Is Waldorf education a cult?
352999
NO!\n\nIt's a sensible method of education which develops confidence and intellectual curiousity in a child.\n\nMy daughter started in a Waldorf school, but had to move to a regular school (obsessed with competition) when I had to move for work. Would put her back into a Waldorf school today if there was one near enough.
1147903
No they are a cult full of some very strange people.
1006674
Yes. They claim to be "spiritual, not religious" but insist you believe in the same micro-managing God as everyone else and that you must turn over your free will to Him. And if you leave you will die. \n\nThey claim you can choose whatever god you want, but it soon becomes apparent that your god must have the same attributes as everyone elses.\n\nTheir "Big Book" is treated like a Bible, they have Big Book meetings where they pour over every word. Many will say it was written BY God through Bill Wilson. The focus of the book is getting right with God, little is said about how to quit drinking. Wilson wasn't shy about making this clear: "Our real purpose is to fit ourselves to be of maximum service to God" BB, page 77.\n\nIf someone mentions "brainwashing", the standard response is, "My brain needed a good washing". There are standard responses to everything; the people in meetings speak in slogans. This is known as "thought reform", a good indicater of a cult.\n\nAlcoholics Anonymous is an offshoot of The Oxford Group, a Christian cult from the 1930s that fell into disfavor when its founder, Frank Buchman, praised Adolph Hitler for running a country by "God-control". \n\nYes, it's a cult, but is it a dangerous one? I'd have to say yes. I've been working with people who have mental health and substance abuse problems for several years and I have seen many that were harmed by the program. AA teaches that ALL problems stem from alcoholism; if you quit drinking and get right with God, all your problems will magically go away. If they don't, THEN YOU MUST NOT BE WORKING A GOOD PROGRAM. If AA works for you, AA wants all the credit, but if you fail, it's all your fault. This is hard enough on anyone, for folks who are dealing with other issues, it is traumatic.\n\nThere is also a large faction of people who are anti-medication, anti-therapy. They believe that the use of medication means you'll really not sober.\n\nAccording to AA's own statistics, the program only works for 5% of the people who go there. Coincidently (?), no program at all works for 5% of the people who decide to quit. However, AA has a MORTALITY rate that is 6 times higher than trying to quit on your own. George Valliant of Harvard and AA Board of Trustees calls this "apalling" and I'd have to agree. Yet members believe that AA is the only way to stop drinking. To have this belief in spite of all evidence, in spite of what they see with their own eyes in the rooms, in spite of common sense, is a sure sign of being a cult.
988068
You are correct.   \n\nIsn't it funny that even without investigating a religion and just "saying" you are a part of it doesn't spawn even a little bit of knowledge about it.   Your examples of the Jehovah Witnesses and Mormons were right on target.  Both were created as off-shoots of Christianity with major rule changes and drastic Bible reinterpretations/rewrites.    The founders of each cult have been caught in lies/treachery/deceit, yet they are overlooked in lieu of the bigger picture.     L. Ron Hubbard is a completely different story.....just reading his materials should be enough to discredit him.\n\nYou haven't even touched on Kaballa and other such "stylish religions".
705403
It is a CULT. Despite what a few fanatical members may say, it IS a cult. The church harasses & bullies anyone who they deem an "enemy" (basically anyone who has anything negative to say about the "church"). They will RUIN YOUR LIFE if you speak out against them long enough.\n\nThe founder is L. Ron Hubbard, the science FICTION writer who once told a friend that the best way to make lots of money is to start your own religion. Though being a very outspoken critic of psychiatric drugs, it was discovered upon Hubbards death that the anti-anxiety drug hydroxyzine (Vistaril) was present in his body, which several of his assistants would later attest was only one of many psychiatric & pain medications Hubbard ingested over the years. (visit this link to read about the uses of hydoxyzine: http://www.drugs.com/mtm/v/vistaril.html )\n\nScientologists believe the evil alien ruler Xenu killed a lot of aliens (Thetans) from around the universe by bringing them to earth & blowing them up inside volcanoes. They believe the souls of these aliens (these souls are "Body Thetans") have attached themselves to us & cause many of our mental & physical ills. Members who know about Xenu will attempt to deny it or pretend like it doesn’t matter.  They are required to sign a contract binding them to silence on the matter.  Lower level members don’t know about Xenu & accordingly deny everything because they honestly don’t know.\n\nTo rid ourselves of "Body Thetans" & also “engrams” (past negative experiences stored in our unconscious mind) so that we can become “clear”, we have to go through "auditing" with a member of the “church” who uses an "e-meter" to measure our “reactive mind”...... & we have to pay lots & lots of money for “auditing” (purchased in 12.5-hour blocks, costing anywhere from $750 for introductory sessions to between $8,000 & $9,000 for advanced sessions) & to take courses on Scientology to advance to higher “levels” in the “church”. The “church” has also taken a very hostile stance towards psychiatry & psychiatric drugs irrespective of the fact that some people require medication to remain adequately functional in everyday life. They deny the reality of chemical imbalance & profound mental disturbance & accordingly do NOTHING to effectively stabilize the dangerously unstable. The “church” has been known to withhold prescription pharmaceuticals from member (with deadly results).\n\nScientology is undeniably a cult. For more information on what a cult is & what their damaging effects are, please visit the link provided at the bottom of the sources. Just know that Scientology DOES qualify by meeting these 5 criteria:\n\n(1) It uses psychological coercion to recruit, indoctrinate & retain its members. (2) It forms an elitist totalitarian society. (3) Its founder leader is self-appointed, dogmatic, messianic, not accountable & has charisma. (4) It believes 'the end justifies the means' in order to solicit funds & recruit people. (5) Its wealth does not benefit its members or society.
930219
Yes.  I was once told by a friend of the family that they teach "witchcraft" in Universities and they would NEVER pay for their child to attend such a school.
682680
Nice article. Carole Mikita always does a decent job or representing the facts.\n\nThis isn't really a big deal. I mean, people have been writing stories about the Mormons as long as they've been around (see Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's collected tales of Sherlock Holmes, especially one very ridiculous story about the Mormons).\n\nYes, several of the early church leaders had strong ties to Freemasonry. I've never been able to figure out exactly what anyone thinks is wrong with Freemasonry, but I probably just don't delve into conspiracy theories enough. Anyway, I just don't really see the connection as anything particularly shocking or disturbing.\n\nAs far as access to the church archives, I think that is a fairly common practice. I believe that if someone has a legitimate curiosity, they'll let just about anyone in to study and research. None of it is a secret, you know. Even the temple goings-on aren't secret. They are sacred, and as Mormons, we prefer not to make all of it public knowledge, because people can be very cruel when they choose to twist things and take them out of context. Nobody wants the things that are so close to their hearts to be trampled on by non-believers, right?\n\nThe symbols on the temple are outside, for everyone to see. There's nothing secret or shameful about early members' ties to masonry. At face value, which is all I've really seen, freemasonry seems like a nice idea to me. Good people doing good things. Now what could be bad about that? I don't know much about the Knights Templar, other than what I learned by watching National Treasure (my favorite movie) and The Da Vinci Code, so I really can't comment much there.\n\nNo worries. Either way, the Lord's work will roll on. :)
645519
I believe the term is actually an occult state, not a cult state. I'm not 100% sure what that is, however, but I can tell you that occult literally means "hidden" if that helps.
573464
I have met several people who left them.  They were founded by Victor Paul Wierwille who wrote the book WHY JESUS IS NOT GOD. Based on that I would find it hard to believe that they might be teaching any sort of 'god reincarnate' sort of thing.  Victor died years ago.\n\nChristians consider them to be a cult based on their non-divine view of Jesus.
778376
Hi! Good morning to you! If you look at it objectively, any spiritual group with a strong leader could be labeled a cult. I hate it when people accuse others of being in a cult but their belief is the true religion.\n\nThis definition shows most all religion is cultish.\n\ncult     \n\nNOUN: \n\n\nA religion or religious sect generally considered to be extremist or false, with its followers often living in an unconventional manner under the guidance of an authoritarian, charismatic leader. \nThe followers of such a religion or sect. \nA system or community of religious worship and ritual. \nThe formal means of expressing religious reverence; religious ceremony and ritual. \nA usually nonscientific method or regimen claimed by its originator to have exclusive or exceptional power in curing a particular disease. \n\nObsessive, especially faddish, devotion to or veneration for a person, principle, or thing. \nThe object of such devotion. \nAn exclusive group of persons sharing an esoteric, usually artistic or intellectual interest. \n\n--------------------------------------------------------------------------------\nETYMOLOGY: \nLatin cultus, worship, from past participle of colere, to cultivate; see kwel- 1 in Indo-European roots
430322
Yes!  Science is the spawn of Satan.  It tries to trick us into believing patent nonsense like a round earth, a solar centric system, the nonexistence of ghosts, "evil"ution, and communication at a distance - all things that god tells us are false.\n\nI think I've even seen scientists gathered together incanting magic spells to access great power.  Oh sure, they call these spells equations, but only a sorcerer could comprehend all those squiggles.\n\nYep, dey's 'da debil all right.  Plus, they all go to church together Sunday morning and donate 10% (gross or net according to their own conscience).  What more proof do you need that it's a cult!?
845907
ccluff7 is absolutely right.  A young relative of mine got involved with this strange cult when he was a bit low during his studies.  All they seemed to want,  was to get him to pay money to go through 'auditing' processes (galavanic skin responses which you can do yourself with a multimeter) and pay them large sums of money for the privilege.  By brainwashing him (or at least using dubious psychological persuasive techniques) he gave up his studies and went abroad as a builders labourer in order to get money to give to the cult.  It ruined his life in fact.  Died early, too.   So if Katie Holmes is prepared to believe humans are the result of spacemen (Thetans) visiting the earth, and that Ron Hubbard (whose book Dynetics is but a distorted version of many standard psychology tracts), was a sort of 'saviour', then she desrves all she gets.  On the other hand, she might just be a shrewd person who will divorce Cruise and  take him for all he's got!
1063131
It's a Cult.  A tax exempt one.
1160344
I personally belief scientology is a pseudo-science and a pseudo-religion.  I think the Church of Scientology is a cruel dangerous cult that takes your money and your ability to reason enough to see so.  See the links to important information on the internet about scientology.\n\nTo find out about the beliefs of scientologists from a neutral site go here:\nhttp://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/scientology\nAnd more here:\nhttp://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/xenu\n\nThen go here to find out what this critic things of scientology.\nhttp://www.clambake.org/roland-intro.html\n\nTo quote south park creators:  "This is what scientologists really believe!" in this controversial episode of South Park:" http://www.xenutv.com/cruise/sp-closet.htm\n\nNow if they told you about Body Thetans, Implants & Xenu before you spend money 'getting rid of your problems' would you believe them?  This is where the Church of Scientology steps in and is a dangerous destructive cult and is no longer just a belief.  To Scientologists it may be their religion, I'm sorry my opinion offends, and hey if thats what they believe then thats fine with me, I don't have to believe it. \n\nHowever the Cult of $cientology is another matter.\n\n"The Church of Scientology is a vicious and dangerous cult that masquerades as a religion. Its purpose is to make money. It practices a variety of mind-control techniques on people lured into its midst to gain control over their money and their lives. Its aim is to take from them every penny that they have and can ever borrow and to also enslave them to further its wicked ends."\nhttp://www.clambake.org/roland-intro.html\n\nSee here for the whole site, it is very interesting but horrifying reading, there is a wealth of critical information on scientology.\nhttp://www.clambake.org  (Same as http://www.xenu.net )\n\nThe CofS has been investigated by governments and taken to court many times.  "Some European governments (including notably, Germany, Belgium, France, and Austria) do not consider the Church to be a bona fide religious organization, but instead a commercial enterprise and / or a cult." wikipedia.org/scientology\n\nHere are the court files:\nhttp://www.clambake.org/archive/CourtFiles/\n\nHere are some quotes from some judges:\nhttp://www.clambake.org/archive/judge_quotes.html\n\nCheck this site out, although warning it isn't pleasant http://www.lisamcpherson.org\n\nIf you like videos here is a good site: http://www.xenutv.com\n\nNow i've given you all those links it might only be fair to give you the official link too:\nhttp://www.scientology.org
780633
In Scientology you have to also learn how to deceive your self. It is a self-deceptive cult.
1149482
NO PROBLEM!  I practice TRUE CHRISTIANITY as taught by Jesus the Christ!  \n\nNO CULT AT ALL!.. My site has been up for YEARS and has brought many to HIM!  \n\nI escaped R.C. and PRAISE HIM every day for that!\n\nNew Age Stuff?  That is in reality OLD AGE stuff as taught by Madam Blavatsky etc.  \n\nDoing comes after faith-- It is a result of Faith.... it is not, or should not be - ""Working ones way to Heaven!""\n\nAny more  Q or Comments-- please keyboard!\n\nSmiles and Blessing on YOU!   Don D.
846904
There are Scientology schools, where most kids who were born into it go, but I have never heard of it being taught in public school.  You wouldn't attend these schools unless you were a Scientologist though, thankfully.  Scientology has kind of seeped into many aspects of society by way of a number of front groups that do various things for the community, like Narconon and the like.  These groups do not advertise that they are really Scientologists, so it is very possible that if you heard that Scientology was being taught in ____ school, it's definitely run by Scientologists.