How Cult Leaders Abuse Those Under Their Control

How do cult leaders manage to manipulate those under them. Today we will be exploring those ways and tomorrow what happens when people finally reach the courage to abandon those cults and the aftermath of that decision. First, though, how do cult leaders like Mike Peters and Doyle Davidson manage their churches? They use abuse as their primary weapon although those under that abuse rarely see it as such.

1. The Abuse of Individuality.
They adopt a “group” mentality. They are not permitted to think for themselves apart from the group and only accept what they are told. We see this in evidence in Doyle Davidson’s group as each website that he allows them to have use the same verbage that Davidson uses. It would not surprise me that he monitors everything they compose and without his consent nothing goes up of their own. He even goes so far as to deny his church Christmas celebrations with family and friends.

2. The Abuse of Family Ties.
Relationships with friends, relatives, spouses, children, parents etc are broken or seriously hampered. Mike Peters opts to have his people travel in two’s even to family reunions. Doyle Davidson, on the other hand, tells his flock not to have holiday visits with family. Instead they meet at this church to wander in circles, which is a pagan and New Age Movement practice. Instead of the beating of drums to their movements, a tambourine woman helps them march to her beat.

Mike Peters even goes so far as to select which couples are right for each other and which are not. In doing so he interferes with the husbands role of authority within a home. Peters takes that role all apart from Scripture (Ephesians 5:22-33, Colossians 3:18-19, 1 Peter 3:1-8).

3. The Abuse of Personal Income
Pressure to give all you can to the group. In non-communal groups, members usually live at the lower socio-economic strata, not because of a lower income level, but because they are always giving money to the group for some reason. At one time the people under Mike Peters were told to dwell in apartments while he alone lived in a home. Now that is no longer the case but the large majority of his flock live in the same housing addition.

Davidson is guilty of extorting money not only for his church, but also for himself. He never asks for money on television but opts to go to his members businesses and receive funds for his ministry in large amounts that dwarf the 10% standard tithe, which of itself is of the Old Testament. Worse still, he then exhorts additional monies for himself and this is also being done by his apostles. Justin Leryke is the latest example. His brazen approach on his website is to not only ask for money for his so-called church, but also for himself!

4. An Us versus Them Approach.
Isolation from the community in general. Anyone and everything outside the group is seen as “of the devil”. Mike Peters urges home schooling for his membership. Doyle Davidson suggests family holidays be spent at church over that of families. The Old Order Amish practice of shunning is also there but in degrees. Oftentimes in Mike Peters church a woman is counseled to without affection from her husband at the bidding of Mike Peters if the husband is not complient with his wishes.

5. The “Keep Busy” Approach in Time Management by the Cult.
The group controls and uses almost all the members time and energy in group activities. They are usually in a constant state of mental and physical exhaustion. Scientology uses this practice to the detriment of their followers. To a lesser degree, the Jehovah’s Witnesses also use that approach. Doyle Davidson accomplishes that purpose by having church every night so that his followers are always under his thumb.

6. Followers Must Never Question The Leadership
They must unquestioningly submit to the groups teachings and directions as their own free will is broken. Their “will” actually becomes the groups “will” without their realizing it. This is done either by coercive methods or through intimidation. Those that are given websites by Doyle Davidson use his language for everything. One would think they are reading “his” website when they view his other members sites because they basically all say the same thing.

This technique is not limited to cults as Rick Warren asks those that question him to leave his church. Questioning leadership is almost akin to sin in cults.

After all this pre-conditioning, how do members act when they finally break the cycle of enslavement and escape from the binding cults? How do they react to leaving the group and their friends? And what is their thought processes on how they now perceive the cult that they have left? All that in tomorrows post.