FVPCC (Family
Violence Prevention Coordinating Committee)
(1991. September
16).
Family violence:
Prevention in the 1990s.
Christchurch, New
Zealand.
Conference
Proceedings,
Two Volumes.
Wellington, FVPCC.
Vol.2. Pages
11-14.
KINDS OF CULTS
The kinds of groups that are most often sources of ritualised
abuse involve religious or semi-religious practices that usually have a
ritualised format. These practices include satanism, witchcraft, occultism and christianity.
These are the most widely known but are not all. Nor are we saying
that any practices known by these names are abusive cults. It is apparent that
an abusive cult might develop from a "legitimate" religion or group,
with a small circle secretly developing abusive practices. In Aotearoa/New Zealand,
we know from the survivors, of groups that have developed from fundamentalist
Christian churches, Freemasons, and a sex ring which operated among
businessmen.
Where ritual exists, there is the potential to abuse.
"A destructive cult may be defined as a closed system/group
whose followers have been recruited deceptively and retained through the use of
manipulative techniques of thought reform and mind control (undue influence)
The system is imposed without the informed consent of the individual and is
designed to alters one's personality and behaviour. The leadership is
all-powerful, the ideology is totalistic, and the will of the individual is
subordinate to will of the group. The destructive cult sets itself above
society by creating its own values with little or no regard for society's
ethics or morals"
Cult Awareness
Network
Cults are likely to be abusive when leadership is authoritarian
and membership is small, elitist and rigidly controlled.
Keeping this definition in mind, and remembering that abuse is
about getting power and control over (victimising) others, the following are
described to give an idea of the context in which ritual abuse might occur.
SATANISM
There seems to be a wide spectrum of practices, from organized
satanic churches to the self-styled practitioners of satanism. Satanism is the,
usually systematised, worship or adoration of Satan or the devil as defined in
the christian context.
Satanists seek to obtain power to manipulate the world around them
for their own gain by calling on the power of satan in certain prescribed
rituals. They oppose the traditional values of Judeo-Christian tradition and
adhere instead to a system of personal power and control over the world around
them.
"Anyone who claims to be interested in magic or the occult
for reasons other than gaining personal power is the worst kind of
hypocrite"
Anton Le Vey in
the Satanic Bible
Satanism exists because Christianity exists. Satanism is the reversal
or mirror opposite of the christian belief, and its notions of good
"Although Satanists believe there is a God - to believe in Satan
you have to believe in God - they have become alienated from believing that
God's representation of "good" is the only way to fly. They believe
God is good, but they don't believe that good itself is good"
Mike Warnke in
The Satan Seller
Satan is the personification of evil in christian belief and to
the christian, evil is evil as defined by the scriptures, church teachings and
dogma. To the satanist, evil is open to interpretation. Because satanists are
usually after personal power and the satisfaction of earthly needs, evil can be
interpreted as whatever stands in the way of these desires.
Satanism might consist of renouncing God and adopting attitudes
and beliefs considered appropriate for one who is "anti-God" They
might belong to organised groups or practise individually It is likely to be in
this context that the teenage dabbler can be found.
Ritual abuse survivors describe rituals that appear to use satanic
symbols. Children describe black and red robes, hoods, altars, pentagrams,
candles, sacrifice etc. Adult survivors, including those in Aotearoa/New
Zealand, describe being ritually abused throughout their childhood, adolescence
and into adulthood. They state that their abuse was part of a system of satanic
worship and describe satanic invocations and rituals. Some came to believe that
the devil was inside of them.
WITCHCRAFT
The word is derived from the old English "wicca" which
means "wise" or the craft of the wise. It has two interpretations either
through the Christian context or beyond it.
Beyond the christian interpretation, Witchcraft is an ancient and
widespread practice that pre-dates Christianity by thousands of years. In
contemporary practice, much of witchcraft focuses on self-knowledge and
healing, revering the laws of nature and working in harmony with these natural laws.
Many modern witches, predominantly women, see witchcraft within the context of
feminist theory and consciousness, re-empowering the symbols and values of the feminine.
The other interpretation is offered through the historical context
of christianity. Witchcraft was the
term used by the clergy to describe practices believe to be satanic. Witches
were judged to be in league with the Devil, giving rise to the witch hunts between
the 13th and the 18th century. (It is estimated that 9 million European women
were killed) During this time, religious practices that were non-Christian were
automatically denounced as satanic and therefore to be purged. It is in this
context, that satanists can refer themselves as witches, practise
"black" magic, and belong to groups called covens.
Because of Witchcraft's general antithesis to christianity, and
because many members of destructive cults identify themselves as witches,
Witchcraft and Satanism are often believed to be one and the same. While abuse
has been described as having occurred in connection with witchcraft, witchcraft
per se, does not connote abuse.
OCCULTISM
The work "occult" is derived from the Latin
"occultus" meaning covered over, hidden or secret.
This is a belief in the existence of mysterious, secret or supernatural
sources of power that can be known and/or communicated with by human beings.
"Occult" is a general designation for various systems of belief,
practices and ritual based on knowledge of the world of spirits and/or unknown
forces of the universe.
In its current usage, it is employed to describe a variety of
beliefs or practices that are usually considered to be on the fringes on
accepted science and belief. Examples include - clairvoyance, palmistry,
astrology, speaking in tongues (Glossolalia) and necromancy (believing and
practising raising the dead so they can reveal to the necromancer otherwise
unknown past, present and future occurrences).
Use of the term "occult" depends on the interpretation
of the user. To some christians, practices and beliefs considered to be outside
the church's teachings or doctrines can be termed occult and therefore contrary
to their idea of "right".
CHRISTIANITY
The basic tenets and doctrines of christianity, regardless of the
specific church, overtly forbid practices that could include ritual abuse.
However, where ritual exists, there is always the Potential for abuse to occur.
In seeking a wider understanding, it is possible to put both ritual
and abuse on a continuum. Ritual is part of the Christian and church process,
and abuse does not deal specifically with sexual abuse. The high ritual of Catholicism
and the belief that confession is required to achieve a state of grace can be
interpreted as abuse of the mind. This belief is part of the indoctrination
process deemed necessary to be at one with god.
Everything has its opposite - the more God is elevated as a supreme
being with power over all, the greater the potential to believe that the
opposite is true.
Destructive cults develop from churches in the same way that they
develop in other institutionalised settings.
Sources:
Ritual Abuse: Report of the Ritual Abuse Task Force, Los Angeles
County Commission for Women
Notes defining some aspects of the occult, religious and semi-religious
practioes relevant to ritual abuse
compiled by Nigel
Marriott, Lower Hutt
Accounts of ritual abuse survivors, Wellington New Zealand
Ritual Action Group,
Wellington,
August '91