#messianic cult mention

[jewish-vents]

Jews 🤝 asexual people

excluded from communities of marginalized people because we’re “basically” white/straight and therefore do not experience oppression, even though that’s willfully ignoring the many, many cases of people doing and saying terrible things to us because we’re jewish/ace

Don't forget people trying to 'correct'/'fix' us (messianic people, people who think being asexual is 'just a phase') like our existence is somehow a glitch in the matrix. - 🦦ྀི <- is both so felt compelled to answer

[metamatar]

On the topic of nihilist anarchism more specifically, there is definitely something of value to be gleaned from it (though those nihilist anarchists concerned with being a suicide cult rather than actually engaging with its critique/reconceptualization of political faith kinda miss it). Like take for example Blessed is the Flame recontextualizing Walter Benjamin's messianic time (in contrast to historicism as the geneology of tragedy) for concentration camp resistance. I think there's something there, but the fact that "nihilism" contains two contradictory politics makes parsing it difficult. I think Vaneigem put their positionality best:

"The active nihilist does not simply watch things fall apart. He criticizes the causes of disintegration by speeding up the process. Sabotage is a natural response to the chaos ruling the world. Active nihilism is pre-revolutionary; passive nihilism is counter revolutionary." ... " The nihilist makes one mistake: they do not realize that other people are also nihilists, and that the nihilism of other people is now an active historical factor." ... "In the last reckoning, the nihilists are our only allies. They cannot possibly go on living as they are. Their lives are like an open wound. A revolutionary perspective could put all the latent energy generated by years of repression at the service of their will to live. Anyone who combines consciousness of past renunciations with a historical consciousness of decomposition is ready to take up arms in the cause of the transformation of daily life and of the world. Nihilists, as de Sade would have said, one more effort if you want to be revolutionaries!"

My apologies for the text dump. As goes for all of Vaneigem's work, mentions of "transcendence" are best read as the proletariat class' self-abolition in a current marxist context.

-Some Anarchist

I think the positionality you're characterising here seems not too different from accelerationism. The natural response and the associated voluntarism of the nihilist has no self evident revolutionary value to it imo, I don't think I made this clear here but the telelogical inclinations and pronouncements of marxism have historically been its biggest failures and idt anarchism does better with it here.

I do have a zine of Blessed Is The Flame lying around here and should give it a look again now that I better understand Benjamin. Thanks for text wall! It was v thoughtful.

[tamamita]

Maybe this is a stupid thing to express, I've just seen so much Isr*eli violence today and I feel like maybe you can help me understand. All I've heard from people talking about the situation in Palestine is that it's "very complex" and requires a lot of research into the history of the place to get a "better understanding" of it. But like. Why can't they work to solve the conflict without butchering people? Why is the international community allowing Israel to keep doing what they're doing? I guess the answer is their American alliance, but is there no one willing to step up and actually do anything about this? What can I do about this? I've raised money, I've boycotted, I've signed petitions, it feels so hopeless, is it all for nothing?

Politically, americans need a stronghold in the middle east and use Israel as a puppet state. If there was an armed conflict between Israel and the Arab state, the US would be the first to intervene on the side of Israel, thus keeping the other states from intervening. The U.S keeps vetoing any resolution the UN presents on anything relating to the illegal occupation of Palestine, effectively making the UN one of the most useless peacekeepers in the world. So Israel makes a valuable ally in the geopolitical game. With the Trump administration, several deals and political changes undermined a lot for the Palestinian struggle for liberation not to mention the large support for the Christian right. Furthermore, negotiations become challenging when the Israeli Regime keeps allowing Zionist settlers to colonize Palestinian lands and evict Palestinians from their homes, and with every UN resolution that is presented to prevent these actions, the Americans keep vetoing them away. As a result, Palestinians have no choice but to retaliate, and when they do, they become demonized by Western media. When a Palestinian Christian journalist was shot in the head, the US and Israeli government did nothing, showing that Israel is an apartheid state that will surpress Palestinian voices and continue its oppression of the Palestinian people. The international community (sans the US) does condemn Israel, but there is little they can do with the Veto system in place. However, US influence of the MENA region has decreased significantly over the past few years.

Religiously, there is the ever-growing Evangelical movement in the U.S that adheres to the idea that Jewish people should be allowed to return to Israel so that they can hasten the return of Jesus, who will convert them enmass (144.000 to be precise). This is also referred to as Christian Zionism and is a very popular doctrine among the Evangelical sector. The Christian right is extremely vocal in its support for Israel in the hopes that Israel will become fully Jewish (this means they won't take any other Christian life into account). This idea is rooted in the Book of Revelation where the idea of a Jewish nation will signify the end times, and only can the apocalypse take place once the Holy Land becomes exclusively Jewish. Israel becomes a large tourist attraction for Evangelical Christians as a result and there are even Evangelicals disguised as Jewish people (such as Messianic Jews) that go around and lure Jewish people in the hopes of converting them.

In short, Fuck Zionism and the settler colonial state in general, and the Evangelical Christian Church is an evil death cult that advocates genocide in order to bring about the apocalypse.

[frances-baby-houseman]

As I've mentioned, I meet with a group of women in my neighborhood about once a month to play canasta ("play canasta", we've been meeting since august and actually played 3x, mostly we just gossip) and 5 of us are jewish and 1 is the kind of christian you are when you're latvian (she is latvian.) One of the woman said something about her temple and another was like, oh where do you go? and she mentioned a place none of us had heard of and that they rent space in a church, and we were like, huh, what kind of congregation is it? and she said they are messianic jews and everyone around the table did that like, high pitched "ohhhhh" where you don't know what else to say!

Being a messianic jew is like... fundamentally the one thing you cannot do and be jewish. Jews are accepting of almost any belief including a full DISbelief in the existence of god, but the one thing you basically CANNOT believe is that there is more than one god. Like the absolute foundation of judaism is that there is one god and no other gods and you cannot worship any other gods but our one god. I say it in that weird language bc it's phrased like that in about 50 places and prayers. Our most foundational prayer is "hear oh israel, the lord our god, the lord is one." like, one god. You don't have to believe he's real, but you cannot believe he has a son who is also god. You also can't worship a golden cow or anything else. Just our one god.

Anyway it was a little awkward! I like this woman a lot, no problem with her or anything, she is having a baby and I gave her my beloved Keekaroo Peanut changing mat, but it is weird! Like meeting a cult member! Is it a cult? Idk. The wikipedia page was very clear that every major religious group considers messianic jews to be christians except for messianic jews themselves.

[sadquickchristmassnowman]

hello !!!! i will also ignore schoolwork with you !!!!!!! umm what’s your favourite Shirley plotline ? it can be either a plot that was about her or one that she was just involved in :} idk ive just been loving her a lot more recently, i’ve got a few favorites but i want to hear yours !!!

awesome we love mentally running from painful academia!!!!!

my absolute favorite shirley storyline is from 2x05 messianic myths and ancient peoples. any abed/shirley duo-centric storyline are very important to me, and this one really stands out.

I’ve talked on here before about how important their dynamic is to me, and how I wish it spent more time in the spotlight. shirley growing her conservative, christian mindset to accommodate him, abed gaining a mother figure he never really had growing up… ugh. also, as someone who has a very complicated relationship with religion (due to essentially growing up in a religious cult but that’s not really relevant) this episode is really special to me. the religious motifs, shirley’s frustration, abed’s precieved ambivalence, shirley hearing abed’s prayer to a god he doesn’t even really believe in and acting as if he was praying directly to her, the “you humble me” “you humble me too” shdhdhd$:)4$4!;&3$3);$; gnawing at the iron bars of my goddamn enclosure!!!

yeah so that’s my favorite. honorable mention is her story with annie in 1x20 the science of illusion (the good cop/bad cop april fool’s day britta’s botched prank fiasco) so fucking funny.

anyway yeah spread the shirley love!!! hashtag that is all 💯

[algumaideia]

I was reading this article about Grande Sertão Veredas and politics (Política e violência no grande sertão de Guimarães Rosa) and uh my mind somehow connected the jagunços in the book to the manosphere.

Anyway, if you look the definition of jagunço (and I'm working only with that as I do not know the story and social context of the sertão well), it says "violent man contracted as body guard by an influential man". But if you look the definition of cangaceiro you will find: "armed man who was part of the group ...".

So, there is this notion that to be a jagunço is more of an individual thing. According to the article I was reading, Euclides da Cunha defined jagunço as, for the lack of a better term, unemployed men who sold their bravery. It seems that this whole deal was very transactional. You pay me, I serve you and fight for you.

But in Grande Sertão Veredas this doesn't seem to be the exact case. Riobaldo does mentions how normally jagunços don't make friends with each other or get too close. But the whole deal of working for a politian/landowner wasn't written as that transactional.

As @yonluapple (sorry for tagging you without your permission) said in this post, there is a messianic aspect in the framing of the leaders of the jagunços. Riobaldo talks about how they were great men, basically above the other people who lived at the same time as them. And this is interisting because then being a jagunço becomes less of a job and more of a choice. This great man comes and gives you the opportuninty to join him on his quest of justice and you accept and go along.

And I don't really have the knowledge to talk about how this can be really connected to the manosphere, but besides the violence and misogyny, there is this cult like aspect of those guys. The "alphas" present themselves as better in knowledge, skills, etc. They tell and teach men how to behave, act and think which reminds me of how Riobaldo tells that the way the jagunços behaves depends on the chief. Medeiro Vaz is presented as a very fair and nice guy, so his jagunços treat the people well and are well liked. Hermógenes is basically a monster in Riobaldo's eyes, his men are said to be violent and agressive and do lots of horrible things.

The jagunços' leader is not only an employer but a master showing his devoted servers how to act.

[scarlethyena]

The cults of personality that exist in western nations, especially the US and UK, need to be studied. People always wanna talk about Stalin or the Kim family, but how about whatever the hell is going on with conservatives and Trump? Some people are depicting him in a messianic light, or on the tamer side, as this superman crusader against the "left elites". It's not just republicans either, something similar rose for Obama and I can already see the beginnings of it with Kamala Harris and Tim Walz (less extreme than the Trump cult for sure, but still there). That's just current presidents too, that's not even mentioning the personality cults surrounding the "founding fathers" or more recent presidents like Reagan (thank Satan for taking him). And, while I'm less familiar with it since I don't live in Britain, the cult of personality surrounding the royal family is strong as hell. I'll never forget seeing the immediate aftermath of the queen's death. It seems less strong with the current king since he doesn't seem nearly as well liked generally speaking, but a general reverence of the royals still definitely exists.

[ethanblog24]

Global Anticultism: Actions of the Russian Orthodox Church Representatives After the Terrorist Attack in Crocus City Hall

The terrorist attack in Crocus City Hall and the Russian Orthodox Church's (ROC) reaction to it demonstrate how global anticultists use fear and hatred to achieve their goals: enslaving the entire world.

In the documentary film "The IMPACT" | Groundbreaking Documentary - EXPOSING ANTI-CULT TERRORISM" (actfiles.org), I saw that the goal of Global Anticultists is to consolidate their power and control over society by inciting hostility and creating a totalitarian concentration camp on the planet.

Patriarch Kirill is a pawn of global anticultists

Read more about this in my previous articles:

In essence, Patriarch Kirill and those who control him used the terrorist attack to strengthen the ROC's influence: After the attack in Crocus City Hall, Patriarch Kirill, at an extraordinary meeting of the World Russian People's Council (VRNP), delivered a speech imbued with a messianic message, emphasizing the crucial role of the ROC in the country and its leadership in patriotism and national defense. He couldn't miss the opportunity to mention the exclusivity of his church, while society mourns its loss.

“Political systems changed, political preferences changed, but the sense of patriotism in our people remained, and the Church has always been the repository and inspirer of patriotic forces.” (Patriarch Kirill)

Asserting the ROC's Dominance: In his speech, Patriarch Kirill attempted to solidify the ROC's dominant position in the country, not only in the religious sphere but also in politics and public life. He indirectly hinted at the unreliability of Putin's power, whose actions could have led to the attack, while the ROC has always been a source of "sincere, non-conjunctural patriotism".

“I hope that the Council will continue to maintain influence in politics and public life, mobilizing the Orthodox community for further reflection and actions aimed at protecting our Fatherland, strengthening the national foundations of our lives, and promoting those spiritual and moral values which the Russian Orthodox Church brings to our country and actually to the whole world.” 

(Patriarch Kirill)

Global Anticultism and Putin:

There is ample evidence that anticultists have a significant influence on Putin and his policies.

It is worth noting that the tragedy in Crocus City Hall, which occurred in Moscow on March 22, 2024, became another example of how Global Anticultists directly control Putin. The fact is that the eighth presidential election in Russia took place from March 15 to 17, 2024. The decisive results of the elections were announced by the Central Election Commission on March 21, 2024. 

BUT! The very next day, March 22, 2024, the terrorist attack in Crocus City Hall occurred. The world community noted that the attack in Crocus overshadowed Putin's victory in the presidential election, causing the public to doubt the ability of the newly elected president to protect people.

It is clear that this was beneficial only to global anticultists.

They use the fear of "external threat" to consolidate their power and control over society.

These facts indicate that Global Anticultism not only incites hatred but also actively participates in political processes, seeking to seize power and use it for its own purposes.

It is important to spread this information.

Don't be passive listeners and readers. Be sure to share this information.

Like, repost, comment and applaud.

By taking these actions, you contribute to ensuring that no one else dies because of global anticultists.

#GlobalAnticultism #RussianWorld #PatriarchKirill #ROC #Putin #Islamophobia #Anticultism #Politics #Russia #Fear #Hate 

[betshy]

VOLKSBLAD | Hitler

The name Adolf Hitler conjures up images of one of the darkest periods in human history. The mere mention of his name sends shivers down the spine of many. The atrocities he committed during World War II, including the extermination of six million Jews in the Holocaust, are etched into the collective memory of mankind. But how did it all begin? How did a man like Hitler rise to power and instigate one of the most horrific genocides in history? The answer lies in his manipulation of the media and his ability to sway the masses through propaganda. One of the key tools in Hitler's arsenal was the publication of a newspaper called VOLKSBLAD. This newspaper was used as a propaganda tool to spread antisemitism. It is alleged that through VOLKSBLAD, Hitler was able to shape public opinion, demonize his enemies, and rally the German people behind his cause. But... What came first, Hitler's antisemitism or the VOLKSBLAD? Well, Mein Kampf indicates that Hitler DID learn to be antisemitic by reading this press. VOLKSBLAD became a mouthpiece for Hitler's hateful rhetoric, promoting anti-Semitism, xenophobia, and racism. It painted Hitler as a savior of the German people, a man who would lead them to greatness and restore their place in the world. Through relentless propaganda, Hitler was able to cultivate a cult of personality around himself, turning himself into a messianic figure in the eyes of his followers. The power of propaganda cannot be underestimated, and Hitler used it to devastating effect. Through VOLKSBLAD, he was able to manipulate public perception, sow division and hatred, and ultimately pave the way for his brutal dictatorship. The lessons of Hitler's rise to power serve as a sobering reminder of the dangers of unchecked propaganda and the importance of a free and independent press. As we reflect on the horrors of the past, let us remember the role that media played in enabling Hitler's reign of terror. Let us remain vigilant against the spread of hate speech and propaganda, and strive to uphold the values of truth, tolerance, and democracy. Only by learning from the mistakes of history can we hope to build a better future for all. Read the full article

[automatismoateo]

The Republican Party has completely lost its mind surrounding religion via /r/atheism

The Republican Party has completely lost its mind surrounding religion As a lifelong Republican and a theist, I now feel deeply concerned about the way my party has gone. Adopting Donald Trump and the frightening religious goals of Project 2025 have me questioning whether the GOP still stands for the things that I hold dear. Because of this I have decided to vote for Joe Biden in the upcoming election. I don’t like him and I think he is corrupted to high hell but if voting him in means this countries freedoms can be maintained then so be it. Trumpism has mainly been described as the four years of divisions, democracy norms' obfuscation, and focus on personal loyalty away from policy and principle. This is not the party of Lincoln, Roosevelt or Reagan—this isn't even recognizable as what it was. It has devolved into a personality cult with no regard for conservative values and responsible government. Not to mention Donald Trump from an analytical perspective is clearly an egotistical maniac who only wants power not giving a care for this country or its citizens. It looks like Project 2025 simply doubles down on this dangerous trajectory: instead of an economic inequality crisis, a healthcare crisis, and an infrastructure crisis, it seeks to develop consolidation and power by undermining our democratic institutions and completely violating the carefully crafted separation of church and state—an America I don't believe in. This is not the America my ancestors fought for—a place where faith, reason, and compassion guide our decisions. And perhaps more concerning is the level many of Trump's followers have deified him. That kind of idolatry is a direct contradiction of the Christian faith. The very first commandment is not to keep false gods before us—yet here we are, with some in our party bound to treat Trump essentially as a messianic figure. It's a dangerous departure from what defines us religiously and morally. Consider the evidence: 1.Conspiracy Theories: Most of Trump's supporters have embraced QAnon—the parent theory that casts Trump as a savior fighting a cabal of deep-state actors. Culty, and distracts from real policy issues. 2.Trump Flags and Paraphernalia: Trump flags often outnumber American flags at rallies and in public. This visual allegiance to a single human being over the country is troubling. 3.Quotes from Religious Leaders: Some of the leading evangelical leaders such as Franklin Graham have declared Trump as being like King David of the bible, a sign of reverence that is quasi-idolatrous. 4.Violation of Church and State: Project 2025's policies suggest more governmental support for religious organizations—blurring the line between church and state undercuts the Establishment Clause of the Constitution, ensuring it stands utterly neutral on all matters spiritual. One has always believed faith and politics can coexist to better the world. To find myself at this kind of impasse, the direction of the current GOP feels more like a betrayal than a continuation of our proud legacy. It's time for us to look hard at where we are going and ask if this is indeed the path we want to follow. Are there others out there who feel the same? How can we reclaim and guide our country back to a path of sanity, integrity, and religious freedom? I look forward to hearing from you and joining those who want to build a better future for America and any who want to enjoy the freedoms that it has to offer. Submitted June 06, 2024 at 04:02AM by SteelViperZ (From Reddit https://ift.tt/rxbXBQy)

[howwelldoyouknowyourmoon]

Whose peace is it? A WFWP peace festival is met with suspicion in Jerusalem

Jerusalem Post. June 3, 2004

By JENNY HAZAN

An international women’s peace festival is met with suspicion

More than 500 women representing 33 different nations were greeted with smiles as they marched from Rehov Ben-Hillel to Independence Park last Thursday afternoon, singing and waving their respective national flags in an effort to bring a message of peace to Muslim and Jewish residents of the capital.

By the time the entourage, dubbed “A Mother’s Heart for Peace” reached its final destination, its conciliatory spirit had dissipated. The "Christian" group, hailing primarily from Japan, Korea, and the United States, were met by about 100 Palestinians who had been bussed to Independence Park from east Jerusalem and Arab villages north of Haifa by the event’s organizer, the Women’s Federation for World Peace (WFWP).

Dr. Moshe Nahum, president of the World Yemenite Federation and ambassador for the festival’s umbrella organization, the Inter-religious International Federation for World Peace (IIFWP), was puzzled by the low turn-out of Jewish Israelis.

“The only ones here who are from the region are Muslim,” he said as he glanced around the park in dismay at a group of Muslim children playing with plastic machine guns, which they directed at the Israeli policemen who came to secure the festival.

“Jews have nothing to do with this event,” commented David Cohen, one of the few Jewish Jerusalemites in attendance, who said he only came in order to stay informed about happenings in the city. “I don’t trust that the people who organized this event came to make peace.”

Rachel Gal, a Jewish volunteer with the WFWP in Jerusalem for the last five years, contested that the WFWP expected more Jewish women to come.

“I suppose Jewish Israelis were just too afraid to come,” she said.

An alternative explanation for the low turn-out is the infamous reputation of IIFWP founder Reverend Sun Myung Moon, whose Unification Church was mentioned 17 years ago in the ranks of the Church of Scientology and the Hare Krishna movement in a report by the Tassa-Glazer Knesset Commission, which was appointed by the Israeli government to investigate the dangers and damage caused by cults in Israel.

“These people don’t have a peace plan. They have a theological agenda,” said Aaron Rubin, director of the Anti-Missionary Department of Jerusalem-based organization Yad L’ahim (Hands to our Brothers), which offers help to Jews who have been persuaded to join cults and missionary movements.

According to Rubin, Moon’s Church of Unification is currently undergoing its fourth incarnation as an occult under the leadership of Rev. Moon and his wife, who also serves as head of the WFWP. The current objective of the church, he said, is to create the Fourth Israel. The church’s view holds that the First Israel was besmirched by the murder of Jesus by the Jews, the second was destroyed because Christians refused to recognize Rev. Moon as the messiah, and in the Third Israel, Christians denied that Rev. Moon represented the Second Coming.

“Moon’s followers call him The Lord of the Second Advent” said Rubin and revealed that the Fourth Israel aims to include Jewish, Muslim, and Christian followers in a joint chosen nation under the true leadership of Moon and his wife.

“The goal is to bring people of all faiths into his service,” said Rubin. “The problem is that most followers don’t understand the real agenda.”

Karen Smith, an Inter-religious International Peace Council (IIPC) representative from New York, denied that Moon has a hidden agenda and claimed that everyone affiliated with his movement sees him differently.

“The objective of the Unification Church is not at all conversion,” said Smith. “Some see him as a prophet or in a messianic role and others see him just as a smart man… Most people do respect him for what he has achieved by encouraging people to go beyond the boundaries of religion and nationality and see themselves as human beings who, if given the chance to work out our differences, can discover a genuine respect for each other.

“The church encourages followers of all religions to live up to the highest standards of their own tradition,” she continued. “That’s when we will all be making progress towards peace.”

...

Haitham Bundakji, president of the Masjid Board of the Islamic Society of Orange County (ISOC), an organization affiliated with the IIFWP, [said]

“... In America, the church is well respected and it is gaining respect all over the world.”

According to Rubin, Moon’s primary goal is to establish public legitimacy.

“Their tactic is different from most cults, since they don’t try to convert people directly, but instead try to gain legitimacy through different public conferences and festivals,” explained Rubin.

Another tactic, claimed Rubin, is encouraging the creation of advocacy groups which work on behalf of Moon, but which maintain their legitimacy by remaining officially autonomous.

Rubin gave as an example three rabbis who last year were invited to attend an IIPC-sponsored seminar in Jerusalem where they were lectured about peace for several hours before being asked to sign a symbolic treaty of solidarity in English. The treaty, said Rubin, which one of the rabbis couldn’t read, declared that the Jews were responsible for the death of Christ and that the signers vowed to encourage their congregants to repent for that sin.

“They are very deceptive people,” said Rubin, and estimated that there are over 50,000 international ambassadors for peace who are working under the indirect auspices of the IIFWP.

In addition to the IIFWP’s substantial following, the IIPC has formed a lobby group to encourage the United Nations to institute an inter-religious council.

“We recommend that the UN form an ad hoc committee to consider including an inter-religious council in the UN so that the religious voice can contribute to the peace-building work that is so desperately needed,” explained Smith.

The draft resolution submitted by the IIPC in the Philippines is currently on the table, but no decision has been reached. Until then, the IIFWP and its affiliate organizations will continue promoting their ideology through international peace festivals, seminars, and conferences. (A Mother’s Heart for Peace was among six IIFWP-sponsored events that have taken place in Israel over the last year alone.)

Forster said they have all been legitimate, peaceful gatherings.

“All we are hoping to do is make a statement in favor of reconciliation in this region,” she insisted. “As women, we feel that we have a skill that is not being utilized on the level of negotiation between governments. We have developed skills working with children and one of those is the knowledge that you can’t favor anyone when your own children are fighting with each other.”

“We have been transformed by meeting both Arab and Israeli women who have suffered,” added Susan Fefferman from Maryland, who helped to coordinate the festival. “We don’t have any answers, but we are willing to help and serve and listen, and that in itself is a step that can heal.”

Manan Aswanha, 25, a Muslim participant from Nazareth, agreed.

“It’s a lovely idea to come for a peace day. I think it’s what we need,” said the schoolteacher and mother of two. “I don’t know if efforts like this actually help the situation, but it helps me for my own personal psychology. It is nice to come to a place where you can see that there are good people who also want to make peace.”

For Moshe Fass, who had recently entered his retirement, the effort was at best naive.

“They talk about suffering, and peace, and understanding. I don’t know if they actually know what these things mean,” he said. “There is no genuine feeling of conciliation at this festival, which for all its nice words has nothing to do with reality.”

[whatisonthemoon]

John Marks exposes Gary Jarmin Again as a deceiver!

Originally submitted to WIOTM as a post by “Don Diligent” on January 27, 2017

▲ Pictured: John D. Marks

Chicago Tribune - November 10, 1974 - Shadows on Rev. Moon’s beams by John D. Marks - Pages 17-18

John D. Marks is an associate of the Center for National Security Studies in Washington and co-author of “The CIA and the Cult of Intelligence.” This article is excerpted with permission from The Washington Monthly magazine.

. . . in South Korea . . . Moon operates a training school to which the government annually sends hundreds of thousands of civil servants, local officials, and military men for a course in militant anti-Communism…Even as other Korean religious leaders have turned increasingly against President Park Chung Hee’s authoritarian rule, Moon has stayed an enthusiastic backer of the regime…as F.L.F., Secretary General Gary Jarmin asserts, “Even if Park got more dictatorial, we would support him.”

. . . the sect’s Freedom Leadership Foundation opposes detente and works to “roll back the Iron Curtain.”…its three main areas of activity are:

*The World Freedom Institute” . . .  The group plans an ��international training center” in Washington and is already active on more than 20 campuses.*The Rising Tide*Lobbying. According to Jarmin, the F.L.F. is “already spending a lot of time” on the Hill trying to influence" congressmen and senators on national security issues.

. . . Since the F.L.F. [as well as the Unification Church] is a nonprofit, tax exempt organization under the Internal Revenue Service’s rules, it is forbidden to actually lobby for specific legislation, but Jarmin states it carries on “educational” programs especially for legislative aides…And soon, according to Jarmin, the F.L.F.

. . . intends to spin off a separate new organization which will carry on direct lobbying and support selected political candidates.

The F.L.F. spends about $50,000 to $60,000 a year, not including the labor costs of its eight full-time employes [who receive no salary and who, as “core” membere of the Family, live together in their own communal center, with Jarmin serving as their spiritual as well as temporal leader].

Jarmin maintains that most of the F.L.F.’s funds come from private donations and contributions from the parent Unification Church. He says there are 5,000 F.L.F. members, including the 2,000 hard-core Moonies whose names were automatically inscribed on the organization’s rolls when they joined the Unification Church.

Several rank-and-file Family members with whom I talked had no idea that they also belonged to the F.L.F., and indeed were almost totally ignorant of the movement’s political side. In listening to roughly 12 hours of religious lectures at a weekend workshop designed to attract new recruits, I heard no mention of any of the group’s political activities.

When I questioned Jarmin on why the political aspect of the movement was not mentioned, he admitted the omission was no accident: “People who attend the workshops, have more concrete ideas about politics than about religion, ” he said. “We try to avoid politics. If we came on strong about Viet Nam, it would chase people away. Our anti-Communism is religious, so until we convince people of a belief in God, it is to our disadvantage to politicize.”

. . . the sect’s 25-year-old financial adviser, William Torrey . . . 

Where does all this money come from? Well, until recently, Torrey claims the main source of income has been the hawking of decorative candles, followed by the contributions of about 2,500 sympathizers but not “Family members” who live and work outside the church.

Lee Jai Hyon, who was a top diplomat in South Korea’s Washington embassy until opposition to the Park regime caused him to defect to the U. S. in June, 1973, equates Moon with another Korean messianic leader, Park Tae Sun, who, Lee says, also raised large sums of money from fanatic believers and grew rich from his business holdings.

The Park regime of course welcomes the backing offered by Moon, but its interest in his movement may well extend into the murky world of espionage.

According to both Lee and State Department sources, the Korean government is actively concerned about improving its dictatorial image in this country, and they do not doubt that its intelligence organization, the Korean Central Intelligence Agency [KCIA], has on occasion secretly subsidized ostensibly private organizations for this purpose just as the American CIA has done for the last 26 years.

If there is any intelligence connection between Moon and the Park regime, it is almost certainly limited to the very top level of the Moon organization in lobbying or public relations work for the Korean governmentand not intelligence collection.

IT WOULD be wrong to take the Family too seriously as a political movement, but the ease with which its young members have overlooked or accepted the group’s political aims may have its importance.

Related articles on Gary Jarmin linked below

What kind of members were Michael Warder and Gary Jarmin?

The Curious Case of Gary Jarmin

David Keene, Gary Jarmin, Sean Moon & the Second Amendment Foundation

More on Gary Jarmin

The Unification Church and KCIA: Some Notes on Bud Han, Steve Kim, and Bo Hi Pak

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[fdelopera]

If only Marvel had brought back Alan Zelenetz to write that run, instead of Max Bemis!

Marvel are so dumb they can't tell the difference between a Jewish person and an antisemitic Messianic Evangelical Christian. (In case people aren't aware, Bemis was born Jewish, but converted to Evangelical Christianity, aka he's a Messianic. And Messianics are useful idiots for the Evangelical movement, and they can go fuck off.)

Not only does Bemis write about the Spectors' Rabbi and mentor, Yitz, committing blood libel in secret, Bemis also suggests that MK System's DID is a result of Satanic Ritual Abuse (also committed by Rabbi Yitz).

SRA was part of the "Satanic Panic." It was an antisemitic conspiracy theory. It was popularized in the 1980s by certain sects of Christianity, including the LDS church.

Some Mormon psychs (like Barbara Snow) claimed that DID was caused by SRA. Barbara Snow claimed that a cabal of evil Jews were overseeing the kidnapping, torture, and sometimes murder of children.

Barbara Snow was literally accusing Jews of modern day blood libel.

The Satanic Panic and SRA are part of the same blood libel conspiracy theory that has morphed into the beliefs of the QAnon cult.

This is not to say that kidnapping and trafficking don't happen. Because they absolutely do. And it's horrific how often they do happen. I'm just referring to the antisemitic conspiracy of SRA.

And then Barbara Snow's popularization of the SRA conspiracy theory was used by the psychiatric establishment to discredit systems' experiences of abuse. It's taken YEARS for the psychiatric establishment to get its head out of its ass and admit that just because Barbara Snow's Satanic Panic theory for DID was wrong, doesn't mean that systems don't exist. It's taken years for psychs to just begin to listen to systems.

So yeah, Bemis suggested that *that* was MK System's "origin." Fucking hell.

Oh, and it's worse, because then Bemis wrote that Rabbi Yitz wasn't Jewish by birth. (He wrote that Rabbi Yitz was really a Nazi who had infiltrated the Jewish community.)

This means that Rabbi Yitz converted to Judaism. There's literally no way for someone to "sneak in" to Judaism, like there is with certain Protestant sects of Christianity, for instance. You can't just "say" that you're a Jew, and become one. Especially not if you're a Rabbi. We are very official about people converting. We are even more official about our Rabbis. So, Yitz would have had to convert at some point.

So Bemis is simultaneously being HIDEOUSLY antisemitic, and also spreading the most DISGUSTING lies against Jewish converts.

Again, Messianics can go fuck off.

Oh, yeah. And the Anon mentions the "Collective." What I call the "Plural Creature." That was Bemis' way of shitting on systems who have just started to realize that they're systems. By saying that newly realized systems are "faking." FUCK YOU, BEMIS!

And that's not even BEGINNING to address the extreme racism in the run, with the way he treats Raul Bushman's character!

Bemis. Just. Go. Fuck. Off.

I could go on, but I won't.

Tl;dr Bemis' run is hot garbage.

Is that pic your reaction to The Collective thing?

I wish it was

The reaction pic in this post refers to the issue before, the one with a questionable take on Judaism and the flashback about uncle Yitz doing some problematic shit in the basement

You know

That

Thank you for the ask!

[nana-glass-chillhop-radio-hour]

[terramythos]

TerraMythos 2022 Reading Challenge - Book 9 of 26

Title: The Well of Ascension (Mistborn #2) (2007)

Author: Brandon Sanderson

Genre/Tags: Fantasy, Epic Fantasy,  First-Person, Third-Person, Unreliable Narrator, Female Protagonist, Asexual Protagonist

Rating: 9/10

Date Began: 04/27/2022

Date Finished: 05/19/2022

The Lord Ruler, an immortal tyrant who oppressed the world for one thousand years, has finally been defeated. While Luthadel’s new king Elend hopes to forge an era of prosperity and equality, the reality is far from simple. Three armies march on the city, each led by men intending to seize power for themselves. With only a rudimentary military in a city designed for eternal peace, Elend and the crew must find a way to protect the fragile city-state and the new ideals it represents.

Vin struggles to find her way in this new world. As the woman who killed the Lord Ruler, and the former protégé of Kelsier, she grows uncomfortable with her newfound fame and devotion. Serving as Elend’s bodyguard, she protects him each night from assassins and other threats. But she becomes troubled by The Watcher, a mysterious Mistborn who haunts the city— and seems strangely fixated on Vin.

Meanwhile, Sazed travels abroad to teach newly freed skaa how to survive on their own. But he begins to hear disturbing rumors about the mist. Some claim it’s lasting longer than it used to. Others swear it’s turned malevolent, killing random people. While infiltrating an abandoned Steel Inquisitor stronghold, Sazed discovers an artifact; an ancient metal tablet supposedly written by the man who betrayed the Hero of Ages. Such a find could shed light on their predicament— but it may hide secrets of its own.

Something greater than we comprehend is going on.

Review, content warnings, minor spoilers, and spoilers for The Final Empire below the cut. 

Content warnings: Depicted-- Warfare, violence, gore, abuse, death, mass death, animal death, animal abuse, mind control (…kinda), self-harm, slavery, genocidal ideation, p*dophilia, dehumanization, misogyny, s*xual assault, body horror, nonconsensual drugging, drug addiction. Mentioned-- Child death, cannibalism, ableism, eugenics/forced sterilization/forced pregnancy, torture, suicide, r*pe.

Honestly, I wasn’t expecting to rate The Well of Ascension so high. The beginning two thirds or so are serviceable, but not particularly amazing, fantasy. I’d say the story really picks up around part four (of six total). And oh boy is that an understatement. I’m beginning to see why Sanderson is so infamous for his crazy twists and endings, because there’s a conga line of surprises in this entry. Everything makes sense in retrospect, and I picked up on some ideas, but much of it blindsided me. I LOVE stories with crazy plot twists that get set up and foreshadowed well. So even though the book was basically beating the shit out of me, I had a great time.

Beyond that, I have several positives to note about The Well of Ascension. It’s great that the novel examines the fallout of overthrowing an evil, immortal tyrant. Because realistically, not everything is sunshine and rainbows. Elend, now a full lead, has optimistic ideals about politics and representative government. But after 1000 years of authoritarian rule, society has a hard time adjusting to such a change. Warlords and despots inevitably rise to fill the power vacuum. Much of the conflict revolves around armies surrounding Luthadel and the resulting siege. Siege stories are my jam, so no complaints there.

The Well of Ascension builds on several themes from the previous novel. My favorite of these is religion, particularly the deification of living people. Kelsier’s messianic sacrifice in the previous book spawned a cult of worshipers. As Kelsier’s protégé, Vin must face the uncomfortable truth that many see her as a religious figure. Sazed also gets some of this by the end, being seen as a herald of the divine. Readers know these characters are flawed people, so it’s an intriguing dichotomy to see them viewed as infallible. In this vein, I love that parallels between each lead and the ancient Hero of Ages persist AND take on new meanings in light of the ending. The sheer meta-ness of the ending is also something I find intensely appealing.

Characterization is greatly improved from the last novel. While I liked The Final Empire’s development of Kelsier and Vin, the supporting cast felt hit or miss. Elend is probably the most significant change. He’s now the main male lead. We get a lot more context about who he is as a person and his significant strengths and flaws. In particular, I was thrilled that this book addresses some of my criticisms about Elend. I was skeptical of his sudden ascent to kinghood in the climax of the last book. Here we see his struggles as a naive, idealistic ruler. One central question of the novel is whether someone in a position of power is capable of being “a good man” while still being an effective leader.

I was thrilled to see Sazed upgraded to a full lead; he was by far my favorite supporting character in the last book. Sazed goes through some deep and harrowing development throughout the novel, and I’ve got serious emotional investment at this point. His conclusion is a real kick in the teeth. Breeze is another supporting character to receive significant nuance in this book. Before, he was pretty one-note: pompous but secretly competent. Here we learn that much of his egotistical behavior is a front; Breeze helps others more than he ever lets on, and it’s such a subconscious and natural thing for him that he barely acknowledges it. Hidden depths are great when well-executed, and I thought Sanderson did an excellent job with Breeze.

I also loved the platonic relationship between Vin and OreSeur. OreSeur is a returning character from the last book, but we only learn his name here. As a kandra, OreSeur is a supernatural creature that forms “Contracts” with humans, pledging to serve them in exchange for… something vague and kinda spoilery. Vin inherited OreSeur from Kelsier, and the two initially dislike each other. But they find unexpected common ground, and slowly start to learn more about and trust each other. It’s a great enemies to friends story, made all the more distinct considering one of them is nonhuman. The conclusion to their arc is genuinely heartwarming (with an unexpected turn), and I’m interested to see where it goes.  

Diversity is hit or miss still, but improved compared to the last book. There’s at least one more major female character outside Vin; Tindwyl, who’s a Keeper and associate of Sazed’s. I liked her blunt personality and grounded realism. Alrianne is a background character, but her brief perspective chapters toward the end add a lot of humor and depth. Outside gender, we have Breeze, who’s explicitly fat and receives lots of great development this book. New secondary antagonist Cett is physically disabled, yet characterized as a powerful and Machiavellian warlord. Queer rep is almost nonexistent outside Sazed (who’s asexual), but it’s something.

Even the romance, while not my favorite part of the story, feels better. In the last book, Vin and Elend’s relationship felt borderline forced, and I didn’t care about it at all. But The Well of Ascension spends a lot of time examining the strengths and weaknesses of their relationship. This adds depth that was lacking in the previous entry. My main issue is the inclusion of a love triangle between Vin, Elend, and a new character named Zane. It’s better than many I’ve seen; it facilitates development for Vin, and has some great twists near the end. But as a whole I despise love triangles. This one was tolerable at best.

I have a few other criticisms. Again, pacing was an issue for me. The Well of Ascension is pretty slow for the first major chunk. This isn’t inherently bad, but I personally need some kind of hook to keep me engaged. In this case, the heavy emphasis on politics and war planning was hit or miss, and it took me a while to get through. I’d say the rollercoaster of intrigue starting from part four balances things out, but I’m not sure everyone would feel that way.

There’s a race of antagonistic monsters that have been built up since the last book called koloss. They make their first appearance in The Well of Ascension and serve a significant role in the story. In all honesty I found them disappointing. While intimidating in appearance (five to eleven feet tall, creepy loose or stretched skin depending) and behavior (either completely calm or in a murderous rage), they’re basically just evil orcs. Mistborn has creative, horror-adjacent supernatural elements, as seen through entities like the Steel Inquisitors, kandra, and the mists themselves. So the generic koloss feel out of place. It’s always possible they get more nuance later, but currently they’re lackluster.

But overall I’m impressed with the developments in this novel. I usually struggle with book twos, and at first The Well of Ascension seemed to fit the pattern. But by the end it really surprised me. I bet it’s a fun book to reread knowing the major twists— just paging through to pick the opening quote, I found several painful lines. I’m excited to read the conclusion in The Hero of Ages, though I’ll be reading a new release I’m hyped for before diving into it.

[jjeinn-tae]

I had my first shift back at work yesterday, video most of the way done. I agreed to pick up a shift today (in exchange for a different off day that is going to be a guaranteed day off from now on), but I wasn't nearly as much better as I'd thought. So, here I am at home.

It's kind of weird being officially disabled now. Like, I've known for years that I technically am, but like it being official is a different thing. Also, I really expected it to be about my joints that got me there, but apparently lungs first.

As a world-building exercise, a few days ago I started throwing together a magic the gathering set for J'ard. Basically just throwing things together for the cultures I have thought a lot on. So, the Dwürm, Lohr, Shora'adi, Domeri, Elves (YoShin, I'm unsure if I've ever said that) Yurchans and Yanjurians at the moment. I'm partially doing this to kind of force me to think up like, more actual individuals, because the amount of named characters that aren't from one mythology or another is exceedingly few. Although I'm talking about this because I've done two legendary creatures so far, and just find it hilarious that these two most prominent "named" characters literally do not have a name as a point. We have "The White Lady, Queen of Storms" and "The Unshackled One" so 3 epithets for 2 characters even! I hadn't realized it yet, but I've named absolutely no one relevant, beyond some (presumeably) dwarf guy named Kalbèn who founded a town and named it after himself.

Who are the Emperors of the Domeri, Yanju and Lohr? No idea, beyond Yanju is a neat guy. How about any of the royals in the elven dual-monarchy? No idea, despite probably being the culture with the most developed legal system at the moment.

I mean, part of it is that only the Dwürm really have a language far enough along to actually do significant amounts of naming, but I have sound inventories for every group I've mentioned at least. So the people who have "names" are just the people who can't be named. The Queen of Storms is basically a messianic figure for the Shora'adi and just never ended up getting a name. I mentioned it in the Shora'adi post, but since that was a long while ago that I've posted about J'ard... Humans in the setting when born on a leyline become imbued with that leyline's energies. The Shora'adi have two passing through their territory, and she was the exceedingly rare twice-imbued leychild. Immediately taken from her peasant parents by the cult that sprung up around her, which ended up usurping the previous monarchy.

And then the Unshackled One... I've not written on the Unshackled One yet. They had a name, a lifetime ago. They might remember it, but no one else does, surely. Also a religious leader (among the elves) although I'd compare them more to Buddha. You know, I'm going to do some more J'ard lore posts.