Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 2 No. 1 1985, Page 116
Strenski, I. (Mar. 19, 1984). Cult contradiction. New Republic, 3. Strenski contends that
Laurence Gra ftstein‘s article (Feb. 20), though welcome, is merely an assembly of
new facts without a theory of cult capitalism legitimazation and individual
suppression to back them up. His statements about cult capitalism are true of
traditional religious communities in the U.S., but do not take into account the cults‘
special situations, such as tax loopholes and slave labor. The slavery of cult
members is freely undertaken and cannot be the subject of liberal protest. A theory
of individualism is needed in analyzing cults in the U.S.
Thompson, H. 0. (1984). The family and the Unification Church -James, G. G. (book
review). International Social Science Review, 59, 47-49.
Tierney, R. L. (Aug. 1983). America‘s mystical Mt. Shasta. Fate, 70. Mount Shasta, in
northern California, is an alleged home of supernatural beings, and legends about
the mountain abound. The most recent cult to focus on the mountain is the Church
Universal and Triumphant (CUT), which worships the ascended masters it believes
reside there. They believe that these white-robed supernatural sages initiate
followers into a state of enlightenment which enables them to transcend mortality.
Leader Elizabeth Clare Prophet promises a great ascension. Over the past century,
many sects have believed in the existence of secret people on the mountain, a
legend sparked by an occult novel written by Frederick Spencer Oliver. The ‗1 AM‘
cult, which was formed in the 1930‘s and claimed 1 million followers, now resents
the incursion of the CUT community. Residents of Paradise Valley, Southern
Mountain, are worried about the influx of worshippers.
Wallace, R. K., Orme, J. D. W., Mills, P. J., 8c Dillbeck, M. C. (Nov. 1984). Academic
achievement and the paired Hoffman reflex in students practicing meditation.
International Journal of Neuroscience, 261-266. The paired H reflex is considered to
be the electrically evoked counterpart of the monosynaptic stretch reflex. It provides
a measure of motorneuron excitability under a variety of experimental and clinical
conditions, and offers a potentially useful tool in examining the neurophysiologic
basis of alterations in reflex response in different states of awareness. The study
investigated the relationship between the paired H reflex and academic achievement
in students who practiced the Transcendental Meditation program. The paired H
reflex correlated significantly with grade point average, but not with SAT scores or
any of three IQ measurements. These results suggest that the facilitation period of
the paired H reflex recovery curve may be a useful indicator of academic
achievement, perhaps as a result of its relationship to awareness or wakefulness
level.
Wallack, J. M. (Aug. 1984). Testing for a psychokinetic effect on plants: Effect of a ―laying
on‖ of hands on germinating corn seeds. Psychological Reports, 15-18. This study
investigated a possible psychokinetic effect on plants from the ―laying on‖ of hands
by a self-proclaimed 28-year-old female psychic healer. In 3 procedures, the subject
treated a sealed petrie dish containing germinating root growth-retarded corn seeds.
In procedure 1, randomly drawn corn seeds were presoaked for 12 hours in a 2%
NACL solution, then were randomly assigned to 3 prepared petrie dishes: healing,
control, and a control for the temperature of the subject‘s hands. Root growth was
measured after 96 hours. Procedure 2 tested for a possible transitory healing effect
following the same procedures as procedure 1, but the roots were measured after 48
hours. In procedure 3, the presoaking period of the seeds was reduced to 8 hours to
test the possibility that the 12-hour presoaking period was too severe to allow a
healing effect to be observed. Nonsignificant effects were yielded in all 3 procedures,
but it is concluded that additional studies are needed to rule out the possibility of a
psychokinetic effect on plants by the laying on of hands.
Strenski, I. (Mar. 19, 1984). Cult contradiction. New Republic, 3. Strenski contends that
Laurence Gra ftstein‘s article (Feb. 20), though welcome, is merely an assembly of
new facts without a theory of cult capitalism legitimazation and individual
suppression to back them up. His statements about cult capitalism are true of
traditional religious communities in the U.S., but do not take into account the cults‘
special situations, such as tax loopholes and slave labor. The slavery of cult
members is freely undertaken and cannot be the subject of liberal protest. A theory
of individualism is needed in analyzing cults in the U.S.
Thompson, H. 0. (1984). The family and the Unification Church -James, G. G. (book
review). International Social Science Review, 59, 47-49.
Tierney, R. L. (Aug. 1983). America‘s mystical Mt. Shasta. Fate, 70. Mount Shasta, in
northern California, is an alleged home of supernatural beings, and legends about
the mountain abound. The most recent cult to focus on the mountain is the Church
Universal and Triumphant (CUT), which worships the ascended masters it believes
reside there. They believe that these white-robed supernatural sages initiate
followers into a state of enlightenment which enables them to transcend mortality.
Leader Elizabeth Clare Prophet promises a great ascension. Over the past century,
many sects have believed in the existence of secret people on the mountain, a
legend sparked by an occult novel written by Frederick Spencer Oliver. The ‗1 AM‘
cult, which was formed in the 1930‘s and claimed 1 million followers, now resents
the incursion of the CUT community. Residents of Paradise Valley, Southern
Mountain, are worried about the influx of worshippers.
Wallace, R. K., Orme, J. D. W., Mills, P. J., 8c Dillbeck, M. C. (Nov. 1984). Academic
achievement and the paired Hoffman reflex in students practicing meditation.
International Journal of Neuroscience, 261-266. The paired H reflex is considered to
be the electrically evoked counterpart of the monosynaptic stretch reflex. It provides
a measure of motorneuron excitability under a variety of experimental and clinical
conditions, and offers a potentially useful tool in examining the neurophysiologic
basis of alterations in reflex response in different states of awareness. The study
investigated the relationship between the paired H reflex and academic achievement
in students who practiced the Transcendental Meditation program. The paired H
reflex correlated significantly with grade point average, but not with SAT scores or
any of three IQ measurements. These results suggest that the facilitation period of
the paired H reflex recovery curve may be a useful indicator of academic
achievement, perhaps as a result of its relationship to awareness or wakefulness
level.
Wallack, J. M. (Aug. 1984). Testing for a psychokinetic effect on plants: Effect of a ―laying
on‖ of hands on germinating corn seeds. Psychological Reports, 15-18. This study
investigated a possible psychokinetic effect on plants from the ―laying on‖ of hands
by a self-proclaimed 28-year-old female psychic healer. In 3 procedures, the subject
treated a sealed petrie dish containing germinating root growth-retarded corn seeds.
In procedure 1, randomly drawn corn seeds were presoaked for 12 hours in a 2%
NACL solution, then were randomly assigned to 3 prepared petrie dishes: healing,
control, and a control for the temperature of the subject‘s hands. Root growth was
measured after 96 hours. Procedure 2 tested for a possible transitory healing effect
following the same procedures as procedure 1, but the roots were measured after 48
hours. In procedure 3, the presoaking period of the seeds was reduced to 8 hours to
test the possibility that the 12-hour presoaking period was too severe to allow a
healing effect to be observed. Nonsignificant effects were yielded in all 3 procedures,
but it is concluded that additional studies are needed to rule out the possibility of a
psychokinetic effect on plants by the laying on of hands.
