INTERVIEW — Aug 8, 21:45
Interviewee: 36 years old, male, main language French, speaking in English, lives in Germany, French nationality.
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Interviewer: Okay, so the question is: when you hear the word cult, what comes to your mind?
Interviewee: I think the first thing that comes to my mind is more, probably, the bad side of it — the bad side of it. Because I guess, maybe it's more like growing up — you know, you were hearing these stories about girls, and the more sensational things around it — this girl, they were doing this, and it was really bad. And then there were stories, or like those people that are being set on fire because they believed in something — you know, you were told it's always crazy. And then, obviously, growing up, you learn a bit more about it, so I gradually got more interested, and then — I'm at a state now where I'm not thinking of joining a cult anytime soon, but I have more of an understanding of why you would want to believe in different things and maybe follow a different way of life. And then it also makes you question: what makes something considered a cult versus not a cult? And, you know, where do you draw the line — different societies have very different views of what would be considered a cult in certain societies versus others.
Interviewer: Okay, so I'm guessing that you already thought about the topic a bit?
Interviewee: Yeah.
Interviewer: So, when you hear the word cult, then — what example did you have in mind?
Interviewee: I think, maybe, uh — Scientology, like the [founder] — Richard... is that his name? Scientology? No, no — the Children of God? No, not Children of God — sorry. The one that's displayed in the Tarantino movie.
Interviewer: Which one is that?
Interviewee: Yeah, yeah — like the Linda Kasabian story, and all that — the Manson family.
Interviewer: Yeah, Manson —
Interviewee: I said "Richard Branson" [laughs, correcting a slip].
Interviewer: Do you think Richard Branson can also be a cult leader?
Interviewee: Probably, anyway.
Interviewer: Um, yeah — so, you thought about Scientology, and the Manson family. So, for example, with these groups — what do you think makes them a cult?
Interviewee: Well, I think they've been labeled as a cult because, I guess, it's been somehow proven that the main scheme was to have a charismatic leader who was worshipped — in a kind of messed-up way, maybe, okay — and also, a lot of it was about, you know, getting money from the members, okay, which I guess is more the bad aspect of it. I've learned also — my favorite artist, actually, he's a guy that grew up in a cult, so I've got, like, lots of stories also from him. He really grew up in the Children of God, okay — in Europe — and managed to escape. And there's also this weird story about him, because the cult didn't allow access to doctors and medicine, and one of his younger brothers actually died when he was young. So, yeah, kind of those stories of people trying to escape those cults.
Interviewer: And can you say more about the Children of God — like, what does he say about it?
Interviewee: Um, it's a religious-adjacent group, so they have certain beliefs in common with the Bible, but probably a different interpretation of it. And I think they go around and sing a lot of Christian songs, trying to evangelize, but from a certain angle of Christianity. And, yeah, so they are very isolated, in a way — they need to follow strict principles, there are a lot of rules, and very little contact is allowed outside of the group. Yeah, so, yeah, a very different way of getting raised, I guess.