Was I in a Cult?

Content Warning: This episode contains discussion of sexual abuse. You've seen them — maybe at the airport with pamphlets, or quietly shopping at a farmer's market. Dressed in starched shirts, tie-back bonnets, pressed skirts. Singing in gentle harmonies. Smiling softly. The Holdeman Mennonites, they'll tell you, are just humble people of faith.  Quiet.  Nonviolent.  Pure. But purity can be a cost...

Content Warning: This episode contains references to sexual abuse, coercion, and emotional trauma. Last week, we met Zipporah—a woman who spent 44 years inside a Utah cult so small and obscure, most people never even knew it existed. That is, until 1978, when a horrific tragedy made national headlines. The cult was led by Emmanuel David, a self-declared prophet who eventually proclaimed himself Go...

In August of 1978, one of the darkest chapters in Utah's history unfolded. A man claiming to be God became the catalyst for a tragedy that left a city shaken and a family shattered. Emmanuel David—born Charles Bruce Longo—founded a small but insidious cult rooted in offshoot Mormon beliefs, prophetic delusions, and total control. Despite the mass suicide—or murder-suicide, depending on who you ask...

(Content warning: child abuse, psychological trauma, and forced labor.) What happens when a child escapes a cult… only to be hunted, harassed, and invoiced for the "honor"? In Part 2 of Jamie Mustard's staggering story, we pick up with his teenage years— going deeper into the reality of life inside Scientology's Sea Org—the labor, the fear, the indoctrination, and the slow, devastating unraveling...

What happens when a newborn is handed—by his own mother—into the arms of a cult? On today's episode of Was I In A Cult?, we peel back the celebrity sheen and expose the shadowy depths of one of the world's most controversial organizations: Scientology.  But this time, it's not about celebrities—it's about the kids. Jamie Mustard was born into Scientology's inner sanctum, the Sea Org. Raised withou...

**This episode originally aired in May 2023** Fresh to the workforce, Amber answered a job posting for a dental assitant: "No experience needed!" Looking for something reliable to support her new life as a single mother, she was thrilled when she got hired. Little did she know, her new job would be more than just dental work… Follow Us for More Culty Content: Instagram & TikTok:  @wasiinacult Supp...

When your mother is a self-proclaimed prophet claiming to channel the ascended master that is your deceased father as she prepares hundreds of followers for the end of the world, mother/son time isn't baking cookies - it's begging her not to summon nuclear holy fire so you can maybe live another day. In Part 2 of Sean Prophet's quite literally unbelievable story, we enter the "end times" phase of...

Join hosts Morgan Absher and Kaelyn Moore as they take you deep into the world of the most notorious crimes ever — where a single clue can crack a case wide open. From shocking murders to serial killers, Clues dives into all the forensic details and brilliant sleuthing of the world's most infamous cases. CLUES is a Crime House Original, powered by PAVE Studios. Follow and listen now wherever you g...

He didn't just join a cult. He was born a "prince" in one. In this two-part mind-bender, we welcome Sean Prophet, son of Mark Prophet and Elizabeth Clare Prophet—founders of the Church Universal and Triumphant (aka CUT). At its height, this doomsday spiritual empire commanded tens of millions in real estate, a global following, and enough freeze-dried food and ammo to survive a nuclear winter. In...

Today's guest, Sara, didn't just wear a cult uniform—she sewed it. Raised in a conservative faith that slowly morphed into a cult, Sara's life went from dairy cows and barefoot summers to head coverings, spiritual "consequences," and Levitical purity laws enforced with spray bottles and shame. What started as a desire to live a devout and simple life spiraled into isolation, abuse, and an absurd s...

In our first-ever live episode, your favorite mediocre cult leaders take the stage in Napa, California to indoctrinate the masses—err, entertain a crowd. Tyler and Liz welcome comedian and actor Moses Storm (HBO's Trash White) to tell his jaw-dropping story of growing up in a failed (as he puts it) doomsday cult… started by his great uncle. A live audience, Tyler showed off an old pair of magic un...

This week we're diving into the cultish side of wellness culture. Liz sits down with Dr. Laura Erlich, DTCM, LAc, FABORM — a licensed acupuncturist and fertility specialist who spent decades bridging Eastern and Western medicine… until the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the dangerous cracks beneath the surface. Laura shares her deeply personal story: growing up with health-conscious "hippie" parents, e...

Today's guest thought she was just signing up for a summer job. And then, years later, she thought she was just joining a church. What she got instead?  Cults. TWO OF THEM. Meet Aydrea — writer, stepmom, and lover of rules. In college, she joined a company that promised purpose, leadership, and a paycheck. Instead, she got cold showers, commission-only "training," and a summer knocking on stranger...

Content Warning: This episode contains graphic descriptions of sexual abuse, exploitation, and trauma. Please listen with care. Frankie thought she was chosen. That she was being trained to be a healer, a mystic, a disciple of spiritual truth. But the truth was far more harrowing. In Part 2 of her story, we follow Frankie deeper into Morningland—where obedience meant servitude, sexual violence was...

Crime House True Crime Stories is the ultimate destination for true crime fans. Every episode features two notorious cases from that week in crime history, tied by a common theme like infamous serial killers, mysterious disappearances, tragic murders, and more. Every Monday, uncover the full stories behind the headlines as host Vanessa Richardson takes you through high-profile investigations like...

Content Warning: This episode contains discussions of child abuse and sexual coercion. It started with a pizza party for single moms. But soon, there were purple-lit temples, custom medallions, and a man who called himself "Donato the Christ". What could possibly go wrong? In Part 1 of Frankie Tease's gripping story, we follow her teen years inside Long Beach, California's Morningland—a so-called...

Whitney wanted a Friday night dress. She got a pink Cadillac and a cult instead. At 21, she joined Mary Kay just trying to pay her $200 rent. What she got was a crash course in manipulation disguised as empowerment, a swirl of culty catchphrases, and a trunk full of sparkle-dusted dreams. In this episode, Whitney takes us on her journey from California cake decorator to one of Mary Kay's youngest...

Today, we're taking it back to where it all began: our very first episode. Meet Johanne Hanks, who went from BYU grad to plural wife to party planner for Jesus in a yuppie Mormon doomsday group called The True and Living Church. You know… TLC. Faced with the fear of an impending apocalypse, Joanne and her husband move to a small Utah town to live "Mormonism on steroids", which means wearing long u...

As Tyler owns up to overlooking a crucial part of Orange County's troubling past, Liz is secretly grateful for his mistake—for without it, they might never have met today's inspiring guest, Vida. Growing up in South Central LA, Vida's father found salvation in a Pentecostal church led by a self-proclaimed prophet. For Vida, the church was initially a comforting community, offering structure and be...

You've heard of doomsday cults and self-help cults… but what about an alien cult? This week, we're taking you on a journey beyond the stars—or at least, beyond logic—as we explore The Raelians. This episode is love bombing at its best and most seductive form. _____________ Follow us for more culty content: @wasiinacult   Have you ever been love-bombed into a belief system that felt too good to be...

Fine dining is all about precision, artistry, and luxury on the plate—but behind those kitchen doors, the pressure, hierarchy, and chaos tell a very different story. This week, we sit down with Chef Amber Evans, who opens up about the unspoken rules of the industry, the reality of life inside a Michelin-starred kitchen, and the moment she realized she had become the very thing she once feared. Cou...

Crystal was born into a world where women obeyed, children served, and questioning authority was a sin. Raised under the oppressive rule of the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP)—yes, the same Christian fundamentalist cult as the Duggars, "Shiny Happy People"—she spent her youth cleaning toilets, raising her mother's children, and being prepped for a life of submission.  But Crystal had oth...

There was no commune. No matching robes or group chants. A charismatic leader? Yes. But no room full of followers. This is a story about a cult of one —  a lesser-known, yet perhaps more common, type of cult. When Alex first met her college advisor, she thought she'd found a mentor—someone brilliant, charismatic, and seemingly invested in her success. But behind the charm lay something much darker...

What happens when your dreams of becoming a therapist are unexpectedly dashed and a TIkTok astrologer promises to solve all your problems? Meet Taylor Marie, who found herself in an online cult that claimed to have "the only astrology system that works." Led by a charismatic married couple, this group charged outrageous prices for "life-altering" astrology readings, promised entrepreneurial and pe...

When the pandemic hit, Aaron found himself isolated and searching for community. So when he discovered an online occult group, he thought he'd finally found his spiritual people. What he didn't expect? Signing an NDA, pledging allegiance to a self-proclaimed "Master," and being told he was destined for an apocalyptic battle… alongside seven ancient space dragons. At first, the group felt like a pl...