Le phénomène des sectes: The CICNS Reads Quebec's Info-Secte

Presentation and Critique of the Book

“Le phénomène des sectes” published by Info-Secte

by the CICNS team

The complete book can be downloaded at http://www.math.mcgill.ca/triples/infocult/phenomene/bookorder.html

For some twenty years in France, the organisations or individuals who have taken an interest in the phenomenon of the spiritual minorities — in the sense of a warning against them, indeed of an active fight against them — have been characterised by a vindictive and often crude militant attitude, showing, in the best cases, a limited discernment as to the motivation of the spiritual quest.

The judgements passed are then founded on nothing more than a rational psychological analysis, when it is not quite simply a personal anger that has found in the matter a convenient outlet.

There exists however in Quebec a centre called “Info-Secte” whose discourse, without showing a very deep understanding of spiritual reality, brings a more balanced tonality and from which the activists of the anti-cult fight in France could have drawn inspiration had they been sincere in their approach.

Info-Secte has published a work entitled “Le phénomène des sectes”, from which we publish below a few extracts giving the measure of a less emotional and therefore, overall, more open approach.

We have found nothing better in the French language today, and this example is still far, on reading the appendices of the book in particular, from providing the balanced information necessary in these troubled times. It will be easy, for the informed reader, to identify in this book the persistence of cult-phobia and of its characteristic blindness, as in the mistrust it cultivates towards spiritual aspiration, to the point of giving a list of standard questions to ask before any contact with a spiritual movement.

But this work is principally a study of the functioning of groups. It sheds accurate light on certain deviances that have remained in memory in the recent history of Quebec, without making of them a generality concerning all groups with a spiritual vocation.

The participants of Info-Secte show a will to objectivity in their approach which the book does not permit one to doubt, despite the inevitable automatisms of this kind of approach in the current context.

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Le phénomène des sectes

By Mike Kropveld, Marie-Andrée Pelland

Info-secte / Info-Cult

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(…) The human being has always shown the desire to associate himself with an individual bearing a divine message. He also feels the need to associate with others in order to share beliefs, practices… As these needs have been present since the beginning of time, the presence of groups named “new religious movements”, “spiritual groups” or “cults” is not a recent phenomenon.

In the contemporary era, since the 1960s, these groups have provoked a reaction on the part of the media, the population, academics and several governments. Thus, for some, these groups are innovative organisations trying to answer the needs of a category of people. Consequently, they must not be the object of surveillance or of particular attention. For others, these groups must be studied, indeed attentively observed, in order better to understand the lived experience of the members and to intervene with those who are victims.

Fear of these groups is periodically revived by certain tragedies. Let us think for example of that of the Peoples Temple, where 913 members of Jim Jones’s group died in Guyana (1978); of the violent death of members of the Branch Davidians at Waco (1993); of the murders, arsons and ordered suicides committed within the Order of the Solar Temple (1994, 1995, 1997); of the sarin gas attack in the Tokyo metro by the members of the Aum Shinrikyo group (1995); and of the collective suicide of the members of the Heaven’s Gate group in California (1997). These dramatic events have contributed to reinforcing the idea that the “cults” are problematic, indeed dangerous, groups.

Although such manifestations (neglect, coercion, aggression or suicide) are extremely rare occurrences, these outcomes exist and reflect the existence of a problematic that it is useful to address, if only better to understand these groups.

The phenomenon of the “cults” is first of all a group phenomenon. To understand the functioning of groups, the interactions between the members and the laws surrounding interpersonal exchanges is also to know the whole set of organisations recognised as “cults” or “new religious movements”.

Starting from the objective of informing the population about the groups and their internal and external functioning, Info-Secte decided to publish a text dealing with these different questions.

Here are some of the objectives pursued:

• To inform the reader about the place of groups in a democratic society;

• To understand the internal and external functioning of groups as well as certain problematic aspects of them;

• To provoke discussions and debates on the phenomenon;

• To permit the development of a critical thinking about the groups that surround us.

The phenomenon of the “cults” is a vast subject that can be treated from different angles. This text does not claim to cover the whole set of questions that can be asked in order to understand the subject, but the objective of the creation of such a tool is to present a different vision “of the cult phenomenon”.

In the middle of the 1990s, the staff of Info-Secte questioned themselves about the use of the concept of “cultic thinking” (pensée sectaire). Research and discussions were undertaken to learn the meaning and the usefulness of such a concept in order to distinguish the groups that can potentially be damaging for some of their members from the groups that are not.

The organisation defines cultic thinking as:

A manner of conceptualising reality and society by dividing them into two monolithic blocks (good / evil, saved / damned, white / black). The groups that present a cultic thinking include no place for grey areas. The individual and the movement possessing this form of thought quite naturally class themselves in the camp of the good and the saved. This separation of the world leads the groups and the members to seek scapegoats in order to explain the problems experienced by them or by society. This group of cultic thinking can lead towards intolerance and fundamentalism.

Info-Secte and the choice of vocabulary

The choice of the vocabulary used to designate the phenomenon of the “cultic” groups constitutes in itself an obstacle to research and to the understanding of the phenomenon. Historically, the term “secte” was used to describe groups that had broken away from a religious group.

Today, the term takes on quite another meaning in people’s minds. The term “secte” now has in general a pejorative signification.

Some suggest eliminating the use of the term “secte” by reason of its pejorative connotation (1). The use of the word “secte” can erroneously lead to considering “dangerous” groups that would not be so. If it is preferable not to employ this term, it is probably impossible to eliminate the use of the word “secte” because it is integrated into popular language.

According to Info-Secte, groups should be distinguished according to their internal and external functioning, by their vision of the world and their behaviours and not only by a summary evaluation

Info-Secte recognises that it is not the whole set of groups identified as “cults” that represent a risk for their members. Nevertheless, it is important to recognise that certain groups can harm the rights of their members;

Info-Secte recognises that participation in the life of a group certainly constitutes an opportunity for social participation, for socialisation and for comfort, but also underlines that certain groups can become places of psychological and/or physical exclusion

Info-Secte considers that the existing laws answer the multiple problems associated with the cults and the cultic groups.

Like a human being, Info-Secte has developed over these 23 years of existence. Like the groups it observes, frequents and studies, Info-Secte has developed and modified its perception as well as its understanding of the cult phenomenon. Moreover, the links with the scientific and international community as well as with different spiritual and esoteric groups allow the organisation to improve the understanding it has of the groups and of their functioning.

Over more than twenty years of existence, Info-Secte has amassed a diversity of information on the cult phenomenon. This makes Info-Secte the largest centre of its kind in North America. With the arrival of the 21st century, Info-Secte pursues its reflection and its search for information on the phenomenon and continues to offer a service of help and referral.

The Quebec Charter of rights and freedoms ensures, for example, the protection of freedom of religion; it does not however define what it means by the term “religion”.

To understand the meaning of this word and of this right, one must refer to the case law. The decisions rendered by the different Quebec courts give no precise definition of it. Certain judgments have nevertheless made it possible to trace the limits of religious freedoms (2):

• The right to believe what one wishes in religious matters;

• The right to manifest one’s beliefs by worship and practice;

• The right to propagate one’s beliefs.

According to the judgment in the case R.C. Big M Drug Mart, freedom of religion has two dimensions:

• A positive dimension: the individual is free to believe what he wishes and to profess his beliefs;

• A negative dimension: No one can be forced to embrace a religious conception or to act in opposition to what he believes (3)

In daily life, groups can be places of social participation, of comfort, of exchange, but also places of exclusion and of psychological brutality.

The reasons for becoming a member of a group

The human being seeks to understand the experiences he lives (4). In this search for meaning, the beliefs taught or the vision of the world shared by the group can bring a person the answers she is seeking or give a new meaning to her daily life (5).

In a situation of crisis, becoming a member of a group allows the person to diminish the tension or the stress she feels. People who are confronted with disturbing events such as the death of a close relative or the break-up of a love affair often feel tension. The fact of joining a group, however, can make it possible better to understand these events and to diminish the tension and the sadness felt. Becoming a member of a spiritual group that believes in the existence of a life after death can be a solution for the person who suffers (6).

The group gives a frame of reference to the person, which allows her to interpret differently the problems she encounters. Following the integration into her life of the doctrine or the philosophy of a group, the ordeals may no longer be perceived as insurmountable; they have a new meaning.

In a situation of crisis, a person can, in certain cases, manage more easily the emotions she feels because the group offers her plausible explanations for her problems and her sufferings. Thus, the group answers the person’s needs and in exchange the person pursues with the other members the objectives of the group (7).

Even if a person cannot, for example, bring her deceased child back to life, the beliefs transmitted by the group allow her to interpret that event differently. In this situation, the death perceived as unjust takes on a different signification. The unacceptable death is now a fact a little less painful and in certain cases tolerable (8).

Belonging to a group allows certain people to adapt in a more harmonious way to the problems of everyday life. The loss of a job, for example, is no longer perceived as a catastrophe but as an ordeal that allows the person to acquire new skills.

Integrating into the life of a group allows certain people better to adapt, for example, to ageing, to death, to stress, to physical and psychological effort (9). Commitment in a group can also allow certain people to stop consuming drugs or alcohol (10).

The leader-follower relationship

The relationship with a good guru (11)

It is difficult to qualify the leader of a group as good or bad. Every guru or leader can, in his interactions with the members of a group, have harmonious or problematic relations with certain members.

Nevertheless, certain characteristics can be observed to qualify a leader as “good” (12):

• The leader demonstrates a good knowledge of the group’s scriptures;

• The leader has been the disciple of several masters; he asks himself many questions about his own path;

• The leader lives in conformity with his teaching.

The infantilising guru

This type of leader has a paternalistic attitude with his members; he is overprotective and tries to keep the leader-follower relationship secret. Although the leader has the intention of protecting and reassuring the members, he demands in exchange a sometimes extreme submission from his members. In this type of relationship, spiritual or personal growth is effected through the teachings and the relationship to the leader. The objective of the group is to favour the spiritual growth of the leader, so that the participants may accede to his knowledge.

The spiritual abuser

The spiritual abuser can be described as a leader who uses spiritual, biblical or other writings to make the members feel guilty. Thus, he treats social, psychological or health problems by means of divine words or prayers.

The swindler guru

Swindler gurus can be described as leaders who constantly ask their followers for money. These leaders have a luxurious lifestyle while their disciples live an ascetic lifestyle, indeed a life below the poverty line. This type of guru often does not accept questions from the members; they have only to listen to his word and to give money to maintain the leader’s lifestyle.

Footnotes:

1 Bergeron, R. (1997). Vivre au risque des nouvelles religions. Montréal, Médiaspaul.

Campiche, R. (1995). Quand les sectes s’affolent. Ordre du temple Solaire, Média et fin de millénaire. Entretien avec Cyril Depras, Genève-Lausanne : Laboret Fides-Institut d’éthique Sociale.

2 R.C. Big M Drug Mart (1985) 1 R.C.S. 295, 336-337, as cited in the Mémoire à la commission de l’éducation de l’Assemblée nationale sur la place de la religion à l’école. (1995) Commission des droits de la personne (1984) La définition de la religion dans l’article 10 de la Charte des droits et libertés de la personne du Québec, working document. P.36

3 Bosset. P. (1999). Mémoire à la commission de l’éducation de l’Assemblée nationale sur la place de la religion à l’école. Commission des droits de la personne et de la jeunesse du Québec. http://www.cdpdj.qc.ca/fr/publications/liste.asp?Sujet=51&noeud1=1&noeud2=6&cle=0

4 Duhaime, J. (1998). L’adhésion à la conscience de Krishna de 1965 à 1977 aux Etats-Unis : Un point de vue des sciences sociales, dans Croyances et sociétés. Montréal : Fides (Collection Héritage projet), p.247-263.

5 Glock, C. Y. (1963). Origine et Évolution des groupes religieux, Archives de sociologie des religions, vol. 8, p. 29-38.

6 Pargament, K. (1997). The Psychology of Religion and Coping : Theory, Research, Practice. New York : Guilford Press, 548p.

7 Duhaime (1998). op. cit.

8 Pelland, M-A. (2000). Récits de vie de membres actifs et d’anciens membres de groupes sectaires, Mémoire présenté à la Faculté des Études supérieures. Université de Montréal, p.156

9 Pargament, K. (1997). Ibid.

10 Richarson, J. (1984). Psychological and Psychiatric Studies of New Religions. dans L.B. Brown, Advances in the Psychology of Religion, New York : Pergamon.

Richardson, J. (1986). Religiosity as Deviance. The Negative Religious Bias in the Use and Misuse of the DSM III”, Deviant Behavior, vol. 14, no 21, p. 34-65.

Richardson, J.T. (1993). A Sociological Critique of Brainwashing Claims about Recruitment to New Religions, dans J. Hadden et D. Bromley (1993), The Handbook of Cult and Sect in America, Greewich CT JAI Press inc, p.243-271.

11 The term guru is used in this section as a synonym for leader. Pelletier (2000) uses this term to describe spiritual leaders.

12 Pelletier, P. (2000). Les gourous et les Maîtres. Montréal. Édition