Newsletter: Japan Dissolves the Moon Cult There!
Recognizing and Combating Authoritarianism Everywhere
Today brought some fantastic news: the Japanese government has formally dissolved my former cult, the Moon Organization (commonly known as “The Moonies.”) They go by the name Unification Church, but the name they use the most is the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification.
The last time this country took such drastic measures was with the Aum Shinrikyo sarin gas conspiracy cult led by Shoko Asahara (who claimed to be Jesus and Buddha) cult, which killed 13 people and harmed thousands more. The fact that they recognize the danger of this group speaks volumes: when I was a member, although I had no actual power in the group, I was privy to many discussions about their views that democracy is “Satanic” and their plans to infiltrate the US government and push for a theocracy here. They are even now a significant force behind the climate denial propaganda filling the media, and the sons of Sun Myung Moon are active in the arms trade: Sean Moon runs an offshoot of the group called the Rod of Iron Ministries, and his brother Justin owns a factory manufacturing AR-15s. Sean was part of the violent coup attempt in Washington, DC, on January 6th, 2021. These people are a clear and present danger to our democracy, and I am delighted that the Japanese government has recognized this and taken action. I have put up a short video explaining my views further. Since I recorded the video, I learned from a Japanese colleague that he thinks the assassin of Abe was motivated by the fact that Hak Ja Han (Mrs. Moon’s group) paid Donald Trump $2.5 million to endorse them, which he did virtually and just a few weeks after January 6th!
This week’s episode of Cult Conversations: The Influence Continuum, “The Time Cure: Overcoming PTSD with the New Psychology of Time Perspective Therapy by Dr. Philip Zimbardo,” features an interview with Rosemary Sword, the co-author of the renowned 2012 book by that title. She worked on the book with her husband, clinical psychologist Richard Sword, PhD, and Philip Zimbardo, PhD, the legendary psychologist and professor at Stanford University. We spoke about positive strategies for overcoming trauma and building a new life filled with hope and joy - an important concept in today’s world! I think you’ll find it a helpful and life-affirming talk. You can listen to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Next week’s episode, “Neural Surfing: Consciousness, Meditation, and Mystical Manipulations in Spiritual Organizations,” will feature an interview with my longtime friend and colleague, David Christopher Lane, PhD, a Professor of Philosophy and Sociology at Mt. San Antonio College. We will discuss his experiences surrounding “Guru” communities and his work outlining the importance of educating people on how manipulation techniques may trick the mind.
This week’s livestream will be Wednesday, March 26, at 1-2 pm EDT; I welcome everyone to tune in with questions and comments! Last week’s livestream was a great success; you can see the replay here if you missed it.
Have you ever wondered whether a group you were part of was healthy—or harmful? Take a moment to evaluate it using my BITE Model of Authoritarian Control™ survey. We’re gathering data not only on high-control groups but also on positive, ethical communities. If you’ve been part of a healthy group, we want to hear about it! You can submit multiple entries if you’ve had experience with more than one group. Please consider sharing the survey on Reddit, Facebook, or any platform where former members connect. The more voices we include, the more accurate and powerful our research will be. Together, we can build a comprehensive, evidence-based database that sheds light on both authoritarian control and healthy influence. Thank you for being part of this important effort.
Japan has taken the historic step of shutting down the Unification Church—aka the Moonies—my former cult. This is only the third time they’ve ever used this legal power, and it speaks volumes about the group's decades-long abuses and global political influence. I was deep inside this group in the ’70s and saw firsthand their anti-democratic agenda, including plans to infiltrate governments and push a theocracy. And they’re still active—from DC think tanks to radical gun churches in the U.S.
Those who have experienced Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (C-PTSD) will often report the profoundly painful experience of being thrown into past trauma by a particular trigger. Common examples include war veterans who may experience full body activation following a loud explosive noise. Another example is victims of violent crimes being shown content about similar circumstances that can launch them into the past. This experience of being thrown back in time has been thoroughly analyzed utilizing Time Perspective Therapy (TPT) by co-developer and counselor Rosemary Sword. We talked with her about this and other topics on this week’s episode of Cult Conversations: The Influence Continuum.
Read the blog post or listen to the podcast below:
How can you tell if that group your family member has joined is safe? Is your relationship hitting a “rough patch,” or is there actual cause for concern? With this anonymous, easy-to-use diagnostic tool, you can answer simple questions and determine if any group or relationship is beneficial or destructive, ethical or unethical, healthy or unhealthy. And now, you can share your results on your social media if you wish!
As always, please let us know what you think about these pieces or what you’d like to see us discuss in the future. Thanks so much!
Our Psychological and Political Pandemic DR. BANDY X. LEE
🔸️Mental pathology in a president is a public matter. The more severe the mental pathology the less one will recognize that one is even ill.
🔸️Every other job that deals with life or death has a mental fitness evaluation as a requirement, even before one takes the position.
🔸️Without mental fitness evaluations, the public needs to know the danger of certified madness in politics. When dangerous mental pathologies are allowed to spread like a pandemic, an Extinction Level Event is headed straight for Earth. The U.S. could be a shining example of how to stop dangerous mental pathologies before they worm their way into politics but it is now left with "emergency cleanup on aisle madness'.
https://open.substack.com/pub/bandyxlee/p/our-psychological-and-political-pandemic?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=280c3q