Another way to look at cults ?

Another way to evaluate spiritual minorities which must be open, honest and tolerant.

You seem to say that cults do not exist ?

There exists in France, as in other countries, spiritual minorities, groups with a spiritual vocation which are not part of dominant and recognized religions. Some tragic events that received large media coverage have been used in order to stigmatize these minorities (to put them « all in one bag ») and to use them as scapegoats. The word « cult » symbolizes this stigmatization. One of the objectives of CICNS is to put an end to the odious mixing up between criminality and spiritual minorities. Criminality does exist, but it is not the doing of spiritual minorities.

But danger exists ?

There are no more dangerous individuals within spiritual minorities than anywhere else. In reality, the aspiration of people who undertake a spiritual search generally leads them to more fraternity and inner peace. The eventual (and statistically rare) drift of a spiritual minority's member should no longer be used to condemn new forms of spirituality, no more than the group to which he belonged, as is the case now in France.

If you do not deny the existence of drifts, how do you then propose to treat them ? 

A drift is a criminal act : criminal acts are the doing of confused human beings, whatever their eventual membership in a group, whether political, religious or other. The Law has the means to handle these situations, as it must do in principle, for each citizen, regardless of his affiliations or membership.

Do you deny a link of cause and effect between membership in a spiritual minority and a criminal act ?

Spiritual minorities do not incite their members to commit crime or anti-social behavior (If it was the cas, those would simply not be spiritual minorities, that is why we denounce this mixing up of ideas). The « terrorist and anti-social cult » myth has been nurtured by medias and some authorities to a point where it is now anchored in the mental frame of the general public. A violent or desperate attitude can arise within every individual. When an individual belonging to a political party or any professional category, allows himself to commit a criminal act, we do not mention his acquaintances. This happens only when the individual in question belongs or has been part of a spiritual minority. It has come to nobody’s mind to state that firemen were a cult when one of them set a forest fire, some time ago. The association between belonging to a certain group and reprehensive acts is in itself criminal.

Yet, the medias also tell us there are tendencies towards suicide within cults ?

Police and National Education are often presented, in France , as institutions where the greatest number of suicides occur. Once more, nobody dared to consider them responsible before the law for this situation. We do not speak of National Police or National Education as « cults », not because they do not have the characteristics thereof (each human group responds to one or more criterias attributed to cults by anti-cults activists) but because this kind of mixing up would seem indecent towards them. We demand the same respect towards spiritual minorities in France , a country that claims to be democratic. To us, observers of the CICNS, it is clear that the intention behind this mixing-up is to discredit spiritual minorities.

Don’t you exaggerate a little ?

Take a look at the Incredible Story of L’essentiel. We believe that a real witch-hunt is carried out in France , reviving ancient passions very handy in a period of social crisis.

What do you make of the great collective suicides that hit the headlines?

We invite you to read the pages dedicated to them on our site. If you have heard only one side of the story, you will certainly be surprised by what we bring to your awareness.

But closer to us, aren’t there undisputable cases of abuse?

We, at CICNS, have taken the sane habit of disputing them anyhow. Most of our certitudes are shaken when we really spend time over these questions superficially touched upon by the medias and orientated in a tendentious manner by some official declarations of our governments. Abuses you are speaking of do exist, but they are present in every strata of our society and treated very unequally through our Justice system. The case of spiritual minorities, called « cults » by medias and the general public, is the most visible example today of a collective manipulation that has borne fruits. One outcome of this conditioning is that you believe everything you are told about spiritual minorities. Ask yourself the question, honestly : what do you really know ? And consult our archives to take part in a more open reflection over the case in debate. Most of us are aware that medias rarely inform but we still tend to accept everything they spread as an expression of « truth ». This paradoxical phenomenon leads to an erroneous vision of reality, in particular at the expense of spiritual minorities.

But we see eccentric gurus surrounded by their numerous wives, hooked on their powers and their pockets full of money?

Well done ! You just presented us with the caricature tirelessly drawn in the people's mind for twenty five years. Just ponder again on the coarseness of these features. We apply to the scapegoat all human weaknesses in an exaggerated manner and this allows witnesses to position themselves on « the good side », that of « normal people ». The caricature is gross, fallacious and intentionally destructive of essential values that spiritual minorities in fact advocate and live. But anyhow, we insist on reminding that to be « eccentric », « rich » or even « surrounded by women » is in no way an offense in a democracy and does not justify the stigmatization of spiritual minorities. The largest part of them is actually much more discrete.

Without speaking of caricature, then, isn’t « spirituality » often a label to hide disreputable intentions ?

Everything can be used as a screen for less respectable intentions. Laicity can serve as a mask for an anti-religious attitude, politics may lead to an immoderate taste for power and "freedom" or "democracy" are often brought forward to justify the hunt of spiritual minorities in France ! Adult citizens must use their discernment at all times in their life and it is not up to the State to do it for them. Each one of us has the right to follow a path that may seem eccentric to his neighbor and each one has even the right to make a mistake. The frauds cults are accused of, when they are real and not only the result from exaggerations of anti-cult activists, are trifles compared to the legal frauds of our consumer society. If you sincerely want to denounce fraud in our society, learn to recognize it everywhere is and be careful not to stigmatize a minority group.

What do you say about mental manipulation?

Mental manipulation is one of those blurred and demagogic concepts used in the anti-cult battle that betray a will to condemn rather than to ponder over questions of society raised by spiritual minorities. If there exists a mental manipulation, spiritual minorities are thus not exclusively concerned by this phenomenon. Advertising and political campaigns use very efficient persuasion tools and relations in our daily life are pervaded by attitudes that could be denounced as mental manipulation. Most of the TV broadcasts about cults do use means that are also akin to mental manipulation. On this point, as on others, the tendency of human beings to overexploit his lesser or greater powers should not be associated with spiritual minorities which are today among rare places where great human questions are dealt with sincerity and intelligence. Humanism has long disappeared from the official structures of our society and it is one of the reasons that have inspired the CICNS to make the voice of spiritual minorities heard and known the value of their endeavor.

What are your objectives?

The CICNS proposes a new approach on spiritual minorities, freed from platitudes and the most revolting shortcuts that have affected the life of thousands of people in France for twenty five years because of the anti-cult campaign.

We work to provide the public at large with information so far voluntarily ignored in debates on the question of spiritual minorities.

We expect from minorities themselves that they come out of the straightjacket of fear distilled by the threats of the anti-cult campaign ; that they stop to believe that « the other is a cult, not me » ; and that they actively participate in the effort of the CICNS by openly demonstrating that they are not a bane for society but rather one of its chances, and by showing their exemplary and spontaneous respect for the principles that have founded the great Constitutions.

We expect from authorities that they create a balanced observatory of spiritual minorities that would include university researchers and spiritual leaders so far unjustly but voluntarily kept out of debates.

Who is hiding behind CICNS ?

No one is hiding. The founding members of CICNS have diverse spiritual orientations or none at all. We are not linked to any of the large groups that have hit the headlines nor to any of those listed in the parliamentary report on cults. Some people we work with have no spiritual path as such and are concerned simply to defend fundamental rights of human beings in a democracy.

We see today that these rights are never secured and that we must work daily to avoid that despotism and ostracism regain a place in our country.

You are quite virulent towards anti-cult movements, aren’t they inspired in the same way as you are ?

The words and actions of ADFI and CCMM have convinced us that their motivation is not to preserve the values of democracy and particularly that their members are not inspired by tolerance and freedom of consciousness. Their official decision to refuse dialogue, to systematically label as evil all spiritual tendencies with no exception, the incitement to hatred explicitly contained in some of their public speeches and their total incompetence to observe the spiritual phenomenon in France in a sociological or even humane perspective make of these people gross anti-religious activists who, though funded by the States, do not deserve the attention given to them today in this debate. The credit given to them by our Government has lead us to seriously doubt the willingness of authorities to calm down passions.

You do not seem to be defenders of laicity?

Laicity, as it is defended today in our society, is a laicity of exclusion even when everybody says otherwise in public speeches.

Spiritual minorities have no plans nor any means to destabilize the Laic Republic .

If, originally, laicity was a wise experimentation in the context where it was born, it is today unfortunately used by rationalists and anti-religious activists to impose their point of view on the world. Such a laicity is undemocratic and infringes upon its fundamental principles. The religious or spiritual minorities point of view on the world has a place in our society and must be respected.

What kind of actions do you undertake ?

The CICNS offers a rare and often disturbing information on the question of new spiritualities. Our team of volunteers is in daily contact with the medias, authorities and spiritual minorities in order to bring a balance in the debate actually truncated on the topic of « cults ». We also gather testimonies of discrimination as well as stories of excesses and drifts of a repression that has all the delirious appearances of a witch-hunt. We punctually organize tours in France . You will find more information on this question on the CICNS charter page and on the one presenting our non-profit association.

Point of view of a spiritual minority : don’t you think it is better not to get involved in actions such as yours which force us to play the game of polemics and of values that have nothing « spiritual » in them, that it could be a way to bring troubles instead of avoiding them ?

From the CICNS point of view, troubles are already here. They cannot be avoided anymore, by anyone, and it is better not to wait for a more direct attack to become aware of the progressive slide of our democratic society towards a form of totalitarianism that will leave no place to religious diversity. The spiritual approach can naturally include an outlook on society in defending its values while avoiding to get caught in a war. The CICNS is determined not to enter in too militant a battle and to preserve the peaceful values that we defend but without avoiding the necessary debates and actions that our commitment demands. If spiritual minorities showed more solidarity today around the defense of their rights, they could get themselves heard.

In France, the percentage of the population concerned by a new spiritual orientation or a less traditional choice of life is so important that we could right now make ourselves known, beyond our differences, as a living force, worthy of respect and peaceful, an integral part of our society.

Only a new relation between society and its minorities can lead to a decrease in potential drifts. To marginalize a group, whichever it may be, leads to unproductive confrontations.

CICNS charter page

Read also INFORM on the subject of "cults" and judgments about spiritual beliefs

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