In this clip from one of my podcasts, I respond to a viewer’s comments comparing Christianity to Scientology and why Christians are not extreme cultists (in a general sense) in the same sense Scientologists are. Enjoy!
Read More »Why Christianity is Not a Destructive Cult
In this podcast clip, I describe why academics are referring to destructive cults as “new religious movements” to try to take the edge off the “cult” moniker, but why this is inaccurate and ultimately, a form of apologia that doesn’t help anyone but the cults themselves by giving them an air of legitimacy they don’t deserve. Enjoy!
Read More »Why Saying Cults are “New Religious Movements” is Wrong
This week I had the honor of interviewing cult expert, author and academic Dr. Janja Lalich about the subject of destructive cults and her latest… Read More »Bounded Choice and Kids in Destructive Cults ft. Janja Lalich
Hi, my name is Chris Shelton and I am a cult survivor and now advocate against destructive cults. I was involved for decades with the Church of Scientology but I’ve found since leaving that group four years ago that high control groups which engage in undue influence or cohersive persuasion have a lot in common. If you’re watching this, you may know someone who is in one of these groups and want to know what you should and shouldn’t do to help them see the error of their ways and get them out of that group. Now I’m not a trained psychologist or psychotherapist, but I have helped people escape from Scientology and I’ve helped some others recover. Let’s go over some things and see if some of what I’ve learned can help you too.Read More »Advice to Family & Friends of Cult Members