Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 8, No. 2, 2009, Page 65
tranquility among them,‖ the Religious Affairs Minister declared. They will now need official
authorization to preach in public areas and must provide authorities with dates, locations
and hours of sermons, in advance.
Alan Honner pleaded guilty in April in Hamilton, Ontario, to charges of kidnapping and
forcible confinement associated with the attempted deprogramming of Mirella Brun Del Re
from the North Dominion Christian Centre in 2005. The woman‘s father, a physician, his
wife, and his son —all of them scheduled to stand trial in October—allegedly kidnapped
Mirella, forced her into a van, and took her to a secret location for 10 days.
Ria Ramkissoon and four members of One Mind Ministries, in Baltimore, Maryland, have
been charged with the murder by starvation of her one-year-old son, Javon. The cult‘s
leader, Queen Antoinette, had said the boy was a demon because he refused to say
―Amen‖ after meals, and she ordered him separated from his mother. Ramkissoon pleaded
guilty, but insists that the charges be dropped when Javon is resurrected. It is expected that
she will receive a 20-year suspended sentence her lawyer said she must undergo
deprogramming and psychiatric counseling.
The anti-missionary group Outreach Judaism has persuaded Barnes &Noble to reclassify
as ―Christian‖ the book ―Passover Family Pack,‖ which presents the Jewish holiday
essentially as a preparation for the arrival of ―Yeshua the Messiah.‖ The book represents the
ritual wine as the blood of Jesus, the matzo as his body, and so on. The publisher, Barry
Rubin, president of Maryland‘s Messianic Jewish Communications, says there is nothing
deceptive about the book, noting that the term ―messianic‖ appears on the cover. He adds
that he‘s not trying to trick Jews into worshipping Jesus but rather to educate Christians
about Jewish tradition.
A community of an estimated 150 pagans—people who worship multiple gods—has grown
up in Israel. This reflects similar developments in Europe and the United States. According
to Israeli jewelry designer Alon Kebets, who runs a Wicca website: ―Every individual picks
himself a pantheon. There are many options.‖ Kebets was scheduled to address the First
Israeli Conference for the Study of Contemporary Spirituality at the University of Haifa in
March.
The term Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS), or Parental Alienation (PA), is used by
some to describe one parent‘s poisoning of a child‘s relationship with the other parent. Most
credible agencies, as well as the American Psychological Association, do not support the
idea, citing a lack of evidence that the syndrome exists. Nonetheless, certain judges during
the last decade have sent children to deprogramming or ―reunification‖ centers in
attempts to undo feelings of hostility toward a parent. Such hostility may, in fact, have
stemmed from abuse, abuse denied by the alleged perpetrator, who defends himself by
citing PAS as the cause of the child‘s alienation.
According to the Leadership Council on Child Abuse, PAS therapy involves confining the child
in a place away from home and isolating her from the parent to whom she is most attached.
This attachment is then challenged, and the child, in intensive sessions, is encouraged to re-
accept the rejected parent. Sometimes this leads to reunification with an abusive parent,
and the child suffers increased symptoms and suicidal ideation on occasion the child even
attempts suicide. Deprogramming here raises ethical and legal questions involving parental
and children‘s rights and the balance between them.
Joan Dawson, author of this article, is a member of the Family Court Reform Coalition,
which helps protective parents, including many battered women, gain custody of their
children. She says: ―Deprogramming treatment for children, at least for now, should be
confined to the realm of science fiction and not to courtrooms.‖
tranquility among them,‖ the Religious Affairs Minister declared. They will now need official
authorization to preach in public areas and must provide authorities with dates, locations
and hours of sermons, in advance.
Alan Honner pleaded guilty in April in Hamilton, Ontario, to charges of kidnapping and
forcible confinement associated with the attempted deprogramming of Mirella Brun Del Re
from the North Dominion Christian Centre in 2005. The woman‘s father, a physician, his
wife, and his son —all of them scheduled to stand trial in October—allegedly kidnapped
Mirella, forced her into a van, and took her to a secret location for 10 days.
Ria Ramkissoon and four members of One Mind Ministries, in Baltimore, Maryland, have
been charged with the murder by starvation of her one-year-old son, Javon. The cult‘s
leader, Queen Antoinette, had said the boy was a demon because he refused to say
―Amen‖ after meals, and she ordered him separated from his mother. Ramkissoon pleaded
guilty, but insists that the charges be dropped when Javon is resurrected. It is expected that
she will receive a 20-year suspended sentence her lawyer said she must undergo
deprogramming and psychiatric counseling.
The anti-missionary group Outreach Judaism has persuaded Barnes &Noble to reclassify
as ―Christian‖ the book ―Passover Family Pack,‖ which presents the Jewish holiday
essentially as a preparation for the arrival of ―Yeshua the Messiah.‖ The book represents the
ritual wine as the blood of Jesus, the matzo as his body, and so on. The publisher, Barry
Rubin, president of Maryland‘s Messianic Jewish Communications, says there is nothing
deceptive about the book, noting that the term ―messianic‖ appears on the cover. He adds
that he‘s not trying to trick Jews into worshipping Jesus but rather to educate Christians
about Jewish tradition.
A community of an estimated 150 pagans—people who worship multiple gods—has grown
up in Israel. This reflects similar developments in Europe and the United States. According
to Israeli jewelry designer Alon Kebets, who runs a Wicca website: ―Every individual picks
himself a pantheon. There are many options.‖ Kebets was scheduled to address the First
Israeli Conference for the Study of Contemporary Spirituality at the University of Haifa in
March.
The term Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS), or Parental Alienation (PA), is used by
some to describe one parent‘s poisoning of a child‘s relationship with the other parent. Most
credible agencies, as well as the American Psychological Association, do not support the
idea, citing a lack of evidence that the syndrome exists. Nonetheless, certain judges during
the last decade have sent children to deprogramming or ―reunification‖ centers in
attempts to undo feelings of hostility toward a parent. Such hostility may, in fact, have
stemmed from abuse, abuse denied by the alleged perpetrator, who defends himself by
citing PAS as the cause of the child‘s alienation.
According to the Leadership Council on Child Abuse, PAS therapy involves confining the child
in a place away from home and isolating her from the parent to whom she is most attached.
This attachment is then challenged, and the child, in intensive sessions, is encouraged to re-
accept the rejected parent. Sometimes this leads to reunification with an abusive parent,
and the child suffers increased symptoms and suicidal ideation on occasion the child even
attempts suicide. Deprogramming here raises ethical and legal questions involving parental
and children‘s rights and the balance between them.
Joan Dawson, author of this article, is a member of the Family Court Reform Coalition,
which helps protective parents, including many battered women, gain custody of their
children. She says: ―Deprogramming treatment for children, at least for now, should be
confined to the realm of science fiction and not to courtrooms.‖
