For many survivors, this report is more than a government document. It's recognition. For years, people have described being misunderstood, misdiagnosed, or passed from service to service without anyone seeing the bigger picture. Now Parliament has confirmed what we always said: the problem was never just individual cases. The system itself had a blind spot.

[cult] can be unfairly stigmatising toward minority or unconventional religions that have done nothing wrong. ... the word's own complex history of positive and negative usage, that date back to its origins in the Latin cultus, creates much ambiguity around what the term actually describes. Its long religious and sociological history, combined with increasingly sensationalised connotations—particularly throughout the 20th and 21st centuries—has made the word both powerful and

Yet some academic responses to the inquiry continue to approach the issue primarily through older sociology-of-religion frameworks developed during the “cult wars” of the 1980s and 1990s.

Survivors repeatedly describe how these groups initially present as welcoming, supportive, or even beneficial. They speak about positive experiences that drew them in—friendly peers, shared interests, or community support. What distinguishes high-control groups is what happens next: the coercion escalates. Gradually, members experience manipulation, pressure to conform, isolation from family, and exploitation.

If any group objects to the Victorian Inquiry into cults and fringe groups by crying “freedom of religion,” I’d honestly bet money that whoever is saying it is either a cult leader or a member of a high-control group.

This is where a third — and newer — narrative enters: the coercive control model. It doesn’t care what people believe. It cares how those beliefs are used. This model grew out of feminist and trauma psychology movements — women naming the invisible patterns of domination inside their own homes. Later, those insights were applied to workplaces, extremist movements, trafficking, and, yes, cults.

Recently, The Catholic Weekly published an article claiming that the Victorian Inquiry into Cult Recruitment might threaten religious freedom. Their framing of issues immediately raised red flags — because when someone starts arguing about definitions instead of behaviours, it’s usually a sign they’re trying to divert attention from accountability.

When practiced safely and voluntarily, fasting can indeed offer spiritual and even physical benefits. Short-term fasting can improve insulin sensitivity, support cellular repair processes, and heighten self-awareness. Many people find it brings calm, focus, and a deeper connection to their values. But context is everything. When fasting is done freely, it’s a spiritual or health practice. When it’s used as leverage, it becomes psychological warfare.

The NSW Government’s is in the process of reviewing it's Anti-Discrimination Act 1977. It's a well overdue spring cleaning of half century old legislation that is as out of date as wearing floral printed flairs. For decades, Australia’s legal framework has protected recognised religions from discrimination—but in doing so, it has left glaring loopholes that allow high-control groups (cults), to weaponise “freedom of religion” as a shield for abusive behaviour.

In the fairy tale of Little Red Riding Hood, the danger wasn’t just the wolf—it was the wolf pretending to be something safe: a grandmother, a protector, even family. Extremist ideologies do the same. They disguise power-hunger as righteousness, domination as destiny, and supremacy as spiritual truth. Across religions—Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and even secular belief systems—the lure of being “chosen,” “pure,” or “set apart” can lead well-meaning people into dangerous ter

When Noble Values turn into Cultic Control PART 3 OF 4 Every tree is known by its own fruit. – Luke 6:44 Judaism, Christianity, and...

Is Creeping into Australian What Does Freedom Mean Inside and Outside a Cult?Politics PART 2 OF 4 In my last blog , I explored how...

From ISIS to Christian nationalists to hardline Israeli settlers, extremist movements across the three Abrahamic faiths share something disturbingly familiar: A belief that they alone are chosen by God, and that this divine status grants them the right—sometimes even the duty—to dominate others. This isn’t just religious conviction. It’s totalistic thinking, weaponised. And when you peel back the sacred vocabulary, what’s left looks an awful lot like a cult. The Core Claim: “

The recent Victorian Inquiry into Cults and Fringe Groups made an important distinction: the state has no interest in policing beliefs. It is behaviours—particularly coercive, deceptive, and controlling behaviours—that are the concern. Still, the grey area where faith transitions into manipulation is where many people get trapped. Understanding how spirituality can be used both to heal and to harm is a critical step forward. This grey area is often where spiritual abuse in cu

Struggles of Parents of Cult Victims often goes unrecognised. We watch powerless to help those we love be whisked away in a smoke storm of coercion & exploitation.

PART 2 OF 2 Art work depicting Wandjina by Pastor Kirsty Burgu A few days ago, I posted a series of blogs that looked at the nuanced...

Explore Indigenous Christianity in Australia and the fascinating intersection of traditional beliefs and Christianity.

Explore the covert influence of cults in Australian politics. Explore the subtle yet profound ways groups shape policies and public opinion.

Discover the complex challenges of "Living Like People 2000 Years Ago" in modern society.

Explore the dark reality of cultic exploitation: Volunteer Labour and Spiritual Justifications for Abuse.