Active Cults in the United Kingdom
...iversity campuses in Glasgow, Edinburgh and other universities and colleges across Britain. The group, which has more than 2000 members in Britain, has been accused of preying on students, but still has a ministry dedicated to students. It is also one of the fastest-growing and most controversial churches in America, also being banned as a cult from dozens of college campuses. However it does boast 135,000 members worldwide. Its followers were known for spending their free time recruiting new members and waiting on doorsteps at 4 in the morning, hoping to persuade those who had ''fallen away'' to come back to the fold. Though at first glance much of the International Churches of Christ's theology appears to be orthodox, many of its doctrines and practices are, in fact, controversial and cultic. While the ICC proclaims itself to be "God's modern-day movement," Christian apologists and counter-cult experts consider it to be a cult of Christianity (theologically). Friends of Andrew Cohen: “The Buddha of Belsize Park” Andrew Cohen is the leader of a small religious group doing big business in North London, though even his own mother is worried about his delusions of grandeur. 'He thinks he is God,' she says. 'He behaves like an emperor. He makes people feel so guilty about themselves they hand over all their money.' Andrew Cohen is the man behind FACE (Friends of Andrew Cohen Everywhere); the group is also known, somewhat confusingly, as the Impersonal Enlightenment Fellowship and the Moksha Foundation. It has borrowed ideas from Eastern religions - mainly Buddhism and Hinduism - added a touch of psychobabble, and bagged an estimated 800 followers worldwide. The London branch, which opened in 1994 in a converted dairy in Belsize Park, now has around 80 disciples. However FACE has showbiz connections (Anita Roddick, Linus Roache and fellow actor Jerome Flynn) and has been described as the British equivalent of Scientology. Perhaps more worrying, though, is the fact that FACE is a registered charity - for 'the advancement of religion'. The Charity Commission only investigates when it receives a complaint - and it has yet to receive any about FACE. Andrew Cohen decided he was special when he was 16. Born in 1955, he was raised in a Jewish household in New York, and after the death of his father he moved with his mother to Rome. He started his spiritual quest, first with yoga and Zen meditation, then travelling to India where he dabbled in mysticism. There, a guru called Lal Poonja taught him and told him he was the 'perfect Buddha reborn'. Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) – good UK based story Members of the Finsbury Park-based Pentecostal organisation appeared as witnesses at the trial of Victoria Climbié's great aunt, Marie Therese Kouao, and her boyfriend Carl Manning. During the trial they said they had taken Victoria to a UCKG branch in the last week of her life because they believed the eight-year-old was possessed by demons. The reason Victoria Climbie was treated so badly was because her ‘Aunt’ wanted to get rid of the evil demons from inside her. She died of hypothermia in a sack, in a bath, in winter. The church was founded by Brazilian preacher now media tycoon Edir Macedo in 1977, a former lottery worker in Rio de Janeiro, who elected himself bishop and now lives in the United States. It is being probed for its failure to report concerns about a child's welfare. It claims to offer protection from black magic and attracts millions of followers The Universal Church has already got into trouble over its claim that evil spirits are the cause of people's woes. In 1997, the Advertising Standards Authority banned a church poster that said: ''Constant headaches, depression, insomnia, fears, bad luck, strange diseases . . . These are just a few symptoms caused by demons.'' The Hare Krishnas: Hare Krishna movement was brought to the West in the 60s. A sixty-nine year old Indian swami (a teacher who has brought his senses under his control) by the name of A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada travelled to America in order to fulfill the orders he received from his own spiritual master some forty-three years before. His orders were to bring what he termed the "Krishna consciousness movement" to the West. So, with 40 rupees (slightly over $7 US), a box of dry cereal, one suitcase, and 5 cases that contained 200 copies of Srimad Bhagavatam first canto in three parts, Srila Prabhupada arrived in the US on September 17th, 1965. During the 35 day journey on this steamship, Prabhupada had suffered not one but two heart attacks only to arrive at Boston Harbour with no contacts or supporters. They chant and dance though few westerners know what they stand for or what they believe. The Krishnas believe that truth is found in the scriptures (Bible, Koran, Torah) of a number of major religions; however, the Vedic texts, the oldest of all known scriptures, are the literal record of God's word. Krishnas believe that Krishna consciousness is inside all people because each individual has a soul. They believe in their souls and not their bodies, physical pleasures can cloud there minds and keep them from achieving Krishna consciousness. These physical pleasures, the eating of fish, meat or eggs, the use of intoxicants, illicit sex, and gambling and frivolous sports, are therefore banned and called the four regulative principles. Because of the rejection of these pleasures, Krishnas practice a strict vegetarian lifestyle. Hare Krishnas believe in the samsara or an eternal cycle of reincarnation. In one's subsequent births, one inherits karma (positive or negative consequences) from the religious works or dharma one has or has not performed. The goal of one's life is to break away from the endless repetitive reincarnations and achieve mukti , liberation, and return to the original and natural state of Krishna Consciousness. The only way to achieve mukti is through bhakti , a state of active worship, service, and devotion of the deity. An article in the New York Times from 1998 estimates there are one million Hare Krishnas devotees around the world. The major religion in Fiji is the Hare Krishna movement. Food for Life, which is the Hare Krishnas food relief program, exists in over 60 countries and serves over 70,000 free meals daily. It is the largest vegetarian food relief program in the world. The Executive Brethren: The Exclusive Brethren are an Evangelical Protestant Christian church related to the Christian or Open Brethren. Members follow a rigid code of conduct based very strictly on Bible teaching. They keep themselves separate from other people (including other Christians) as far as possible, because they believe the world is a place of wickedness. They regard 'exclusiveness' as the only way to keep away from evil. There are up to 15,000 Exclusive Brethren in Britain, with congregations in 98 towns (2002 figures). Members who leave or are expelled from the group have often been treated with what outsiders regard as great cruelty. Leavers are avoided by members of the group because they are seen as having chosen the world and the devil against God and because they could bring members into contact with the sinful world. Until very recently (early 2002) Brethren who left the church were completely ostracised. Members would not speak, eat or live with those who had left and this caused families to break up. These rules have recently been relaxed but are still far from inclusive. Members of Exclusive Brethren churches are expected to be totally loyal to the leader of the Exclusive Brethren. This leader is given titles such as 'The Man of God' or 'The Elect Vessel'. Santo Daime: The cult of Santo Daime is centred around a drink called Daime, also known as ayahuasca, yagé, vegetal, or even holy tea. This drink is an hallucinogen made out of two plants: The "liane Banisteriopsis caapi" and the leaves of the "psychotria viridis" found in the Amazon region of Brazil. This drink is prepared and taken in their rituals. The Daime is taken in a ritual that happens every Wednesday or on special occasions such as a saint's day. This ritual has a duration of 12 hours; it starts between six and eight o'clock in the evening and ends between six and eight o'clock in the morning. During the ritual, at almost every two hours they form two lines - one for the men and the other for the women, in order to drink a new glass of the holy tea. the drink is followed by dancing and the singing of hymns. The tea "works as an oracle, the end result being "mirações" (contact with higher beings) as a revelation of the immanent reality. "The miraçðes” are a kind of rite of passage, though the religion preaches there is always the idea of death and rebirth. Santo Daime was previously formed mostly by peasants and rubber latex workers from the Amazon, but began to attract middle class people in the 1930’s as well. Since then Santo Daime has spread to other regions of Brazil, as well as to other countries such as USA, Germany, and the UK. It has 5000 members. Other Cults to still find out about: Sai Baba Smith's Friends / John Oscar Smith Soka Gakkai / Nichiren Shoshu: Sri Chinmoy Transcendental Meditation / TM University Bible Fellowship (UBF) The Way International: Yarr / Lifewave / The Path / Light & Sound Newspaper Articles: The student, the shadowy cult and a mother's fight for justice Mark Townsend Sunday October 31, 2004 The Observer His death at a bleak road junction in Germany seemed destined to remain shrouded in mystery. Shortly after leaving a meeting staged by far-right extremists, British student Jeremiah Duggan inexplicably ran in front of speeding traffic. Now the chain of events that led to the 22-year-old sustaining fatal head injuries early one morning on a Wiesbaden ring road are to be re-examined by police. For his mother, Erica, it is the culmination of an 18-month battle to discover what happened during her son's final days. All she did know was that her Jewish son would never return home after becoming embroiled with the LaRouche organisation, a shadowy cult led by a convicted fraudster with virulent anti-Semitic views. When police broke the news that Duggan had died they urged Erica 'to go nowhere near those people, they are dangerous.' It was advice quickly ignored. Driven by a desire for truth, the retired teacher began a one-woman investigation that would take her into the political orbit of a group obsessed with conspiracy theories, apocalyptic prophesies and extreme political ideology. Over the months Erica, 58, has tracked down 20 former members of the LaRouche group from as far afield as Australia and Canada. Each interview corroborates allegations of mind control and intimidation, substantiating a Scotland Yard internal report that the movement seems to be a 'political cult with sinister and dangerous connections'. More than £50,000 raised from selling her home funded her quest, but this has now run out. Yesterday speaking from her parents' house in Golders Green, north London, where a study holds 30 box-files of notes, testimonies and observations, she said: 'The pain never goes away, sometimes I am out and a tremendous wave of grief washes over me. There have been times when I have nearly given up, especially after talking to people damaged after contact with LaRouche. Now I feel confident that we are heading towards the truth.' German police long maintained the case was closed, saying Duggan hurled himself in front of fast-moving vehicles on 27 March last year. Now German prosecutors have told government officials they plan to re-open the investigation. They have been told about new evidence compiled by Erica and her lawyers that raises grave questions over their initial verdict that he took his own life. Duggan, recognisable for his mop of dark curly hair and wide smile, was known as a young man who loved life. However when the talented tennis player called...