ex-shep
06-15-2008, 09:35 AM
I had asked some to participate in a survey for what services could churches provide for forner goup members.. Riverdove had question on ICSA. It is a secular organizationm. Richard Dowhower is a Lutheran pastor. I have had opportunity to hear him speak. Most of the clergy come from Mainline Catholic, Prostestand and Jewish backgrouns. Such resources are safe. One can come to proposed services as he is. There would be no coercion toward excepting a doctrinal position. The only time action might be taken if there is a life threatening issue , and that with well trained professionals. The committee is looking for safe harbors of refuge.
The link for the group is at the bottom of the report. The emaiil address is also there is you have comments or questions. You respond here or off forum as well. If triggered, it OK to skip it for another day or pass on it compleltely.
The Results of the International Cultic Studies Association’s 2008 Questionnaire for Former Cult Members
The Reverend Richard L. Dowhower, D.D.
Chair of the ICSA Religion Committee
ICSA wants to create a network of churches, synagogues, and other religious institutions that are prepared to be supportive resources for former cult members (and eventually for families of cult-involved persons) who seek a safe and supportive environment without hidden agendas. We do not want to ask religious organizations to take on added time demands. We would, however, like to plug into relevant existing programs they might have (e.g., to help people find housing and get jobs); we also would like to offer training to select persons at the religious organization so that they will better understand the needs of former cult members and know where to refer them for counseling and information. When appropriate, we also might ask religious organizations to provide a meeting room for an ex-member support group. Our ultimate goal is to have at least one cooperating church and synagogue in each metropolitan area in the United States and Canada, and eventually in other countries. With the permission of the participating religious institutions, we will list them as resources on our Web site so that former group members are more likely to find out about their services.
To assess the feasibility of this project, we disseminated a Web survey that inquired into the specific needs former cult members have upon leaving their groups, and regarding their openness to seeking assistance from religious organizations. We received survey responses from 265 people. We excluded 41 subjects from the analyses because of missing responses on a significant number of questions. As a result, 224 responses are included for this report.
The vast majority of respondents, 64%, were from the United States; of the other 12 nations, only the United Kingdom produced as much as 5% of the respondents.
Respondents identified themselves as (a) former members, 189 (84%); (b) family or friend, 127 (57%); and c) professional 60 (27%). Obviously, many claimed more than one of these labels, and 38 (37%) chose all three, while 78 (35%) chose two identifiers. Most former cult members referred to their own experiences, while professionals and family or friends referred to the needs of former cult members with whom they had contact.
Overall, 58 respondents (26%) most frequently cited eight groups as those they were affiliated with. Those groups, in order from highest to lowest frequency cited, are: International Church of Christ, Scientology, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Children of God/The Family, Bob Meehan, World Wide Church of God, Unification, and ISKCON.
Of the former-member respondents, 99 people (52%) identified themselves as also a family member or friend of a person who was involved in a cultic group, while 50 (26.5%) of those subjects also were helping professionals.
Among ex-members, time in the group ranged from one month to 35 years, with 11.2 years as the mean. The time span from when they left their groups to when they responded to the survey ranged from one month to 37 years, with a mean time out of the group of 12.7 years.
Persons completing the survey were asked to report the religion in which the ex-member was raised. We learned that 67% were either Roman Catholic or Protestant, 4% were Jewish, and 11% identified their religion as “None.” In responses to the question about current religious practices, the Catholic-Protestant total dropped to 39%, and “None” rose to 38%.
Eighty respondents (42%) sought help from main-line religious organizations. Thirty-two persons (40%) found these services not at all helpful, 17 (21%) rated the services as helpful or very helpful, and 31 (39%) rated the services as somewhat helpful. (Continued in part 2)
The link for the group is at the bottom of the report. The emaiil address is also there is you have comments or questions. You respond here or off forum as well. If triggered, it OK to skip it for another day or pass on it compleltely.
The Results of the International Cultic Studies Association’s 2008 Questionnaire for Former Cult Members
The Reverend Richard L. Dowhower, D.D.
Chair of the ICSA Religion Committee
ICSA wants to create a network of churches, synagogues, and other religious institutions that are prepared to be supportive resources for former cult members (and eventually for families of cult-involved persons) who seek a safe and supportive environment without hidden agendas. We do not want to ask religious organizations to take on added time demands. We would, however, like to plug into relevant existing programs they might have (e.g., to help people find housing and get jobs); we also would like to offer training to select persons at the religious organization so that they will better understand the needs of former cult members and know where to refer them for counseling and information. When appropriate, we also might ask religious organizations to provide a meeting room for an ex-member support group. Our ultimate goal is to have at least one cooperating church and synagogue in each metropolitan area in the United States and Canada, and eventually in other countries. With the permission of the participating religious institutions, we will list them as resources on our Web site so that former group members are more likely to find out about their services.
To assess the feasibility of this project, we disseminated a Web survey that inquired into the specific needs former cult members have upon leaving their groups, and regarding their openness to seeking assistance from religious organizations. We received survey responses from 265 people. We excluded 41 subjects from the analyses because of missing responses on a significant number of questions. As a result, 224 responses are included for this report.
The vast majority of respondents, 64%, were from the United States; of the other 12 nations, only the United Kingdom produced as much as 5% of the respondents.
Respondents identified themselves as (a) former members, 189 (84%); (b) family or friend, 127 (57%); and c) professional 60 (27%). Obviously, many claimed more than one of these labels, and 38 (37%) chose all three, while 78 (35%) chose two identifiers. Most former cult members referred to their own experiences, while professionals and family or friends referred to the needs of former cult members with whom they had contact.
Overall, 58 respondents (26%) most frequently cited eight groups as those they were affiliated with. Those groups, in order from highest to lowest frequency cited, are: International Church of Christ, Scientology, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Children of God/The Family, Bob Meehan, World Wide Church of God, Unification, and ISKCON.
Of the former-member respondents, 99 people (52%) identified themselves as also a family member or friend of a person who was involved in a cultic group, while 50 (26.5%) of those subjects also were helping professionals.
Among ex-members, time in the group ranged from one month to 35 years, with 11.2 years as the mean. The time span from when they left their groups to when they responded to the survey ranged from one month to 37 years, with a mean time out of the group of 12.7 years.
Persons completing the survey were asked to report the religion in which the ex-member was raised. We learned that 67% were either Roman Catholic or Protestant, 4% were Jewish, and 11% identified their religion as “None.” In responses to the question about current religious practices, the Catholic-Protestant total dropped to 39%, and “None” rose to 38%.
Eighty respondents (42%) sought help from main-line religious organizations. Thirty-two persons (40%) found these services not at all helpful, 17 (21%) rated the services as helpful or very helpful, and 31 (39%) rated the services as somewhat helpful. (Continued in part 2)