Generation Cult

In Part 1 of our two-part series about The Unification Church (Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity) otherwise known as the "Moonies," we sit down for a chat with San Francisco artist and comedian Teddy Hose. He was a "blessed child" -- the result of a marriage between two church members brought together by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon -- and grew up close to the Moon family.

Join us as we discuss Moon's children, the church, concerns about its use of guns and Teddy's recent gun-control activism related to a splinter group called the Sanctuary Church.

*Image from comic: Growing Up "Moonie" by Teddy Hose The Nib, posted March 7th, 2019 https://thenib.com/moon-child

*Artwork: oil on canvas by Narangkar Glover Shangri-La Girls School: A Thousand Stairs 2011 (60 x 60 inches)

**This episode contains descriptions of child abuse and other content that listeners might find disturbing.

Welcome back to Generation Cult! We are kicking off the second season of the podcast with a story about Narangkar, an artist who grew up in 3HO (Healthy, Happy Holy Organization), which is connected to Kundalini Yoga and Sikh Dharma.

Narangkar and her two sisters navigated a troubling childhood during their time within the group that included neglect, child-swapping, violence and a traumatizing stay at a harsh boarding school in India.

How did Narangkar process these occurrences during her young life and where did she go after returning to the US? What did she find most healing as she recovered from her experiences and how is she doing today?

Join us for this intense story as Generation Cult finally makes its return.

Generation Cult is working on a Season 2! Come support the show at StudioToBe in Oakland on Friday, May 31 and enjoy a happy hour plus a Q&A with guests from Season 1. Tickets are available on eventbrite: www.eventbrite.com/e/a-happy-hour-…ets-61544020823

Join us for a fun time and help us raise money for editing, sound engineering and more! If you can't make the event or just want to donate, check out our GoFundMe page: www.gofundme.com/f/generation-cult-season-2

Thanks for your support!

Wrap things up with us for the season during a chat with Lalita, who was raised in the Science of Identity Foundation. This group, developed in the 1970s, has similarities to the Hare Krishna movement and revolves around a. ... let's say. ... very demanding leader. We'll discuss germaphobia, child labor, arranged marriages, eating sand out of footprints and pursuing a long-overdue education.

We hope you enjoyed this season and hope to discuss cults with you again next year!

We had a visit from Dr. Janja Lalich, an author and educator who has a new book out about children raised in cults called "Escaping Utopia: Growing Up in a Cult, Getting Out and Starting Over." Janja chats with us about her research for this project as well as her time working and writing with the late Margaret Singer, a prominent psychologist known for her studies on undue influence.

*A few sound issues on this one, too. Please bear with us -- the content is good!

Welcome back! Now we are talking Transcendental Meditation, focusing on the story of one women who grew up in the TM community during the reign of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Gina, the focus of this episode, talks about being a child in the group and then becoming mother of three who had to struggle once she left.

*There were some noise issues during this episode including spotty microphone quality and what sounded like a large group of people having a party outside the studio during recording. Sorry about that. Hope it's not too distracting.

On this episode we learn about the harsh rules and restrictions for members --- especially children -- in Eugene Spriggs' The Twelve Tribes, which began in 1970s Tennessee. Samie, founder of a nonprofit to assist people raised in cults, tells us all about growing up in this group and her detachment from mainstream society. Her first attempt to escape at age 18 was unsuccessful. She'll talk to us about how she got out and where she went.

Dhyana Levey, host of Generation Cult, was recently interviewed on another podcast called IndoctriNation. It's hosted by Rachel Bernstein, who was just a guest on our last episode titled "Let's Call an Expert!" Today we will share the interview from Rachel's show IndoctriNation. We hope you aren't confused. Just listen.

Although we love a good personal story, we also love a good expert -- so we're going to call one. For this show we're chatting with family therapist and cult specialist Rachel Bernstein, who has spent 27 years counseling people who grew up in high-demand groups. She'll tell us about common struggles these people face when trying to get on with their lives, and where anyone seeking resources can go to get help.

Why do some people consider being a Jehovah Witness being part of a cult? Our first guest is Kourtney, who grew up a true believer in the religion only to lose her whole family when she began to question it. This is another two-guest episode: We'll also meet Andre, a makeup artist who tried desperately to fit in with his Jehovah Witness community until accepting that the community had rejected him.