Narcissism a hallmark of religious abusers
Published in The Catholic Sentinel . Link to full article below. Some interesting sections: Abusive leaders often start by controlling communication. Burtner reminded listeners that Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, a cult leader in the 1980s in north central Oregon, blocked newspapers from coming to members. “These leaders want to be the only source of information,” Burtner said. “They might even say media is evil.” If members have challenging questions or doubts, leaders deflect the inquiries repeatedly until no one asks anymore. Some abusive pastors even try to close down anger or other emotions. Burtner calls this “the ultimate dehumanization.” By contrast, doubt and questions are welcomed in legitimate religions like mainline Catholicism. Medieval theologians in Catholic Europe, Burtner told listeners, insisted that doubt was acceptable because it got the Christian thinking. The problem with abusive religious movements is not really about theology, but about the le...