On Belief: A Podcast About Cults
We all would like to think that we're immune to being persuaded, but were that true, advertising wouldn't work, the best candidates would always get elected, and our personal relationships would always be equitable. On Belief examines why, with so much information available to us to dissuade us from joining harmful groups. I ask people who have had first hand experience with harmful groups and sects how they were seduced, how they were tricked, and how they got out.
Episodes
February 22, 2022 • 62 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
Why she found herself in a high demand group
How she felt targeted racially and because she was neurodivergent
How decision making played into why she stayed
What it was like to go from one group to another
And more...
Priscilla's website: https://whova.com/web/icsaa_202207/
The ICSA website: https://www.icsahome.com/
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September 14, 2021 • 17 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
* The basic beliefs of the Unification Church
* What it's like for kids
* What are the rules, and are they different by gender?
* What is the companion book to the Bible that the Unification Church uses?
* What are the political beliefs of the church?
* And more...
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August 16, 2021 • 18 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
How much real estate the church owns in Clearwater
What the Scientologists do there
What happens when David Miscavige comes to town
The influence the church has over local politics
What happens when they get heckled
And more...
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June 21, 2021 • 17 mins
Matthew shares his wealth of knowledge in this week's episode and we discuss what the heck "Conspirituality" is.
Find Matthew's podcast here: https://conspirituality.net/
And Matthew's website here: http://matthewremski.com/wordpress/
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March 3, 2021 • 14 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
* What drew her to yoga
* What it costs to do the 2 month intensive
* What happens at the 2 month intensive
* Why vegans began to eat burgers
* Why white instructors spoke in put-on "Indian" accents
* And more...
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February 17, 2021 • 16 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
What are the core beliefs of the Salvation Army?
Is it really organized like a Military?
What are services like for kids?
What is the leadership path like?
What kinds of ceremonies are there?
Where does the Bell Ringer money go?
What's the Salvation Army stance on the LGBTQ+ community?
And more...
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January 28, 2021 • 18 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
What kinds of demands are put on children in the church from an early age
How activities were sex segregated
What rules her parents followed
What happens to children of divorce in the LDS church
What it's like to go to BYU
What it's like to question at BYU
All about the honor code
And more...
For more about The Modesty Talks, visit: https://themodestytalks.com/
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January 6, 2021 • 17 mins
My guest joins me to discuss:
Being born into the Witnesses
What Jehovah's Witnesses believe about parenting
What her mother believed about parenting
What an average week looks like for a Jehovah's Witness kid
What happens when your mom is disfellowshipped
And more...
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November 25, 2020 • 17 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
How the Church of Christ differs from 'mainstream' Christianity
How her parents, wanting her to have some religious education, inadvertently changed her trajectory in life
What the main teachings of the church are
What happens when you have a chastity doctrine at a highschool with boarders
What the church camp experience is life
And more...
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October 14, 2020 • 17 mins
Subscribe to Right Richter here: https://tinyletter.com/rightrichter
Read Will on The Daily Beast: https://www.thedailybeast.com/author/will-sommer
Will Sommer has been covering conspiracy theories since the inception of Pizzagate. He joins me to discuss what drives people to believe seemingly incomprehensible conspiracy theories.
In this episode, we discuss:
What is the genesis of Pizzagate?
Why did people believe and amplify Pizz...
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September 15, 2020 • 17 mins
In this episode we discuss:
What was Esalen?
How did the Human Potential Movement begin?
What made the Human Potential Movement so appealing?
Which groups sprung out of that movement?
Which forms of untested therapy became popular from the movement?
And more...
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August 26, 2020 • 15 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
What is the Gender Critical movement?
What are the fundamental beliefs vs what they claim the beliefs are?
Where did my guest find out about Gender Criticism?
Are most of the leaders of the Gender Critical movement trans?
Who are the celebrities who are involved in this movement?
Why the 'science' Gender Critical people cite is erroneous
And more...
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August 4, 2020 • 16 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
How someone finds MRAs online
Where the most active members hang out
What kind of moderation MRA forums have
Can you see people being radicalized in real time?
What drove my guest deeper
What family members and women told my guest when they were involved
When they started to question their views
And more...
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July 21, 2020 • 17 mins
On this episode, we discuss:
What it's like growing up with a fire and brimstone church at the center of your life
What kinds of topics were taught in Sunday school
Evangelical home schooling
What a child understands about a sermon on homosexuality
What Bible camp is like
Why Bible College doesn't always make pastors
And more...
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June 9, 2020 • 16 mins
In this episode we discuss:
What is an intentional community?
What made Helen decide to join Zendik?
What was it like moving in?
What are the major beliefs of the group?
What was the Zendik approach to sex and dating?
How did the Farm make money?
What was the group's approach to working through trauma?
And more...
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June 3, 2020 • 17 mins
Guest Katie Mount joins me to discuss her time both studying The Inner Matrix and joining the company, working for its founder.
In this episode, we discuss:
What brought her to study The Inner Matrix
What you study in their courses
Why she decided to join the organization
What she gave up to work for Joey Klein
Whether the office lived by the principles it espoused
Why some women in the office were treated d...
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May 26, 2020 • 19 mins
In this episode, we explore 3 political cults: The Weather Underground, Ayn Rand's Determinists and The JOhn Birch Society
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April 15, 2020 • 15 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
How Matt got involved in a Facebook group that 'supported' men who wanted to overcome Same Sex Attraction
How groups recruit vulnerable men to join bootcamps
What happens at bootcamps that promise to help you 'pray the gay away'
What kinds of activities and 'therapy' happen at Conversion Therapy bootcamp
Why he sat in a room staring at a candle
Whether Conversion Therapy works
W...
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April 7, 2020 • 17 mins
In this episode, we discuss:
What kinds of kids get sent to these institutions
What kinds of rules are there at these places
What kinds of punishments happen
How everyone is turned into a snitch
What kinds of regulations govern these places
What recourse kids have if sent there
And much more
Links from this episode:
Troubled Podcast (https://open.spotify.com/show/2FUqbPy2iHM5zMcZllJKMN)
Troubled podcast on social media: @talktr...
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