In getting out of the Jehovah's Witnesses cult - are we all aware of what was totally involved in the mind control they used ? In Steve Hassan's " Releasing the Bonds " he gets into some variables of mind control in detail. I thought you would enjoy a few of these main points.
In the 2nd chapter Hassan states, " As employed by the most destructive cults, mind control seeks nothing less than to disrupt an individual's authentic identity - behavior, thoughts, emotions, - and reconstruct it in the image of the cult leader. "
INFORMATION CONTROL - Hassan continues , " A common form of information control involves blocking out any critical or negative points of view. Some cults simply forbid members to have access to any non-cult material - such as newspapers , magazines, television, radio, and the Internet - while others have more subtle ways of controlling information. "
" Control of information also includes the supervision of members interactions with all other people. People are expected to spy on one another and report improper activities or comments, such as criticism of the leader, doctrine, or organization. " Sound familiar ?
THOUGHT CONTROL- Hassan mentions , " Many cults have their own " loaded language " or coded symbols and expressions , including buzz words, cliches, and trite platitudes that are used to shut down the thought process. "
" Cult members are taught that the leader or ( leaders ) are always correct, and are not allowed to doubt or question him or her. Thoughts that go along with the leader are good. Any other thoughts need to be pushed down by chanting, praying, or speaking in tongues. Any negative feelings are always blamed on the individual. "
" From the point of view of a mind control cult, there is never a legitimate reason to leave. The only people who leave are weak, selfish, or cannot control their need for sex, drugs, or other addictive substances. "
EMOTIONAL CONTROL- Hassan states, " Although a group's message starts out with love and idealism, once a person gets indoctrinated into the inner levels, his world becomes one of fear - fear that the planet is going to explode, fear that he will lose his spiritual connection, fear that he will be possessed by the devil. Cults instill fear to bind members to the group, to such an extent that members may become paranoid or phobic. A phobia is an irrational fear reaction to someone or something . "
He continues, " In the Jehovah's Witnesses, a person can have a severe phobia against merely walking into a church building. I remember hearing about an incident involving a young Jehovah's Witness who refused to participate in an emergency evacuation from a public school into a church. The 10 year old boy absolutely would not enter the church building, and had to be carried in crying and screaming because he thought the church was filled with " devils ". " How sad ! And we used to be in this cult ? Jeez !
CREATION OF THE CULT IDENTITY- Finally Hassan states, " Cult mind control dissociates a person from his authentic identity, and makes his new cult identity dependent on the group. From a mental health perspective , cult mind control splits elements of an individual's psyche into another distinct personality. " So that my friends is why " cult mind control" is so scary that it totally turns you into another person. Your own relatives will not even recognize you as you lose your original , authentic personality you had before joining a cult. So- What ideas or thoughts do you folks have on helping people escape this fate ? Have you had experiences seeing many if not some of these traits in your Jehovah's Witness relatives ? I lok forward to your interesting comments ! Let's put our heads together and see what we can discuss her ! Peace out, Mr. Flipper