Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 3, Nos. 2 &3, 2004, Page 144
Spataro asserts that Remey‘s spiritual pedigree before the Oxford Movement led back
through both parents to the Pilgrims and the Huguenots, giving him ―the unadulterated,
reformed tradition coming directly from both John Calvin and the Puritans.‖ This appears to
be groundwork for the author's later assertion that Remey should have been recognized as
the Guardian of the Faith.
Spataro discusses the history of Presbyterian Millenarianism as espoused by Edward Irving
in the 1830s, though he does not document a direct connection between Bahá'í Faith and
Irving. Spataro does connect Irving to Sun Myung Moon in an apparently positive reference.
He does not directly give the reader insight into the relevance of this to the Bahá'í Faith or
Remey‘s memory but he seems to imply that Moon is on the right track, as Remey was
when he found the Bahá'í Faith.
Despite the book's many deficiencies, it sheds a bit of light on the complaints of some
Bahá'ís. Bacquet (2001), for example, says:
The Bahá'í Faith clearly lacks many of the features that are usually associated
with dangerous cults. It does, however, include some doctrines and practices
that put it closer on the ―cult-like‖ end of that continuum than even most
conservative religious groups, and that are starkly at variance with its
tolerant public image. It does not, for example, have a living, charismatic
leader, but it is governed by an elected body that is believed to be endowed
with divine guidance and that cannot be challenged. While outright
exploitation is rare, Bahá'ís are encouraged to make considerable voluntary
personal sacrifices for the good of their faith. Unlike cults that insulate their
members from outside influences, Bahá'ís do not consider the rest of the
world evil, and in fact are encouraged to mix among people of various faiths.
However, the existing governmental systems of the world, including Western
democracy are considered inferior to the system of Bahá'í governance and
doomed to eventually go by the wayside. Bahá'í institutions also express
fears over external threats, especially those that might endanger the
religion‘s reputation. This is often given as a reason for the careful screening
of publicly-available information. More marked, however, and perhaps the
most ―cult-like‖ aspect of Bahá'í belief and practice is the fear of internal
enemies that threaten to disrupt the religion‘s unity and undermine its self-
definition as the agent of mankind‘s salvation.
Charles Mason Remey and the Bahá'í Faith seems intended primarily to encourage the
followers of Remey‘s ―orthodox‖ group. It is not likely to have changed the minds of any of
the ―Haifa‖ Bahá'í, the largest of the Bahá'í organizations. It is not a clear presentation or
defense of Ali, or Bahá'u'lláh as the return of Christ on earth. Nor is it a clear articulation of
debates within Bahá'í, as is the Bacquet article cited above. It is an interesting window into
one side of a controversy in a very large new religious movement that has been severely
persecuted in the Moslem world and little known in the West.
Reference
Bacquet, Karen. (2001). Enemies within: Conflict and control in the Bahá'í community.
Cultic Studies Journal, 18, 140-171.
Ron Burks, Ph. D.

Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 3, Nos. 2 &3, 2004, Page 145
Grandparents’ Rights: What Every Grandparent Needs to Know
Patricia Perkins Slorah
1st Books Library, 2003, ISBN: 1-4107-6628-4 (e-book), ISBN: 1-4107-6627-6
(paperback)
Patricia Perkins Slorah, has written an easy-to- read book for grandparents who are
considering assistance from the legal community to secure visitation with their
grandchildren. The book is aptly titled, Grandparents’ Rights: What Every Grandparent
Needs to Know. For grandparents who are unfamiliar with the court system, Ms. Slorah
provides helpful guidance. Although any book about the current state of the laws would be
outdated at some point in the future as to what certain laws provide, this book provides
timeless personal stories of grandparents who have struggled to gain visitation rights with
their grandchildren.
For readers who are not grandparents, the book is an eye-opener about a growing societal
problem – neglectful parents, abusive parents, or a parent who has lost a spouse and then
turns his or her back on the children‘s grandparents. In several of the vignettes,
grandparents became caregivers for their grandchildren and then sought legal visitation
rights when their relationships with the parents became estranged, or when other problems
surfaced such as divorcing parents, substance abuse, or death of a parent. State by state,
legislatures are enacting laws for grandparents to have legal grounds for visitations with
their grandchildren. At the heart of these laws is recognition on the part of legislatures that
when dysfunction occurs in immediate family units, one solution may be to provide
grandparents with rights to see their grandchildren.
The author tells the personal stories from the point of view of the caring and unappreciated
grandparent. For instance, ―As a member of the grandparent generation, I now believe we
misled our daughters. We told them that because of new attitudes toward women, they
could ‗have it all.‘ We neglected to tell them they could not ‗have it all at once.‘‖ (page 4).
An undercurrent throughout the book is that the parents are depicted as cold-hearted
towards the grandparents‘ desires, neglectful of their children‘s need for basic necessities,
or outright abusive. The author also briefly mentions instances of sexual abuse and physical
abuse of children by their parents. Readers may be initially put-off by the one-sidedness of
the point-of-view. For example, in describing a grandparent support group, Ms. Slorah
writes: ―[G]randparents told how their daughter or in-law would leave their grandbaby with
‗just anybody‘ so she could go out and party.‖ (page 41) Nevertheless, readers will
eventually forgive the author when focusing on the book‘s purpose.
―Grandparents‘ Rights‖ would be a useful book for grandparents who seek visitation rights
with children of cult members. But there are hurdles for grandparents in achieving
visitation rights with grandchildren in or out of cults. For example, in New York, the law,
Domestic Relations Law section 72, currently provides that the courts first examine whether
the grandparents have standing. To establish standing, the grandparent can petition for
visitation when there has been a death of the child‘s parent or ―where circumstances show
that conditions exist which equity would see fit to intervene.‖ If standing is found, then the
second inquiry that the courts must conduct is whether visitation is in ―the best interest of
the child.‖
For grandparents looking for answers, ―Grandparents‘ Rights‖ provides readers with
motivation, at the very least. The author describes how she took her family matters to
court, testified in Congress, lobbied her state legislature, and took her story to the media.
She also provided advice to those seeking it, and it sounds like her phone rang constantly.
With that kind of determination described in this book, any reader would be inspired.