I've been thinking of all of the cult and cult-like experiences I've had, both before and after the Seed. Here's a short list:
1. An elementary school friend told be I would 'go to hell' unless I accepted Jesus. My family was not very religious, so I argued with him. I thought he was crazy and I still have a hard time with religious fanatics.
2. High School sports. I was a 'freak,' and the jocks had a very tight culture that I was resentful of - they had special privileges and status. From outside view, this was a cultish group.
3. Drug culture. At the same time, I became aware of the whole drug culture thing, which to me had the attraction of being an anti-jock thing. Unfortunately for me, the jocks were co-opting the drug scene, so getting high was less attractive to me. I really wanted to be a part of the hippy generation, but in the '70s, this was just becoming a style thing...
4. Nichren Shonen 'buddhism,' which is still huge but has a different name. I don't think it's buddhism at all, but a cult. A lot of kids got into this in Shaker Heights, the wealthy Cleveland suburb, and I knew someone involved. I was invited to their 'open meeting,' and in retrospect, it was a LOT like the Seed - emotional testimonials of 'before' and 'after,' belief the they 'had it' and outsiders didn't, and the general 'happy happy' vibe...I bought a Gahonzon (sp? - a scroll of 'Nam Yo Ho Renge Kyo') to chant to...thought that was cool but I never went back.
5. Leaving the Seed, I joined Adult Children of Alcoholics - trying to make sense of my family. While less cult-like than the previous listings, it still had elements of group think, but pretty mild in my experience.
6. Multi-level marketing. I had a friend who took me to yet another 'open meeting,' this one for some scheme. The room was packed with people who hoped to get rich, and were sure to be disappointed.
7. About 10-15 years ago, I had a bunch of acquaintences who were going to sessions of The Forum, which I understand to be EST. They were all artists, so I wouldn't think they'd get sucked in, but they were and I lost touch with them.
8. About 10 years ago, a very good friend of mine got involved with a group called 'Understanding Yourself and Others.' To me, this seemed like EST and I was SO glad when he left, though he still speaks fondly of the experince, he agrees that it is/was a cult.
9. My high school buddies. Duh - we said we would die for each other and we almost meant it. No wonder kids join gangs - we were looking for a tight bond and we weren't getting it from our families.
10. I had very low-level job in corporate america for a while, and our staff meetings were very cultish - rah rah company! I could hardly wait to leave.
11. I forgot about the boy scouts - I went to about 10 meetings as a kid and it just scared me. We didn't really do any camping or other cool stuff, we just waved flags and yelled and I hated it...
12. Art School. Kind of cultish too, but also interesting and fun...glad I did it even though I am not an active artist right now...
That's it. Do others have cult/near-cult experiences? I think it's very much a part of our culture and important to recognize it for what it is. Ever been to a political event? I didn't list that but watch Fox news for two seconds and it's a cult, no doubt...
Wally Gator[ This Message was edited by: cleveland on 2005-02-22 08:13 ]