CultNEWS101 Articles: 12/5/2022

Dissociation, Sisters of the Cross, Dimas Kanjeng, Indonesia

PsyPost: Dissociative symptoms are common among individuals with depression, study finds

" ... Dissociation is a word used to describe a mental detachment or separation. It is a popular word on social media now, and it can be used to describe normal forgetfulness, daydreaming, or absent-mindedness. It also has a pathological definition, which can include amnesia, hearing voices, flashbacks, derealization, depersonalization, identity fragmentation and more.

These symptoms can be associated with experiencing trauma or significant stress. Depression, which many people suffer from and can be very difficult to treat, can encompass these pathological dissociative symptoms as well. This study sought to explore the relationships between dissociative symptoms, depression, trauma, and other potential mediating factors."

WHERE PETER IS: Charismatic Community or Cult? Discerning the Signs

" ... Mother Nadine Brown, formerly a contemplative religious with the Sisters of the Cross, founded the Intercessors of the Lamb in 1980 because she believed she had received a call from God to bring contemplative spirituality to the mainstream. Embedded in her spirituality was a focus on intercessory prayer, using contemplative and charismatic spirituality to discern what to pray for and how to pray for it, and then to use the answers to these prayers to offer intercessory prayer for that intention. Additionally, Mother Nadine placed a great deal of emphasis on spiritual warfare and deliverance prayer, rooted in her charismatic spirituality.

The Intercessors of the Lamb was a community of hermits (religious brothers, sisters, and later priests) and laypersons (similar to a third order). Praying for priests was central to the community's mission. Over time, many diocesan priests became affiliates of the community, receiving spiritual care from the Intercessors of the Lamb through retreats and days of prayer on the community's grounds.

I initially participated in the community's prayer group as a layperson while I was a student at Creighton University. However, after attending an eight-day silent retreat at the community, I discerned a call to enter the Intercessors. I went on to spend fifteen months as a religious brother with the community.

The Intercessors of the Lamb received prayer requests from all over the world. Teams of intercessors would lift up the specific request in prayer, pray in tongues, and receive images and/or words of inspiration in prayer. The prayer team leader would piece the information together and discern how the Lord was leading the team to pray for the request, and the community would send a letter to that person with the information they received in prayer and how they prayed for the intention.

The community had stressed the importance of a personal relationship with Jesus, daily prayer, and devotion to the Eucharist and Mary. The Intercessors of the Lamb, as the name implies, had a special devotion to Jesus as the Lamb who was slain.

So far, this may sound intriguing and perhaps very appealing overall to many Catholics. However, entrenched in the community were numerous unhealthy aspects that reflected elements of a cult.

Mother Nadine Brown, a very gifted and talented person, exuded a cult of personality. Members within the community—inclusive of religious hermits and laypersons—regarded her as if she possessed divine essence and was infallible. Doing what Mother Nadine wanted was the equivalent of doing what God wanted, and vice versa. There was tremendous pressure among the religious sisters and brothers to appease her, along with equivalent pressure not to get on her bad side. Moreover, Mother Nadine did not have a spiritual director. She touted that she had the Holy Spirit as her director. In retrospect, this was a clear sign of the community's lack of both prudent direction and checks and balances.

Mother Nadine exuded significant control over the members. For example, she mandated that spiritual directors in the community divulge their directees' inner lives to her. According to Canon Law, spiritual direction requires confidentiality (Canon 246, 4) to protect the freedom of a person's discernment and spiritual life. This violation of Canon Law was one of the reasons why the religious community was eventually suppressed."

CNA: Thousands flocked to a spiritual leader who claimed he could multiply money. Then, dead bodies turned up

"They came in droves from all over the country. Even high-ranking officials flocked to him.

At every gathering spiritual leader Dimas Kanjeng held, tens of thousands would attend, recalled businessman and lawyer Muhammad Ali. At the height of Dimas' popularity, he was estimated to have 23,000 followers.

"I was enchanted," Muhammad Ali said, going on to describe the spiritual leader as convincing, authoritative, and charismatic.

But it was more than just his personality. Dimas, whose real name is Taat Pribadi, claimed he had the power to multiply money – a "power" that he demonstrated to great effect among those watching him.

Word of his supposed power started spreading rapidly throughout Indonesia from 2009. In 2012, he officially registered his foundation, Padepokan Dimas Kanjeng Taat Pribadi, and started collecting even larger sums of money, and assets, from followers, promising handsome returns. Over two years from early 2014, Muhammad Ali handed over 35 billion rupiah (S$3.068m) – and he was just one of thousands who gave the man money.

But it was also around that time that Dimas' scam began to unravel. Then, the dead bodies of two of his foundation's leaders were discovered and identified.

Dimas has since been unmasked as a fraud and jailed. But even today, there are some who remain loyal to him.

What exactly made him so extraordinary? The programme Catching A Scammer explores the con – and the appeal of the man himself."

News, Education, Intervention, Recovery

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Thousands flocked to a spiritual leader who claimed he could multiply money. Then, dead bodies turned up

Lianne Chia
CNA
November 26, 2022

• Charismatic spiritual leader Dimas Kanjeng amassed thousands of followers, including high-ranking government officials
• He convinced them that if they gave him money, they would make a substantial profit
• Then, two of his foundation’s leaders were found murdered
• Years after he was jailed, there are still supporters loyal to him

ROBOLINGGO REGENCY, EAST JAVA: They came in droves from all over the country. Even high-ranking officials flocked to him.

At every gathering spiritual leader Dimas Kanjeng held, tens of thousands would attend, recalled businessman and lawyer Muhammad Ali. At the height of Dimas’ popularity, he was estimated to have 23,000 followers.

“I was enchanted,” Muhammad Ali said, going on to describe the spiritual leader as convincing, authoritative, and charismatic.

But it was more than just his personality. Dimas, whose real name is Taat Pribadi, claimed he had the power to multiply money – a “power” that he demonstrated to great effect among those watching him.

Word of his supposed power started spreading rapidly throughout Indonesia from 2009. In 2012, he officially registered his foundation, Padepokan Dimas Kanjeng Taat Pribadi, and started collecting even larger sums of money, and assets, from followers, promising handsome returns. Over two years from early 2014, Muhammad Ali handed over 35 billion rupiah (S$3.068m) – and he was just one of thousands who gave the man money.

But it was also around that time that Dimas’ scam began to unravel. Then, the dead bodies of two of his foundation’s leaders were discovered and identified.

Dimas has since been unmasked as a fraud and jailed. But even today, there are some who remain loyal to him.

What exactly made him so extraordinary? The programme Catching A Scammer explores the con – and the appeal of the man himself.

LIKE ANTS TO HONEY

In 2010, local journalist Ahmad Faisol was invited to Dimas’ compound to cover a prayer and charity event. Dimas was beginning to attract followers at the time.

Security at the compound, recalled Faisol, was strict. No invitation, no entry. But it was then that he personally witnessed Dimas multiplying money.

“He asked me to come to his living room and search him,” he said.

Faisol remembers seeing “a lot of money”: Around 50 million rupiah (S$4,392), which later went up to 100 million rupiah.

When Faisol asked how he got the ability to do this, he replied that it came after meditating in the mountains.

Dimas was also known to cure illnesses, according to another local journalist Babul Arifandie. “There were some rituals, obligations that must be carried out by the patients,” he recalled.

Babul had visited Dimas’ foundation thrice for work and remembers being “amazed” at the man’s magnetism – and his ability to collect millions of rupiah from thousands of people.

“He is like honey, and he attracts a lot of ants,” he said.

Magnetism aside, those like Muhammad Ali also noted that the foundation was financially sound and donating to social causes.

Dimas had promised to multiply the money Muhammad Ali gave. At the start, Muhammad Ali had not intended to hand over “that much money”.

“But he always said the money would be returned,” Muhammad Ali explained. That compelled him to hand over as much as he could – even selling his assets and taking a bank loan.

In return, he was given suitcases as a guarantee. Money, he was told, had been locked inside.

“If the suitcases were opened before the stipulated date, you will die, go blind … be paralysed,” he said. “That was the threat – in the end, we were scared.”

As for Lilik Riyanto, the then-finance manager of a charitable organisation, Dimas told him that in order to get funding from his foundation, he would first have to give money to it.

“They called it a cash-out fee,” said Lilik, who declined to name his former organisation as it has dealings with the country’s public sector. “It’s like when you want to get a loan from the bank, you have to first pay a provision fee.”

Dimas also promised to contribute funds to Lilik’s organisation's hospital building project.

Both Lilik and Muhammad Ali were convinced by the “fantastic amount of money” the foundation appeared to have. Lilik remembered seeing an account statement from a foreign bank with an office located in Jakarta, which showed an amount in the trillions of rupiah.

Muhammad Ali also checked that the foundation was registered legally as a non-profit.

In total, from early 2014 to mid-2016, Lilik’s charity sent Dimas more than 20 billion rupiah (S$1.758m), with the expectation of receiving 1 trillion rupiah.

It was in 2014, journalist Faisol recalled, that the first hints of trouble surfaced.

One day in August, the chairman of Dimas’ foundation, Abdul Gani, approached Faisol and said he had something to tell him. “If I were to guess, it seemed like he had something he wanted to get off his chest … but he was hesitant to tell his story,” said Faisol.

Abdul was said to be one of Dimas’ closest friends – there were rumours they had known each other since they were teens.

Faisol began to investigate the foundation. “There were rumours of strange ongoings,” he said. “There were a few people who wanted to share, but they were afraid for their safety.”

His attempts to reach Abdul again were also unsuccessful.

On April 13, 2016, things took a dramatic turn.

Without a word to his family, Abdul disappeared. The next day, his body was found. His head was wrapped in a plastic bag and duct-taped. More duct tape covered his entire face. A noose was around his neck, his hands were tied, and there were bruises on the back of his head.

“It’s obvious that it’s murder,” said Abdul’s nephew, Muhammad Efendi, who identified the body.

Abdul was a respected figure in Probolinggo regency and news of his murder shook the community. The manhunt for the murderers began.

In May, the police made arrests. One of them, Wahyudi, was the leader of the foundation’s security team. He was also an active member of the Kopassus, the Indonesian Army’s special forces command.

But there were still many unanswered questions. “Why did they murder? What was the motive?” said Rakhmad Hari Basuki from the East Java High Prosecution Office, who prosecuted the murders. “They had no grudge against Abdul Gani.”

More disturbing news surfaced. Abdul’s colleague was also missing – and had been for some time.

The disappearance of Ismail Hidayah, the foundation’s coordinator, had been reported by his wife more than a year ago. When Abdul was found murdered, the police figured out that Ismail had also been murdered.

His body had, in fact, been found in February 2015. But at the time, recalled journalist Babul, the unidentified corpse was completely unrecognisable. No one took notice, he added, because “why should we care about this unknown person”?

With the identification now made, it wasn’t long before investigators found the common thread. “Ismail, Abdul and Dimas – they’re known as old friends,” said Babul. “It means there are two people, close friends of Dimas Kanjeng, who (died of) unnatural causes.”

WATCH: Exposing The Schemes Of A Spiritual Conman In Indonesia (46:12)


THE LOYAL FOLLOWERS

In September 2016, the police raided Dimas’ compound. It was no ordinary arrest.

Besides the Probolinggo police, there were law enforcers from the East Java region, including a heavily armed tactical unit. In total, according to Faisol, there were about 2,000 police and personnel from the Indonesian Armed Forces.

“There were thousands of people living at the foundation, and they were willing to die for Dimas Kanjeng,” said Babul. The leader himself was found at the back of his foundation’s compound, hiding in the sports complex. Followers there wielded bamboo sticks and stones and blocked the police from entering.

It took the police two hours to take him into custody.

Why was Dimas able to inspire such loyalty among his followers?

“Indonesian people – we revere symbolism,” said Devi Rahmawati, a cultural studies lecturer from the University of Indonesia. “Dimas Kanjeng understands and makes use of that.”

For one, she said, he had changed his name from Taat Pribadi to Dimas Kanjeng – the word “Dimas” in local Javanese dialect refers to a male representative, while “Kanjeng” is a title that commands respect.

“He changed his corporate branding to ensure he is a figure beyond reproach,” she said.

There were also many photos of him with government ministers and other prominent people. While Devi noted that “anyone can take a picture together with these elites”, Dimas used it to “establish a reputation, so people see him as a trustworthy figure”.

Indonesia, she added, is a society with strong oral traditions. So, when people saw what Dimas could supposedly do, the news spread rapidly.

“The people who spread the rumours are not only people who have seen it with their own eyes … They are also people who are trusted in their own circle,” she said.

“It's not surprising then that the word spreads faster and is convincing.”

Among segments of the population, there is also a long-held belief in what is commonly termed black magic.

Victim Muhammad Ali recalled that even when the suitcases he had been given as a guarantee were handed over to the police, “they didn’t dare to open them”. He speculated that they may have got a shaman to help.

They later discovered that the suitcases were filled with dollar bills, likely expired, and counterfeit money.

“It was worthless,” he said. “I left them at the prosecutor’s office.”



WAS HE THE MASTERMIND?

In February 2017, seven people stood trial for the murders of Ismail and Abdul, while Dimas was accused of ordering the murders.

It was easier to secure convictions of the seven, noted prosecutor Rudi Aji Prabowo, because there were witnesses to the murders.

“But none of the murder suspects dared to name Dimas as the mastermind, or to say that he was the one who gave the order,” said Rudi, who led a team of prosecutors to handle Dimas’ murder charge.

Given the public attention on the case and the number of fraud victims said to be involved, there were about 10 members on his team. In comparison, most cases would have about two prosecutors.

In Indonesia, prior to going to court, prosecutors would speak to suspects to confirm evidence gathered by the police and other case details. Rudi remembered his surprise at Dimas’ demeanour, which he maintained throughout the trial.

“He spoke softly, was actually a lot smaller (than he appeared in pictures) and was very calm,” he said. “He insisted he had nothing to do with the murders.”

But prosecutors managed to prove that 100 million rupiah was given to the murderers to commit the crime.

It turned out that both Abdul and Ismail were killed to stop them from exposing the fraud. Both knew, said Rudi, that there was something wrong with the foundation.

“Dimas gave the order using some metaphor,” added Rudi.

In the end, the killers were sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison. Prosecutors sought a life sentence for Dimas, but he received 18 years’ jail.

This was followed by his trial for fraud. Besides Lilik and Muhammad Ali, there were two other victims who made police reports about being scammed.

During the trial, witnesses testified that they truly believed in Dimas’ ability to conjure things up. “It was very interesting,” said prosecutor Rakhmad. “They said that at the foundation, he could attract not just money, but food – meatballs, soup … fruit salad.”

“So, the chief judge asked Dimas to prove this at his next trial appearance.”

That was when he admitted that he could not do it.

“It was clear that there was no investment or any type of business carried out by his foundation,” said Rakhmad.

Dimas was sentenced to an additional three years in prison for defrauding one victim. Though he was found guilty of defrauding the others as well, he received no additional jail time.

This is because, said Rakhmad, the maximum jail term in Indonesia is 20 years in consecutive cases, life imprisonment or the death penalty. Dimas had already received 18 years for the murders and three years for fraud, making a total of 21 years.

“Of course, we are disappointed,” said Lilik, who still hopes that his foundation can get its money back. “But we have to abide by the law.”



WHERE IS THE MONEY?

The total sum involved in the fraud charges tried in court was almost 100 billion rupiah, according to prosecutor Rakhmad. But this is merely a fraction of what Dimas and his foundation likely received.

There were no accounting reports, he said, and law enforcers couldn’t determine how many victims had made payment.

The total amount Dimas collected could be more than a trillion rupiah, he added. There were also those who deposited assets like land certificates or cars.

To this day, the whereabouts of the money remains a mystery.

“Investigators searched the (foundation’s compound) for bunkers, but they never found anything,” said Rakhmad. “(The money had) vanished into thin air.”

The compound lies deserted now – much shabbier than it used to be. It has become a no-outsider zone surrounded by high fences.

“It used to be open to the public,” said journalist Babul. “But it’s closed off now … not even police officers can walk in freely.”

Yet, he said, there are still about 300 people living inside. They are waiting for Dimas to be released.



https://www.channelnewsasia.com/cna-insider/murders-cult-leader-money-conjured-dimas-kanjeng-indonesia-biggest-spiritual-cons-scam-3099131

CultNEWS101 Articles: 3/13/2020

Lawrence Ray, Mindfulness, Conversion Therapy, LGBT, Indonesia  Spain, LDS, L'Arche International, France, Shincheonji Church, Corona Virus, Korea, Scientology, Heaven's Gate, Thailand

NY Post: Sarah Lawrence 'sex cult' victim overdosed while working for alleged leader

"One of the female victims of the alleged cult founded in a Sarah Lawrence dorm room nearly overdosed in North Carolina while under leader Larry Ray's spell, according to a new report.The woman, identified as "Yalitza," was found unconscious from an apparent drug overdose in a Staples parking lot in sleepy Southern Pines, after Ray reported her missing in October 2013, according to police records obtained by The Pilot newspaper.At the time, Yalitza, whose last name was withheld by The Pilot, was living and working at the home of Ray's stepfather, Gordon Ray, in Pinehurst, North Carolina, along with a small group of Larry Ray's 'students.'"

New Statesman: How mindfulness privatised a social problem

The £3.4trn industry encourages a preoccupation with the symptoms of mental illness, rather than their social causes.

" ... In December 2008, while forcibly evicting tenants from a concrete high-rise in south London, Southwark Council pulled off a remarkable feat of complacency. Though residents didn't know it at the time, every flat in the development that replaced the Heygate Estate would be sold to foreign investors, despite the council's repeated promises of new social housing.

Recognising that people were "stressed", councillors hired life coaches and "spiritual ministers" to run workshops teaching residents how to progress emotionally. The company behind the workshop, the Happiness Project, was founded by the British positive psychologist Robert Holden, the author of Shift Happens! The firm's motto was: "Success is a state of mind; happiness is a way of travelling; love is your true power."

That people about to lose their homes were stressed is hardly surprising. The council encouraged residents to look inwards, towards their brain chemistry, and in doing so cast itself as a solution, rather than a cause of the problem. Its response typified the idea of "magical voluntarism", which the writer Mark Fisher described as "the belief that it is within every individual's power to make themselves whatever they want to be".

The connection between stress and economics is well documented. In their 2009 book The Spirit Level, Kate Pickett and Richard Wilkinson identified a strong correlation between inequality and poor reported mental health. In a report published last month, Dr Dainius Puras, the UN's special rapporteur on health, stated that confronting inequality would be a more effective prophylactic for poor mental health than excessive therapy or medication.

Yet governments often opt for treatments that focus on the individual rather than social maladies. "Most don't want to be thinking about how their policies might be contributing to problems in the first place," says David Harper, a clinical psychologist at the University of East London. In the UK, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), a treatment that focuses on raising awareness of negative emotions and developing coping strategies.

A preoccupation with the symptoms of mental illness, rather than their social causes,  is because there's no "big drug lobby behind prevention", Harper says. Treatments such as CBT have proved a cost-effective cattle prod for herding the mentally ill off welfare benefits. As chancellor, George Osborne introduced the therapy for 40,000 recipients of Jobseeker's Allowance as part of a back-to-work agenda."

Gayle's TV: "Spirit of homosexuality! Get away, Satan! "

[Google Translation]
"Madrid . Year 2020. Although it seems hard to believe, there are still people and even organizations that treat homosexuality as a disease. To cure it they create conversion therapies . It has happened this week in an evangelical church in Madrid , one of the only four autonomous communities along with Aragon, Andalusia and Valencia in which these practices are expressly prohibited. It has been denounced by the Telecinco program " Viva la vida " that with one hidden camera has recorded one of these practices to cure homosexuality."

Vice: Indonesians Are Turning To Exorcisms to 'Cure' Members of the LGBTQ Community

"After evening prayer at the mosque, 33-year-old Syifa's* parents asked her to lie down on a prayer rug. As they recited verses from the Quran, Syifa tried her best to contain her laughter. After all, they were trying to exorcise her gayness out of her. "It was just so dumb to me, but I tried to appreciate what they were trying to do for me," she told VICE.

As a Muslim Syifa was no stranger to exorcisms, or efforts to expel demons and spirits that wreak havoc on wordly bodies. But Syifa was certain that she wasn't possessed, she was just bisexual.

The process took about half an hour, after which Syifa was still bisexual. Although she is now in a relationship with another woman, she feels that her parents' attempts to exorcise her at least gave them some peace of mind.

Syifa decided to come out after ending her two-year marriage with a man she never loved, deciding instead to spend her life with another woman. She did not want to hurt her parents' feelings by telling them their efforts to convert her had been unsuccessful.

'[My parents] didn't know how to handle it, but they wanted to do something because they believe that being gay is wrong," Syifa said.""

KIVI: A look at the religious circle surrounding Chad and Lori Daybell

" ... Chad and Lori are or have been members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and they are also affiliated with several informal groups whose teachings go contrary to what one would hear in a typical Latter-day Saint congregation.

East Idaho News reached out to several people in east Idaho who were or are part of these semi-secretive groups. Several have agreed to go on the record with their names, and others have agreed on the condition of anonymity, as they are still active Latter-day Saints or fear retaliation from other members of these groups.
There doesn't appear to be any sort of formal organization or clear doctrine among these non-conventional groups of Latter-day Saints. In fact, many of the people interviewed by East Idaho News reported vastly different experiences."

Washington Post: Jean Vanier, once seen as a Nobel or sainthood candidate, now accused of abusive sexual relationships

"When he died nine months ago, Jean Vanier — founder of L'Arche International, a worldwide organization supporting adults with intellectual disabilities — was lauded as a moral exemplar to people around the globe and a likely future saint in the Catholic Church.
This weekend, his organization published a report shattering that image.
Vanier, who died in May at age 90, had coercive sexual relationships with six women during his lifetime, which left the women hurt and in need of psychological therapy for years, L'Arche's report said Saturday. The alleged behavior took place in France.
The response in some corners was rapid. On Sunday, the University of Notre Dame revoked two awards given to Vanier. In 1994 the school gave him the Notre Dame Award, and in 2014 the school's Kellogg Institute gave him the Ford Family Notre Dame Award for International Development and Solidarity, the school said in a statement Monday. Notre Dame President the Rev. John Jenkins said 'The L'Arche report was thorough, rigorous and fair.'"

Korea Herald: More than 550,000 sign petition to dissolve Shincheonji by force

"Hundreds of thousands of South Koreans have called for the forcible dissolution of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony, a shadowy Christian sect that has been identified as a hotbed of new coronavirus infections.
Over 552,000 people have signed an online petition to that effect since Saturday, when it was filed on the website of the presidential office of Cheong Wa Dae. Any petition that gets more than 200,000 signatures within a month requires an official response from Cheong Wa Dae.
The opaque group, which claims to have over 240,000 followers, has come into the spotlight as the majority of COVID-19 cases were traced to its branch in Daegu.
As of Monday morning, 456 people linked to the sect tested positive for the virus, accounting for 59.8 percent of the country's 763 cases. The tally rose to 833 in the afternoon, but it was unclear how many of the new cases were linked to Shincheonji.
Public uproar intensified as health authorities said they were struggling to reach out to Shincheonji members in Daegu but hundreds had not responded."

CNN: How one man's epiphany on a Seoul mountain in 1955 laid the foundation for many religious sects in South Korea

"Members of the Shincheonji religious group dress in identical white shirts, black pants and name tags when they gather to hear founder Lee Man-hee preach.

There are no chairs, except for those provided for the elderly or sick. They sit on the floor to listen to sermons to maximize space.

The religious practices of Shincheonji are in the public eye because the movement appears to be the source of South Korea's growing novel coronavirus outbreak that has infected more than 5,000 people there.

Shincheonji, however, is not the only fringe faith in the country. Today there are hundreds of similar minority religious groups in South Korea -- including Christian ones -- according to Tark Ji-il, a professor at Busan Presbyterian University and a respected expert on the country's religious movements.

Some of their leaders claim to be prophets or argue they alone have an unmatched ability to interpret the Bible. A few are notorious for calling on worshipers to do things that look, to the outside world, strange at best and abusive or violent at worst.

Though there is no accepted consensus as to why so many of these new religious movements proliferated in South Korea, many trace their roots back decades to Japan's colonization of South Korea and the military dictatorship that ruled the country when it gained independence after World War II in 1945."

Tampa Bay Times: Clearwater robocall sounds like it's from #Scientology. Republicans did it.

"In a robocall sent to voters Thursday, the person on the line sounded like a Church of Scientology member talking to fellow parishioners. She urged them to vote for Kathleen Beckman, a candidate for Seat 3 on the City Council.
"Beckman stands with Scientologists and we must stand with her," the woman declared.
The call, however, was the work of Republican operatives, a bit of political misdirection just days before a landmark city election on March 17.
Beckman was indeed endorsed by a group of parishioners, but she suspects the call was designed to turn voters against her by linking her to the controversial church. She called it dishonest.
The Florida Values Coalition, the stated sender of the robo call, is a political committee backed by a string of Republican money and GOP interest groups.
It was registered with the state in August by Stafford Jones, a longtime Republican Party of Florida figure who was named in 2014 court records that showed GOP consultants drew gerrymandered Legislative maps and used third parties to push them.
Almost all of the Coalition's $3,300 came from another committee chaired by Jones, Liberty4Florida, which got most of its $70,000 from Citizens Speaking Out Committee, according to state records. That group, also chaired by Jones, has nearly $1.3 million in funding from three dozen other committees with names like Citizens for a Conservative Future and Sunshine State Conservatives.
An advocacy group run by Scientologists recently endorsed one candidate for each of the three, nonpartisan City Council races. But the robocall only highlighted parishioners' support of Beckman, a retired teacher and Democrat challenging the no party affiliated Seat 3 incumbent Bob Cundiff and two Republicans, Bud Elias and Scott Thomas.
Cundiff, Elias and Thomas all said their campaigns were not involved in the robocall."

Video: Mysterious Two (Heaven's Gate)

"Believe it or not Hollywood thought that a story about a man and his wife who said they were from space would make a great movie. They had no idea they what would happen in the future when that couple created a cult called Heaven's Gate."

CTN News: Former Monk Turned Burglar Arrested after "Invisibility Spell" Didn't Work

"A burglar claiming to be a former monk says his "invisibility spell" he learned as a monk didn't work leading to his captured by police. The burglar claims he used the spell many times before when robbing homes.

This time the spell didn't work because he took off his pants, leading to his arrest. Security footage was able to capture him in action, including when he left the house wearing just a shirt and his underwear.

Police Major Gen. Nanthachat Supamongkol in Udon Thani reported the arrest of 32 year-old Anurak Promwang 32 years on 21 February 2020. Mr. Anurak was charged with burglary of a local pharmacy."

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.

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Cults101.org resources about cults, cultic groups, abusive relationships, movements, religions, political organizations and related topics.

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 in order to promote dialogue.

Indonesia sees rise in number of self-proclaimed prophets promising to save the nation

ABC News

March 13, 2018

By Erwin Renaldi

 

It is a time of purported visions and miracles for tens of thousands of Indonesians, as the world's most populous Muslim nation experiences a rise in the number of self-proclaimed prophets thanks to social media.

Key points:

·        Many self-proclaimed prophets claim they have received revelations directly from God and angels

·        The rise of social media has increased the prominence of new religious groups

·        Many are being persecuted under laws against blasphemy pushed by conservative forces

But the emergence of new religious movements claiming divine connections, which often draw on elements of Islam and Christianity, has been highly controversial in the increasingly conservative Muslim nation.

Several new religious leaders and their followers have already been prosecuted and imprisoned under the country's strict blasphemy laws.

Al Makin, an Indonesian expert in new religious movements at Sunan Kalijaga State Islamic University in Yogyakarta, said the movements had gained traction mainly due to increased exposure on social media and people seeking answers during periods of economic and political uncertainty.

"Their existence often stems from uncertainties surrounding an unstable political climate," he said, referring to the widespread social instability after the fall of former president Suharto and the 1998 Asian financial crisis, which caused job losses and increased poverty.

He said the emergence of a "prophet" often came from attempts to seek answers to social insecurities through new beliefs that retained familiar elements of existing structures, such as Christianity and Islam.

Professor Makin estimated about 600 Indonesians had claimed to be the recipients of "divine revelations" since the the colonial period ended after World War II.

But despite Indonesia's traditional religious and cultural diversity, the emergence of conservative Islamist politics in recent decades had seen many new "prophets" face increasing persecution.

'Give us permission for our UFO to land'

The belief structures of each group varies wildly: one believes the angel Gabriel will return to Earth in a UFO, while others claim to be replacements for the Islamic prophet Mohammed.

One of the most high-profile cases of the phenomenon dates back about 20 years.

Lia Aminuddin — also known as Lia Eden — a former Jakarta-based florist, has over the last 20 years claimed to have been appointed by the angel Gabriel as the reincarnation of the Virgin Mary, ostensibly to save people from the day of reckoning.

The now-70-year-old established the cult Eden Kingdom, encouraging members to wear white to maintain their purity.

She once wrote to Indonesian President Joko Widodo asking for permission for a UFO to land to collect her followers.

"We hope that President Jokowi will approve and give us permission for our UFO to land," she said.

 

Under Indonesian legislation, blasphemy, or any public expression of hostility, hatred or contempt against the five recognised religions of the state — Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism — is punishable by imprisonment of up to five years.

In 2006, Aminuddin was convicted of blasphemy and sentenced to two years in jail following her calls to abolish official religions in Indonesia. Three years later in 2009, she received another two-and-half-year sentence for a similar offence.

Professor Makin said given Indonesia was historically built on a diverse set of beliefs that spanned the archipelago nation, criminalising anyone on the basis of their religious beliefs was wrong.

"This phenomenon of fake prophets should have been seen as a test as to the extent of Indonesia's respect and tolerance towards other religions and beliefs," he told the ABC.

"Unfortunately, we are not that tolerant — many of them were dragged to court, jailed, and even accused of insanity."

 

Notable examples of the laws being used and causing uproar include the cases of a Buddhist woman in North Sumatra who complained that a mosque was too loud, and the imprisonment of former Jakarta governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama over comments he made about the Koran.

New 'prophets' now gaining thousands of followers

More recently, Sensen Komara from West Java claimed to be a messenger from God after receiving messages in his dreams, and he has since attracted about 4,000 followers.

As a part of his teachings, he changed the Islamic pledge to replace the prophet Mohammed's name with his own.

Komara was charged with blasphemy last year after his teachings were condemned as "astray" by the Indonesian Ulema Council [MUI], the peak Muslim body in Indonesia, but judges later ruled him unfit to stand trial due to mental illness and ordered he be sent to a psychiatric hospital for rehabilitation.

But due to a lack of funding, he has now been released to continue his teachings.

Ahmad Musadeq is a self-proclaimed messiah and the founder of Gerakan Fajar Nusantara (Gafatar), considered to be an Islamic sect with more than 55,000 followers, making him one of the most popular prophets in Indonesia.

The group has been banned, with members often victims of "worsening intolerance, discrimination and violence against religious minorities in Indonesia", according to Human Rights Watch, and thousands forced to flee after angry mobs burnt their homes in Kalimantan province in 2016.

In 2017, Musadeq was sentenced to five years in prison after being found guilty of blasphemy for "mixing religions", according to a district court.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-13/indonesia-sees-rise-in-number-of-self-proclaimed-prophets/10872342

 

Jellyfish Kingdom sect leader sent to psychiatric institution by police

News Desk
The Jakarta Post
August 28, 2018


The Serang Police in Banten have sent the leader of the Jellyfish Kingdom sect to a psychiatric institution to undergo a second psychiatric examination after a preliminary examination showed indications she has a mental disorder.

Serang Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Komarudin said on Friday that 38-year-old Aisyah Tusalamah Baiduri Intan, the leader of the sect who named herself Queen of the Jellyfish Kingdom, would ask for a second opinion from the Grogol Psychiatric Hospital in Jakarta. She will be in the hospital for two weeks.
Serang Police have named Aisyah a suspect of spreading hate speech on social media and have charged her under Article 28 of the 2018 Electronic Information and Transactions Law.

“We have examined seven videos [uploaded by Aisyah to YouTube ] and those videos meet the criteria to be deemed as spreading hate speech,” Komarudin said, as quoted by tempo.co.

In one video, Aisyah talks about a bank account in Switzerland. She says that since 2015 no has been able to open the lock to the account except Sang Hyang Tunggal or The One, who she proclaims to be herself, as a reincarnation of a queen.

Anyone who believed her was welcome to join her. She claimed that by showing her palms, eyes and hair she could make the bank in Switzerland give her all the treasures of Indonesia.

The Serang Police pressed ahead will legal action against Aisyah after receiving a recommendation and legal opinion from the local chapter of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) in Serang, which stated the Jellyfish Kingdom was "heretical".

However, Komarudin said the police had yet to charge the suspect under articles related to blasphemy.
“We will be very careful in terms of blasphemy because it is a very sensitive issue,” he added. (sau)

http://www.thejakartapost.com/amp/news/2018/08/28/jellyfish-kingdom-sect-leader-sent-to-psychiatric-institution-by-police.html

An Indonesian Childhood in Chains - Shackling Persists Despite Government Eradication Efforts

Kriti Sharma
Researcher, Disability Rights Division

Meg Mszyco
Coordinator, Disability Rights Division

Childhood should be a time of innocence, play, and learning. But 15-year-old Subekti spent his shackled to the floor of his family’s house in Serang, a city about a three-hour drive from Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta.

 < Fifteen-year-old Subekti spent his childhood shackled to the floor of his family’s house in Serang, Indonesia.

For the past six years, since he was 9, Subekti has had both his ankles tightly chained to the floor, just meters away from where his parents sleep. Unable to walk or move around, Subekti’s muscles have atrophied, leaving skeletal legs.

A neighbor alerted the media last week to draw attention to Subekti’s plight. When members of the nongovernmental National Commission for Child Protection (Komnas Anak) visited, he reportedly begged them, “free me.”

His family told Komnas Anak that they shackled him to prevent him from disturbing the community. Subekti comes from a poor family where there is little awareness of mental health conditions. His parents believe he has a spiritual problem and consulted a faith healer but without success.

Subekti’s story is horrifying but not uncommon. More than 57,000 people in Indonesia with real or perceived mental health conditions have been subjected to pasung – shackled or locked up in confined space – at least once in their lives. Despite a 1977 government ban, the practice continues, fueled by the mistaken belief that mental health conditions are the result of possession by evil spirits, having sinned, or immoral behavior.

When Human Rights Watch researched the situation of people in pasung in Indonesia, families told us they felt they had little choice but to resort to shackling because they struggled to cope in the absence of government support and community mental health services.

Despite the media attention, eight days later, Subekti remains in chains. His house is only about a kilometer from the local government office, but authorities have not successfully convinced his parents to release him. He is now receiving mental health medication at home from a community health center.

In addition to providing him with counseling and other mental health services, the local social affairs office needs to ensure Subekti’s release. Local authorities should provide his family with the necessary support so that Subekti can live a normal childhood in the community.

While Human Rights Watch has documented Indonesian’s efforts to eliminate pasung, cases like Subekti’s remind us there is much work to be done to ensure no one lives a life in chains.

https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/07/18/indonesian-childhood-chains

CultNEWS101 Articles: 12/23/2016

Mormonism, LDS, Anne Hamilton Byrne, ​Aum Shinrikyo, ​City Harvest Church, ​Apostolic sect, ​Osho, ​Benjamin Creme, Women, Australia, Japan, Indonesia, Zimbabwe, UK

KUTV: Ex-Mormon creates MormonWikiLeaks website, set to launch on Monday

In the name of transparency, ex-Mormon Ryan McKnight hopes to "do some good" by providing an avenue for people to leak confidential information about the LDS church.

"If somebody is in possession of a document, that their conscience tells them that the public would benefit from seeing it, and they want a way to get that out, then MormonWikiLeaks.com."

http://www.cultnews101.com/2016/12/ex-mormon-creates-mormonwikileaks.html

The Salt Lake Tribune: New website plans to showcase leaked Mormon documents

McKnight burst onto the scene in October, during the church's fall General Conference, when he facilitated the posting of 15 videos showing Mormon apostles privately discussing topics ranging from gay rights to politics to piracy to, as he said, simply offer "a peek behind the curtain" of the faith's burgeoning bureaucracy.

http://www.cultnews101.com/2016/12/new-website-plans-to-showcase-leaked.html

​

The Scottish Sun​: ​CULT OF THE CHILD-STEALERS

Australian cult-leader, who claimed to be the reincarnation of Jesus, stole children at birth, drugged them with LSD and oversaw beatings and starvation.

Anne Byrne 'collected' 28 children and kept them in cruel conditions​​.

http://www.cultnews101.com/2016/12/cult-of-child-stealers.html

JapanToday: Ex-Aum cult member on death row calls founder 'criminal' in memoir

A former senior member of the 

​​

Aum Shinrikyo cult who is on death row has described the founder and “guru” he once revered, Shoko Asahara, as a “criminal” in a recently published memoir.

http://www.cultnews101.com/2016/12/ex-aum-cult-member-on-death-row-calls.html

Mothership: Kong Hee humbled he gets police escort on his way to church in Indonesia

​​

City Harvest Church founder pastor Kong Hee has posted a video on Facebook showing the police escort treatment he received in Jakarta, Indonesia, arranged for him by the organizer of his trip.

http://www.cultnews101.com/2016/12/kong-hee-humbled-he-gets-police-escort.html

​

​

NewsDay: Apostolic sect leader dishes out anointing oil

Zimbabweans have become so obsessed with anointing oil such that prophets have been lining their pockets through selling bottles containing the “holy liquid” at exorbitant prices.

Apostolic sects have generally been against the use of oil, accusing modern preachers of lying and duping their congregants by offering mere cooking oil.

​http://www.cultnews101.com/2016/12/apostolic-sect-leader-dishes-out.html

​

Vice: ​Some Cults Are Actually Pretty Great For Women, Expert Says

Why did you decide to join an NRM, and why that movement in particular?

I was exploring the human-potential movement. I was interested in meditation. I wanted something more actively spiritual, and joined more psychotherapy-type groups. Quite a few people I knew were going out to India, discovering Osho and joining up. He was a very intelligent guru; a philosopher by training. Some movements were very devotional, but the Osho movement had this philosophical side to it as well. It was an adventure.

How long were you part of the movement?

I lived in India for five years. We left when [Osho] left India, and after a while I drifted away.

http://www.cultnews101.com/2016/12/some-cults-are-actually-pretty-great.html

The Daily Beast: What to Do When Your Telepathic Leader Dies

On an an early January night in 1959, 

​​

Benjamin Creme first connected with the entity he now calls the Master. That chance encounter set in motion a movement that has spanned decades, based on the idea that Creme receives telepathic communications from beyond.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/12/18/what-to-do-when-your-telepathic-leader-dies.html

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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 in order to promote dialogue.

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