Audrey Chaytor, Chief Executive of The Family Survival Trust
My long journey and memories of dark places along the road have taught me that some individuals believe they are immune from cult recruitment. This is absolutely not true. I know that not only the young are vulnerable. The facts are that anyone, of any age, can be deceived. Entire families can be destroyed.
Cults work within big businesses, banks, and the like. They promote the message that their courses are for the good of-management and staff, will enhance careers and private lives. In this field it is difficult for the ordinary man to detect the harm which can be caused. Young trainees, anxious to make progress and create good impressions are likely to enroll into areas which they perceive as education, without true knowledge of what they are actually doing.
The rapid growth of cults in this country, and across the world, over the past thirty-five years is staggering. This fact, largely ignored by both church and state, concerns me. The reaction of most people is to say: “How awful!'', while thinking it really does not have anything to do with them. THEY ARE WRONG! If the present state of ignorance continues, all people will be at risk in some way. How long do we have to wait for church and state to observe the dangers and believe the facts which are there for all to see?
My hopes are that families in cult conflicts might, at least, feel protected by reading this book. Much of the available information on cults and cultic practices is depressing and offers scant hope. My greatest wish when talking to damaged families is that they should feel not all is lost and they can have a degree of optimism, during the long period of time they might have to wait for a result. Hope combined with a sense of humor might enable families to live their lives with less pain.
My constant advice to families is to be unafraid of cults even though they can appear powerful and frightening. Fear is to the cults' advantage and can cause severe stress and illness. Understanding the true facts and remaining calm are vital safeguards for the protection of families.
I have included only some of my experiences but, sadly, there are many more.
I wish to be absolutely clear that neither l, nor FAIR (Family Action Information Resource) during its existence, nor its successor-The Family Survival Trust, are opposed to religion. Individuals should be free to make their own choices provided that the choices they make are not harmful to them and their loved ones.
This is the author's notes of the book “Cults – Who is Vulnerable?” by Audrey Chaytor, Trustee of The Family Survival Trust, the UK, and will be published in instalments on Facts.org.cn.
About the Author:
Audrey Chaytor, who from October 2007 until January 2011 was Chief Executive of The Family Survival Trust, has over thirty years’ experience of listening to, supporting, advising and helping victims of cults, their families, friends and associates. She remains a Trustee to this day. The late John Bazlinton, who was until his death in 2008 also a Trustee, often asked Audrey to write something down to preserve her years of experience. She had been at work on the project since 2009, and in 2011 finished the draft of her work, which she called “Cults – Who is Vulnerable?”. This is a synopsis of the first third of the book, section by section, in order to give a detailed idea of what it covers.
