Wesson separated brothers from sisters, forcing the girls to wear head scarves and long skirts. Berg became known as Moses David, Mo, King David, Father David, Chairman Mo, David Fontaine, Dad, and Grandpa. December 24th, 1865: The Ku Klux Klan. The family also was. AFTER Mrs. Tingleys appearance in Southern California, the region acquired a reputation as an occult land and theosophists began to converge upon it from the four corners of the earth. In March 1997, 39 members of Heaven's Gate, a cult started in the early '70s, put on matching dark clothes, swallowed barbiturates, and placed plastic bags around their heads. He earned himself the title "Jack the Ripper" after a letter was written by a person claiming to be the famed serial killer. A lengthy standoff would follow, which resulted in the burning of the compound. To link to this article in the text of an online publication, please use this URL: https://historycooperative.org/six-of-the-most-famous-cult-leaders/. Manson and the Family believed in an upcoming apocalypse, or Helter Skelter. It indicates a race war between the so-called blackeys and whiteys. Manson planned to hide himself and the Family in a cave located in Death Valley until the supposed war ended. It also encouraged the notorious flirty fishing and love bombing means of recruitment. Right Icon This ranking is based on an algorithm that combines various factors, including the votes of our users and search trends on the internet. We have all chosen to die for this cause.. Burton is known as the Teacher and has strict rules of behavior, including bans on swimming, joking, and smoking. Shoko. A sanctuary in downtown Los Angeles for students of the I Am movement, a religious organization that has been around since the 1930s. I was a mistake of nature," he once said. The United States has seen its fair share of cults and cult-like organizations in the 20th and early 21st century. Remembering the rare, magical times it snowed in LA, For Angelenos, the once-in-a-blue-moon snowstorms were a "beautiful sight. Therefore, he would spend his life in prison to eventually die of illness at the age of 83. The group adopted a seven-headed cobra as its symbol and vowed death to the fascist insect that preys on the life of the people. Soon, the group began military tactical training in the Berkeley Hills. This list does not include the mass suicide cases of 1906 Bali, AD 73 Masada, 1963 Vietnam, 1803 Igbo slaves, Jauhar, etc, which were committed by people to escape slavery and/or being captured by the enemy in a war. Due to the precision of the way in which organs were removed from three of his victims, it's believed he may have had surgical knowledge. Women. . Following the fair, the New Thought leaders began to arrive in Los Angeles: Annie Rix Militz, who established the University of Christ; Fenwicke Holmes, who founded the Southern California. Bergs theology and style were largely derived from apocalyptic Adventist preaching tradition, influenced by his grandfathers involvement in the separatist Disciples of Christ church. IN 1875 a group of men, whose names must be forever unknown, succeeded in establishing contact with a superhuman race of little men with metallic heads who dwell in the center of the earth. From changing the milk-bottles of the newest baby to laying the last shingle on a bungalow, wrote one observer, her desire equals a Czars edict.. When visitors approached the colony, a bugler hidden behind the Egyptian gales sounded the note of their arrival. He died in 2017 after. Expert advice on how to deal with slow repairs and weird move-out notices. That Mrs. McPhersons first appearance should have been in San Diego is, in itself, highly significant. After the sponsors revealed their presence, they were going to create a utopia based on universal employment with a short workweek, an economy of financial credit, and an artificial language. One of the most high-profile former cult members is actor Joaquin Phoenix, whose family traveled with the cult around South America. Leaders of the orthodox faiths have repeatedly complained, with the exception of the Catholic Church, that established church practices and procedures have undergone various mutations in Southern California. 9. The reasons for this may include the lack of an obviously dominant Protestant establishment, an economy based on get-rich-quick schemes and frequently failing businesses, a diverse population of rootless people in a cultural blank slate, or even the heady effects of California weather. One of t hese early colonists was Albert Powell Warrington, a retired lawyer from Norfolk, Virginia, who arrived in Los Angeles in 1911. Jones' teachings were similar to liberation theology and socialist beliefs. From Ed Gein, who is the inspiration behind horror classics like Psycho, Silence of the Lambs, and Texas Chainsaw Massacre to Jack the Ripper, whose identity to this day still eludes police, the world has been marred by a nasty past. RELATED . Soon the Ballards were able to secure radio time. The state of Texas has as well. Karen Zerby, the current leader as of 2016, has been accused of sexually molesting children. Throughout a network of affiliated organizations the Universal Service Corporation, the International Institute of Universal Research, and the International Legion of Vigilantes the leaders of Mankind United received $97,500 in 1930 from the sale of Arthur Bells revelation. Due to their charisma and ability to convince others, cult leaders have become some of the more famous, or infamous, characters in history. Thunder rumbled in the sky in reaction to the voice of His Holiness. He led the mass suicide of over 900 followers on November 18, 1978, before dying of a gunshot. Founded by Marshall Applewhite and Bonnie Nettles in the 1970s, Heaven's Gate was an ascetic cult . By 1978, the population of "Jonestown" had grown to nearly 1,000 people. He was the leader of The Manson Family cult in the late 1960s. He attracted followers and established a commune at Chandler Mansion known as the Mother House. Source: HBO Max. Dubbed "The Angel of Death," Charles Edmund Cullen is believed to be the most prolific serial killer in American history. It was at Krotona in 1918 that Christine Wetherill Stevenson, a wealthy Philadelphian, sponsored an outdoor production of Sir Edwin Arnolds The Light of Asia a production which led to the creation of the Theater Arts Alliance in 1919, out of which eventually came the Hollywood Bowl concerts of today. In exchange for these promised luxuries, members were asked to surrender their worldly possessions on joining the secret order. That is to say, the Manson Family preached the coming of an apocalyptic race war that would devastate the United States, opening the way for the Family to be in a position of power. .] In the fire, no officers were hurt, but 80 members (including David Koresh) himself died. Nine of his children had been slain, apparently part of a preexisting suicide pact in case the authorities threatened to break up the family. The leader of "Manson Family" created an entire cult in the late60s and early 70 in California. One of the most notorious killers of all time, the Zodiac Killer is yet another serial criminal who has managed to elude police for decades. He lost his vision due to an illness, which changed his outlook on the world. The People's Temple was begun by charismatic leader Jim Jones in the 1950s in Indianapolis, USA. In November 1973, they murdered Oakland school superintendent Marcus Foster, who supported a controversial student identification system. The Origin of Hotdogs, The History of Boracay Island in The Philippines. In San Diego she unquestionably heard of Katherine Tingley, from whom she probably got the idea of founding a new religious movement on the coast and from whom she certainly got many of her ideas about uniforms, pageantry, and showmanship. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Gods of Death [] We are proud to have something to die for. It was located in the middle of the jungle of Guyana, and inhabitants were expected to work long days without a lot of pay. But it had already been noted in the media for its links to the Hua Zang Si, an obscure Buddhist sect operating out of the former St. Johns Evangelical Lutheran Church. The former headquarters of Full Circle, a a guru-free, sacred space in Venice, Los Angeles, that was led by the actor Andrew Keegan of 10 Things I Hate About You fame. Charles Milles Manson's booking photo for San Quentin State Prison, California One of the most notorious cults sprouted in San Francisco. The music betrays a self-aware, ironic humor that is rare in most other cults. The cults Renaissance winery and vineyards have produced award-winning wines. H alf a century ago, you could barely walk down the street in California without tripping over some kind of fringe spiritual sect or cult-like group. Among the pioneers of the movement was the Reverend Benjamin Fay Mills. By 1995, his cult had an international following of about 30.000 people worldwide, including many intellectuals from the best universities. In one 1981 interview, he was asked if he was Jesus Christ. Gacy was also known for dressing up as "Pogo the Clown," leading to him being dubbed the "Killer Clown.". A core membership of around 100 people survived and settled in Palomarin Ranch near Bolinas in Marin County. If David Tormsen had to choose, he would definitely go with the Source Family. These include Richard Nixon, Kamala Harris, Gavin Newsom, Kevin McCarthy, Dianne Feinstein and others. His father would never be of any relevance in his life, and after his mother was imprisoned for a robbery he was responsible for himself. The mystical ingredients came from Point Loma; the practical money-mindedness from the New Thought leaders. A magnificent sense of showmanship enabled her to give the Angelus Temple throngs a sense of drama and a feeling of release that probably did have some therapeutic value. no other large city contains so many transplanted villagers who retain the stamp of their indigenous soil.. . A.R. From San Diego Mrs. McPherson came to Los Angeles in 1922 with her Four Square Gospel: conversion, physical healing, the second coming, and redemption. Fifty years after a golden age for the spiritual groups, many have disbanded. Ashara was born into a poor family in 1955. Copyright 2023 PopCulture.com. There is also a story in which one of the members spread salmonella in bars in the area. Berg died at the age of 75, but his legacy is still felt. The home belonged to a successful grocery company owner Leno LaBianca and his wife Rosemary. Here are nine of the most unnerving examples of them from the 20th century. Great emphasis is placed on words such as energy, wealth,jewels, riches, and power. The faithful are promised power by which they can acquire wealth, gold, radios, hotels, automobiles, jewels, and innumerable luxuries. Others slowly faded away, pushed out by Californias rising cost of living, or made obsolete by the fact that many of the things that made them appealing were absorbed into the mainstream: Fortune 500 CEOs now regularly attend Burning Man and crystals and Himalayan salt lamps can be purchased at Target. I once attempted to examine these items, but abandoned the effort after a try at the first volume, indexed: Scientific Air Possibilities with the Human, by Zabelle Abdalian, Doctor of Airbodiedness.. While scouting for land for the group in Montana, they were picked up by a driver who talked to them about Christianity, and they felt the drawing presence of Jesus.. Female disciples said Castaneda subjected them to cult tactics; the movement outlives its founder, who died in 1998. . Indeed, Joness tragic goal was to eventually commit a mass murder-suicide. in fact, became a considerable factor in the commercial life of Hollywood.. In the early thirties, there were over a thousand practicing nudists in Los Angeles, and three large nudist camps: Fraternity Elysia; the Land of Moo, over the entrance to which appeared the saucy slogan, In All the World, No St rip LikeThis; and, in the hills of Calabasas, a mysterious retreat called Shangri-la. Escaped convict Donald DeFreeze (aka General Field Marshall Cinque Mtume) led this political cult of Berkeley radicals that was inspired by communist and South American revolutionary theory. Some countries have it listed as a legitimate religion while others recognize the group as one of the craziest cults around. In a single office building in the heart of Los Angeles, Thomas Sugrue found the following listed as tenants: Spiritual Mystic Astrologer: Spiritual Psychic Science Church, number 450, Service Daily, Message Circles, Trumpets Thursday; Circle of Truth Church; Spiritual Psychic Science Church; First Church of Divine Love and Wisdom; Reverend Eva Coram, Giving Her Wonderful Cosmic Readings, Divine Healing Daily; Spiritual Science Church of the Master, Special Rose Light Circle, Nothing Impossible.. Here are five of the most notorious cults in recent history and what made them so infamous: 1. The museum is filled with examples of his esoteric and somewhat psychedelic artwork, with a few token pieces by others to showcase diversity. The old enthusiasm was gone; the old fervor had vanished. One acolyte said, I know this sounds insane, but I saw lightning bolts coming out of his ears.. 3. According to claims in a 1997 lawsuit: Burton spoke openly about his sexuality in the form of jokes at all-male dinners. Sarah Edmondson, an actor and ex-acolyte who also figures prominently in the doc, received extensive recruitment training and tapped into her Hollywood circles to find new members when she was. He gave each girl a marital necklace and gold band. He called his cult "The Family.". The Diamond, in Chicago. The idea was to let people think that non-organic food was bad for them while influencing a local election. However, the murders only came to light with the investigation surrounding the subway attacks. However, in 1972 capital punishment would be abolished by the state of California. At first, the cult was in India. One of the most notorious cults sprouted in San Francisco. - June 18, 2018 11:06 am EDT. Paper hanger, stock salesman, and promoter, Ballard had been obsessed, since his childhood in Newton, Kansas, with visions of gold and jewels. Cults differ from traditional religions as they tend to be closed off . (One man had been tortured to death. The Branch Davidians protected their compound, killing four agents from the federal bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. In late March of 1995, members began releasing a poisonous nerve gas called sarin on five crowded subway trains. Below: the sanctuary. Certain basic themes appear in the I AM and Alankind United cults. The ranch became valuable and was bought by the federal government in 1962. During World War II, Mankind United was reincorporated as the Church of the Golden Rule as a tax dodge. [Italics mine.] California has produced a number of Leaders who have made it big. He was able to lure in many followers, especially women, into his cult. One ex-member described it as fear God and feel your chakra. Ministers give classes on energy healing, meditation, and trance hypnotherapy. Another weird psychic cult in the area is the Spiritual Rights Foundation, founded by William Baldwin (aka Reverend Bill). Baker was an ex-Marine and jujitsu expert who moved to LA to audition for the role of Tarzan. The Rhodeses were devotees of the Blackburn cult. [. On November 14, 1978, the group planned to leave through the airstrip. Shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the leaders of the cult, most of whom were anti-war, were convicted of violating the sedition statutes. Below: statues of Buddha at Morningland monastery. While we've heard of the Manson Family, the beliefs they had were pretty crazy. The museum is run by members of the Rosicrucian order, a spiritual movement that dates back to 1600s Germany and thrived in the US in the early 20th century. Afterward, in the bedroom, his wife Rosemary died after receiving 41 stabs. Soon, other former cult members came forward with complaints. While devotees worked at a local tomato-packing shed, their paychecks were collected by Blackburn and her husband. Born in Indiana, Jim Jones was a Christian minister who founded the Peoples Temple church. They sought to create a network of homelands for minority groups in the US. Family cult leader Anne Hamilton-Byrne dead at 98. The creators of the cult, Guy W. Ballard and his wife Edna Ballard, came to Los Angeles from Chicago around 1932. He fell under the mystical guidance of the Philosophical Research Society as well as the proto-hippie lifestyle. Watch on. California is known for its unusually large number of cults and dodgy religious movements. A couple of attacks were carried out, but not all of them ended up in murders. They also had a local radio program, where they exhorted Christians to join an army of God to fight the demons responsible for the worlds ills, which included karate, homosexuality, psychoanalysis, and fairy tales. But some of Californias fringe spiritual groups are still out there little pockets of commune dwellers, transcendental meditators and UFO worshippers dotted around the state. Bohemian Grove is a restricted 2,700-acre (1,100 ha) campground at 20601 Bohemian Avenue, in Monte Rio, California, United States, belonging to a private San Francisco-based gentlemen's club known as the Bohemian Club.In mid-July each year, Bohemian Grove hosts a more than two-week encampment of some of the most prominent men in the world. Scientology Founder: L. Ron Hubbard Founded: 1952 in the United States Scientology is a highly litigious, allegedly dangerous, wealthy, and widespread cult. 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