Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 9, No. 1, 2010, Page 111
mistress, Maria, took control of the group and continued writing the ―prophecies‖ she
received from Berg.
As a leader with total authority, Berg was the only one who could name what was creative
and what was not, and he did this often through his Mo letters, in ostentatious style. If a
member was deemed creative, he or she held a special position in the group‘s hierarchy,
which often included living in a separate residence from the larger communal homes and
enjoying ample funding from COG headquarters. The source of funding meant the members
living there were freed from the time-consuming and often exhausting endeavor of
garnering funds for the group through selling literature on the streets (called ―litnessing‖),
singing in restaurants and subways (called ―busking‖), and selling their bodies for profit
(called ―flirty fishing‖). These activities are well described in the literature and we will not
examine them further here (see Ajemian, 2005 Bainbridge, 2002 Boeri, 2005 Chancellor,
2000 Van Zandt, 1991).
Examples of the COG colonies created primarily for those labeled as creative members
include the ―show‖ home in Paris during the mid-1970s, the ―Music with Meaning‖ camp in
Greece during the early 1980s, and the various production colonies devoted to illustrating
and producing the Mo letters and other Berg-approved publications for worldwide member
consumption and distribution. One of the first music colonies separated from other homes
solely for creative purposes was the Boston colony started with funds from a record deal
with a major recording company, acquired largely on the popularity of Jeremy Spencer, the
Fleetwood Mac guitarist who had left the band abruptly to join the COG a few years earlier.
The colony was composed of all the band members, their wives and children, a ―roadie,‖
and the requisite leader selected by and reporting to Berg and his close-knit top leadership.
The first author (hereafter referred to in first person in this section of the paper) lived in
that home.
Like everything else that happened to me at that time (barely a year after I joined the
COG), I believed my presence in the home was an act of God. The leaders preferred that
the band members be married since they would be separated from other colonies
indefinitely, and Berg did not think men should go too long without sex. In those early days,
―sexual sharing‖ outside marriage was reserved for top leaders. All the members in
Jeremy‘s band were married except the drummer, who had been in the COG for a number
of years and merited a wife (called a ―mate‖). The drummer let his leaders know he wanted
to marry me, and within a few weeks we were mated—the COG equivalence of marriage. I
did not mind helping in God‘s plan. I was soon living in one of the few COG colonies
designed to encourage, motivate, and allow free time for its members to be creative—in this
case, produce a music album (see Williams, 1998, for detailed description of the musician
colony and its members). However, I was not labeled creative and certainly not authorized
to be creative. Instead, I helped by doing most of the household chores. I had no input on
any music or any part of the creative process. Even my work in the kitchen was guided by
detailed instructions on every step of food preparation, and my responsibilities helping the
band wives who were mothers were directed by the latest COG literature on childcare.
Absolutely no creative self was allowed to develop in my life. But I soon learned that those
labeled creative could just as quickly lose that label. Berg did not like the music the band
produced, and he would not acknowledge the album, called ―Jeremy and the Children,‖ as a
creative work. Before it was even released, Berg issued a private letter reprimanding the
entire band for being unspiritual and immediately dismantled the colony. The leaders sent
the band members to various homes in the COG‘s emerging missionary fields in Europe. I
went to Germany with my husband the drummer. After a few months, my husband was
suddenly asked to join some of his band friends in Paris, France, and I joined him a few
months later.
mistress, Maria, took control of the group and continued writing the ―prophecies‖ she
received from Berg.
As a leader with total authority, Berg was the only one who could name what was creative
and what was not, and he did this often through his Mo letters, in ostentatious style. If a
member was deemed creative, he or she held a special position in the group‘s hierarchy,
which often included living in a separate residence from the larger communal homes and
enjoying ample funding from COG headquarters. The source of funding meant the members
living there were freed from the time-consuming and often exhausting endeavor of
garnering funds for the group through selling literature on the streets (called ―litnessing‖),
singing in restaurants and subways (called ―busking‖), and selling their bodies for profit
(called ―flirty fishing‖). These activities are well described in the literature and we will not
examine them further here (see Ajemian, 2005 Bainbridge, 2002 Boeri, 2005 Chancellor,
2000 Van Zandt, 1991).
Examples of the COG colonies created primarily for those labeled as creative members
include the ―show‖ home in Paris during the mid-1970s, the ―Music with Meaning‖ camp in
Greece during the early 1980s, and the various production colonies devoted to illustrating
and producing the Mo letters and other Berg-approved publications for worldwide member
consumption and distribution. One of the first music colonies separated from other homes
solely for creative purposes was the Boston colony started with funds from a record deal
with a major recording company, acquired largely on the popularity of Jeremy Spencer, the
Fleetwood Mac guitarist who had left the band abruptly to join the COG a few years earlier.
The colony was composed of all the band members, their wives and children, a ―roadie,‖
and the requisite leader selected by and reporting to Berg and his close-knit top leadership.
The first author (hereafter referred to in first person in this section of the paper) lived in
that home.
Like everything else that happened to me at that time (barely a year after I joined the
COG), I believed my presence in the home was an act of God. The leaders preferred that
the band members be married since they would be separated from other colonies
indefinitely, and Berg did not think men should go too long without sex. In those early days,
―sexual sharing‖ outside marriage was reserved for top leaders. All the members in
Jeremy‘s band were married except the drummer, who had been in the COG for a number
of years and merited a wife (called a ―mate‖). The drummer let his leaders know he wanted
to marry me, and within a few weeks we were mated—the COG equivalence of marriage. I
did not mind helping in God‘s plan. I was soon living in one of the few COG colonies
designed to encourage, motivate, and allow free time for its members to be creative—in this
case, produce a music album (see Williams, 1998, for detailed description of the musician
colony and its members). However, I was not labeled creative and certainly not authorized
to be creative. Instead, I helped by doing most of the household chores. I had no input on
any music or any part of the creative process. Even my work in the kitchen was guided by
detailed instructions on every step of food preparation, and my responsibilities helping the
band wives who were mothers were directed by the latest COG literature on childcare.
Absolutely no creative self was allowed to develop in my life. But I soon learned that those
labeled creative could just as quickly lose that label. Berg did not like the music the band
produced, and he would not acknowledge the album, called ―Jeremy and the Children,‖ as a
creative work. Before it was even released, Berg issued a private letter reprimanding the
entire band for being unspiritual and immediately dismantled the colony. The leaders sent
the band members to various homes in the COG‘s emerging missionary fields in Europe. I
went to Germany with my husband the drummer. After a few months, my husband was
suddenly asked to join some of his band friends in Paris, France, and I joined him a few
months later.
