Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 3, Nos. 2 &3, 2004, Page 90
This perspective, although bleak, helps us understand how behaviors or actions that might
look crazy or irrational to the outsider (such as committing suicide or perpetrating violent,
illegal, or sectarian acts) tend to look completely rational from the perspective of that
person living inside and in alignment with the cult‘s reality. As for free will, there is not
exactly loss of free will or free choice, but free will is subsumed under the will of the
group/leader and is altered and distorted. Thus, as the case of Heaven‘s Gate revealed,
individual choices are constrained by the close-mindedness of the system and the equally
limiting close-mindedness of the individual who functions in alliance with that system. If we
recognize free will as voluntary choice or an informed decision, one that is ―not determined
by prior causes or by divine intervention‖ (Merriam-Webster‘s Collegiate Dictionary 1993)—
then what choice does the truly devoted cult member have? In my opinion, based on this
study, none—other than those ―given‖ by the bounded reality of the cult context.
Summation
It is my hope that through systematic study we might gain an understanding of the
sophistication of groups such as Heaven‘s Gate. I have tried to do so by unraveling,
describing, and analyzing the interlocking nature of the charismatic relationship, the
principles of the belief system, and the mechanisms and processes of influence and control.
The result, in this case, was a combination of organizational structure and human agency
that served to constrain individual choices within the group context by encapsulating the
worldview of the true believer. Indeed, charisma and belief make up the foundation upon
which such an ideological system is constructed. But a totalistic ideology gathers its
strength when it is put into practice. Making such a belief system an everyday reality
requires more than just inspirational rhetoric and urgent messages of destruction and
salvation. It also requires organizational and social controls—and the energy of true
believers.
Notes
1 This paper was originally prepared for and presented at the annual meeting of the American Family
Foundation, ―Understanding Cults, NRMs, and Other Groups,‖ Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, June 12,
2004. Much of the material is drawn from my book Bounded Choice: True Believers and Charismatic
Cults (Lalich, 2004).
2 Real names (Bonnie Nettles and Marshall Applewhite) and their chosen names (The Two, and Ti and
Do) are used interchangeably throughout this paper.
3 Exit videos, sometimes referred to as goodbye videos, were left behind by the group, and were sent
to sympathetic followers to distribute to various media outlets to announce and explain their
―departure.‖ There were two videos: one of Do speaking, seated before his followers, which was
recorded the night before the suicides began the other was of the students, mostly in pairs, speaking
for several minutes each and saying their final farewells.
References
Arendt, H. (1951). Totalitarianism. New York: Harcourt, Brace &World.
Balch, R. W. (1982). Bo and Peep: A case study of the origins of messianic leadership. In R. Wallis
(Ed.), Millennialism and charisma (pp. 13-72). Belfast: The Queen's University.
— (1995). Waiting for the ships: Disillusionment and the revitalization of faith in Bo and Peep's UFO
cult. In J. R. Lewis (Ed.), The gods have landed (pp. 137-166). Albany: State University of New
York Press.
Balch, R. W., &Taylor, D. (1976). Salvation in a UFO. Psychology Today, pp. 58, 60-62, 66, 106.
— (1977). Seekers and saucers: The role of the cultic milieu in joining a UFO cult. American
Behavioral Scientist, 20, 839-860.
— (2002). Making sense of the Heaven's Gate suicides. In D. G. Bromley &J. G. Melton (Eds.), Cults,
religion and violence (pp. 209-228). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Clark, C. (1997, April 12). Cultist Applewhite had a severe heart disease. San Diego Union-Tribune
[on-line, www.uniontrib.com/reports/cult_suicide/news_in12reports.html/.
This perspective, although bleak, helps us understand how behaviors or actions that might
look crazy or irrational to the outsider (such as committing suicide or perpetrating violent,
illegal, or sectarian acts) tend to look completely rational from the perspective of that
person living inside and in alignment with the cult‘s reality. As for free will, there is not
exactly loss of free will or free choice, but free will is subsumed under the will of the
group/leader and is altered and distorted. Thus, as the case of Heaven‘s Gate revealed,
individual choices are constrained by the close-mindedness of the system and the equally
limiting close-mindedness of the individual who functions in alliance with that system. If we
recognize free will as voluntary choice or an informed decision, one that is ―not determined
by prior causes or by divine intervention‖ (Merriam-Webster‘s Collegiate Dictionary 1993)—
then what choice does the truly devoted cult member have? In my opinion, based on this
study, none—other than those ―given‖ by the bounded reality of the cult context.
Summation
It is my hope that through systematic study we might gain an understanding of the
sophistication of groups such as Heaven‘s Gate. I have tried to do so by unraveling,
describing, and analyzing the interlocking nature of the charismatic relationship, the
principles of the belief system, and the mechanisms and processes of influence and control.
The result, in this case, was a combination of organizational structure and human agency
that served to constrain individual choices within the group context by encapsulating the
worldview of the true believer. Indeed, charisma and belief make up the foundation upon
which such an ideological system is constructed. But a totalistic ideology gathers its
strength when it is put into practice. Making such a belief system an everyday reality
requires more than just inspirational rhetoric and urgent messages of destruction and
salvation. It also requires organizational and social controls—and the energy of true
believers.
Notes
1 This paper was originally prepared for and presented at the annual meeting of the American Family
Foundation, ―Understanding Cults, NRMs, and Other Groups,‖ Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, June 12,
2004. Much of the material is drawn from my book Bounded Choice: True Believers and Charismatic
Cults (Lalich, 2004).
2 Real names (Bonnie Nettles and Marshall Applewhite) and their chosen names (The Two, and Ti and
Do) are used interchangeably throughout this paper.
3 Exit videos, sometimes referred to as goodbye videos, were left behind by the group, and were sent
to sympathetic followers to distribute to various media outlets to announce and explain their
―departure.‖ There were two videos: one of Do speaking, seated before his followers, which was
recorded the night before the suicides began the other was of the students, mostly in pairs, speaking
for several minutes each and saying their final farewells.
References
Arendt, H. (1951). Totalitarianism. New York: Harcourt, Brace &World.
Balch, R. W. (1982). Bo and Peep: A case study of the origins of messianic leadership. In R. Wallis
(Ed.), Millennialism and charisma (pp. 13-72). Belfast: The Queen's University.
— (1995). Waiting for the ships: Disillusionment and the revitalization of faith in Bo and Peep's UFO
cult. In J. R. Lewis (Ed.), The gods have landed (pp. 137-166). Albany: State University of New
York Press.
Balch, R. W., &Taylor, D. (1976). Salvation in a UFO. Psychology Today, pp. 58, 60-62, 66, 106.
— (1977). Seekers and saucers: The role of the cultic milieu in joining a UFO cult. American
Behavioral Scientist, 20, 839-860.
— (2002). Making sense of the Heaven's Gate suicides. In D. G. Bromley &J. G. Melton (Eds.), Cults,
religion and violence (pp. 209-228). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Clark, C. (1997, April 12). Cultist Applewhite had a severe heart disease. San Diego Union-Tribune
[on-line, www.uniontrib.com/reports/cult_suicide/news_in12reports.html/.
