The most dangerous and evil form of mass enthrallment happens to the followers of cults! Cults are formed around charismatic cult leaders who claim to be divine. They often claim to have conversations with God and receive divine inspiration with which they bind their followers. Their followers are usually people with preexisting religious beliefs, or people who are looking for something to believe in, and who fear the modern world. They all want a safe harbor from the dangers they perceive around themselves and they think that the leader and his (or her) cult will protect them.
When these followers hear the cult leader preach, it strikes a chord and they begin to believe that they can put their faith in what he or she has to say. The more they listen, the more they believe until they become emotionally and psychologically bound to this person and his or her organization. As time goes by, they become so enthralled that they allow the cult leader to take control of their lives and make their decisions for them.
The effect of a cult leader on an oppressed cult follower is virtually identical to the effect of an obsessing spirit on their living victim. The term “enthrallment” means “To hold spellbound; enslaved.” Enslavement is the best way to describe the effect of a cult leader on his followers, as well as the effect of an obsessing spirit on a psychiatric patient.
Cult leaders are living examples of the low order spirits we spoke about in earlier. Their lives revolve around their own narcissistic desires, and they fulfill their desires by capturing and enslaving other people in the same way that earthbound spirits try to obsess or possess living people. Cult leaders and obsessing spirits are emotional and spiritual vampires. Both types worm their way into the heads of vulnerable people. Then they “suck” the energy they crave from their innocent victims.
Van Dusen deduced that the hallucinations of his patients were similar to Swedenborg’s “devils” and he likened them to drunken bums in a bar. But not all of them are ignorant and stupid, or even necessarily criminal. Some have the intelligence and sophistication that people attribute to the Devil. The reason that they are of the low order is that they are narcissistic or even sociopathic. Cult leaders are simply low order spirits in training.
It can be very difficult for a cult follower to recognize his or her enslavement and break away from the cult. Their lives generally revolve around the leader and fellow cult members. The enthralled live with the constant fear that they will be ostracized from the group or that the leader will cast a curse upon them if they do not follow his or her commands. In some cases, the cult is so powerful that it can materially or legally destroy an apostate. It often takes the death or arrest of their leader for the cult members to make a break. Even then, it can be a harrowing ordeal.
God’s most important gift to mankind is the right to free will. No organization that drains their followers’ bank accounts or commands them to work long hours for no pay can claim to be a legitimate religion. You are always a free agent. Never surrender your free will for empty promises of protection or redemption. You can’t go wrong if you always remember to listen to that small inner voice that constantly nudges you to do the right thing.
God’s most important commandment is the golden rule. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” As a living soul, it is important to remember that God would NEVER command anyone to have sex, commit murder, commit mayhem, commit burglaries or commit any crime that would harm ANYONE else! No living person, no matter how important, is the sole arbiter of right and wrong.
The best way to deal with a cult is to use your God-given free will and walk away as soon as the leader or anyone in the group tells you to do something that you know is not right! And if you can’t make the break, get help. There are many outreach programs that are sponsored by reputable organizations and churches that can assist you both spiritually and materially.