Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 14, No. 1, 1997, page 31
which were later entered into a Lotus spreadsheet. Helen reports, “We had to be careful not
to be too kind to a child if that child had been in trouble --or we‟d get criticized. You had to
keep track of which children were in disfavor.” Parents can be “turned in” for their behavior
toward their child. For example, I was reported to leadership for letting my 4-year-old play
with Ninja Turtles and engage in “unproductive free-play.”
While there is, on the one hand, an abundance of “supervision” over one‟s parenting on the
other hand, there is no real support. Many of the mothers reported isolation or
condemnation, rather than any help in dealing with parenting problems. Jill and Janie both
had difficult babies (one colicky, the other a “Barracuda baby,” needing to nurse
constantly), and each woman struggled alone in her mothering with no support either inside
or outside the group. Further, mothers may live with the heavy fear that should they make
too serious a mistake, their children may be taken from them. “Becky once said she was
afraid of having a second child because she saw Libby‟s kid taken away,” recounted Laurel.
The mother’s position in the cult may be judged by the behavior of her children, or by the
processes of pregnancy and birth. Laurel reports that “the only time I was ever praised was
when I sent a memo saying I‟d figured out that J. was born with a birth defect because of
my anxiety and tension during the pregnancy --in other words, it was my ideological
problem.” Here is Janie‟s experience: “I went to a “„backsliders‟ meeting and had this fear of
being there with my baby --I was worried I‟d be accused of “„being into attention,‟ which
was what they said about the mothers. That if you showed any interest or affection to your
child, you were really trying to draw [the leader‟s] attention to you. I was exhausted with
breast-feeding all the time and I felt I was a bad Christian and a bad example.” Jill said:
“My second baby had colic.... The implication was she cried because I was doing or feeling
something wrong. The leader said, „I felt what your baby is feeling when she cries: she feels
like she has no mother.‟ I was devastated ...a deep sense of failure and condemnation sunk
in.”
The mother must often participate in “child-rearing” or reproductive practices which may
range from abuse and neglect to ridiculous pseudoscience. These practices are well
documented in the literature (see, for example, Atack, 1990, 245-252 Langone, 1993, pp.
329-336 Singer with Lalich, 1995, pp. 247-269). Helen adds her own story: “My kids have
been physically hurt by every adult in the cult: slapping, kicking, pulling hair. But only
Brother was allowed to use the cattle prod.... I laughed because everyone laughed, but on
the inside I was feeling absolutely sick. We were taught that „Desperate Discipline‟ was
needed to save their souls.”
Effects on and Responses of the Mother
How do mothers respond to this situation where the cult leader has control of their children?
According to Singer and Lalich:
There is an interplay between the ideology of the group and the authoritarian role
of the leader that has a particular impact on parents‟ thinking and behavior. The
authoritarian ideologue, through his control of the social system and social
environment, is able to gain compliance and obedience from the parents. The
shared ideology of the group is a set of emotionally charged convictions about
mankind and its relationship to the world.... Cult parents assume pseudo-
personalities, brought on by the cult‟s training and thought-reform processes.
(1995, p. 261)
This represents one of the key double binds in which the mother finds herself trapped.
Through the processes of thought reform (as described variously by Lifton, Singer, and
others), the cult leader becomes the mediator between the mother and her most deeply
held beliefs. Doing “the right thing” (for God, the Revolution, one‟s personal growth,
which were later entered into a Lotus spreadsheet. Helen reports, “We had to be careful not
to be too kind to a child if that child had been in trouble --or we‟d get criticized. You had to
keep track of which children were in disfavor.” Parents can be “turned in” for their behavior
toward their child. For example, I was reported to leadership for letting my 4-year-old play
with Ninja Turtles and engage in “unproductive free-play.”
While there is, on the one hand, an abundance of “supervision” over one‟s parenting on the
other hand, there is no real support. Many of the mothers reported isolation or
condemnation, rather than any help in dealing with parenting problems. Jill and Janie both
had difficult babies (one colicky, the other a “Barracuda baby,” needing to nurse
constantly), and each woman struggled alone in her mothering with no support either inside
or outside the group. Further, mothers may live with the heavy fear that should they make
too serious a mistake, their children may be taken from them. “Becky once said she was
afraid of having a second child because she saw Libby‟s kid taken away,” recounted Laurel.
The mother’s position in the cult may be judged by the behavior of her children, or by the
processes of pregnancy and birth. Laurel reports that “the only time I was ever praised was
when I sent a memo saying I‟d figured out that J. was born with a birth defect because of
my anxiety and tension during the pregnancy --in other words, it was my ideological
problem.” Here is Janie‟s experience: “I went to a “„backsliders‟ meeting and had this fear of
being there with my baby --I was worried I‟d be accused of “„being into attention,‟ which
was what they said about the mothers. That if you showed any interest or affection to your
child, you were really trying to draw [the leader‟s] attention to you. I was exhausted with
breast-feeding all the time and I felt I was a bad Christian and a bad example.” Jill said:
“My second baby had colic.... The implication was she cried because I was doing or feeling
something wrong. The leader said, „I felt what your baby is feeling when she cries: she feels
like she has no mother.‟ I was devastated ...a deep sense of failure and condemnation sunk
in.”
The mother must often participate in “child-rearing” or reproductive practices which may
range from abuse and neglect to ridiculous pseudoscience. These practices are well
documented in the literature (see, for example, Atack, 1990, 245-252 Langone, 1993, pp.
329-336 Singer with Lalich, 1995, pp. 247-269). Helen adds her own story: “My kids have
been physically hurt by every adult in the cult: slapping, kicking, pulling hair. But only
Brother was allowed to use the cattle prod.... I laughed because everyone laughed, but on
the inside I was feeling absolutely sick. We were taught that „Desperate Discipline‟ was
needed to save their souls.”
Effects on and Responses of the Mother
How do mothers respond to this situation where the cult leader has control of their children?
According to Singer and Lalich:
There is an interplay between the ideology of the group and the authoritarian role
of the leader that has a particular impact on parents‟ thinking and behavior. The
authoritarian ideologue, through his control of the social system and social
environment, is able to gain compliance and obedience from the parents. The
shared ideology of the group is a set of emotionally charged convictions about
mankind and its relationship to the world.... Cult parents assume pseudo-
personalities, brought on by the cult‟s training and thought-reform processes.
(1995, p. 261)
This represents one of the key double binds in which the mother finds herself trapped.
Through the processes of thought reform (as described variously by Lifton, Singer, and
others), the cult leader becomes the mediator between the mother and her most deeply
held beliefs. Doing “the right thing” (for God, the Revolution, one‟s personal growth,
