34 ICSA TODAY 32
may have been against their will. Triratna, which has tens of
thousands of followers, is battling to protect its reputation,
both in the worldwide Buddhist community and among its
own members who are questioning the extent to which the
coercion was perpetrated and how long it continued. Founded
by Dennis Lingwood in the 1960s, the sect, formerly known
as the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order (FWBO), is a
wealthy community with 30 retreats in the UK and a further
20 in countries including Australia, the US, Germany, and
Mexico. In the 1980s its Croydon centre was closed down amid
newspaper reports that its members were being manipulated.
Now its troubled history has resurfaced after Lingwood, 91,
known by his Buddhist name, Sangharakshita, made a shock
confession late last year. After being treated in hospital for
pneumonia, Lingwood issued a statement expressing ‘deep
regret for all the occasions on which I have hurt, harmed, or
upset fellow Buddhists, and ask for their forgiveness.’” (The
Guardian, 2/19/17)
Police fail to identify hundreds of children abused for being
possessed
“Hundreds of children each year are beaten, starved, and
reviled by their own families after being branded a witch or
as possessed by evil spirits but only a fraction of the cases
are identified. Campaigners believe up to 400 youngsters
suffer violent abuse annually, often after unscrupulous faith
leaders accuse the child in order to charge parents for a bogus
exorcism. A number of horrifying cases of faith-based abuse
have come into the public eye in Britain, including the deaths
of eight-year-old Victoria Climbie in 2000 and 15-year-old Kristy
Bamu in 2010, who were both tortured and killed by members
of their own families amid claims of witchcraft. Detective
Inspector Allen Davis, from Scotland Yard’s Sexual Offences,
Exploitation and Child Abuse command, said more children
will die because such beliefs are so deeply held. National
Police Chiefs Council lead for child protection Chief Constable
Simon Bailey said police are not always the first to be alerted
to signs of abuse. ‘Protecting children from all forms of cruelty
and neglect is hugely important,’ he said. ‘In cases involving
witchcraft, the abuse is often hidden and police forces are not
always the first service to be made aware of the threat.’” (Care
Appointments, The Press Association, 11/15/16)
China: Christians arrested by Communist regime are
accused of belonging to “evil cults”
“Several Christians have been arrested in China’s southwestern
Yunnan province and accused of belonging to ‘evil cults,’
according to persecution watchdog group China Aid. The
arrests occurred between Oct. 22–Nov. 27, though the
exact number of Christians apprehended by authorities
is not yet known, China Aid reported on Thursday. … The
ruling Communist Party has been engaged in a widespread
crackdown on Christian churches this past year, watchdog
groups have said, with several Christians and human rights
activists detained for protesting against forced church
demolitions and the arrest of other activists. Another China
Aid report revealed that authorities also arrested two
Christian summer camp leaders in August in the northwestern
Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region, accusing them of
trying to ‘brainwash’ children. ‘Both women were accused
of indoctrinating minors with superstitious beliefs. Chinese
law forbids religious teaching to anyone under the age of 18,
believing matters of faith to be dangerous brainwashing from
which children must be protected,’ the group explained back
then. ‘Christian parents and church leaders can face disciplinary
action from officials for involving their children in any Christian
activities.’ In November, two Canadian lawyers claimed that
Christians could very well be victims of a long-standing forced
organ-harvesting scheme that targets prisoners.” (Christian Post,
12/23/16)
Social worker accused of hiding religious-sect abuse resigns
“CHARLOTTE, N.C.—A veteran social worker accused of
coaching congregants and their children on what to say during
a 2015 child abuse investigation of her secretive religious
sect has resigned, an attorney for a child welfare agency said
Friday. Andrea Leslie-Fite said Lori Cornelius left her position
at the Cleveland County Department of Social Services. The
development came less than two weeks after The Associated
Press published a report that quoted former members of the
Word of Faith Fellowship sect saying that Cornelius and two
assistant district attorneys—all members of the church—had
helped undermine abuse investigations. The prosecutors
resigned their posts and are under investigation by the North
Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.” (Boston Herald, 3/18/17)
Exclusive: Churches warned of “deceptive cult” linked to
South Korea infiltrating congregations
“Hundreds of British churches, including some of the UK’s
largest congregations, have been warned against possible
infiltration by … a controversial South Korean group known
as Shinchonji (SCJ)—or the ‘New Heaven and New Earth’
church (NHNE)—whose founder Man-Hee Lee is referred to
as God’s ‘advocate.’” SCJ is “accused of being a cult promoting
‘control and deception.’ The Church of England has issued
a formal alert to almost 500 parishes in London about the
activities of the group known as Parachristo. … One British
man is said to have gone to work with the group full time,
sleeping in bunks while telling family and friends he was busy
pursuing a high-flying career in the City. Among churches
openly warning parishioners is Holy Trinity Brompton, one of
the UK’s biggest congregations, known as the home of the
Alpha Course, the short introduction to Christianity which has
been used by at least 15 million people. HTB, as it is commonly
known, counts about 4,000 in the pews on a Sunday as well as
having ‘planted’ 35 other congregations. … Those who attend
its three-month course are not told initially about links with
SCJ, but the group strongly denies that this is deceptive. In
a message to all clergy in London last month, the Diocese of
London’s safeguarding team said there had been complaints
about the group, adding, ‘it has been alleged that they have
links to a cult.’ … Regarding the use of the word ‘cult’ to refer
to Parachristo, it said: ‘The mission of Parachristo is to spread
may have been against their will. Triratna, which has tens of
thousands of followers, is battling to protect its reputation,
both in the worldwide Buddhist community and among its
own members who are questioning the extent to which the
coercion was perpetrated and how long it continued. Founded
by Dennis Lingwood in the 1960s, the sect, formerly known
as the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order (FWBO), is a
wealthy community with 30 retreats in the UK and a further
20 in countries including Australia, the US, Germany, and
Mexico. In the 1980s its Croydon centre was closed down amid
newspaper reports that its members were being manipulated.
Now its troubled history has resurfaced after Lingwood, 91,
known by his Buddhist name, Sangharakshita, made a shock
confession late last year. After being treated in hospital for
pneumonia, Lingwood issued a statement expressing ‘deep
regret for all the occasions on which I have hurt, harmed, or
upset fellow Buddhists, and ask for their forgiveness.’” (The
Guardian, 2/19/17)
Police fail to identify hundreds of children abused for being
possessed
“Hundreds of children each year are beaten, starved, and
reviled by their own families after being branded a witch or
as possessed by evil spirits but only a fraction of the cases
are identified. Campaigners believe up to 400 youngsters
suffer violent abuse annually, often after unscrupulous faith
leaders accuse the child in order to charge parents for a bogus
exorcism. A number of horrifying cases of faith-based abuse
have come into the public eye in Britain, including the deaths
of eight-year-old Victoria Climbie in 2000 and 15-year-old Kristy
Bamu in 2010, who were both tortured and killed by members
of their own families amid claims of witchcraft. Detective
Inspector Allen Davis, from Scotland Yard’s Sexual Offences,
Exploitation and Child Abuse command, said more children
will die because such beliefs are so deeply held. National
Police Chiefs Council lead for child protection Chief Constable
Simon Bailey said police are not always the first to be alerted
to signs of abuse. ‘Protecting children from all forms of cruelty
and neglect is hugely important,’ he said. ‘In cases involving
witchcraft, the abuse is often hidden and police forces are not
always the first service to be made aware of the threat.’” (Care
Appointments, The Press Association, 11/15/16)
China: Christians arrested by Communist regime are
accused of belonging to “evil cults”
“Several Christians have been arrested in China’s southwestern
Yunnan province and accused of belonging to ‘evil cults,’
according to persecution watchdog group China Aid. The
arrests occurred between Oct. 22–Nov. 27, though the
exact number of Christians apprehended by authorities
is not yet known, China Aid reported on Thursday. … The
ruling Communist Party has been engaged in a widespread
crackdown on Christian churches this past year, watchdog
groups have said, with several Christians and human rights
activists detained for protesting against forced church
demolitions and the arrest of other activists. Another China
Aid report revealed that authorities also arrested two
Christian summer camp leaders in August in the northwestern
Xinjiang Uyghur autonomous region, accusing them of
trying to ‘brainwash’ children. ‘Both women were accused
of indoctrinating minors with superstitious beliefs. Chinese
law forbids religious teaching to anyone under the age of 18,
believing matters of faith to be dangerous brainwashing from
which children must be protected,’ the group explained back
then. ‘Christian parents and church leaders can face disciplinary
action from officials for involving their children in any Christian
activities.’ In November, two Canadian lawyers claimed that
Christians could very well be victims of a long-standing forced
organ-harvesting scheme that targets prisoners.” (Christian Post,
12/23/16)
Social worker accused of hiding religious-sect abuse resigns
“CHARLOTTE, N.C.—A veteran social worker accused of
coaching congregants and their children on what to say during
a 2015 child abuse investigation of her secretive religious
sect has resigned, an attorney for a child welfare agency said
Friday. Andrea Leslie-Fite said Lori Cornelius left her position
at the Cleveland County Department of Social Services. The
development came less than two weeks after The Associated
Press published a report that quoted former members of the
Word of Faith Fellowship sect saying that Cornelius and two
assistant district attorneys—all members of the church—had
helped undermine abuse investigations. The prosecutors
resigned their posts and are under investigation by the North
Carolina State Bureau of Investigation.” (Boston Herald, 3/18/17)
Exclusive: Churches warned of “deceptive cult” linked to
South Korea infiltrating congregations
“Hundreds of British churches, including some of the UK’s
largest congregations, have been warned against possible
infiltration by … a controversial South Korean group known
as Shinchonji (SCJ)—or the ‘New Heaven and New Earth’
church (NHNE)—whose founder Man-Hee Lee is referred to
as God’s ‘advocate.’” SCJ is “accused of being a cult promoting
‘control and deception.’ The Church of England has issued
a formal alert to almost 500 parishes in London about the
activities of the group known as Parachristo. … One British
man is said to have gone to work with the group full time,
sleeping in bunks while telling family and friends he was busy
pursuing a high-flying career in the City. Among churches
openly warning parishioners is Holy Trinity Brompton, one of
the UK’s biggest congregations, known as the home of the
Alpha Course, the short introduction to Christianity which has
been used by at least 15 million people. HTB, as it is commonly
known, counts about 4,000 in the pews on a Sunday as well as
having ‘planted’ 35 other congregations. … Those who attend
its three-month course are not told initially about links with
SCJ, but the group strongly denies that this is deceptive. In
a message to all clergy in London last month, the Diocese of
London’s safeguarding team said there had been complaints
about the group, adding, ‘it has been alleged that they have
links to a cult.’ … Regarding the use of the word ‘cult’ to refer
to Parachristo, it said: ‘The mission of Parachristo is to spread
