Are you in a Religious Cult?

Take the test.

This is a very personal test. Be ruthlessly honest with yourself as you answer these 10 questions.

Cults begin or evolve from charismatic leaders who claim supreme knowledge. These leaders are able to influence their followers to believe their perspectives and obey their dictates.

1. Does your leader(s) claim authority over your group?

Yes or No

Most cult leaders give themselves impressive made-up names or titles which elevate their status to their followers. They may call themselves the man of God, pastor, prophet, messiah, messenger, enlightened teacher, guru, apostle etc...

2: Does your leader(s) have a name or title which elevate their status above their followers?

Yes or No

Cult leaders convince members to forfeit their critical thinking ability in return for a sense of belonging, authority, and purpose. To members, it doesn’t matter what the evidence or logic may suggest, the leader is always right, and their misdeeds are always justified. Criticism of the leader is forbidden.

3: Is your leader(s) considered to be always right and therefore you are not allowed to criticize them, even if the criticism is true?

Yes or No

Cults generally only allow their members to study their organization through approved sources. They view critical thinking as an infectious disease and every effort is made to suppress it. Doubting members are encouraged to isolate themselves from outside influences and focus solely on the doctrine of the cult. People who contradict the group are viewed as persecutors and are often given labels like “anti,” “apostate,” or “rival.” Members are discouraged from consuming any material that is critical of or contradicts the group.

4: Are members of your group discouraged from reading anything that is critical of or contradicts the group?

Yes or No

Because religious cults consider themselves the ultimate authority on truth, the members can't imagine anybody leaving the group with their integrity intact. Thus, they have to perpetuate a false narrative that former members were deceived, backslidden, demonic, bitter, evil, or fallen away etc.

5: As far as your group is concerned, would they say that there is no legitimate reason to leave them?

Yes or No

Does your group insist that the end of the world is near? Cults position themselves as the sole refuge from an evil outside world that is intent on their destruction. Cults thrive on conspiracy theories, catastrophic thinking, and persecution complexes. In an effort to draw in more paying members, cults are often very aggressive in their recruitment efforts which are usually justified as “saving” people from the evil world. Those who reject the cult’s message are condemned, unelected, damned, evil, goats, the great unwashed etc...

6: Is your group suspicious of those in the outside world?

Yes or No

Cults all believe they are ‘right.’ They are the ‘right’ group with the ‘right’ doctrines, the ‘right’ leader, the ‘right’ interpretation of their holy book and their leader is ‘right’ in dictating what laws and rules they are to obey.

7: Does your group believe that they are the ‘right’ religion/church/group/ones, or only ones who have the ‘right’ teaching/doctrine?

Yes or No

Cults exercise control over their followers. The leader determines the rules/laws and expects to be obeyed or else there are consequences. Rules/laws can include what you can’t wear, where you can’t live, who you can’t eat with, who you can’t marry, what job you can’t do, who you can’t keep company with, what education you can’t receive, what your stance is to those who have left the group, and many more.

8: Are there any of the above such rules/laws in your group?

Yes or No

Emotional Separation: Cults are not happy when members leave, primarily, because they think there is never a legitimate reason to leave. Therefore, those who leave are treated negatively. Remaining members, even family members, distance themselves emotionally often shunning and ostracizing ex-members. They now see them as unclean, evil, deceived, apostate, an opposer, etc.

9: If you were to leave your religious group, would remaining members, even family members separate themselves from you whereby there would be any emotional detachment?

Yes or No

Physical Separation: Cults separate families. This is how it works. A member of a family leaves. The cult now separates the remaining family members with laws/rules. These dictate they can now no longer have ‘normal family life’ with that member who has left. For example:

They are no longer allowed to freely eat and drink with them.
They are no longer allowed to stay or live with them.
They are no longer allowed to go on vacation with them.
They are no longer allowed to go to their wedding.
They are no longer allowed to fully join in any funeral arrangements.
They are no longer allowed to celebrate special occasions with them.
They are no longer allowed to go shopping with them.
They are no longer allowed to contact them.

10: If you were to leave your religious group, would remaining members separate themselves from you physically and cease to have ‘normal family life’ as in any of the above examples?

Yes or No

Based on: cult-escape.com

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For those reading this who are unfamiliar with Jehovah's Witnesses:

They are so indoctrinated that even though a JW would answer "yes" to every question, they still wouldn't accept the fact that they are in a cult. They will make excuses for their "yes" answers to explain away the reality of their situation. Their programming has removed rational thinking.

They have been conditioned to believe that any thoughts or comments that are in opposition to what their religious leaders (the Governing Body) teach is thinking or speaking against God Himself. And that when their thinking falls in-line with what the GB tells them to believe that they are actually thinking for themselves and are thinking rationally.

They even believe their GB when they deny that they are their religious leaders, and yet they direct and determine every aspect of their worship and belief.

Their minds have been shaped and molded so successfully that they are blind to what's right in front of them. It is as though they are under a spell.

For any JW reading this; Brothers,.. Sisters,... "for your own sakes" i strongly recommend that you read my articles The Governing Body, Leaven, The Holy Trinity (of worship), and Do Not and prayerfully meditate on the many scriptures that are quoted within.

(Isaiah 2:22) For your own sakes, quit trusting in mere man,

I know, you are saying to yourself that there is nothing new that you can be told about the Bible. That you have been thoroughly taught about everything the Bible teaches from Genesis to Revelation.
I know because i used to think the same way. But see for yourself that that is not the case.

Why do you think that you are forbidden from reading anything that opposes the teachings of the GB even though they also quote Psalms 119:165 to you?

(Psalm 119:165) Abundant peace belongs to those who love your law; Nothing can make them stumble.

Because they fear that you will find out the truth about them and their teachings.

Hopefully someday soon you will be able to say that you are awake and that your eyes have been opened. (Ac 26:18)

(Romans 13:11) ... it is already the hour for you to awake from sleep,

Don't wait too long.

(Matthew 15:14) Let them be. (Leave them.) Blind guides is what they are. If, then, a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”

You can break free.

(1 Peter 2:25) For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls.

:^)
Dave
da.getmyip@gmail.com      

http://da.getmyip.com/PDF/Ramblings      

Last edited 04-05-2023 (date created 03-09-2023)