Christie Collbran’s very public “defection” has placed the Church of Scientology on the front pages again. The most recent National Geographic—not to mention HBO’s Big Love series—unearths some of the more notorious elements of Mormonism. As with Unity, these are virtually homemade American religions that have, at times, been assigned the “cult” label by the orthodox mainstream. Perhaps the comparisons end there. What are the truths and myths about these belief systems, where are they headed and what do they have in common with either the conventional or New Thought ends of the religious spectrum?