CultNEWS101 News: 7/6/2026

Culture & Media

Videos

Deceived - The Jonestown Tragedy

Directed by Mel White, this documentary investigates the 1978 Peoples Temple massacre in Jonestown, Guyana, where 913 people died. Hosted by a pastor and seminary teacher, the film features exclusive interviews with survivors and family members to explore how ordinary, devoutly religious people from diverse backgrounds were subtly deceived by Jim Jones.

Initially, the Peoples Temple attracted followers by offering a deeply warm, racially integrated, and socially active community that cared for outcasts, drug addicts, and senior citizens. However, survivors detail the slow, calculated process of psychological manipulation used by Jones. He systematically replaced existing authorities in members' lives, positioning himself as the ultimate voice of God.

To enforce absolute dependence, Jones systematically isolated members from outside contact, banned regular media, and deliberately tore down nuclear families and marriages by forcing public confrontations. He maintained a punishing environment of severe sleep deprivation, requiring 16 to 18 hours of labor a day to leave followers too exhausted to question his choices. Discipline gradually escalated from whippings to the public torture of children and staged "poisoning" loyalty tests. Furthermore, members were coerced into turning over all personal incomes and properties, accumulating a hidden $26 million fortune while followers starved. The film concludes with the horrific audio recordings of Jones commanding his followers to execute an act of "revolutionary suicide," framing death as mere sleep.

Updates

Research & Academic.

Two-thirds of Americans think the average person is susceptible to cult recruitment

An October 2025 YouGov survey asked Americans which groups they think use cult-like tactics, which groups could be defined as cults, and who is susceptible to being recruited into cults. Many Americans think the average person is susceptible to being recruited into a cult, but very few see themselves as susceptible.

• Majorities of Americans say that political groups (68%), religious groups (64%), and spiritual groups (62%) very or somewhat often engage in coercive or cult-like behavior. 

• Majorities say the same about each of the social media platforms (56%) and online groups (56%); 48% say this about multi-level marketing businesses.

• Democrats are more likely than Republicans to say cult-like behavior often occurs with religious groups (72% vs. 53%) and spiritual groups (67% vs. 56%). Democrats are less likely than Republicans to say educational groups often engage in cult-like behavior (21% vs. 37%).

• Half of Americans say anyone is vulnerable to being recruited by a cult.

• About half (53%) of Americans believe that people who join coercive or cult-like groups are mostly victims of manipulation.

• About half of Americans believe people who join cult-like groups are victims of manipulation

• Nearly two-thirds (62%) of Americans think the average person is very or somewhat susceptible to being recruited by coercive or cult-like groups, including 12% who think the average person is very susceptible.

• Far fewer Americans (17%) say they themselves are susceptible to being recruited by cult-like groups. Adults under 30 are about twice as likely as older Americans to say they believe they are susceptible to being recruited by cult-like groups (29% vs. 14%).

• About one-third (35%) of Americans have been approached in person by a group or person that was part of a coercive or cult-like group. Americans who live in the West are more likely than those who live in other regions to have been approached by a group or person in a cult-like group (43% vs. 28%).

• Only 14% of Americans have been approached online by a group or person that was part of a coercive or cult-like group.

• One-third (32%) of Americans say they know someone who has joined a coercive or cult-like group, including 18% with an acquaintance, 12% with a friend, 12% with a family member (12%), and 3% who have personally joined a cult-like group. 40% of Americans who live in the West know someone who has joined a cult-like group, compared to 29% of those who live in other parts of the country.

• Nearly half (45%) of Americans say coercive or cult-like groups are more common today than they were in the past. Americans 65 and older are more likely than younger adults to say cults are more common now (56% vs. 42%).

Ongoing Focus

NDTV: Pune 'Godman' Abused Woman For Years, Made Her Drink His Urine

Radheshyam Mishra, aka Radhamohan Mishra, ran what he called a 'modern gurukul' in the Ubale Nagar area of Wagholi in Pune.

In a case from Pune, a self-styled "godman" named Radheshyam Mishra (aka Radhamohan Mishra) and seven of his associates have been arrested for the long-term exploitation of a woman. Operating under the guise of a "modern gurukul" in Wagholi, Mishra convinced the victim that he was an incarnation of God.

Between 2010 and 2016, Mishra systematically isolated the woman, forcing her to divorce her husband and submit to years of sexual abuse, physical assault, and torture, including the use of electric shocks. Furthermore, he blackmailed her using recorded obscene videos and coerced her into committing thefts to enrich himself and his ashram. Following a police raid, authorities seized large amounts of electronic evidence, cash, jewelry, and drugs. Police, currently analyzing the recovered materials, suspect there may be more victims and have called for a thorough investigation. All eight accused remain in custody.

Fox 13: Scientology wins battle over Clearwater street, lawsuit looms

The Clearwater City Council voted 3-2 on Thursday to allow the Church of Scientology to take control of a section of South Garden Avenue. The church plans to use this land, located between Franklin and Court streets, to construct a new venue, "L. Ron Hubbard Hall," as part of an expansion of its downtown campus.

The decision followed hours of heated debate at a meeting that drew over 2,000 people to the Clearwater Main Library, prompting officials to implement a strict public comment system. Proponents argued the closure would enhance church security and provide a space for community events. Conversely, opponents, including Mayor Bruce Rector, criticized the transfer of public land without a plan for an alternative route.

Despite the council's approval, the controversy is ongoing. A grassroots organization called "Save The Garden," which opposes the proposal, has already filed a lawsuit challenging the decision. The legal conflict centers on the contested ownership of the land underneath the street, setting the stage for a judicial review of the city’s action.

SportsNet: How Blue Jays’ Dylan Cease uses yoga to unlock success on the mound

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Dylan Cease has distinguished himself in the major leagues not only for his mound performance but also for his unique approach to mental and physical preparation. A practitioner of yoga and meditation, Cease credits these "internal arts" as fundamental to his success.

Rather than viewing yoga merely as a workout, Cease utilizes it to cultivate internal awareness, body alignment, and the ability to maintain focus under the intense pressure of professional baseball. He has spent significant time studying under the guidance of yogi Sadhguru, learning practices that focus on transcending the mind and building mental resilience. For Cease, these routines help him stay grounded through the natural ups and downs of a long season, allowing him to enter a "flow state" more effectively. This commitment to mindfulness has become a hallmark of his persona, setting him apart from typical clubhouse culture and contributing to his consistency.

AI Research Disclosure: To bring you the most relevant stories, parts of this newsletter utilize artificial intelligence (AI) tools to search the web, source articles, and assist with content curation. This content is for informational purposes only; we recommend verifying critical facts independently.

The selection of articles for CultNEWS101 does not imply that Patrick Ryan, Joseph Kelly, or Ashlen Hilliard endorse the content. We provide information from multiple perspectives to foster dialogue.

Please forward articles you think we should add to cultintervention@gmail.com.

CultNEWS101 Articles: 8/14/2025

Mr Brain, Lycra Nuns, Abuse of Women, Trafficking, Australia, Book, Jonestown, Australia, The Saints

Telegraph: 'Abuse cult' priest received sexual massages 'to relieve tension headaches

"A former priest accused of running an abusive cult received sexual massages to relieve "terrible tension headaches", a court has heard.

Chris Brain, 68, led a group in the 1980s and 1990s in Sheffield called the Nine O'Clock Service (NOS), and was viewed by his alleged victims as a God-like "prophet" whom they "worshipped".

The evangelical church movement drew crowds of hundreds of young people enticed by its "visually stunning" multimedia services featuring acid house rave music every Sunday at 9pm.

Mr Brain, of Wilmslow, Cheshire, is standing trial accused of committing sexual offences against 13 women. He denies one count of rape and 36 counts of indecent assault between 1981 and 1995.

At the opening of the trial in July, Tim Clark KC, prosecuting, told the court that Mr Brain ran "a cult", surrounded by beautiful, lingerie-wearing women known as the "Lycra Nuns", or "Lycra Lovelies".

He said that Mr Brain used his position to abuse a "staggering number of women".

Many of his victims were part of a "homebase team" tasked with cooking and cleaning for Mr Brain, as well as "putting him to bed" and giving him massages, which the court heard would often end in unsolicited groping."

Paradise Undone: A Novel of Jonestown Paperback by Annie Dawid

"Imagine a community full of rainbow families where everyone comes together in the spirit of equality and fraternal love.

Shy pastor's daughter Marceline and her new husband Jim Jones found Peoples Temple in the face of rampant hostility and aggression in 1950s segregated AmeriKKKa.

They give hope to the poor, the miserable, the alienated and disenfranchised of all colors, and build a commune in the jungle of British Guyana.

But this Eden too has its serpent. One who is also jealous of God, and where he goes, everyone must follow, even to the grave."

Sydney Morning Herald: 'They're so fired up': The flagship ABC show taking on a deadly cult

"Six-time Walkley award-winning ABC journalist Suzanne Smith – author of The Altar Boys, about child sexual abuse within the Catholic Church in Newcastle – is no stranger to crimes against children.

Her investigations helped instigate the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Yet, she approached with trepidation a brief from Compass to follow up on the Toowoomba sect known as the Saints, of which 14 members were sentenced in February for the 2022 death of eight-year-old diabetic Elizabeth Struhs, whose insulin was substituted for prayer. This time, Smith wanted to achieve the seemingly impossible: offer a glimmer of hope amid the inconceivable cruelty.

"If I was just doing another, 'Isn't this shocking?' story, I think it might have broken me," Smith says. "But because there's such a groundswell of action going on [within the wider church community in the south-east Queensland city], and they're determined to expose coercive control in all their churches, it gave me a bit of hope … I think having that positive angle is really important."

Interviewed about this push for change in the Compass report are three local pastors of varying denominations: Wesleyan counsellor Cecilia Anderson, psychologist and survivor of the US Children of God cult Maria Esguerra, and Paul Reid, a former friend of the Saints' leader, Brendan Stevens. None of the jailed cult members agreed to speak.

Most confronting are the responses of Cameron Schoenfisch, whose son Lachlan is serving time in jail for manslaughter.

News, Education, Intervention, Recovery

‘Abuse cult’ priest received sexual massages ‘to relieve tension headaches’

Head of evangelical church movement from the 80s and 90s denies offences

Gabriella Swerling

Religious Affairs Editor

Telegraph 

August 4,  2025

A former priest accused of running an abusive cult received sexual massages to relieve “terrible tension headaches”, a court has heard.

Chris Brain, 68, led a group in the 1980s and 1990s in Sheffield called the Nine O’Clock Service (NOS), and was viewed by his alleged victims as a God-like “prophet” whom they “worshipped”.

The evangelical church movement drew crowds of hundreds of young people enticed by its “visually stunning” multimedia services featuring acid house rave music every Sunday at 9pm.

Mr Brain, of Wilmslow, Cheshire, is standing trial accused of committing sexual offences against 13 women. He denies one count of rape and 36 counts of indecent assault between 1981 and 1995.

At the opening of the trial in July, Tim Clark KC, prosecuting, told the court that Mr Brain ran “a cult”, surrounded by beautiful, lingerie-wearing women known as the “Lycra Nuns”, or “Lycra Lovelies”.

He said that Mr Brain used his position to abuse a “staggering number of women”.

Many of his victims were part of a “homebase team” tasked with cooking and cleaning for Mr Brain, as well as “putting him to bed” and giving him massages, which the court heard would often end in unsolicited groping.

Giving evidence at Inner London Crown Court on Monday, Mr Brain said he received back massages from a number of women in NOS.

Asked by defence counsel Iain Simkin KC how the massages began, he told the court that “it started off because I had terrible tension headaches”.

He referenced one member of the “homebase team” who gave him massages once or twice a week “and she could tell by touching me what the problem was”.

Mr Brain gestured to the court, lifting his arms above his head to show where he was in discomfort and why he required massaging.

“It was quite severe, I remember coming home and having to lie on the bed with my face on the pillow because the pain was so bad,” he said.

Asked whether there were occasions when the massages would develop into some form of sexual touching, Mr Brain replied: “With very close friends, it may edge towards that, but both parties knew it shouldn’t go there so one of us would pull back again and cool down.

“And we are talking about relationships over years and years… It worked having closeness with friends without having to involve close sexual contact, and of course, I was married.

He added: “With some of my closest friends it would be kissing sometimes, occasionally massaging, stroking. Anything more than that we would back off.”

‘Natural ecstasy’

Mr Brain told the court that NOS was “an evolving experiment” around at the “peak of the rave boom” and embraced “club culture” by creating “a natural ecstasy”.

As part of the “new New Age”, he added that there was a very laissez faire environment regarding “positive sexuality” as well as encouragement of “tantric celibacy”.

“It was normal to be physical,” he told the court. “This was the mid-80s early ’90s,” he said, adding that leggings and tight clothes were “the fashion”.

Regarding the clothes worn by female NOS members at the time, and asked if he prescribed the dress code for the “Lycra Lovelies”, Mr Brain responded: “All these people are completely clued-up and want to wear fashion.

“This is the mid-80s, everybody was obsessed with fashion and what they wore, it was a constant topic of conversation, but that does not mean I was obsessed with what people wore.”

Mr Simkin asked: “Looking back, do you accept you were some form of inspirational character?”

“That’s my thing, enthusiasm and ideas,” Mr Brain replied.

Jurors have previously heard how Mr Brain had his ordination licence “fast-tracked” in 1991 because Church of England officials viewed his organisation as “a success story”.

NOS evolved from holding services at St Thomas’s Church in the Crookes area of the city, before expanding as it grew increasingly popular to a larger premises at Ponds Forge in the city centre. It collapsed in 1995 amid accusations of a sex scandal.

Over the past five weeks, his alleged victims have given evidence describing NOS as full of “brainwashing”, “grooming”, “mind games” and abuse.

They claimed he told them that they “can’t be spiritual without being sexual”. The trial continues.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2025/08/04/abuse-cult-priest-sexual-massages-relieve-headaches-trial/

CultNEWS101 Articles 2/24/2025 (Research, Women, Coercive Control, Zizian, Legal, Mindfulness )

Research, Women, Coercive Control, Zizian, Legal, Mindfulness 

Research to explore women's lived experiences of coercive and controlling behaviour in an intimate relationship and beyond.

Claire Carey is a PhD Candidate at the University of Salford she is conducting research to explore women's lived experiences of coercive and controlling behaviour in an intimate relationship and beyond.

Eligible participants will be women over the age of 18 who have lived experience of coercive and controlling behaviour in an intimate relationship and may be experiencing post-separation abuse.

If you think you would be interested in participating, more information about this project can be found by following this link: https://forms.office.com/e/BCqE1TcTv7

Please share this with anyone who may be interested.

Participation in this study is fully anonymous and as such all results will be anonymised.

AP: Police arrest apparent leader of cultlike 'Zizian' group linked to multiple killings in the US

"The apparent leader of a cultlike group known as the Zizians has been arrested in Maryland along with another member of the group, Maryland State Police said Monday.

Jack Lasota, 34, was arrested Sunday along with Michelle Zajko, 33, of Media, Pennsylvania. They face multiple charges including trespassing, obstructing and hindering and possession of a handgun in the vehicle.

A bail hearing for the two is scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday [2/25/2020] at Allegany District Court.

The Zizians have been tied to the killing of U.S. Border Patrol Agent David Maland near the Canadian border in January and five other homicides in Vermont, Pennsylvania and California.

Maland, 44, was killed in a Jan. 20 shootout following a traffic stop in Coventry, Vermont, a small town about 20 miles (32 kilometers) from the Canadian border.

Officials have offered few details of the cross-country investigation, which broke open after the Jan. 20 shooting death of Maland. Associated Press interviews and a review of court records and online postings tell the story of how a group of young, highly intelligent computer scientists, most of them in their 20s and 30s, met online, shared anarchist beliefs, and became increasingly violent."

AP: Vermont border agent's death exposed latest violence linked to cultlike group

"In the wooded outskirts of Chapel Hill, North Carolina, a perplexed landlord noticed odd sights at two of his rental properties.

Tenants wore long black coats and parked box trucks outside the duplexes. They ran an electrical cord from one box truck into one of the condos and kept a stretcher inside another.

A neighbor remembers similarly dressed figures walking around at night holding hands. They never spoke a word.

By the time the FBI searched the property last week, one of the most recent tenants had been killed in a shootout with U.S. Border Patrol agents in Vermont, and a second was under arrest. A third, a shadowy figure known online as "Ziz," remains missing after authorities linked their cultlike group to six deaths in three states.

Officials have offered few details of the cross-country investigation, which broke open after the Jan. 20 shooting death of a Border Patrol trooper in Vermont during a traffic stop. Associated Press interviews and a review of court records and online postings tell the story of how a group of young, highly intelligent computer scientists, most of them in their 20s and 30s, met online, shared anarchist beliefs, and became increasingly violent.

Their goals aren't clear, but online writings span topics from radical veganism and gender identity to artificial intelligence.

At the middle of it all is "Ziz," who appears to be the leader of the strange group, who called themselves "Zizians." She has been seen near multiple crime scenes and has connections to various suspects.

She was even declared dead for a time, before reappearing amid more violence.

Who is Ziz?

Jack LaSota moved to the San Francisco Bay area after earning a computer science degree from the University of Alaska Fairbanks in 2013 and interning at NASA, according to a profile on a hiring site for programmers, coders and other freelance workers. NASA officials did not respond to a request to confirm LaSota's internship, but a Jack LaSota is listed on a website about past interns."

Science Alert: Meditation And Mindfulness Can Have a Dark Side That We Don't Talk About

" ... Since mindfulness is something you can practice at home for free, it often sounds like the perfect tonic for stress and mental health issues.

Mindfulness is a type of Buddhist-based meditation in which you focus on being aware of what you're sensing, thinking, and feeling in the present moment.

The first recorded evidence for this, found in India, is over 1,500 years old. The Dharmatrāta Meditation Scripture, written by a community of Buddhists, describes various practices and includes reports of symptoms of depression and anxiety that can occur after meditation.

It also details cognitive anomalies associated with episodes of psychosis, dissociation, and depersonalisation (when people feel the world is "unreal").

In the past eight years there has been a surge of scientific research in this area. These studies show that adverse effects are not rare.

A 2022 study, using a sample of 953 people in the US who meditated regularly, showed that over 10 percent of participants experienced adverse effects which had a significant negative impact on their everyday life and lasted for at least one month.

According to a review of over 40 years of research that was published in 2020, the most common adverse effects are anxiety and depression. These are followed by psychotic or delusional symptoms, dissociation or depersonalisation, and fear or terror."

News, Education, Intervention, Recovery

CultMediation.com   

Intervention101.com to help families and friends understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement.

CultRecovery101.com assists group members and their families make the sometimes difficult transition from coercion to renewed individual choice.

CultNEWS101.com news, links, resources about: cults, cultic groups, abusive relationships, movements, religions, political organizations, and related topics.

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The selection of articles for CultNEWS101 does not mean that Patrick Ryan or Joseph Kelly agree with the content. We provide information from many points of view to promote dialogue.

Please forward articles that you think we should add to cultintervention@gmail.com.

Thanks,

Ashlen Hilliard (ashlen.hilliard.wordpress@gmail.com)

Joe Kelly (joekelly411@gmail.com)

Patrick Ryan (pryan19147@gmail.com)

‘DANGEROUS’ CULT GROUP THAT CONTROLLED WOMEN AND PREDICTED THE ‘COLLAPSE OF THE WORLD’ IS BROUGHT DOWN BY POLICE IN SPAIN

ALEX TRELINSKI

The Olive Press

June 14, 2924

'Dangerous' cult group that controlled women and predicted the 'collapse of the world' is brought down by police in Spain.

THE Guardia Civil has dismantled what they described as a ‘dangerous’ cult group called EVOL- that mistreated women in the Zaragoza area of Spain.

A man and three female associates have been arrested at an isolated farm in Escatron.

The sect leader told his followers that he was going to be the saviour of the world and tricked women into joining his group as they were manipulated and threatened.

Heads of cult that ‘cured homosexuality’ with heterosexual sex with leader arrested in Spain’s Caceres 

Cult leader who ‘fed his followers mercury’ to ‘revitalise’ them and lived in a ‘cave with multiple women’ is finally arrested in southern Spain

The Guardia started their investigation after several complaints filed by victims in Barcelona.

They found that the sect, which was constituted as a legal association in 2018, recruited members that were forced not to have any outside contact.

The leader hosted workshops and spiritual retreats to boost personal growth during which the attendees were mentally manipulated.

Once fully on board, victims were asked to live on the Escatron farm under his guidance as he resorted to verbal and physical assaults to keep them in line.

Outside contact was banned and punished, with women humiliated in front of the rest of the sect.

The man regularly proclaimed that the world would ‘collapse’ in 2027 and that he was the only person who had enough knowledge to save the sect members and to establish ‘the new world’.

He highlighted the fundamental role of women, whom he considered as the ‘key’ to be able to create a new society.

After appearing before an investigating court in Caspe, the leader was imprisoned on charges of illicit association, fraud, threats, coercion and injuries, while his three female collaborators were bailed.

The Guardia Civil does not rule out more victims coming forward following the arrests, after previously being too scared to do so.

https://www.theolivepress.es/spain-news/2024/06/14/dangerous-cult-group-that-controlled-women-and-predicted-the-collapse-of-the-world-is-brought-down-by-police-in-spain/