jerseydevil100

i wascurious because i had trouble researching this. people post mostly about religious cults which is interesting of course but there can be other kinds too right? like people beleiving in aliens and a cult about that? maybe about people being taken away from earth or something but i dont really know any or couldnt find any. does anyone know some?

aladallas

Good question! We do kind of skip past those kinds, I think its harder for some people to relate because not everyone beleives in aliens but many are religious or are close to religion in some way. I don't think I have heard of any cults of that type that have been as destructive as religious ones-- ones that ended in death, I mean. I think the culture of cryptids and aliens is pretty niche and most weird groups I even see are primarily online. Who knows if anyone has gotten an online alien cult started... I am sure they have.

poetofwinter

I try to look into all kinds of cults when I do research, as it gives some great insight to the mindset of humans and the trends that leaders of cults tend to have. So, in all my reading I have seen some articles written along these themes but not too many were big enough to draw national attention. There was one I have on mind that did not have a specific name- it was led by a man named Theodore Weverend and as far as I understood it seemed like he took some things from Scientology. I read that he seemed to have defected from Scientology for unknown reasons before using the internet to contact others who had either done the same or had similar enough ideas to him that they were willing to join him in this cult-like set up. From what I gathered, it seems like Theodore likely disagreed with some of Scientology in a very strong way, and his mental health driving him to more extremes than them (shocking someone could get worse than Scientology that they'd be considered more "extreme", than the fiction that group already puts in place). But not too much came of this "cult" before it could be notable. Family members became aware of their loved ones that had joined him and most reports say that he lead them into beliefs about aliens and space, and being taken by them. Something along those lines. It was stopped before it could get any worse, but it sounds like it could easily have led to a "let's commit suicide to be reborn as aliens" situation. Many sci-fi cults seem to go that way... But I don't think I have heard of any succeed. - The Poet