Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 8, No. 2, 1991, Page 23
Ritual Child Abuse: Understanding the
Controversies
David W. Lloyd, Esq.
National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect
Abstract
The phenomenon of “ritual child abuse” has created a major national controversy.
The general public is confused by media reports of notorious cases with different
outcomes in California, Florida, and Massachusetts, and other states. Professionals
in the fields of child welfare, mental health, law enforcement, and law disagree
about the definition of “ritual child abuse,” how frequently it occurs, and what we
know about the individuals and groups who commit it. Positions have thus become
polarized within the same field. This paper is intended to explore that controversy
and some of the myriad issues involved.
Currently there is no consensus definition of “ritual child abuse.” The term has been applied
by both the media and professionals to such different situations as
 any bizarre or especially sadistic act(s) of physical, sexual and psychological abuse
committed on one or more children,
 group acts of religious worship to demonic powers in the course of committing physical,
sexual, and emotional abuse of children,
 psychological intimidation of children, including attempts to make them perform acts of
religious belief in demonic powers or to abuse other children or animals, accompanying
physical, sexual, and emotional abuse of children.
However, the term has been applied inconsistently to the physical, sexual, and emotional
abuse of children that may result from religious beliefs. In general, it has been applied only to
those practices of comparatively obscure and secretive sects and cults.
This lack of a clear definition contributes to the controversy in several ways:
1. It hinders our understanding of the variety of phenomena that are occurring. We may
need different approaches to address different problems. Sadistic child abuse of numerous
children by a group requires a different approach to investigation and intervention from
that for sadistic child abuse of one child performed by one individual.
2. It hinders our assessment of the harms to the child. Children who are physically abused,
sexually abused, and neglected also suffer some psychological harm. However, children
subjected to repetitive acts of sadistic psychological intimidation reveal symptoms of
severe psychological harm.
3. It hinders our understanding of the motivation of the abuser(s). For example, the
perpetrator(s) may have performed such acts in order to achieve completion of the crime
(“modus operandi” or “M.O.” in law enforcement parlance), namely to intimidate the
child(ren) into obedience and secrecy, or in order to gratify sexual and other
psychological needs of the abuser(s) and not as part of any belief system. For example,
some individuals practice such deviant sexual behavior as eating feces and drinking urine,
and may be seeking group legitimacy of their own needs by pressuring children to do the
same. Others may be mentally ill and acting under the influence of religious delusions,
while others may be deliberately attempting to convert children to religious sects.

Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 8, No. 2, 1991, Page 24
In addition, an emotional reaction to the allegation that demonic worship was a part of the
child maltreatment may hinder our exploration of alternative explanations. We need to be
aware of our own religious beliefs and biases and our prejudices against other sects and
religions in this area.
One proposed definition of “ritual child abuse” that may help address these concerns is:
the intentional physical abuse, sexual abuse, or psychological abuse of a child by a
person responsible for the child‟s welfare, when such abuse is repeated and/or
stylized and is typified by such other acts as cruelty to animals, or threats of harm to
the child, other persons, and animals.
This definition focuses on the acts done and the harms to the child, not on the individual‟s
motivation (which may never be known) underlying the intentional acts of psychological
abuse.
What is “Cult Ritual Child Abuse”?
The term “ritual child abuse” is often used interchangeably with the term “cult ritual child
abuse” when more than one individual is committing the abuse. Like “ritual child abuse” the
term lacks precision and has been used to describe such different situations as
 a religious sect, which may have broken away from the mainstream beliefs of some
religion, whose lifestyle and secrecy endanger the physical and psychological health of its
children,
 a group that involves children in acts that may be offensive to some but are not illegal
while conducting religious worship to demonic powers,
 a group that physically, sexually, and emotionally abuses children and has developed a
common belief system to justify the psychopathological acts,
 a group with no discernible religious or philosophical beliefs that psychopathically abuses
children physically, sexually, and emotionally,
 a group that performs acts of religious worship to demonic powers in the course of
performing acts of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse on children, and vice versa, and
 a group using psychological intimidation of children, including attempts to make them
perform acts of religious belief in demonic powers, while physically, sexually, and
emotionally abusing children.
The dangers in such imprecision of terms are:
1. It may divert the attention of investigating agencies (including child protective services
and child care licensing agencies) away from the illegal acts and harms done to the child
and toward investigation of the unusual beliefs and religious practices of the group.
2. We may inappropriately apply our knowledge of one cult‟s behavior to a different group.
Although little is known about small groups who abuse children, there is a widespread
assumption that the groups are Satanic cults. This may be due to the historic record of
the practices of Satanic cults rather than to any current evidence.
3. It may lead to inappropriate discrimination against groups whose beliefs and practices are
unusual but are neither illegal nor detrimental to the welfare of their child, adolescent, or
adult members. Unfortunately, some groups do things that are psychologically harmful to
their adolescent and adult members, as well as to the younger children subject to their
influence. It is not always easy to distinguish between the two types, especially if they
are secretive about their practices.
One possibility is that we define “cult ritual child abuse” to mean: