Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 8, No. 3, 2009, Page 39
we should shut up and go away, that we should discontinue our study of them, or cease
holding them accountable to decent human behavior and the laws of the land. In fact, we
have seen that outside pressure has sometimes led a cult to change or ―soften‖ its
practices—for example, the polygamous FLDS is now claiming to no longer sanction
underage marriages. Public scrutiny sometimes pays off, and I say that with the clarification
that I am not advocating unwarranted government intervention or the passage of laws that
would restrict our freedoms. But freedom also comes with the obligation to act responsibly.
Do we need to improve and deepen our own understanding of the phenomenon in all its
manifestations? Yes, of course. This is why our ongoing research is so vital. Why we must
strive to publish across disciplines. We must get our point of view out there in serious,
substantive, grounded articles and books.
We must continue to fight—strategically and smartly—against the academic blacklisting that
Ben Zablocki wrote about more than 10 years ago.29 And not just the blacklisting of any
discussion of brainwashing, as he was writing about in that particular article, but also we
must fight against and expose the difficulty of getting anything published that presents a
critical perspective of cults in general or of a specific group—no matter how well researched
and substantiated the work may be.
And—extremely important—we still have to work on getting people to better understand the
complexities of cult involvement and commitment so they don‘t blame the victim.
As with any area of study, we have to call our subject of interest something or we can‘t
study it, can‘t talk about it. Frankly, I believe that we create more confusion and trouble for
ourselves and deflect from our educational and research goals when we use a hodgepodge
of terms—totalist, high-demand, closed, authoritarian, and so on. These are all well and
good. I‘ve got nothing against them, really. In fact, I myself have been guilty of this
exercise in avoidance. But in reality, aren‘t we really just shying away from saying it like it
is?
I was quite heartened last month when the British Crown Prosecution Service ruled that the
word cult was neither ―abusive [n]or insulting.‖ This was in relation to the London police
issuing a summons to a young man picketing at one of the Anonymous demonstrations in
front of the Scientology HQ there. The police insisted the boy remove his placard with the
word cult on it. When the summons got thrown out, his mother said the decision was ―a
victory for free speech‖30 —and indeed it was.
What Does the Future Hold?
As I wrote in my book Bounded Choice, ―The combination of charismatic leadership, a
transcendent belief system, personal commitment, and social and psychological pressure is
the key dynamic.‖31 It‘s key to the transformation of the individual from dedicated believer
to deployable agent and is the core of what we must strive to convey to others. Submitting
oneself to the domination of a charismatic leader is an intimate and complex process it is
unique to each leader and each devotee. Yet, by examining the similarities of charismatic
influence and control in its various forms, we stand to gain a more profound understanding
of this enigmatic phenomenon. We also become better equipped to share our knowledge
with other concerned professionals and the general public.
So much is happening in today‘s world where we can contribute. A never-ending series of
events is calling us:
The recent situation with the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day
Saints (FLDS) community in Texas
we should shut up and go away, that we should discontinue our study of them, or cease
holding them accountable to decent human behavior and the laws of the land. In fact, we
have seen that outside pressure has sometimes led a cult to change or ―soften‖ its
practices—for example, the polygamous FLDS is now claiming to no longer sanction
underage marriages. Public scrutiny sometimes pays off, and I say that with the clarification
that I am not advocating unwarranted government intervention or the passage of laws that
would restrict our freedoms. But freedom also comes with the obligation to act responsibly.
Do we need to improve and deepen our own understanding of the phenomenon in all its
manifestations? Yes, of course. This is why our ongoing research is so vital. Why we must
strive to publish across disciplines. We must get our point of view out there in serious,
substantive, grounded articles and books.
We must continue to fight—strategically and smartly—against the academic blacklisting that
Ben Zablocki wrote about more than 10 years ago.29 And not just the blacklisting of any
discussion of brainwashing, as he was writing about in that particular article, but also we
must fight against and expose the difficulty of getting anything published that presents a
critical perspective of cults in general or of a specific group—no matter how well researched
and substantiated the work may be.
And—extremely important—we still have to work on getting people to better understand the
complexities of cult involvement and commitment so they don‘t blame the victim.
As with any area of study, we have to call our subject of interest something or we can‘t
study it, can‘t talk about it. Frankly, I believe that we create more confusion and trouble for
ourselves and deflect from our educational and research goals when we use a hodgepodge
of terms—totalist, high-demand, closed, authoritarian, and so on. These are all well and
good. I‘ve got nothing against them, really. In fact, I myself have been guilty of this
exercise in avoidance. But in reality, aren‘t we really just shying away from saying it like it
is?
I was quite heartened last month when the British Crown Prosecution Service ruled that the
word cult was neither ―abusive [n]or insulting.‖ This was in relation to the London police
issuing a summons to a young man picketing at one of the Anonymous demonstrations in
front of the Scientology HQ there. The police insisted the boy remove his placard with the
word cult on it. When the summons got thrown out, his mother said the decision was ―a
victory for free speech‖30 —and indeed it was.
What Does the Future Hold?
As I wrote in my book Bounded Choice, ―The combination of charismatic leadership, a
transcendent belief system, personal commitment, and social and psychological pressure is
the key dynamic.‖31 It‘s key to the transformation of the individual from dedicated believer
to deployable agent and is the core of what we must strive to convey to others. Submitting
oneself to the domination of a charismatic leader is an intimate and complex process it is
unique to each leader and each devotee. Yet, by examining the similarities of charismatic
influence and control in its various forms, we stand to gain a more profound understanding
of this enigmatic phenomenon. We also become better equipped to share our knowledge
with other concerned professionals and the general public.
So much is happening in today‘s world where we can contribute. A never-ending series of
events is calling us:
The recent situation with the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day
Saints (FLDS) community in Texas
