (no offense to actual, adorable furry weasels) - these are super excellent discussions- thank you, Shelise!
I'm so grateful that Liz never met this man face-to-face! You're SO brave! Thank you for sharing your story! I'm wondering, it seems like many people coming out of cults, or high-demand groups tend to move away from Christianity. Am I right in my observation? Why do you guys think that is?
You know what they say about: "Faith, Trust and a sprinkle of fairy dust" + "Think happy thoughts" = "You can fly, you can fly. You can fly, you can fly." Peter Pan, the boy who never wanted to grow up.
An amazing and very troubling, gob-smacking story. It's hard to see how the cult leadership gets away with it until one understands that every level in the hierarchy filters out any bad news from lower levels. Hence the masses at the bottom, who are devoted Christians, praying, reading their bibles, witnessing and worshipping become the witless actors in a system which sends selected beautiful young women to the morons at the top. And the top can always use the believer's theologies with their associated commands, fears, and circular reasonings to keep any trouble makers at the bottom in line. What a dedicated mum Liz had. And Liz's bravery is inspirational. I suspect, given the hold cults and even orthodox religions can have on the minds of people, that deprogrammers are in great need. I hope Liz gets there. I suspect her experience will be valuable in assisting others who need to move away from toxic religious faiths.
I had a therapist once tell me “if knowledge is power, critical thought is a nuclear weapon” when in a session discussing some of the things that I went through as a result of religious indoctrination
I know when my sister went into a cult we tried for many years to get her out. She was not a dumb person she was really smart we even had a pastor of a church try to help I bet it was like beating our head against a brick wall she has been in the same Colt for 50 years she tried to recruit us but we didn't buy into the BS And what is young woman is saying it's true they Hound in and pound in their beliefs Days Inn and Day Out. In my sister's cult the men do everything and I think that's what she likes about it but we had so many people try her friends us to no avail right now she is in a home because she cannot take care of herself it is so sad she has cut me completely out of her life because I have lgbtq friends and I'm on a board and I have black friends and I was a single parent and blah blah blah it's so very sad
The lying about what the group is and flat out denying the truth is an old, old Moonie tactic. They tried it on me in the early 80's, but fortunately I knew about the Moonies and recognized the leader from his picture. They had approached me at a mall, told me they were an international student group and invited me to see an international film. I left my car and got in their van after being promised they'd bring me back after. Fortunately the house they took me to was about two blocks from my own house. I knew exactly where I was, I knew exactly who the Moonies were, and still their psychological tactics were so sophisticated that if I'd been off on my own out of reach of the familiar I'm sure I would have succumbed to their brainwashing techniques. They are SO clever at using our social instincts and urge to be polite against us that I found it VERY hard to confront them and demand they take me back to the mall. And their reaction was so kind and bewildered, they told me that they hadn't MEANT to mislead me at all. After all, I could see the leader's picture- obviously they weren't TRYING to hide who they were. I felt really guilty for 'interrupting' them as they were trying to fix us dinner. (No further mention of a film.) Totally blew past the fact that they'd lied to get me there and directly told me it was NOTHING to do with religion. But because I knew I could just walk home I was able to insist they take me back to the mall- and they did. It's really scary - and a good lesson in humility to realize that we're not invulnerable.
Wow! That’s terrifying. I’m so glad you saw through that! And this is exactly why we want to expose these groups, so people can react the same way you did and understand what’s happening to avoid getting sucked in when possible. Thanks for sharing!
Yes. I had the same but I asked to meet at a coffer shop. They said they were like an international support group for expats and it was fine for about a month then suddenly they told me I needed to meet their friend who could help me and maybe she wasn't properly briefed on my status of cautiously making friends but she went all in on the religion as if it was perfectly normal. Super freaky. I was triggered and ran out. Met too many in university and afterwards as well.
Liz’s mom is incredible! I would love to hear from her (or other parents/family/friends) about when they recognized a loved one was in a cult, how they started to recognize the signs, overcoming the “I’m just an overprotective mom” thoughts, doing research to learn about the cult, finding resources for deprogramming, setting up interventions, and so on. She did SO MUCH behind the scenes for so long, and it must have been its own challenge in multiple ways.
I saw Liz on 60 minutes Australia a week or so ago. The Cult Next Door. As the mother of a daughter with an ED for 6 years, I cannot imagine the strength it took for Liz's Mum to hang in there and get her the right help. We live in New Zealand and it's hard enough to get psychologists who are trained to deal with eating disorders, let alone being in a cult. That's a double whammy of trauma.
A lot of the RU-vid content I watch is by creators in the anti-MLM (multilevel marketing) movement. What struck me about this interview was how many of the aspects and tactics are also used to recruit and retain people in MLMs. Examples are: creating fake relationships with people on social media before trying to sell to them or get them to join as a sales rep, "love bombing" new members, those at the top have all the money, find out people's pain points and show them how joining your organization will solve that, don't question the leaders, etc. I could go on - MLMs are called "commercial cults" due to their practices.
I studied in Seoul for about a year and a half pre and post-covid and I think I was approached by cult members maybe 3-4 times? Most times I was alone and near/on campus and once while I was with my mom while she was visiting. This happens all the time but i'm glad I didn't follow through with anything. So scary.
ironically before I left for Korea (I grew up in an american evangelical megachurch for reference) my old church pastor was telling me how "the biggest church is in Korea" (referring to the moonies) and he was trying to encourage me to maybe attend/try to stay involved in a church while i was gone (i didn't lol). i had no idea until way later that they were THAT cult and I'm glad I stayed as far as possible😭
It is my personal opinion that anyone who claims to be or speak for God, is a liar & manipulator. And usually, women are abused (and children). A coincidence? I think not. My heart goes out to all of us. Between dangerous politics & religions, I fear for us little humans....
I absolutely love love this channel, as a young person it’s so enlightening to see and hear all of these stories of these amazing people, thank you for the work you do!
Break the silence. Break the tape seals of the vocal cords. Scream, yell, holler, until they world hears you and advocate for all people like you. Great one!
I had wondered whether being raised Pentecostal or any dogmatic religion that reject independent thinking can make one more prone to being indoctrinated by a cult or other dogmatic religion. I think Liz’s reflection on Bible college helps answer that question. I was brought up as Anglican and we were encouraged to use critical thinking in our church. My takeaway from this is that regardless of having faith or not having faith, we must raise our children to use critical thinking and think for themselves. So glad you survived that awful experience Liz.
I was raised in a Pentecostal church and I wasn’t brainwashed and definitely wasn’t told not to question things. I think there are extremists in all denominations. I’ve seen people in the Catholic faith who are extreme and display some cultish tendencies, and I’ve also seen some baptists fundamentalists who were also in a different type of cult. There are plenty out of mainstream Christianity as well who are susceptible to this kind of brainwashing.
I once nearly joined a very cultish form of Islam (they were clearly recruiting white women to marry them off to Asian men), every white woman that I'd met there had been raised in a fundamentalist form of Christianity and/or had a history with some form of domestic abuse. There's definitely a link.
I'm a devout Christian who was raised to use logic. I was taught how historians' writings, archeological finds, eye-witness accounts, logic, etc all point to Jesus being the Truth. My dad's a mathematician who got a master's in chaos theory. I was raised on things like design inference. My dad was sucked into a cult, and he was an atheist growing up.
They are all over South Korea, the culture has a very group mentality. the SK government is really starting to punish these people to the extreme. My good friend taught in South Korea for many years loved it there. But he could not believe the crazy bible stuff many fell for.
In college two girls who were in this cult tried to get me in by offering to tutor me and when I went to meet them so they can help me study, they had a whole initiation ceremony ready for me. It felt like it was a trap and I ran out of there. Years later I found out it was this cult cuz I remember them showing me a pic of their “leader” and it was the dude from this cult. Now looking back, the times that they tutor me before they were so nice but afterwards they always had to teach me about the Bible and talk about the leader and showed me a pic , but they never revealed his name. When I would ask his name they said I wasn’t ready to get that info. I thought they were weird, but I was nice cuz they were helping me with my math finals and I actually did like them cuz they were nice. It’s crazy to think I was approached and I played nice with them cuz I wanted a study group so bad. I’m not gonna lie I was sad after cuz they were so nice and kind and friendly and I felt like I had lost two potential best friends. Now I wonder if they really did like me or they were just recruiting me
its their tactic. Its called lovebombing. The moment youre inside the cult that kindness will evaporated. 😂 And when you get out of it, youre not their friend anymore.
Kudos to Liz and her Mom for having the courage to fight against this malevolent force. Again, this highlights just how dangerous and destructive these cults, and essentially all religions, are. Much damage has been done in the guise of holiness.
I want to sign my name under your comment! 🌟 I deconstructed my religious fanaticism completely alone after more than 30 years inside a highly abusive, misogynist, purity- and femicide based religion and I am still afraid and not able to speak openly about it, because they punish heresy with death. Faith in a superior being fills the most essential, core human need for love, safety, meaning and belonging, but there are aways people who manage to convince us that following our intuition and listening to our heart is a deadly mistake and that there must be a mediator between us and the divine - which is, of course, them! 🙄 (almost always older men who want control and sex!🤷🏽♀️) I have been religion free for six years now and I went through hell many times, until I could find some peace of mind and a reason for existence without having random men with beards telling me what my rights, my body, my destiny, my duties, my inherent gender limitations and my very essence are! In 21st century!! 🤬
@@gaiagreen2690 Your story (all too familiar)breaks my heart. I hope you can finally enjoy the peace and happiness that freedom from religion can bring. It's a dangerous and insidious myth designed to keep us (especially women)fearful and compliant. The world would be such a better place, imo, without the many negative and destructive influences religion has on our lives daily. How it permeates our government, justice system, education, et al makes my blood boil. Only good things for you looking forward.
Its crazy how many cult leaders claim to be celibate, holy monks yet are caught orchestrsting this inner harem within their cult. Not only that, but the amount of women conditioned to remain very skinny and sleep-deprived is anything but strategic. Reminds me of NXIVM.
52:40 hearing this is yet another example that reminds me of being a Jehovah’s Witness. You’re not allowed to research your faith and any research you do has to be on THEIR website. You have to be fearful of the “world” and the people in it because Satan can use anyone and anything he wants for his purpose and that can lead to your faith being broken. Doubts are to be put to rest as quickly as possible. Having doubts and asking big questions are big red flags to turn away from. Don’t read any material about the witnesses from online or if family or a study tries to show it to you immediately shut it down. The witnesses are a doomsday cult. And I will forever stand by that statement as a survivor of their teachings and indoctrination.
I was really getting sucked in by JW when I was in a down and rough time in life. I was a single mom and was struggling emotionally and with my faith at that time. I grew close to one woman who came in a group to my house, going door to door. She was coming over multiple times a week for months and finally talked me into going to her church. What stopped me in my tracks was probably the dumbest thing, it was the dress code hahah. I remember going back and forth about it and wondering why I couldn't worship God in pants? How was what I was wearing having any impact on my faith or status with him? I look back and laugh about it now, but it truly puzzled me and made me question everything about them. I'm glad I was hard headed and outspoken, or I would have probably got sucked right in where I was in life at that point.
This is inspiring to me. I was groomed for years when I was young and was able to get away from the situation before anything physical happened. It was not a cult situation but the people involved had very similar characters/tactics. Liz gives me hope that ill be on the other side of my trauma someday.
We also had to come to terms with something painfully similar, you will come out on top. It'll take time but you have the strength within you to overcome your trauma. You are more than a collection of bad things that have happened to you, you are infinitely more than just a victim. If you have the desire to overcome, you will. You've got this. -Altair and Nexus of the Syzygy System
As well as the Kingdom Light Congregation/The Church of Jesus Christ here in the Philippines, whose leader (Apollo C. Quiboloy/ACQ), is a wanted criminal in the U.S. - in the FBI's wanted list.
It disappeared while I was watching too but I guess my computer pre downloaded enough of the video that I was able to still watch the whole thing. I already started watching the Netflix documentary, it's horrifying.
So sorry about that! Haha had to make some adjustments so it didn’t have a bunch of restrictions on it. The reach was being severely affected and we want the most people as possible to see it
Thank you both for being so open and shedding light on this subject. Cults can be incredibly powerful and it's so easy to get caught in one if they catch you when you're vulnerable (contrary to popular belief). I'm so glad you're both out! Sending a lot of virtual love 💜
It would very educational and helpful to have a psychologist or cult expert on, to discuss the level of brainwashing that occurs, and why it works exceptional well on vulnerable individuals. We have many studies describing the processes of brainwashing. Continue your efforts to address this very important topic.
This interview is so good! I love the way sensitive topics were handled and I have so much admiration for these 2 ladies who are willing to speak about their experiences. I pray for your healing and happiness
At the part where her mother hugged her and begged her to come back, I had to pause the video to compose myself. I've listened to a lot of these videos but it was this one that really got to me, perhaps because I was so close with my own mum before she passed. Liz's mother sounds like a wonderful woman, so glad she was able to help. Also love that Liz is studying psychology! That's actually why I'm so interested in cults despite never having been in one; the human mind is a fascinating thing.
And RU-vid squashes promotion of re-upload usually because people have already watched it so if they don't click, the algorithm stops putting it out if less people watch it
YT put a ton of restrictions on it which was severely effecting it’s reach. We made a few adjustments and put it up again to give it a better chance. Thank you for rewatching!❤️
TLDR: Leaving the Mormon church word vomit. "...then maybe those questions are worth looking at." Thank you for saying that. I'm in the process of leaving the Mormon church but I'm struggling so much. So many conflicting thoughts. What if I'm making a big mistake? The church history is horrible and it really does sound made up. But what if I'm wrong and there are things I'm not understanding? Or things are being twisted to sound worse than it was? I never questioned the teachings (of course we're only taught the flowery versions of church history) and never even thought to do my own research until now because we were always told not to. I decided to leave the church maybe a year ago or a little less, and it wasn't until within the past month that I realized I could and should actually do research. How nuts is that? It didn't even cross my mind all this time that I should do internet searches because it was so ingrained to my core not to. This is so rough. I wouldn't want to join any other religions ever again either. Isn't it enough to try my best to be a good person and raise my children to be good people? I feel like I'm noticing and actually loving my neighbors now. The church teaches that you need to love thy neighbor, but you're too busy with this high demand religion that you don't have the time or energy for much else. The church members become your neighbors. Not to mention that they teach you to be kind to nonmembers, but in so many words tell you not to get TOO close. I feel like I easily have all the reasons as to why this church is nonsense, but why is it so hard to just forget about it and go on with my best life? Sorry for the novel. Just word vomiting.
I’ve been hoping you’d talk to someone from the JMS cult ever since I watch the documentary on Netflix. Liz, you’re so brave for coming forward and sharing your story, and please give your amazing and wonderful mother a giant hug from me!
@@CultstoConsciousness that’s awesome! I got so sick hearing that he reached into my homeland (Taiwan), and I recognized the article shown on the documentary from when my parents read about it back then!
My best friend has been trying to tell me for years that I was part of a cult and I still don't believe it, but I'm less sure it wasn't after watching your videos.
Being told one is in a cult is quite scary, usually not very helpful and can tend to make us dig in our heals and doubt outside information instead of doubting the group we are in. We are not bad or wrong if and when we find out we've been tricked and fed information that is not for our greater well being. We are not bad or wrong for wanting connection, for wanting or even craving a feeling of belonging and being part of something special and important. I found getting out of the cult I was born into and being free to investigate, to really find out what happened to me, is less scary than staying in with people and a leader(s) who ultimately are out for their own agenda. There is a lot of helpful information from channels like this, they helped me a lot.
Truth will always stand up to scrutiny so research whatever group you are in, if it's true that shouldn't be at all an issue as there will be nothing which needs hiding.
I watched this yesterday and then couldn't find it in the evening to show my husband😮 I'm so glad it's back!!!❤ Thank you for showing tough topics such as these. You are truly helping bring awareness to the evils of this world❤
This was completely riveting. I especially appreciated the brief explanation about how the deprogramming was accomplished. I would like to know more about how to do it because I think we all probably know someone caught in a cult, and would love to be able to help them. Right now in the usa, it's sort of a mass delusion thing going on....we need more psychologists who understand cults to brief the Congress!
Signs often mean whatever it is the person seeking them wanted the to mean. I had a coworker who prayed for a sign. Our company was relocating to an office 15-20 minutes further away from her home and she was debating whether or not she should continue working there or retire. Her “sign” was that her current car had a major mechanical issue and needed to be replaced. My first thought was that it was probably a sign to retire since it was the wear and tear of a long commute already that contributed to the issue. Her interpretation was God was showing her she had a lot more work to do that she’d need a new car to do. In reality, the impending financial burden of a new vehicle convinced her that she needed to work for longer. Signs just show us how to justify the path we want to walk to. In my coworker’s case, it showed her the path to financial security. In the case of many culties, it shows a path of what we perceive as emotional security. Even the book that she believes she randomly picked was likely far less subconsciously selected in the moment. We seek validation. I once selected a book at random for “advice” on my marriage and realized I had selected a book “seemingly randomly” that validated my viewpoint. I can see now how my brain sought out and organized books by the topic, causing me to ignore ones that didn’t feature relationships in the context I was seeking.
I just wanted to comment on the situation where she opens the prophetic book and it fell open to a section about brides coming together. God works through signs and wonders, and the devil also works through signs and wonders. Everything the devil does imitates the kingdom of God but he perverts it. I know that the speaker has been traumatized from her childhood by learning about spiritual warfare and was abused with this information, but this doesn't take away from the fact that spiritual warfare is real. How else would you explain that she felt led to open a specific book that would lead her to make a decision that would utterly condemn her soul and lead her to trauma? If that's not a spiritual situation I don't know what is. We can tell by the fruit of what happened that the spirit behind this situation was evil.
So I feel torn. I am a non-denominational Christian and I am heavy in my faith and it hurts to see evil people using God and his love in a way to manipulate and hurt people. Even when hearing certain parts I would hear the lies lightly sprinkled with the true scripture and it literally physically hurt my heart. I hope that anyone who has ever gone through this doesn’t vehemently deny any faith based on the horrible extremes these cults take
Thank you for saying this. I full heartedly agree. I am a Christian too, and hearing “there was actually a scripture that supported that” made me sick, because I already knew what verse they were going to use and how out of context they used it. I’m so sad that people take God’s name in vain and hurt others. When true believers KNOW you don’t ever force anyone to do anything outside of their free choice. You may try to convince them but that’s different than brain washing. I am very thankful to God she got out of that sick place. And I also pray she finds healing and can have a true encounter with the real Jesus Christ.
Same with me but this is Why Christ stated " be Wise as Serpents, harmless as a Doves, ..." and why he warned Satan takes on the appearance of an Angel in White
Im so glad you mentioned that the missionaries are kids within the LDS, and that they do truly believe that they are helping people. My family converted when i was young, and i have seen firsthand the belief of those teens, they are really meaning to do good, and be kind. I am an ExMo, but to this day i will stop and ask missionaries if they need anything, i will donate cases of water, whatever they need,any way i can help those kids because they are really good kids who mean well.
I had only planned to listen to a little of this, but found it so interesting that I watched the entire thing. I learned something that I had not heard before. These cults can represent YOUR religion and then slowly twist and change things. I'd always thought that they were distinctly different and wondered how people fell for that. I am seeing this with a relative and luckily she is seeing it, too. She has attended a new "Catholic" church and has liked it because the service has been the old fashioned formal service before wording and translation changed some of the prayers, etc. She mentioned recently that three things have happened that she didn't like: The minister told them they would no longer bow to the cross as it entered the church, but bow to the priest as he is the representative of God; that wearing red and green at Christmas was against the bible; and that Easter was not the same as they had always learned. My reply was, "What?! This sounds like a cult!" She said she had been thinking that. I also said, "If they ever mention the "Umbrella of Authority" to RUN!!" (That is from the IBLP and has filtered into many religions.) I said it sounded like they were going in a fundamental direction and that is not all bad unless the human who is interpreting the bible is changing things to fit their own needs. She agreed. I said she must find a new church or return to the traditional Catholic church. I'm very concerned about what I've seen happening to many people I know who are listening to some of these false prophets and doing things that make me wonder if they are ok. It is scary that they can masquerade as people from our own religions. People must not depend on others to interpret the bible for them. They must do that themselves.
You would be better served to free yourselves from any and all religion. It's all man-made and manufactured to keep us fearful and compliant. It's not easy to shed because it's so deeply ingrained, but life is so much better if you can.
This ep deserves some sort of award. It was such a great episode. All the emotions and y’all have such great flow and chemistry. Tysm for the re upload, I learned so much.
This girl is extremely lucky an thankful her family was 100% behind her in getting her back. What a truly amazing story. This is just so inspiring and heart felt. Wishing nothing but the best for her an her awesome family.
You are both so inspiring. Schools should add talks like yours to the curriculum. Young adolescents should be prepared to look out for cults like this.
We actually did talk about different cults in school in Germany, as we also have sience based sex ad. I’m not sure if the numbers in Europe are somehow different as somewere else
Man it’s so sad thinking all that they have taken from her and the other victims 😢and as a Christian, it’s so infuriating when I see abuse like this taking place under the banner of “this is what God wants.” I can completely understand where she’s coming from in wanting to back away from it all, and I totally understand how the charismatic/Pentecostal movement could lead to that. I have always felt extremely uneasy about some of the power/pressure dynamics in that denomination specifically. But man it’s so sad to see that it ripped her faith away from her too. I can’t even imagine having ones reality completely fractured like that. But I’m so glad that her mom never gave up on trying to get her out, and that she wants to help be a rescue and support for others in the same situation as herself! For me, I had the opposite experience in going to Bible College. It actually helped me challenge and explore what I actually believe, and helped me to come out the other side a well-rounded person that could think for herself. My critical thinking got stronger, and I feel like I’m able to spot and call out abuses of power or agenda-serving theology when I see it. So crazy how different each person’s experience can be. Again, so grateful for her willingness to share her story and provide hope to others in similar situations! 💛
It's crazy I was not raised in a cult but my mother was raised deep in the jhovis whiteness "cult" and watching a lot of your videos there are things I remember happening in my childhood and it baffles me and makes me respect just how much she did shielded me/ us from. I still won't talk to her or forgive her for the things she did but I can appreciate and respect her how much she protected me/ us from.
I´m so happy for you, didnt have to living JW life as kid. Thats not good place for kids. I know I was growing up as JW and shunned now, my mom is also shunning me.
I live in France so even though I watched your interviews I was so far away from believing something might happening to me Recently I was making crochet on a public park and two girls came and talked to me about it I haven't see their badge for some times but it was a secular group I believe and they began to ask me questions about my religion and some stuff They have asked my phone number and my socials to join a group to talk in English I gave them a wrong number and pretend to not having Instagram but I felt really bad at first because they were truly nice
My family and I left the Church of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints two years ago, after learning about all their lies... even two years out it is still unbelievable to me to try to comprends it's a cult. My husband and i both were born in the church. Ive been in therapy since leaving due to the trauma and existential crisis I developed. I've gone through all the grieving steps. Most days i dont care for them, some other days I hate them. My husband and I lost all our community and relationships with our siblings 🥺. BUT nothing compares to the happiness and freedom and joy we have, and the fact that our children will be able to live in the real world.
Oh the recruiters are something else... I remember once, when I was in high school and as I was stepping out of the bus, this guy approached me with this flyer on hand, asking if I would like to know about this group of other young people, who could be my friends and show me a path to true happiness or something like that. I answered with my characteristic RBF, I am happy and I know how to make friends on my own and I walked away. As I did, I heard him mumble "Chingada escuincla", which more or less translates to Fucking Brat. XD
I think anybody can be victim to a cult but I think I'm about as close as it comes to not ever joining. It goes something like, this, "you need to get up at..." "nope, you are wrong. This is not the truth."
😂 that made me laugh. I think you meant it in a silly way at least. I could never get up that early either. I would be an absolutely monster without enough sleep. My cult didn’t require that. They just wanted most your time during the week 🫠
@@CultstoConsciousness I totally did. If you saw me in the mornings I think you would totally agree. LOL. Yeah, my friend Chris, when he was in the Sea Org in Scientology, at one point he was so tired and sleep deprived like he just wandered off because he couldn't take it anymore but then went back a few days later. Of course it totally ruined his reputation because he wanted sleep. How dare he!
Wow! I wasn’t sure at first that I was ready to hear this story, Shelise - hearing how such an evil man could continue abusing women while IN PRISON infuriated me. Thank you Liz for sharing your story despite the negative and potentially dangerous consequences. You will be an excellent de-programmer!!
I would also like to hear from the family side and also delve into Christian fundamentalism. You do a good job of trying to stay unbiased in terms of attacking beliefs, yet making things transparent. It’s not a matter of always taking faith away as it is using critical thought processes to see as clearly as we can.
Thank you so much Liz for sharing your story, and thank you to Liz' mom for saving her!!! Incredible!!! This was a particularly devastating story. Liz you are amazing and it is so inspiring that you are studying to go on to help others!
Have you heard about the cult of mount fuji in Japan? Its also one that targets foreigners but there isnt much information online except on avoiding them.
The bride quote she got from the book she grabbed from her parents' shelf was the enemy manipulating her. Super scary stuff. Definitely real, just not from God but from the darkness. 😢
"they needed ownership of that narrative" .." it's crucial to keep them in that information bubble" ...only the "trusted source of information" will be allowed...hello COVID anyone?
I can't even count the number of times I've been approached - all across Korea; not only in Seoul but in rural areas, as well. Cults intentionally target foreigners because it is easy to attract them with promises of language classes and cultural experiences, because they tend to be more isolated than native Koreans, and because they lend an illusion of legitimacy to the cult. And Korea's defamation laws - which prevent victims from speaking out unless the perpetrator has been convicted in a Korean court of law - protect abusers, as well. Sexual crimes are notoriously difficult to prove, even in the most open-minded of cultures, and since sex is so stigmatized in Korea it makes speaking out all the harder. And it's not just Korean cults; Seventh-day Adventists, Jesus Christ Church of Latter Day Saints, Jehovah's Witnesses and other western-origin high demand religions have an outsized presence in Korea. The SDA school in my quasi-rural area is a big employer of foreign language teachers, and is considered a prestigious school for primary and secondary foreign language education. It's truly insidious. That being said, I couldn't even finish watching the first episode of the Netflix documentary on JMS. It felt exploitative, sensationalist, and voyeuristic - like the creators had focused more on being dramatic than informative. This interview was, to me, infinitely more sympathetic and a much better platform for Liz's voice. Thank you so much for providing it!
