Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 3, Nos. 2 &3, 2004, Page 81
Systems of influence: This is the network of interactions and social influence
residing in the group‘s social relations. This is the human interaction and
group culture from which members learn to adapt their thoughts, attitudes,
and behaviors in relation to their new beliefs.
The interrelated and interlocking nature of the four dimensions form a ―self-sealing system,‖
a social system closed in on itself and closed to the outside world. It is characterized by
ideological totalism and processes of influence and control that may lead adherents to a
high degree of commitment that I have identified as ―charismatic commitment.‖ Now the
dedicated adherent becomes a ―true believer‖ in the sense of being a deployable agent for
the group or leader. Living within the bounded reality of the cultic social system, the cult
member encounters no meaningful reality checks and becomes more and more enmeshed
with and invested in the closed world of the group. For some, this may lead to a state of
―personal closure,‖ or the individualized version of the self-sealing system. The member‘s
life and choices are constrained not only by the system but also, and perhaps even more
powerfully, by the close-mindedness of the individual him- or herself who is functioning in
alliance with that system. Now the dedicated adherent has entered a social-psychological
state of being that I am calling bounded choice: in essence, life outside the cult has become
impossible to imagine.
The exemplar group studied here is the Heaven‘s Gate cult, which came to prominence
when the members committed collective suicide. On March 27, 1997, thirty-nine dead
bodies were found in a mansion in Rancho Santa Fe, California. The deceased were followers
of Bonnie Nettles and Marshall Applewhite (known to their devotees as Ti and Do).2 In
addition to the male leader, Applewhite, among the dead were twenty-one women and
seventeen men. According to announcements by the local coroner‘s office, the deaths had
been caused by ingestion of a mixture of drugs and alcohol, and suffocation by plastic bag
over the head. Because the group‘s Web site (www.heavensgate.com) garnered so much
attention after the suicides, this group, previously known as the Bo Peep cult by those who
had some familiarity with the group, came to be called Heaven‘s Gate.
The data for this study include interviews with former group members, sympathetic
followers and believers, and families of members and other associates. Additional data were
drawn from my content analysis of archival material including the group‘s written
documents, Internet postings, and audio and video recordings. Also I relied on the work of
Robert Balch and David Taylor, who have been studying and writing about the group since
the mid-1970s, as well as reviewing other scholarly and popular articles and media reports.
Charismatic Authority
The first dimension in the four-part framework is charismatic authority, characterized by
leadership and specialness. The concept of charisma was introduced by sociologist Max
Weber in his study of ancient religions, bureaucracy, and institution building (Weber 1946a,
1946b, 1964, 1968). Charisma is often thought of as traits that inhere in special individuals,
but more to the point, charisma is a powerful social relationship. In this vein Weber wrote,
―What is alone important is how the individual is actually regarded by those subject to
charismatic authority, by his ‗followers‘ or ‗disciples‘‖ (1968, 48).
In relation to this aspect, I examined and analyzed charismatic attraction, the leadership
principle, and the charismatic community that grew around the leaders. Applewhite and
Nettles had met by chance in their hometown of Houston, Texas in the early 1970s (Balch
1982, 1995 Balch and Taylor 1976, 1977, 2002) Each gave up a ―normal‖ life to live with
the other. Nettles had worked as a nurse, and was married with four children. Applewhite
had been a music professor and choir leader at southern religious colleges. He, also, had
been married and had children, but was already divorced for several years before meeting
Nettles. Applewhite had lived both openly and ―in the closet‖ as a homosexual. The two met
Systems of influence: This is the network of interactions and social influence
residing in the group‘s social relations. This is the human interaction and
group culture from which members learn to adapt their thoughts, attitudes,
and behaviors in relation to their new beliefs.
The interrelated and interlocking nature of the four dimensions form a ―self-sealing system,‖
a social system closed in on itself and closed to the outside world. It is characterized by
ideological totalism and processes of influence and control that may lead adherents to a
high degree of commitment that I have identified as ―charismatic commitment.‖ Now the
dedicated adherent becomes a ―true believer‖ in the sense of being a deployable agent for
the group or leader. Living within the bounded reality of the cultic social system, the cult
member encounters no meaningful reality checks and becomes more and more enmeshed
with and invested in the closed world of the group. For some, this may lead to a state of
―personal closure,‖ or the individualized version of the self-sealing system. The member‘s
life and choices are constrained not only by the system but also, and perhaps even more
powerfully, by the close-mindedness of the individual him- or herself who is functioning in
alliance with that system. Now the dedicated adherent has entered a social-psychological
state of being that I am calling bounded choice: in essence, life outside the cult has become
impossible to imagine.
The exemplar group studied here is the Heaven‘s Gate cult, which came to prominence
when the members committed collective suicide. On March 27, 1997, thirty-nine dead
bodies were found in a mansion in Rancho Santa Fe, California. The deceased were followers
of Bonnie Nettles and Marshall Applewhite (known to their devotees as Ti and Do).2 In
addition to the male leader, Applewhite, among the dead were twenty-one women and
seventeen men. According to announcements by the local coroner‘s office, the deaths had
been caused by ingestion of a mixture of drugs and alcohol, and suffocation by plastic bag
over the head. Because the group‘s Web site (www.heavensgate.com) garnered so much
attention after the suicides, this group, previously known as the Bo Peep cult by those who
had some familiarity with the group, came to be called Heaven‘s Gate.
The data for this study include interviews with former group members, sympathetic
followers and believers, and families of members and other associates. Additional data were
drawn from my content analysis of archival material including the group‘s written
documents, Internet postings, and audio and video recordings. Also I relied on the work of
Robert Balch and David Taylor, who have been studying and writing about the group since
the mid-1970s, as well as reviewing other scholarly and popular articles and media reports.
Charismatic Authority
The first dimension in the four-part framework is charismatic authority, characterized by
leadership and specialness. The concept of charisma was introduced by sociologist Max
Weber in his study of ancient religions, bureaucracy, and institution building (Weber 1946a,
1946b, 1964, 1968). Charisma is often thought of as traits that inhere in special individuals,
but more to the point, charisma is a powerful social relationship. In this vein Weber wrote,
―What is alone important is how the individual is actually regarded by those subject to
charismatic authority, by his ‗followers‘ or ‗disciples‘‖ (1968, 48).
In relation to this aspect, I examined and analyzed charismatic attraction, the leadership
principle, and the charismatic community that grew around the leaders. Applewhite and
Nettles had met by chance in their hometown of Houston, Texas in the early 1970s (Balch
1982, 1995 Balch and Taylor 1976, 1977, 2002) Each gave up a ―normal‖ life to live with
the other. Nettles had worked as a nurse, and was married with four children. Applewhite
had been a music professor and choir leader at southern religious colleges. He, also, had
been married and had children, but was already divorced for several years before meeting
Nettles. Applewhite had lived both openly and ―in the closet‖ as a homosexual. The two met
