Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 15, No. 1, 1998, page 66
clinical realities, exceptions, and individual differences.
Frank MacHovec, Ph.D.
Center for the Study of the Self
Gloucester, Virginia
The Boston Movement: Critical Perspectives on the International Churches
of Christ, 2nd revised edition. Carol Giambalvo, &Herbert Rosedale. American
Family Foundation, Bonita Springs, FL, 1997, 230 pages.
As a family therapist who is often invited into a family at the point where the child is cut off
from family connection and as a mother of a daughter who was involved in a cult during and
after college, The Boston Movement, edited by Carol Giambalvo and Herbert Rosedale is an
invaluable resource for therapists and families. Divided into four parts, in Part I, the reader
is introduced into the development and evolution of a group from benign and well-
intentioned beginnings to deception using “the enthusiasm of people desiring noble ends to
justify unethical means of achieving ends that aren‟t so noble” (p.vi).
Part II, in which Former Members Tell Their Stories, rings with the sincerity of truth and
much familiarity. Chapter 3 of this section begins with A Mental Health Approach by Lorna
and William Goldberg, clinical social workers who have been “working with families of
current and former members of cults and destructive groups since the 1970‟s.” In two
sentences, they capture the critical issue: “Our concern about these groups is aroused not
because of the beliefs or doctrines. We focus on the unfair and manipulative recruitment
techniques that induce fear and guilt and narrow the options of those recruited. Once
recruits become involved with the group, they develop a fear of leaving ...they equate
leaving with being condemned to Hell” (p. 41). They summarize key issues such as the
vulnerability of young people in this life stage and how joining a Bible study group on
campus appears to be a “safe and enriching way to make friends … becoming more involved
because they had difficulty saying no (asserting themselves) to a religious group ...they did
not recognize the extent to which they were being manipulated” (p. 42).
This chapter is followed by four stories as told to the Goldbergs by former members. The
stories demonstrate the process of outreach, induction, involvement, quest, questions, loss
of personal freedom and group pressure into behaviors and mind sets that become
increasingly destructive. Each story is all the more poignant because the voice is first
person and disarmingly candid.
This theme continues in Section III with four more first person stories. Mary, speaking in
Chapter 8, states, “It was often preached that part of being our best for God was to imitate
those who were more spiritual ...to speak with authority ...ultimately, this translated into
my judging others as if I were Jesus myself, viewing everyone outside the Church as not
saved, deceiving and manipulating unsuspecting people, being totally submissive and
obedient to leaders, and disassociating myself from my family and ...from my husband” (p.
84). After leaving, she writes: “Picture the most important person in your life, and know
that this group has the power to destroy even such a relationship” (p. 95).
The last section of the book is superb. Carol Giambalvo, a thought reform consultant and
exit counselor, takes the reader through an exiting process with a client named David. This,
alone, is worth the price of the book. She deals with the daunting task of identifying and
naming Robert J. Lifton‟s eight psychological themes identified as ideological totalism. By
systematically choosing examples from the previous cases, she leads the reader through an
integrative process. Step by step, she identifies, explicates, and explains concepts and
ramifications. This chapter makes clear the critical and complex fact that for an exit to be
successful, the individual has to have the benefit of an exiting process that can deal with
and undo the myriad dynamics that lead to personality change and its ramifications.
clinical realities, exceptions, and individual differences.
Frank MacHovec, Ph.D.
Center for the Study of the Self
Gloucester, Virginia
The Boston Movement: Critical Perspectives on the International Churches
of Christ, 2nd revised edition. Carol Giambalvo, &Herbert Rosedale. American
Family Foundation, Bonita Springs, FL, 1997, 230 pages.
As a family therapist who is often invited into a family at the point where the child is cut off
from family connection and as a mother of a daughter who was involved in a cult during and
after college, The Boston Movement, edited by Carol Giambalvo and Herbert Rosedale is an
invaluable resource for therapists and families. Divided into four parts, in Part I, the reader
is introduced into the development and evolution of a group from benign and well-
intentioned beginnings to deception using “the enthusiasm of people desiring noble ends to
justify unethical means of achieving ends that aren‟t so noble” (p.vi).
Part II, in which Former Members Tell Their Stories, rings with the sincerity of truth and
much familiarity. Chapter 3 of this section begins with A Mental Health Approach by Lorna
and William Goldberg, clinical social workers who have been “working with families of
current and former members of cults and destructive groups since the 1970‟s.” In two
sentences, they capture the critical issue: “Our concern about these groups is aroused not
because of the beliefs or doctrines. We focus on the unfair and manipulative recruitment
techniques that induce fear and guilt and narrow the options of those recruited. Once
recruits become involved with the group, they develop a fear of leaving ...they equate
leaving with being condemned to Hell” (p. 41). They summarize key issues such as the
vulnerability of young people in this life stage and how joining a Bible study group on
campus appears to be a “safe and enriching way to make friends … becoming more involved
because they had difficulty saying no (asserting themselves) to a religious group ...they did
not recognize the extent to which they were being manipulated” (p. 42).
This chapter is followed by four stories as told to the Goldbergs by former members. The
stories demonstrate the process of outreach, induction, involvement, quest, questions, loss
of personal freedom and group pressure into behaviors and mind sets that become
increasingly destructive. Each story is all the more poignant because the voice is first
person and disarmingly candid.
This theme continues in Section III with four more first person stories. Mary, speaking in
Chapter 8, states, “It was often preached that part of being our best for God was to imitate
those who were more spiritual ...to speak with authority ...ultimately, this translated into
my judging others as if I were Jesus myself, viewing everyone outside the Church as not
saved, deceiving and manipulating unsuspecting people, being totally submissive and
obedient to leaders, and disassociating myself from my family and ...from my husband” (p.
84). After leaving, she writes: “Picture the most important person in your life, and know
that this group has the power to destroy even such a relationship” (p. 95).
The last section of the book is superb. Carol Giambalvo, a thought reform consultant and
exit counselor, takes the reader through an exiting process with a client named David. This,
alone, is worth the price of the book. She deals with the daunting task of identifying and
naming Robert J. Lifton‟s eight psychological themes identified as ideological totalism. By
systematically choosing examples from the previous cases, she leads the reader through an
integrative process. Step by step, she identifies, explicates, and explains concepts and
ramifications. This chapter makes clear the critical and complex fact that for an exit to be
successful, the individual has to have the benefit of an exiting process that can deal with
and undo the myriad dynamics that lead to personality change and its ramifications.
