I received a link a while back from a Messianic Jew who seems to have had a lot of contact with various splinter cult ministurds of Armstrongism--or at least knows a lot about how they operate.
Unfortunately she stills seems to think there was good teachings in some of Armstrongism.
Traits of Cults
Some of her comments were:
Many cults have started with "good" intentions, but with human nature and
Satan at the bottom of them; they usually deteriorate very quickly.
For instance many religionists did start out with high ideals, until the
money started rolling in
"A few of the traits of the cultleaders"
Most cult leaders are people that have inferiority complexes, some of
them, but not all of them being of short stature.
It is interesting to note that almost all the various splinter cults of Armstrongism (including Herb himself) were/are lead by short, over-compensating tyrannical men.
Many of them have come from low backgrounds; with very unloving Fathers,
three dictators that I can recall, were beaten unmercifully by their
fathers... Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin and Saddam Hussein.
They didn't receive mercy, so they never learned mercy.
Many cult leaders are very intelligent and have a gift for speaking,
unfortunately, most of them do not have a great proclivity for telling
the truth, except when it is to their benefit.
Most cult leaders learn very early, that they are very convincing to
people (Mainly gullible people), so therefore these "leaders" think that
they have found their calling.
The people that they prey on, are usually the old, the weak, the lonely,
the gullible and the mentally unstable, but another group that they prey
upon, is those that have money.
Many Cult Leaders have a "Messianic Complex", and now that they have
followers, they really start believing that they are God's "prophet or
messenger", then they start deluding themselves.
If anyone or anybody affronts them in any way, then they get paranoid,
and they set up an enforcing arm, usually other deluded people; most of
them inherently violent; to police their great "kingdom"
One of the last things these " false messiahs" do, is completely isolate
their followers, and set up spy networks, and if there is any hint that
their converts are trying to "desert", then they get them and even
threaten them with "Hellfire", ex-communication ( hell) or even bodily
harm.
When the cult followers are completely isolated, then they are nominally,
or literally held prisoner.
The Unproved "Petra" doctrine was a way WCG could hold people nominally
captive, by threatening, that they would not get to go there, if they got
out of line.
This doctrine will probably be used against the brethren again, by some
of the COG leaders; at least to get the people's money.
This happens very often in churches, it has even happened in some of the
Churches of God.
There was all kinds of duplicty, there were sexual scandals; money
scandals; varience; power struggles; harangues; false prophecies; spy
networks and every other kind of problem.
Right now, some of these cult leaders have gotten hold on some of God's
people, Gerald Flurry is one of them; he follows most of the classic
traits of having a messianic complex.
He has his Scapegoat (The Laodiceans), and he is into the isolating the
members from everybody else.
David Hulme and Ron Weinland are several of the others, who are trying to
isolate their members (tithe paying dupes) from the other commandment
keeping brethren; and they do this for control, mainly of the tithes;
this though is completely opposite to Christ's outgoing service to all.
