Infiltrating the most secretive of Britain's estimated 500 cults, the author investigates the labyrinthine world of the guru. Attending countless meetings and workshops, and in several cases seeming to become a signed-up member of the group, he found a complex alternative culture where acolytes endure stark privations, perform arcane ceremonies and submit willingly to their new masters. What is the appeal of so many bizarre movements which are taking root in Britain? Why are so many apparently well-off people willing to have their worlds turned upside-down by them, sometimes with tragic consequences? This book aims to reveal the truth behind the media myth of cult activities.
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WIlliam Shaw's quest to understand what makes members of Britain's cults believe began with two events: the seige of the Branch Davidian in Waco, Texas and the advice from Ian Howath (of the London Cult Connection) that he would harm himself if he undertook to join cults in order to find out about them.
Shaw's book is, then, written with a deliberate purpose, to find out why cults are viewed with suspicion, why their members believe the fanciful things they do, how they operate and, above all, to prove Ian Howath wrong.
Wisely, Shaw tries 'non-mainstream cults' (if that is not a contradiction in terms), so many of the obvious targets are left out. Instead, he investigates cults from all around the country, some with a few members, some with many thousands. But Shaw employs 'cult' in its correct sense, as a group of believers convinced that they alone are possessors of true faith.
The result is a superb book, mixing healthy scepticism with non-technical (non-theological) understanding in order to show that most of those involved with cults are honest believers, not evil men and women trying to pervert the lives of others. It comes highly recommended for theologians, sociologists and normal readers; by anybody, in fact, who has been approached on the street and questioned about their religious convictions. A very good book indeed.
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