Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 1, No. 2, 2002, Page 123
Center for the Study of the Self
Gloucester, Virginia
Les Sectes (Sects)
Anne Fournier and Michel Monroy. Toulouse, France: Editions Milan,
1996, 68 pages.
Publication of this 68-page paperback was supported by the Centre Roger Ikor, founded in
1981 to study ―mental manipulation‖ by cults and sects. Co-author Michel Monroy is a
psychiatrist and Anne Fournier is a history professor. Both are associated with the Ikor
Centre. This pocket-sized book is a concise and perhaps too-brief summary of major cults,
which it describes as new religious movements, differentiating cults from sects, which split
from established religions. The authors are more critical of sects than cults. They consider
sects to be a departure from a mainstream belief system, whereas cults can become an
established religion over time.
The book begins with a brief history of sects as religious minorities, with specific reference
to Hubbard‘s Scientology, Moon‘s Unification, Jones‘ People‘s Temple (Guyana), Koresh‘s
Davidians, the Solar Temple, and various New Age groups. As is true in the United States,
the authors point out the difficulty in accurately determining the number of people actively
involved in these movements.
The book includes a brief description of cult recruitment methods the effects on new
recruits of withdrawal from mainstream society, family, and friends the gradual narrowing
of new members‘ freedom of thought and action and members‘ resulting loss of critical
judgment and appropriate emotional response. This process increases leader charisma as
members regress into infantile dependency. The authors recommend dissemination of
relevant information to the public, legal restrictions, and objective coverage by news media
as defenses against mental manipulation, especially of minors.
Throughout this small book are cartoons that not only add humor but also point up
important points in the text. The book includes a two-page glossary of 29 terms, a brief
two-page bibliography of French language books, a video-cassette source, and a two-page,
two-column index.
This book is recommended for anyone interested in the cult groups in France.
Frank MacHovec, Ph.D.
Center for the Study of the Self
Gloucester, Virginia
Misunderstanding Cults: Searching for Objectivity in a Controversial Field
Edited by Benjamin Zablocki and Thomas Robbins. Toronto:
University of Toronto Press, 2001, 524 pages.
Twenty years ago, most sociologists and other academics who specialized in the study of
religion ignored or dismissed the handful of scholars and helping professionals who called
attention to the harmfulness of some cults. These cult sympathizers disregarded or
disparaged without proper examination evidence that certain new religions applied
―brainwashing,‖ or mind control, to recruit and retain converts. For years sympathizers and
had little to do with cult critics. At last, however, sociologists Zablocki and Robbins,
together with eight other contributors divided among cult sympathizers and critics, have
presented diverse views in a search for ―objectivity in a controversial field.‖
Center for the Study of the Self
Gloucester, Virginia
Les Sectes (Sects)
Anne Fournier and Michel Monroy. Toulouse, France: Editions Milan,
1996, 68 pages.
Publication of this 68-page paperback was supported by the Centre Roger Ikor, founded in
1981 to study ―mental manipulation‖ by cults and sects. Co-author Michel Monroy is a
psychiatrist and Anne Fournier is a history professor. Both are associated with the Ikor
Centre. This pocket-sized book is a concise and perhaps too-brief summary of major cults,
which it describes as new religious movements, differentiating cults from sects, which split
from established religions. The authors are more critical of sects than cults. They consider
sects to be a departure from a mainstream belief system, whereas cults can become an
established religion over time.
The book begins with a brief history of sects as religious minorities, with specific reference
to Hubbard‘s Scientology, Moon‘s Unification, Jones‘ People‘s Temple (Guyana), Koresh‘s
Davidians, the Solar Temple, and various New Age groups. As is true in the United States,
the authors point out the difficulty in accurately determining the number of people actively
involved in these movements.
The book includes a brief description of cult recruitment methods the effects on new
recruits of withdrawal from mainstream society, family, and friends the gradual narrowing
of new members‘ freedom of thought and action and members‘ resulting loss of critical
judgment and appropriate emotional response. This process increases leader charisma as
members regress into infantile dependency. The authors recommend dissemination of
relevant information to the public, legal restrictions, and objective coverage by news media
as defenses against mental manipulation, especially of minors.
Throughout this small book are cartoons that not only add humor but also point up
important points in the text. The book includes a two-page glossary of 29 terms, a brief
two-page bibliography of French language books, a video-cassette source, and a two-page,
two-column index.
This book is recommended for anyone interested in the cult groups in France.
Frank MacHovec, Ph.D.
Center for the Study of the Self
Gloucester, Virginia
Misunderstanding Cults: Searching for Objectivity in a Controversial Field
Edited by Benjamin Zablocki and Thomas Robbins. Toronto:
University of Toronto Press, 2001, 524 pages.
Twenty years ago, most sociologists and other academics who specialized in the study of
religion ignored or dismissed the handful of scholars and helping professionals who called
attention to the harmfulness of some cults. These cult sympathizers disregarded or
disparaged without proper examination evidence that certain new religions applied
―brainwashing,‖ or mind control, to recruit and retain converts. For years sympathizers and
had little to do with cult critics. At last, however, sociologists Zablocki and Robbins,
together with eight other contributors divided among cult sympathizers and critics, have
presented diverse views in a search for ―objectivity in a controversial field.‖
