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CULTS IN ASIA Reggie White must be right about yellow people being able to make a TV set the size of a watch, because Asians sure do pack a lot of cults into finite areas. The Japanese government estimates that there are 220,000 cults on its petite islands. The most feared cult is the Aum Shinrikyo, which was responsible for the nerve gas attacks in the Tokyo Metro in 1995 that killed 12 people and injured more than 5,500 others. The cult has about 2,000 members. And then there is the Honohana Sanpogyo cult that collected about 61 billion yen ($600 million) from about 300,000 members, who, upon examination of their feet, were told that they would die of AIDS or cancer if they didn't purchase religious education. China has a long history of cults, too, including the Boxer Movement and the White Lotus Society, which banded against government corruption and Western influence. Wang Xuemeng, who belonged to the White Lotus Society, formed the Yiguandao, or "Way of Unity," in 1883. This cult continues today. Wang told fortunes, performed healing, and solved huge math problems in front of audiences. His sect stresses living righteously in the face of the end of the world. In 1996, the Chinese government finally had enough of the group's showing off, rounded them up, and imprisoned them. The crackdown in China is now aimed at the Falun Gong. Its members say that it's just a health exercise like Tai Chi but with different movements. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhang Qiyue says that the cult is "anti-science, anti-society, and anti-government." She argues that the leaders purport inflated health benefits, that the doomsday predictions stir unrest, and that its tens of millions of members in China alone compete with the Communist party. Of course the Taiwanese have to compete with China. There's the Chen Tao UFO cult that predicted God would talk to Americans on television on March 25, 1998. When that didn't happen, Chen announced that God (in Chen's image) would talk to Americans in their dreams. |
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SECULAR COMMUNION Not all cults have to be based on religion. Look at Richard Simmons, Oprah Winfrey, and Mary Kay. What they say is law for millions of Americans. They dictate what people eat, read, and drive. Cults can idolize products, too. Apple Computer survived its lean years only through the evangelism of converted teachers, artists, and writers. Tupperware is brought to the home just like the Book of Mormon. Surfer Volkswagen Bus owners, power-hungry Corvette drivers, and speed-freak Honda tweakers all treat their rides as more than vehicles. And how many kids have been murdered for their Air Jordans? When I attended high school, it was music that separated those of us who weren't socially advanced enough to get into student politics or physically strong enough to participate in team sports. There were heshers, death rockers, mods, punks, new-ros, and break-dancers. We drove for hours to buy cool music and sifted through thrift shops to assemble cool wardrobes. Looking at my record collection and old pictures, some of the music wasn't so hot (Am I ever going to listen to Specimen or Squire again?) and neither were the threads (No more paisley, ever.), but it seemed important then. I was in a cult. |