Cult Awareness Day

Honoring Strength on Cult Recovery Day

On May 1st, we observe **Cult Recovery Day**—a time to recognize the immense courage it takes to reclaim one's life, identity, and autonomy. Healing is not a linear path, but it is one paved with resilience.

We honor the survivors, the families who never stopped searching for answers, and the dedicated professionals working to provide a safe harbor for those finding their way back.

# # # Why Today Matters:

* **Raising Awareness:** Shining a light on the dynamics of coercive control to help others spot the signs early.

* **Building Community:** Reminding survivors that they are not alone and that a life of freedom is possible.

* **Advocating for Change:** Promoting education and resources that empower individuals to heal and thrive.

To everyone on this journey: **Your voice matters, your story is yours again, and your strength is remarkable.**

** **

CultRecovery101.com

International Journal of Coercive Control, Abuse and Manipulation (IJCAM): Religion and State authority: What happens when religious freedoms clash with child safety?

This article explores the tension between State authority and religious movements regarding the physical protection of minors. Using the Twelve Tribes and Quiverfull movements as case studies, the authors argue that these groups often seek to constrain or evade government oversight to maintain total control over their children's upbringing and discipline. Ultimately, the study highlights how inconsistent State enforcement and the prioritization of religious rights can leave children in "invisible" and dangerous environments.

https://substack.com/app-link/post?publication_id=3264407&post_id=193379668&

Religion and State authority: What happens when religious freedoms clash with child safety? This article examines how high-control religious groups use religious freedom claims to bypass State child-protection laws, often leaving children vulnerable to systemic physical abuse.

Ecstatic Integration: Cult mediation with Patrick Ryan and Joe Kelly
Can the field move beyond the 'cult wars' of the 1970s and 80s?
Jules Evans

"Patrick Ryan and Joe Kelly have worked on something called ‘cult mediation’ for the last 40 years, offering professional mediation services between families and loved ones who have joined groups or relationships which cause concern to the families. They have personal experience of such groups, having both been involved with Transcendental Meditation. I interviewed them to find out more about their work, how it’s different from cult de-programming, how groups or individuals can sometimes use psychedelics and other drugs to control members, and why and how such groups or individuals often target very wealthy people. What I learned from them is it’s useful to try and understand the attraction of such groups and what people get from them, to try and avoid the polarisation that affected the study of new religious groups / cults in the 1970s-1980s. I was also interested that they sometimes mediate with such groups, to suggest ways to reduce harm and avoid lawsuits. That is the sort of dialogue-based approach I would like to take with ‘somewhat-culty psychedelic groups’ as well. Thanks to Patrick and Joe for sharing their wisdom and experience for us."
https://www.ecstaticintegration.org/p/cult-mediation-with-patrick-ryan

How do the pros get someone to leave a cult?
Patrick Ryan and Joseph Kelly
Nic M Neves
The Guardian
November 19, 2025

When the phone rings at Patrick Ryan and Joseph Kelly’s home in Philadelphia, chances are the caller is desperate. One couple rang because their son was about to abandon his medical practice to follow a new-age guru in Spain. Another call came from a husband whose wife was emptying their life savings for a self-proclaimed prophet in Australia. Yet another family phoned about their niece, who was in a relationship with a man stealing from her, maybe drugging her, probably s*xually assaulting her.

These families had tried everything else. When nothing worked, they heard there were two men in Philadelphia who might still be able to bring their loved one home.

What Ryan and Kelly do is unusual: they help people leave cults. Over the past 40 years, they have handled hundreds of cases – some simple and local, others stretching across borders and decades. They have been hired by families of both modest and considerable means. They say they have even been hired by government agencies, and that some cults they have investigated have left them genuinely afraid for their lives.

The goal is to untangle the family dynamics that might have made someone vulnerable to a cult in the first place

Although many people are involved in cultic studies and education, fewer than 10 people in the US do anything like what Ryan and Kelly do.

How do the pros get someone to leave a cult? Manipulate them into thinking it was their idea Two of the world’s leading cult interventionists live (with their parrot) in Philadelphia. They explain the art of coaxing people out of the most pernicious groups in the world

November 18th is International Cult Awareness Day ❤
What better day than to question, ponder and discuss, 'what is a cult?' It is a term that is often misused or misunderstood - which is why here at the Olive Leaf Network we prefer the term 'high-demand group', as that makes it pretty clear from the name that we are talking about groups where high demands, or high costs, are a central characteristic. (You can read more about this term on our explaining document, 'What is a High-Demand Religious Group?' available for free on our website - link in comments). However, these groups are often known by the more simple term, 'cult', and despite its complicated history, especially as used in academia, there is also a plethora of great books, research and documentation across fields of sociology, theology, psychology and religious studies to support the use of this term. If you'd like to share the definition of 'cult' that you prefer the most, feel free to pop it in the comments - we would love to hear it. Why not ask the question with a friend, family member or work colleague today, 'what is a cult?' and enjoy the discussion and debate - do your bit to raise cult awareness today ☺

International Cult Awareness Day
International Cult Awareness Day 2025








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November 18th is International Cult Awareness Day.

This page is run by born-in survivors of the Children of God (now known as The Family International), a notorious s*x cult wherein members of all ages were systematically and intensively abused.

As cult survivors, it is difficult to fully articulate the ongoing pain we face—often privately, often silently. Recovery is often a lonely struggle: reclaiming a life never known, unlearning, unearthing, unshackling again and again. Navigating the lasting and sometimes permanent impacts of neglect, exploitation, and abuse. This is the reality for many cult survivors, of all walks.

Yet not all groups are cults. In a time when the word "cult" is increasingly being reduced to a benign buzzword by misuse and misapplication, it is crucial to understand what cults truly are and their profound, life-altering harm. To listen to cult survivors asking you not to trivialize our pain and experiences, not to make it even harder for us to speak out. Mislabeling everything a cult harms both survivors and the public.

We stand with cult survivors everywhere. We hold space for the lives lost, for the souls scarred, for the manifold traumas. To fellow cult survivors, please know: You are not alone. You are worthy.