Yep, the only way to form a cult that amasses wealth and draws hot groupies is though fear and hate rhetoric. And I’m not willing to create a ministry that’s abusive and hurtful for personal gain.
Some people do start benign NRMs based on mild virtues like kindness, compassion, mercy and generosity, but those aren’t the ones that get huge and go nationwide…not while retaining their core values, at any rate.
I don’t judge anyone who follows a religion, but I like this quote. I have a grandfather that has more patience than a saint and helps other a little too much risking going into debt and he’s lost faith in religion and his church. He said “I don’t know what there is after death but if there’s a heaven then the good I do in life will be enough.” The church didn’t treat him well despite his kind generous nature and i agree with him that feels like some form of organized crime. I’m atheist and I never learned to blindly follow like my older family members did. It’s strange to see them tirelessly running around doing chores for their church but it makes them happy I guess so I don’t question it.
"The only difference between a cult and a religion is the amount of real estate they own”. - Frank Zappa
There’s another quote of his but I don’t think it’s true for everyone.
Yep, the only way to form a cult that amasses wealth and draws hot groupies is though fear and hate rhetoric.
Idk about that. There have been a number of very successful cults that amassed wealth and hot groupies through excess affection and utopianism. In fact, one popular form of recruiting cult members is Love Bombing which typically involves existing members bombarding an individual with attention, affection, and romantic advances. While this is often paired with techniques for isolating the individual from the outside world, it is extremely effective on people who already feel alienated and isolated.
If you get into the weeds of how all sorts of groups from QAnon to Cutco to church youth groups operate, they inevitably involve providing these intense positive emotional experiences to new prospective members. Hell, look at the Lakewood Church in Houston or the Baha’i temple. Their entire model is based around these lukewarm vibes sessions, very reminiscent of 60s-era charisma cults.
Some people do start benign NRMs based on mild virtues like kindness, compassion, mercy and generosity, but those aren’t the ones that get huge and go nationwide
Lots of MLMs are structured around the idea that these businesses are a surrogate family and that participating in the sales campaigns is a kind of good deed that you’re doing for others. Amway, Mary Kay, and NXIVM all got big doing these ostensibly social and charitable projects to gin up membership, before exploiting folks who put their trust in them.
Billionaire philanthropy groups follow similar patterns, with individuals drawn in on the idea that the Ford Foundation or the Hoover Institute or the Carnegie Foundation or the Bill And Melinda Gates Foundation are doing legitimate good deeds. Only in hindsight do you realize you’re being chewed up and spit out - manipulated to provide lots of cheap/free labor, to take on legally/morally dubious tasks, to generate positive PR while submitting to abusive bosses - by a core of organization insiders who see you as a useful idiot.
Yep, the only way to form a cult that amasses wealth and draws hot groupies is though fear and hate rhetoric. And I’m not willing to create a ministry that’s abusive and hurtful for personal gain.
Some people do start benign NRMs based on mild virtues like kindness, compassion, mercy and generosity, but those aren’t the ones that get huge and go nationwide…not while retaining their core values, at any rate.
I don’t judge anyone who follows a religion, but I like this quote. I have a grandfather that has more patience than a saint and helps other a little too much risking going into debt and he’s lost faith in religion and his church. He said “I don’t know what there is after death but if there’s a heaven then the good I do in life will be enough.” The church didn’t treat him well despite his kind generous nature and i agree with him that feels like some form of organized crime. I’m atheist and I never learned to blindly follow like my older family members did. It’s strange to see them tirelessly running around doing chores for their church but it makes them happy I guess so I don’t question it.
"The only difference between a cult and a religion is the amount of real estate they own”. - Frank Zappa
There’s another quote of his but I don’t think it’s true for everyone.
Idk about that. There have been a number of very successful cults that amassed wealth and hot groupies through excess affection and utopianism. In fact, one popular form of recruiting cult members is Love Bombing which typically involves existing members bombarding an individual with attention, affection, and romantic advances. While this is often paired with techniques for isolating the individual from the outside world, it is extremely effective on people who already feel alienated and isolated.
If you get into the weeds of how all sorts of groups from QAnon to Cutco to church youth groups operate, they inevitably involve providing these intense positive emotional experiences to new prospective members. Hell, look at the Lakewood Church in Houston or the Baha’i temple. Their entire model is based around these lukewarm vibes sessions, very reminiscent of 60s-era charisma cults.
Lots of MLMs are structured around the idea that these businesses are a surrogate family and that participating in the sales campaigns is a kind of good deed that you’re doing for others. Amway, Mary Kay, and NXIVM all got big doing these ostensibly social and charitable projects to gin up membership, before exploiting folks who put their trust in them.
Billionaire philanthropy groups follow similar patterns, with individuals drawn in on the idea that the Ford Foundation or the Hoover Institute or the Carnegie Foundation or the Bill And Melinda Gates Foundation are doing legitimate good deeds. Only in hindsight do you realize you’re being chewed up and spit out - manipulated to provide lots of cheap/free labor, to take on legally/morally dubious tasks, to generate positive PR while submitting to abusive bosses - by a core of organization insiders who see you as a useful idiot.