XBK Chat (unofficial archive) A former meeting place for past members of Brahma Kumaris    FAQ   Search   Memberlist   Usergroups   Profile   You have no new messages   Log out   Recovery articles and free newsletter ...          XBK Chat Forum Index -> Visitors' comments View previous topic :: View next topic   Author Message Carol Giambalvo Guest Posted: Sat Sep 11, 2004 9:34 am    Post subject: Recovery articles and free newsletter ... This is a great site! Just want to let you know that if anyone feels as though they want to understand the "recovery process" after leaving a closed, intense group, there is a web site with some really good articles: www.refocus.org reFOCUS is a support and referral network for and by former members of intense, closed groups/relationships. We also have a free internet newsletter on recovery. If you wish to receive it, even on a trial basis, email me at affcarol@att.net and I'll put you on the distribution list. Best wishes to you all! Carol Giambalvo Angel1,000000 Guest Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 10:49 pm    Post subject: Thanks for the info, I will be using it! Joel Joined: 09 Nov 2004 Posts: 102 Posted: Fri Nov 12, 2004 11:27 pm    Post subject: Re: Recovery articles and free newsletter ... Carol Giambalvo wrote: This is a great site! Just want to let you know that if anyone feels as though they want to understand the "recovery process" after leaving a closed, intense group, there is a web site with some really good articles: www.refocus.org reFOCUS is a support and referral network for and by former members of intense, closed groups/relationships. We also have a free internet newsletter on recovery. If you wish to receive it, even on a trial basis, email me at affcarol@att.net and I'll put you on the distribution list. Best wishes to you all! Carol Giambalvo I had a look at their pages; they seem helpful. For example, this page http://www.refocus.org/charcult.html lists Characteristics of Destructive Cults. For all the good that the BK family may (and I believe does) offer, the group clearly fits the criteria listed--characteristics shared by many many other cultlike groups. Funny, tho, Lifespring is listed among the cults. I went straight from Lifespring (actually spinoff Life Dynamics) to the BKs. So I must have had some cult-seeking personality traits. That leads to a question: If millions (or billions) are predisposed to joining cultlike organizations, are the cults really evil seducers of the innocent (as suggested by some portrayals) or just an inevitable effect of human tribalism? Guest Posted: Sat Nov 13, 2004 8:34 am    Post subject: Every religion is a cult. It doesn't matter if it is accepted in a particular culture or not. What they have to offer is superficial "spiritual" knowledge. Only some branches of Buddhism have remarkable cool things to say, but then again, it is a very small religion. Without doubt, most people on this planet are bad at thinking profoundly about their life and its goal. Only few have the talent of conducting a true philosophy of their life. No wonder that the majority of the people join all these religions without ever giving it second thought - and if they do, they'll join an equally idiotic movement. Most people are not that bright, and that is why we live in a world where things are organised in a most deficient way. The marketing industry can - just like all these religions - only but take benefit from all these sheeps. I hope I sound bold, because such is the truth in my eyes. It does help me to understand the world just a little bit more. I don't expect a goat to built a house, and neither do I expect the majority of human beings to live a sensible life. Joel Joined: 09 Nov 2004 Posts: 102 Posted: Sat Nov 13, 2004 9:40 am    Post subject: Kevin wrote: Every religion is a cult. It doesn't matter if it is accepted in a particular culture or not. What they have to offer is superficial "spiritual" knowledge. Only some branches of Buddhism have remarkable cool things to say, but then again, it is a very small religion. Without doubt, most people on this planet are bad at thinking profoundly about their life and its goal. Only few have the talent of conducting a true philosophy of their life. No wonder that the majority of the people join all these religions without ever giving it second thought - and if they do, they'll join an equally idiotic movement. Well at least *someone* is responding to my posts. I'm actually hoping to hear some juicy stuff -- personal experiences. One reason I like 12-step groups over BKs is that people are more anchored to speaking directly from experience. I started this discussion of cults because, looking over the website at http://www.refocus.org (link posted by Carol G.) I found it interesting that cults are generally portrayed as dangerous organizations run by cynical duplicious hypocrites. What about governments that wage wars? All governments? And interestingly, many members of cults (and governments) are relatively self-realized people. Quote: Most people are not that bright, and that is why we live in a world where things are organised in a most deficient way. The marketing industry can - just like all these religions - only but take benefit from all these sheeps. I hope I sound bold, because such is the truth in my eyes. It does help me to understand the world just a little bit more. I don't expect a goat to built a house, and neither do I expect the majority of human beings to live a sensible life. So, Kevin, do you consider yourself ahead of most humans in leading a sensible life? Could you tell us a little about it? I was curious if you background is more in BKs or PBKs -- is that the correct term for what the BKs called the 'Shankar Party'? Yours in honest inquiry and frank communication..... Guest Posted: Sat Nov 13, 2004 9:57 am    Post subject: hum yes, a predictable question but not an easy to answer because it is entangled in some fundamental aspects of philosophy I can only say this: are values relative or is there an absolute standard somewhere out there (or within us)? This issue has never been resolved as far as I know. If you ask me if I lead a sensible life, then I must say I don't know. I certainly do have my own beliefs and there is a core in me that would say: Yeah! but not every day. I'll have to repeat something I just posted in another topic: one should laugh at his own beliefs and not take them too seriously. 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