Part B: He said what?! Gloriavale Leavers and some current members provide commentary around journalist Rebecca Wright’s visit to Parliament where they asked the head of NZ’s Child Protection Agency whether the children at Gloriavale were safe. You won’t believe what he said! Leavers think it’s time the politicians & government agencies get educated. Today we set the record straight.

Show Notes:

Episode 10: Setting the Record Straight On Gloriavale Part A: https://youtu.be/1lwsiGEOIPg

Episode 11: Setting the Record Straight On Gloriavale Part B: https://youtu.be/FxEGi_OW0qo

Shorter You Tube clip of the responses from Leavers (no podcast commentary): Setting the Record Straight on Gloriavale

Part A: Articulate Gloriavale Leavers hit back at the politicians! Journalist Rebecca Wright (Newshub) went to Parliament to ask whether children are safe at Gloriavale. The Prime Minister’s answers elicited quite a reaction among 20 former and current members. Their contributions to this episode are priceless. Your hosts have tied it together with commentary on the Government’s response to cults.

Show Notes:

Watch Episode 10: Setting the Record Straight On Gloriavale Part A: ⁠https://youtu.be/1lwsiGEOIPg⁠

Watch Episode 11: Setting the Record Straight On Gloriavale Part B: ⁠https://youtu.be/FxEGi_OW0qo⁠

Watch Shorter You Tube clip of the responses from Leavers (no podcast commentary): ⁠Setting the Record Straight on Gloriavale⁠

Laura was a young adult just starting her career in Auckland when she was recruited into Shincheonji - a Korean high-demand religious group. In this interview Laura describes how she was pursued and recruited, and how fear, deceit and a desire to please others was used to trap her. She became a leader herself and used these same destructive tactics on others. Five years later she extracted herself and in leaving she gave up faith. This episode reveals how easily anyone can be recruited by a cult.

Show notes

Take Back Your Life by Janya Lalich
Combatting Cult Mind Control by Steve Hassan
'Brainwashed': How Shincheonji 'cult' aggressively recruits new members | Stuff.co.nz
Coronavirus: Cult blamed for spread in Korea also active in NZ
Public Trust NZ Community Growth Trust - Funding for psychological treatment for people impacted by cults
The Deep Podcast - Faithful Disciple

A chance encounter with a Centrepoint survivor at a festival a decade ago set Anke Richter on a labyrinthine journey into understanding the aftermath of cults. The result of this work was “Cult Trip”, Anke’s book about her investigation into cults inside and outside New Zealand. Today's chat between Anke and Caz discusses trauma-informed, survivor-centric journalism, how impossible it is to stay objective when writing about the human impact of cults, and how Anke’s and Caz’s stories intersect.

Show notes:

Anke’s website - more about Anke, her workshop “How not to start a cult” and how to purchase her book “Cult Trip”
North and South 2015 Bert’s Labyrinth 
Departures - Anke Richter’s Gloriavale article  2019
Culty Conversations NZ - private FB group for people interested is respectful dialogue about cults
The accidental cult tourist August 2023 - Echo article

Are you reaching for your dictionary far too often as you learn more about the cultisphere? If that’s you, you’ll love hearing our hosts slice and dice their way through the most common culty words and phrases. Sit back as our trio define concepts like narcissism, psychopathy, authoritarianism, machiavellianism, and gas-lighting. By the end of our chat you’ll be ready to butt-in on the next conversation you overhear about cults, with full confidence that you’re using the big words correctly.

Are cults simply harmless fringe groups with unusual ideas, or something more? Are they always religious? Are they always harmful? Who gets to decide if the word cult is applied to a group, and what if people disagree? Are there some objective measures we can use to define cults? Today Lindy, Liz and Caz talk about some of the different ways cults are defined, drawing on common definitions and exploring some leading international experts’ understandings of what makes a group culty. 

Show Notes:

Recovery from Cults - by Michael Langone
Wikipedia page - definition of cult
Britannica dictionary - definition of cult
Janya Lalich - What Makes a Cult a Cult?
Steve Hassan article - Combatting Cult Mind Control, the BITE Model, and the Continuum Influence
Dr Norris Report - Gloriavale Employment Court
Checklist of Cult Indicators - compiled by Michael Langone
Olive Leaf Network - High Demand Hand

How many lawyers does it take to overthrow a coercive controlling system of oppression? Twenty? A hundred? Listen to today’s bonus episode to find out the answer to this age old question as Liz asks the Gloriavale Leavers legal team - Brian, Dennis and Steve - the hard questions about the recent employment case. This bonus episode is being released in response to the July 2023 girls employment court case for the women that New Zealanders will forever fondly call “The Gloriavale Six”.

Show Notes:

What We Believe - The Gloriavale Doctrine
Dennis Gates TV3 interview - July 2023
Gloriavale: A Woman's Place (2016) movie
The GLST website legal tab

Discover what drives Liz Gregory, founder of the Gloriavale Leavers’ Support Trust, as she shares her journey from being a teacher and business owner to unexpectedly providing support to survivors of a cult. Liz firmly believes that by thoroughly understanding the root causes of problems, we can develop more effective solutions for the future. Uncover the source of Liz's unwavering energy as she continues to raise awareness and advocate for those affected by the Gloriavale community.

Show Notes: 

Gloriavale Leavers’ Support Trust website
Gloriavale Community website
Sins of the Father, book by Phil Cooper
Daughter of Gloriavale, book by Lilia Tarawa
Gloriavale Film 2022 (faith betrayed)
Cult Trip book by Anke Richter

Caroline talks about how her family became involved in Centrepoint, the time she spent there as a 7 year old, and the silence that surrounded the topic after she left. She explains the slow waking up to the impacts Centrepoint had on her life, and how she started to uncover the history which eventually led to her starting the Centrepoint Restoration Project. She discusses the motivation which drove her - a desire to turn an awful experience into something with meaning, hope and redemptive power.

Show notes:

Heaven & Hell: The Centrepoint Story

Listen to more of Lindy’s story, as she shares what it was like to grow up in the Exclusive Brethren, the unexpected outcomes of asking too many questions, and the difficult process of leaving.  We talk about the long-term impacts that former members of high-demand groups can have, especially in groups that practice familial shunning.  Lindy shares with us about the heartbeat of the Olive Leaf Network, concluding our chat with a poignant poem that she wrote on her 10 year leaving anniversary. 

Show notes:

Get A Life podcast interview with Lindy Jacomb (March 2023)  re. The Little Bird and the Olive Leaf Network

Links to Olive Leaf Network platforms:

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