lawyer who joined cult

When did the cults start attracting controversy?

Sep 04, 2020 · Sept. 3, 2020 Irving Kanarek, a Los Angeles lawyer who defended Charles Manson in the cult killings of the actress Sharon Tate and six other people, and Jimmy Smith, whose murder of a police...

How many people are members of the cult of personality?

Dec 24, 2019 · Reports have quoted members of Vallow’s extended family as saying that Vallow joined a “cult” with Daybell, a self-proclaimed Latter-day Saint author known for his religious books detailing the end...

How many members does the cult Aum have?

Sep 27, 2014 · And if you know about Morantz at all it’s likely because of what was done to him rather than what he accomplished in his career as a cult-busting lawyer; in the autumn of 1978, he was nearly killed...

What happened to the Aleph cult?

Nov 14, 2021 · Jim Jones Drugged The Lawyer Who Stood Up to Him U.S. Jim Jones Drugged The Lawyer Who Stood Up to Him By Julia Scheeres On 11/14/21 at 6:00 AM EST U.S. Jonestown …

What does Morantz show me?

Morantz shows me a box of cassette tapes of Dederich’s recordings. They’re largely off-the-cuff ramblings of a narcissist commanding his flock. But some contain the screams of people being beaten—a warning for all Synanites to hear. Others directly call for violence against outsiders like Morantz, even giving out his address in the Pacific Palisades. And these are just the recordings that have survived.

How long did Morantz spend building his case?

He spent over two years building his case, and ultimately won a tidy settlement for the victims. Advertisement. At the same time, Morantz was also building his career as a writer and had no real intention of continuing to be a crusader for the vulnerable.

What is so strange about the violence at Synanon?

What’s perhaps so strange about the violence at Synanon was that most of the proof that showed up in court didn’t come from police reports. Most of the evidence of violence within Synanon was from their own internal memos and recordings. Advertisement.

What was the Synanon attack?

The following months, Synanon would escalate its intimidation and reign of assaults on people outside of their organization. The group had always manipulated and abused many members inside, but by the 1970s they were circling the wagons for a full scale attack on outsiders. They had purchased a large cache of weapons; over $300,000 worth, by the FBI’s 1978 estimates. And they had periodically beaten ranchers in Marin County with property adjacent to their headquarters.

When did Morantz get killed?

And if you know about Morantz at all it’s likely because of what was done to him rather than what he accomplished in his career as a cult-busting lawyer; in the autumn of 1978, he was nearly killed when members of the Synanon cult placed a rattlesnake (with the rattle removed) in his mailbox.

What was the snake that bit Morantz?

On October 10, 1978, the anti-cult crusader opened his mailbox and stuck his hand inside, believing that what he couldn’t quite see inside was a package of some sort. It was, in fact, a rattlesnake. The snake bit him.

Does Morantz believe in false modesty?

And Morantz isn’t one for false modesty. He understands what he did to help change the course of history. And he’s the first to tell you that he didn’t do it alone. But when you’re one of the first to wage battle with an organization like Synanon and you feel like nobody’s listening to you, it can be quite alienating.

What does Aum Shinrikyo mean?

The name "Aum Shinrikyo" (オウム真理教, Oumu Shinrikyō), usually rendered in English as "Aum Supreme Truth", derives from the Sanskrit syllable Aum, used to represent the universe, followed by the Japanese Shinrikyo (meaning, roughly, "Teaching of Truth") written in kanji.

How many people died in the Matsumoto sarin attack?

This Matsumoto incident killed eight and harmed 500 more. Police investigations focused only on an innocent local resident, Yoshiyuki Kouno, and failed to implicate the cult at the time. It was only after the Tokyo subway attack that Aum Shinrikyo was discovered to be behind the Matsumoto sarin attack.

What is Shinrikyo Aum?

Shinrikyo Aum is a syncretic belief system that draws upon Asahara's idiosyncratic interpretations of elements of early Indian Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism, as well as Hinduism, taking Shiva as the main image of worship and incorporating millennialist ideas from Christianity, Yoga, and the writings of Nostradamus. Its founder, Chizuo Matsumoto, claimed that he sought to restore "original Buddhism" but employed Christian millenarian rhetoric. In 1992, Matsumoto, who had changed his name to Shoko Asahara, published a foundational book, declaring himself to be " Christ ", Japan's only fully enlightened master, as well as identifying himself as the " Lamb of God ".

What was Aum's public relations?

Aum's public relations activities included publishing comics and animated cartoons that attempted to tie its religious ideas to popular anime and manga themes, including space missions, powerful weapons, world conspiracies, and quest for ultimate truth. Aum published several magazines including Vajrayana Sacca and Enjoy Happiness, adopting a somewhat missionary attitude.

Why did Kazuhiro Kusakabe ram the car into the crowd?

Local police reported the arrest of Kazuhiro Kusakabe, the suspected driver, who allegedly admitted to intentionally ramming his vehicle into crowds to protest his opposition to the death penalty, specifically in retaliation for the execution of the aforementioned Aum cult members.

What was the aim of the Aum Salvation Plan?

Advertising and recruitment activities, dubbed the "Aum Salvation plan", included claims of curing physical illnesses with health improvement techniques, realizing life goals by improving intelligence and positive thinking, and concentrating on what was important at the expense of leisure.

How many members of the Aum cult were arrested?

Over the next six weeks, over 150 cult members were arrested for a variety of offenses. The media was stationed outside Aum's Tokyo headquarters on Komazawa Dori in Aoyama for months after the attack and arrests waiting for action and to get images of the cult's other members.

What is the argument the Satanic Temple is using?

The argument the Satanic Temple is using is the same one the Supreme Court effectively endorsed in the Hobby Lobby birth control case , for which Justice Ginsburg wrote the dissent ― that no one should have to follow a law that violates their deeply held religious beliefs. If a Christian should not have to do so based on their religion, ...

What is the Satanic Temple?

The Satanic Temple hopes to appear before the Supreme Court in a case challenging a Missouri abortion law that requires those seeking to terminate their pregnancy to first receive materials asserting that their abortion would end the life of a separate, unique person.

Where is the Baphomet statue?

The Baphomet statue in the conversion room at the Satanic Temple in Salem, Massachusetts, on Oct. 8, 2019. I am a 40-something attorney and mother who lives in a quiet neighborhood with a yard and a garage full of scooters and soccer balls. I often walk with my children to get ice cream and spend weekends hiking through a national park.

Why is Wade being overturned?

Wade is in imminent danger of being overturned not based on legal arguments or scientific reasoning, but because of religious objections to what is a safe and necessary procedure for the women who seek it out after discussion with their physician.

Do Satanic Temple members worship Satan?

Members of the Satanic Temple do not believe in the supernatural or superstition. In the same way that some Unitarians and some Jews do not believe in God, Satanic Temple members do not worship Satan and most are atheists. They are not affiliated in any way with the Church of Satan. Instead, the Satanic Temple uses the devil as a symbol ...

Who is Jamie Smith?

Jamie Smith is an attorney and mother who cares about civil rights.

Is Ginsburg anti choice?

Ginsburg’s replacement is all but certain to be vehemently anti-choice, with one of the top contenders belonging to a sect that actually used the term “handmaid” to refer to some women until the popularity of the TV series “The Handmaid’s Tale” gave the term negative connotations. Advertisement.