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Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 2, No. 2, 2003
The Evolution of a Cult and a Support
Group for the Families of It’s Members: The Jim Roberts Group and The Roberts
Group Parents Network
James Foster
Ronald Loomis
Joseph Szimhart
Larry Wilcox
Abstract
The Jim Roberts Group (JRG) is clearly one of the most unusual groups that have
come to the attention of cult researchers. The group has never been given a name
by its founder, who is elusive and paranoid and rarely interacts with his
followers. Despite enduring for over 30 years, the membership has remained
small, apparently never more then 100 at any time. Members are nomadic and
forsake all material things. They spend most of their time reading the bible,
praying and singing together, and recruiting new members. There is no evidence
of physical, sexual, or financial exploitation in the group. Nevertheless, over
the years many young people have had their personal lives, their education,
their careers, and their family relations severely damaged by this group, in
some cases for several decades. Many members have suffered physiological and
psychological damage, and a few have died. In 1996, a small group of families
who had loved ones in this cult created a family support group, now called The
Roberts Group Parents Network (TRGPN). In just seven years, they have developed
a system for locating cult members and arranging surprise family visits. As a
result, some 50 members have left the cult. This paper presents the perspective
of a typical family with a loved one in this cult, a brief history of the JRG
and of TRGPN, and a description of the thought reform techniques used by this
group.
Full text available through
ICSA E-Library.
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