Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 5, No. 1, 2006, Page 30
consistency that the transition from political protest to spiritual engagement with the COG
afforded. Centralising the role of youthful idealism17 in an era in which anything seemed
possible, he notes: ―Idealistic youth—sometimes propelled by the perceived shortcomings of
their own generation, and always compelled by promises of dramatic social change—chose
to commit themselves to high-demand beliefs that always rested upon supernatural claims‖
(p. 150). Likewise, Williams (1998) observes the role of idealism, remarking that although
she had never met Berg,
Whenever doubts entered my mind about following a ―personality,‖ I
reminded myself that it was the ideal [italics in the original] I was following,
not the person who expressed it.... I thought the ideals he preached could
change the world. (Williams, 1998:38)
Kent turns his attention to the movement again in the concluding chapter, where he
discusses the group‘s millenarian position (p. 154), as well as their ―...manipulative use of
feminist rhetoric against women...‖ (p. 163). On this latter point, Kent explores the
apparent paradox that emerged: At a time when women were striving to achieve social and
political gains, many of them were joining very patriarchal groups (such as COG/The
Family), where they had to rescind their hopes for equality for positions of subservience.
The rhetoric of Berg‘s works illustrates this paradox. On one hand, he described his female
followers as ―Revolutionary Women.‖ On the other hand, in at least two Mo Letters he
expressed his disdain for the women‘s movement: He commanded women to ―PROVE YOUR
LOVE WITH SEX‖ because ―THEY [MEN] GET FED UP WITH THESE SICKENING SELFISH
WOMEN‖ (Berg, 1976b:4134). The ―sickening selfish‖ women he refers to are the women
who were part of the feminist movement. He criticized them for not looking after men
―properly.‖ Likewise, in ―Real Mothers,‖ Berg derided ―THIS WOMEN‘S LIB IDEA!‖ Maria and
Berg wrote that women had been ―brainwashed‖ into liberation, and that it was their
[COG/The Family‘s] duty to ―brainwash‖ them back into motherhood (Berg, 1975:3521).
Kent‘s discussion deals with a specific era, and he explains well why the youth of that time
joined this particular NRM. His work does not address the appeal that the movement held
for converts in the late 1970s, the 1980s, the 1990s, and the contemporary period. Has the
movement replaced the rhetoric of protest and revolution with other equally appealing
positions during these periods? Should Kent or other researchers choose to tackle this and
other questions, we will have a more complete picture of the reasons for the group‘s
continued appeal to new converts.
“The Children of God” by Miriam Williams Boeri in Sex and Religion (2005),
Christel Manning and Phil Zuckerman (Eds.)
Williams Boeri18 returns her attention to COG/The Family in her chapter, ―Children of God‖
in Christel Manning and Phil Zuckerman‘s edited volume, Sex and Religion (2005).
Positioning COG/The Family within the history of communal experimentation, Williams Boeri
identifies The Family‘s sexual ethos as a part of a larger tradition of sexual experimentation
in such social groups (p. 160). She expands her discussion (from 1998) of the socialization
process that facilitated and legitimated the acceptance of overt sexuality paired with
Christian-inspired doctrine. She discusses the combined effects of Berg‘s charismatic
leadership and the tight COG/The Family hierarchy of authority, as well. Critical to this
power structure was the public humiliation (via Mo Letters) that Berg instituted as a
powerful form of punishment for dissenting leaders at all levels. Coupled with this discipline
was the resocialization of new disciples, a process that Williams Boeri describes using
Rosabeth Moss Kanter‘s discussion of commitment (pp. 162–163).
Then we get to the heart of the discussion—sexuality in the Children of God. Williams Boeri
examines the sexual mores of the group and identifies that the shift from ―marriage and
sexual chastity‖ to ―sexual liberation‖ mirrored ―parallel developments in the life of the
consistency that the transition from political protest to spiritual engagement with the COG
afforded. Centralising the role of youthful idealism17 in an era in which anything seemed
possible, he notes: ―Idealistic youth—sometimes propelled by the perceived shortcomings of
their own generation, and always compelled by promises of dramatic social change—chose
to commit themselves to high-demand beliefs that always rested upon supernatural claims‖
(p. 150). Likewise, Williams (1998) observes the role of idealism, remarking that although
she had never met Berg,
Whenever doubts entered my mind about following a ―personality,‖ I
reminded myself that it was the ideal [italics in the original] I was following,
not the person who expressed it.... I thought the ideals he preached could
change the world. (Williams, 1998:38)
Kent turns his attention to the movement again in the concluding chapter, where he
discusses the group‘s millenarian position (p. 154), as well as their ―...manipulative use of
feminist rhetoric against women...‖ (p. 163). On this latter point, Kent explores the
apparent paradox that emerged: At a time when women were striving to achieve social and
political gains, many of them were joining very patriarchal groups (such as COG/The
Family), where they had to rescind their hopes for equality for positions of subservience.
The rhetoric of Berg‘s works illustrates this paradox. On one hand, he described his female
followers as ―Revolutionary Women.‖ On the other hand, in at least two Mo Letters he
expressed his disdain for the women‘s movement: He commanded women to ―PROVE YOUR
LOVE WITH SEX‖ because ―THEY [MEN] GET FED UP WITH THESE SICKENING SELFISH
WOMEN‖ (Berg, 1976b:4134). The ―sickening selfish‖ women he refers to are the women
who were part of the feminist movement. He criticized them for not looking after men
―properly.‖ Likewise, in ―Real Mothers,‖ Berg derided ―THIS WOMEN‘S LIB IDEA!‖ Maria and
Berg wrote that women had been ―brainwashed‖ into liberation, and that it was their
[COG/The Family‘s] duty to ―brainwash‖ them back into motherhood (Berg, 1975:3521).
Kent‘s discussion deals with a specific era, and he explains well why the youth of that time
joined this particular NRM. His work does not address the appeal that the movement held
for converts in the late 1970s, the 1980s, the 1990s, and the contemporary period. Has the
movement replaced the rhetoric of protest and revolution with other equally appealing
positions during these periods? Should Kent or other researchers choose to tackle this and
other questions, we will have a more complete picture of the reasons for the group‘s
continued appeal to new converts.
“The Children of God” by Miriam Williams Boeri in Sex and Religion (2005),
Christel Manning and Phil Zuckerman (Eds.)
Williams Boeri18 returns her attention to COG/The Family in her chapter, ―Children of God‖
in Christel Manning and Phil Zuckerman‘s edited volume, Sex and Religion (2005).
Positioning COG/The Family within the history of communal experimentation, Williams Boeri
identifies The Family‘s sexual ethos as a part of a larger tradition of sexual experimentation
in such social groups (p. 160). She expands her discussion (from 1998) of the socialization
process that facilitated and legitimated the acceptance of overt sexuality paired with
Christian-inspired doctrine. She discusses the combined effects of Berg‘s charismatic
leadership and the tight COG/The Family hierarchy of authority, as well. Critical to this
power structure was the public humiliation (via Mo Letters) that Berg instituted as a
powerful form of punishment for dissenting leaders at all levels. Coupled with this discipline
was the resocialization of new disciples, a process that Williams Boeri describes using
Rosabeth Moss Kanter‘s discussion of commitment (pp. 162–163).
Then we get to the heart of the discussion—sexuality in the Children of God. Williams Boeri
examines the sexual mores of the group and identifies that the shift from ―marriage and
sexual chastity‖ to ―sexual liberation‖ mirrored ―parallel developments in the life of the
