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Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > Alternative belief systems > Contemporary non-Christian & para-Christian cults & sects
In the book Medium7, Canadian researcher and author Donna
Smith-Moncrieffe shares insight from her journey to find truth
about the nature of existence. Smith-Moncrieffe provides engaging
cases studies and uses rigorous scientific methods to determine the
existence of an afterlife and the extent to which mediums can
accurately predict the future. Through extensive interviews with
ten gifted mediums and their clients, Smith-Moncrieffe reveals an
in-depth look into how mediums interact with the spirit world and
communicate with the deceased, how thoughts create reality, and how
reincarnation impacts mankind's existence.
She also inspires others to embark on their own personal
journeys of discovery to learn more about the purpose of life and
become more confident about the final destination.
Medium7 shares a range of ground-breaking studies involving
mediums, near death experiences, and past life regression therapy
to provide knowledge, courage, and hope for anyone interested in
understanding more about the true nature of our universe and
mankind's existence--now and for eternity.
The volumes in this set, originally published between 1978 and
1992, draw together research by leading academics in the area of
the occult and provide a rigorous examination of related key
issues. The collection examines occultism from a broad range of
disciplines, from shamanism and the occult tarot, to the esoteric
and spiritualism. It includes volumes across the disciplines of
religion, covering new religious movements, spiritualism, ritual
and magic practices. The three books that comprise this set include
investigations into the evolution of occultism, as well as the
history and practices of the occult as a religious movement. This
collection brings back into print insightful and detailed books and
will be a must-have resource for academics and students, not only
of religion and anthropology, but also of history and psychology.
The Rhetoric of Religious Cults takes as its departure point the
notion that 'cults' have a distinctive language and way of
recruiting members. First outlining a rhetorical framework, which
encompasses contemporary discourse analysis, the persuasive texts
of three movements - Scientology, Jehovah's Witnesses and Children
of God - are analysed in detail and their discourse compared with
other kinds of recruitment literature. Cults' distinctive negative
profile in society is not matched by a linguistic typology. Indeed,
this negative profile seems to rest on the semantics and
application of the term 'cult' itself.
A masterful and eye-opening examination of Trump and the coercive
control tactics he uses to build a fanatical devotion in his
supporters written by "an authority on breaking away from
cults...an argument that...bears consideration as the next election
cycle heats up" (Kirkus Reviews). Since the 2016 election, Donald
Trump's behavior has become both more disturbing and yet
increasingly familiar. He relies on phrases like, "fake news,"
"build the wall," and continues to spread the divisive mentality of
us-vs.-them. He lies constantly, has no conscience, never admits
when he is wrong, and projects all of his shortcomings on to
others. He has become more authoritarian, more outrageous, and yet
many of his followers remain blindly devoted. Scott Adams, the
creator of Dilbert and a major Trump supporter, calls him one of
the most persuasive people living. His need to squash alternate
information and his insistence of constant ego stroking are all
characteristics of other famous leaders-cult leaders. In The Cult
of Trump, mind control and licensed mental health expert Steven
Hassan draws parallels between our current president and people
like Jim Jones, David Koresh, Ron Hubbard, and Sun Myung Moon,
arguing that this presidency is in many ways like a destructive
cult. He specifically details the ways in which people are
influenced through an array of social psychology methods and how
they become fiercely loyal and obedient. Hassan was a former
"Moonie" himself, and he presents a "thoughtful and well-researched
analysis of some of the most puzzling aspects of the current
presidency, including the remarkable passivity of fellow
Republicans [and] the gross pandering of many members of the press"
(Thomas G. Gutheil, MD and professor of psychiatry, Harvard Medical
School). The Cult of Trump is an accessible and in-depth analysis
of the president, showing that under the right circumstances, even
sane, rational, well-adjusted people can be persuaded to believe
the most outrageous ideas. "This book is a must for anyone who
wants to understand the current political climate" (Judith
Stevens-Long, PhD and author of Living Well, Dying Well).
In the first few chapters of Blinded by Vision, you may think to
yourself, "What an unlucky girl " And you may also think that she
had endured enough to last more than one lifetime. By the end, you
may feel as if you have just read a sci-fi thriller--and yet it is
the truth. Author Tracy Williams shares a range of feelings--humor,
love, fear, tragedy, drama, and sorrow--but most of all, hope.
Tracy and Nancy have known each other for twenty years. Nancy
started out as a customer, and now they are great friends. Who
could be better to help write Tracy's story? The point of Blinded
by Vision is to demonstrate that psychics actually do have very
different life experiences from that of the average person. Enjoy
the journey.
Mystery. Manipulation. Murder. Cults are associated with all of
these. But what really goes on inside them? More specifically, what
goes on inside the minds of cult leaders and the people who join
them? Based on the hit podcast Cults, this is essential reading for
any true crime fan. Cults prey on the very attributes that make us
human: our desire to belong, to find a deeper meaning in life, to
live everyday with divine purpose. Their existence creates a sense
that any one of us, at any time, could step off the cliff's edge
and fall into that daunting abyss of manipulation and unhinged
dedication to a misplaced cause. Perhaps it's this mindset that
keeps us so utterly obsessed and desperate to learn more, or it's
that the stories are so bizarre and unsettling that we are simply
in awe of the mechanics that make these infamous groups tick. The
premier storytelling podcast studio Parcast has been focusing on
unearthing these mechanics--the cult leaders and followers, and the
world and culture that gave birth to both. Parcast's work in
analyzing dozens of case studies has revealed patterns: distinct
ways that cult leaders from different generations resemble one
another. What links the ten notorious figures profiled in Cults are
as disturbing as they are stunning--from Manson to Applewhite,
Koresh to Rael, the stories woven here are both spellbinding and
disturbing. Cults is more than just a compilation of grisly
biographies, however. In these pages, Parcast's founder Max Cutler
and national bestselling author Kevin Conley look closely at the
lives of some of the most disreputable cult figures and tell the
stories of their rise to power and fall from grace, sanity, and
decency. Beyond that, it is a study of humanity, an unflinching
look at what happens when the most vulnerable recesses of the mind
are manipulated and how the things we hold most sacred can be
twisted into the lowest form of malevolence.
This historical ethnography from Central Sudan explores the
century-old intertwining of zar , spirit possession, with past
lives of ex-slaves and shows that, despite very different social
and cultural contexts, zar has continued to be shaped by the
experience of slavery.
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