http://forum.rickross.com/list.php?12 EN Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:55:56 +0100 Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:55:56 +0100 "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" Phorum 5.1.25 60 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,2579,78865#msg-78865 corboy
And it appears what Cohen & his devotees have mastered is not enlightenment but mere PR and pushing shame buttons. That 'skill'nothing to be proud of.]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,2579,78865#msg-78865 Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:55:56 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,2579,78864#msg-78864 corboy
Rosenman actually addressed the situation in which a violently assaulted and shocked person is impregnated with shards from the assailant's own self.

Rosenman examined drastic situations such as torture, rape, imprisonment. Because all human beings begin life as powerless infants and require a very long period of dependency upon adult careproviders all of us, even the strongest, exit childhood with some remaining pressure points which, if hit hard, can compromise our boundaries and reactivate a childs latent need for security and orientation from an all powerful parent figure.

Rosenman did not address how an assailant may be empowered by a social setting that worships use and abuse of brutality and rationalizes utter cruelty as necessary for spiritual development.

Alice Miller did address this in her book, For Your Own Good: Roots of Violence in Childrearing.

It will do much good if the New Age scene ceased to support and lend retreat space and advertising space to teachers who acquire documented records of emotional, financial and physical abuse.

Also some gurus find ways to obtain embarassing informaton about followers such as film footage or get follower to do things that leave them shame ridden.

If that film footage or letters stay in the ashram files, it can exert paralysis upon those who physically leave. To make amends, Cohen needs to surrender this material and ensure no one else, such as his heirs gets access to it.l]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,2579,78864#msg-78864 Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:54:19 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78857,78859#msg-78859 SeekingTruth
We the undersigned believe that any extra money from the Religious Orders should be used solely to benefit former residents of all of the Institutions for medical, dental and other welfare purposes.

http://www.alliancesupport.org/petition/

Reading the comments below is also instructive. The Catholic Church is a CULT and an abusive one.

ST]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78857,78859#msg-78859 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:35:14 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78857,78858#msg-78858 SeekingTruth
http://www.alliancesupport.org/about-the-alliance.html

ST]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78857,78858#msg-78858 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:21:18 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78857,78857#msg-78857 SeekingTruth
The worst cases of abuse occurred - surprise surprise - at Catholic orphanages, especially at Christian Brothers establishments.

This is one of hundreds of reports:

Irish religious to fore in Australian abuse scandal

Wed, Nov 18, 2009

ANALYSIS: Many of the children abused in Australia, prompting this week's apology by the prime minister there, came originally from Ireland, writes MARY RAFTERY

THERE IS always one story that haunts you, so graphic and disturbing it is almost too terrible to contemplate.

In over a decade of researching the experiences of people all over the world whose childhoods were destroyed by state-sponsored abuse, one of the worst I came across was that of a small, blue-eyed boy at Tardun, an orphanage in western Australia. He was one of the tens of thousands apologised to on Monday by Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd, as that country at last faces up to the savage abuses suffered by so many taken as children into state-funded care.

This boy had been sent to Australia from the UK. He told his story to a British House of Commons select committee established in the late 1990s to investigate the child migrant schemes.

Tardun was one of the more notorious of Australia's 500 or so children's institutions. It had all sorts of Irish connections. It was one of four such institutions run by the Christian Brothers, who were tightly controlled by their Irish leadership, based at the Dublin headquarters in Marino. They even named another of their western Australian institutions Clontarf - it is to be found in Waterford, a suburb of Perth.

Many of the brothers working in the Australian institutions were first generation Irish. These included Br Paul Keaney, the infamous resident manager of Bindoon (another Christian Brothers-run boys' orphanage) up to the 1950s, who was born in Rossinver, Co Leitrim.

Thousands of boys passed through these institutions. Most were Australian, who, like so many Irish children, ended up in care during the middle decades of the 20th century for reasons of poverty and disadvantage.

Thousands of others, however, had been sent from institutions throughout England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, with the promise of a new life of sunshine and hope. And among these were to be found a surprising number of Irish children, born to Irish mothers fleeing the censorious atmosphere in this country and hoping to keep their pregnancies secret by going to England.

There are no precise figures so far, but it has been estimated that up to a quarter of those sent might have Irish parents.

In 1998, in what remains the most damning picture of Australia's children's institutions, the House of Commons select committee reported that "the worst cases of criminal abuse in Australia appear to have occurred in institutions run by the agencies of the Catholic Church, in particular the Christian Brothers and the Sisters of Mercy".

The report went on to say that some of the abuse investigated "was of a quite exceptional depravity, so that terms like 'sexual abuse' are too weak to convey it".

[b]Then comes the indelible account of the blue-eyed boy: "Those of us who heard the account of a man who as a boy was a particular favourite of some Christian Brothers at Tardun who competed as to who could rape him 100 times first, his account of being in terrible pain, bleeding and bewildered, trying to beat his own eyes so they would cease to be blue as the Brothers like his blue eyes, or being forced to masturbate animals, or being held upside down over a well and threatened in case he ever told, will never forget it".[/b]

With evidence of this kind coming from a British parliamentary committee, and substantiated over and over again by various Australian senate committee reports, the wonder is that it has taken the Australian government so long to apologise.

The pressure for such an apology has been building for a quarter of a century as thousands of former children in care began to trace their origins and uncover the sordid saga of their forced migration. Many had great difficulty tracking their families throughout Britain, but none more so than those whose mothers turned out to be Irish.

Giving birth in the relative anonymity of a British hospital was regarded by thousand of Irish women as preferable to facing the stigma of an unmarried pregnancy going full term in Ireland and resulting in a birth. Many of these mothers gave up their children to various British-based agencies. In some cases, the babies ended up in state-run children's homes, in others they were given into the care of religious orders. A number were also adopted and fostered.

Their fate was much fought over by self-styled Irish protection and rescue organisations, who patrolled the wards of Liverpool and London maternity hospitals, pleading with Irish mothers to bring their babies home and give them up to religious orders. The idea was to ensure the children would be raised as Catholics. The fact that many of them would end up in Irish industrial schools was of little concern.

Those Irish babies who remained in Britain were usually placed in institutions run by Catholic nuns, principally the Nazareth Sisters. And these institutions in turn provided the bulk of the thousands of Catholic children sent to Australia under a scheme jointly run by the Australian and British governments, which lasted until the late 1960s.

There was a promise that these children, many as young as three years old, would be placed with Australian families who would treat them as their own. This, however, became a reality for very few.

Almost all of the Catholic children were sent immediately to institutions run principally by the Christian Brothers and the Sisters of Mercy - the two congregations also most prominent in the management of the Irish industrial schools. Given the scale of migration from the UK, it is at first glance peculiar that there was no similar scheme for children to be shipped out directly from Irish institutions to Australia. That this one misery at least was not visited on the multitude of children in Ireland's industrial schools is thanks largely to Eamon de Valera, according to Alan Gill in his seminal history of child migration, Orphans of the Empire.

In 1938, the head of the Christian Brothers in Australia, Br Louis Conlon, was in the midst of a major and highly successful campaign to increase the number of children (and consequently income by way of grants) being sent from the UK to Australian Catholic institutions. He approached the Irish government, seeking to extend the scheme to Ireland. The response from the cabinet secretary was a terse note to inform him that his suggestion for a child migrant scheme was "not approved". According to Alan Gill, this was "almost certainly based on the personal views of de Valera, who opposed child migration, and indeed migration in general, as a solution to the new State's problems. His supposed "prejudice" in this matter was aired in a gossip column in the Irish Independent, which criticised his stance".

For those Irish children who did end up in Australia, it would seem that the least we as a nation could do for them now would be to provide every assistance, including financial, to allow them to trace their roots and their families. It was we as a society who hounded their unhappy mothers from our shores. We should now open our arms to their children.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mary Raftery is a freelance journalist who, with reporter Mick Peelo, produced and directed the documentary Cardinal Secrets]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78857,78857#msg-78857 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:16:54 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,77450,78852#msg-78852 corboy
"Oprah Winfrey was set to announce Friday that her powerhouse daytime television show, the foundation of a multibillion-dollar media empire with legions of fans, will end its run in 2011 after 25 seasons on the air.

Winfrey planned to announce the final date for "The Oprah Winfrey Show" during a live broadcast, according to her production company, Harpo Productions Inc. She said at the beginning of the show that she had some news to share and that she would discuss it at the end of the show. "]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,77450,78852#msg-78852 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:57:27 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,77450,78851#msg-78851 corboy
[b]End of an era: Winfrey ending show after 25 years[/b]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091120/ap_en_tv/us_winfrey_show_ending;_ylt=Ao35XLNkDgt8AnMMZfRVi6.s0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTFrNmYxNmJiBHBvcwMxNjUEc2VjA2FjY29yZGlvbl9lbnRlcnRhaW5tZW50BHNsawNlbmRvZmFuZXJhd2k-

[quote]By CARYN ROUSSEAU, Associated Press Writer Caryn Rousseau, Associated Press Writer – 7 mins ago

CHICAGO – Oprah Winfrey was set to announce Friday that her powerhouse daytime television show, the foundation of a multibillion-dollar media empire with legions of fans, will end its run in 2011 after 25 seasons on the air.

Winfrey planned to announce the final date for "The Oprah Winfrey Show" during a live broadcast, according to her production company, Harpo Productions Inc. She said at the beginning of the show that she had some news to share and that she would discuss it at the end of the show.

A Harpo spokeswoman declined to comment Thursday on Winfrey's plans except to say that "The Oprah Winfrey Show," which has seen ratings slip 7 percent from a year ago, will not move to cable television.

Winfrey, 55, is widely expected to start up a new talk show on OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network, a much-delayed joint venture with Discovery Communications Inc. that is projected to debut in 2011. OWN is to replace the Discovery Health Channel and will debut in some 74 million homes. An OWN spokeswoman declined comment Thursday.

CBS Television Distribution, which distributes "The Oprah Winfrey Show" to more than 200 U.S. markets, held out hope it could continue doing business with Winfrey, perhaps producing a new show out of its studios in Los Angeles.

"We know that anything she turns her hand to will be a great success," the CBS Corp. unit said in a statement. "We look forward to working with her for the next several years, and hopefully afterwards as well."

Many fans heading into Harpo Studios on Friday morning seemed to support Winfrey's decision to end the show.

"You always want to end a show when people want more — and not when people are sick of watching you," said Rebecca Switaj, 31, of Chicago.

Said Sandra Donaldson, 59, of Indianapolis: "It's time to elevate to something new. Whatever she does is going to be a blessing. It's going to be rewarding and eye-opening. Her name alone opens doors."

Once a local Chicago morning program, the production evolved into television's top-rated talk show for more than two decades, airing in 145 countries worldwide and watched by an estimated 42 million viewers a week in the U.S. alone.

"Oprah Winfrey is in a category of her own," said Robert Thompson, professor of television and popular culture at Syracuse University. "This is a great American story and like any great American story it's supersized."

Fans expressed hope that Winfrey would announce another project on Friday.

"Oprah, she impacts everybody, her life, the way she gives," Shawana Fletcher, 29, of Chicago, said outside Harpo Studios. "I hope she's not totally done. That's what we're praying."

Winfrey's 24th season opened this year with a bang, as she drew more than 20,000 fans to Chicago's Magnificent Mile for a block party with the Black Eyed Peas. She followed with a series of blockbuster interviews — Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield, singer Whitney Houston and ESPN's Erin Andrews, and just this week, former Alaska governor and GOP vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

As a newcomer, "The Oprah Winfrey Show" chipped away at talk-show king Phil Donahue's dominance. Later, it turned to inspiration. The show's coverage ranged from interviews with the world's celebrities to an honest discussion about Winfrey's weight struggles.

"As the show evolved, it really kind of dressed up the neighborhood of the daytime talk show," Thompson said.

In 1986, pianist-showman Liberace gave his final TV interview to Winfrey, just six weeks before he died. In a 1993 prime-time special, Michael Jackson revealed he suffered from a skin condition that produces depigmentation. Tom Cruise enthusiastically declared his affection for the much-younger Katie Holmes on the program in 2005 — and jumped on the couch to prove it.

In 2004, Winfrey unveiled her most famous giveaway, when nearly 300 members of the studio audience opened a gift box to find the keys to a new car inside. The stunt became a classic show moment as much for Winfrey's reaction — "You get a car! You get a car! You get a car! Everybody gets a car!" — as its $7 million price tag.

The show also became a launching pad for Oprah's Book Club, which then launched best-sellers. The titles ranged from "Song of Solomon" and "Paradise" by Toni Morrison to Wally Lamb's "She's Come Undone" and Elie Wiesel's "Night."

For others, the selection backfired. "A Million Little Pieces" exploded in sales after Winfrey chose the James Frey memoir in fall 2005. Soon after, it was revealed as a fabricated tale of addiction and recovery, and Winfrey later chewed out Frey on her show.

"I call her `Queen of the New Consciousness' because she did so many things to change lives, the books that she promoted," said hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons.

The loss of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" would be a blow to CBS Corp., which earns a percentage of hefty licensing fees from TV stations that use it — largely ABC affiliates. CBS Chief Executive Leslie Moonves told analysts two weeks ago that the contract with the show runs through most of 2011 and "if there's a negative impact, it wouldn't hit us until '12."

"Oprah's been a force of media and there's really no person you can look to out there who you could say, `That's the heir apparent,'" said Larry Gerbrandt, an analyst for Media Valuation Partners in Los Angeles. Gerbrandt noted many stations build their schedules around Winfrey's show.

"It's a big loss, but not as huge as it would have been 10 years ago," he said. "However, it still commands the biggest audience and ABC station competitors are licking their chops."

Talk of the show's end often has accompanied Winfrey's contract negotiations. Before signing her current contract in 2004, she talked about quitting after the 2005-2006 season. As far back as 1995, she called continuing "a difficult and important decision."

Winfrey started her broadcasting career in Nashville, Tenn., and Baltimore, Md., before relocating to Chicago in 1984 to host WLS-TV's morning talk show "A.M. Chicago" — which became "The Oprah Winfrey Show" one year later. She set up Harpo the following year and her talk show went into syndication.

Powered by the show's staggering success, Winfrey built a media empire. Harpo Studios produces shows hosted by Dr. Phil McGraw and celebrity chef Rachael Ray. O, The Oprah Magazine was the nation's 7th most popular magazine in the first half of 2009.

"I came from nothing," Winfrey wrote in the 1998 book "Journey to Beloved." "No power. No money. Not even my thoughts were my own. I had no free will. No voice. Now, I have the freedom, power, and will to speak to millions every day — having come from nowhere."

Earlier this year, Forbes scored Winfrey's net worth at $2.7 billion.

___

AP Business Writer Ryan Nakashima in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

___

On the Net:

The Oprah Winfrey Show: [www.oprah.com][/quote]]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,77450,78851#msg-78851 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:50:49 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,2579,78849#msg-78849 billyen You are so right about "Otherwise, if you make the mistake of running a personal blog and announcing your intention of someday writing a memoir about an oppressive guru, you may find your comments section swamped by guru loyalists who know how to press shame buttons installed in you during your time with the guru. They may not only 'astroturf' the comments section but their use of shame triggers may cripple the momentum needed to create and complete your much needed book."
Well, I finished my book [url=http://americanguru.net][i]American Guru[/i][/url] before the Andrew Cohen defenders got wind of it, but subsequently they have unleashed their "shame buttons" attack with a site devoted to astro-turfing and to shaming any critics, guru-talk.com, and also by ad hominem attacks posted as "reviews" on Amazon.
I have written and posted a commentary on the sad phenomenon of former students who cannot leave the teacher in spite of years of evidence of serious and dangerous abuses. It is posted on [url=http://www.integralworld.net/yenner1.html]Integral World[/url].

Peace,
William Yenner]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,2579,78849#msg-78849 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:21:25 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,25113,78847#msg-78847 rudyh01
I'm not worried about web-sheriff at all, what can they do against a site that merely links to this forum? If anything, they should try to take down this forum, but of course we don't live in China, so they cannot simply dump our freedom of speech. I just think it proves the point about Mr. Hansard being a gross bully rather then a qualified and impeccable spiritual teacher...

If you cannot find the page on my website, it is listed in the left menu under 'Resources' and 'Controversy', the direct link is [url=http://www.viewonbuddhism.org/controversy-controversial-teacher-group-center-questionable.html]http://www.viewonbuddhism.org/controversy-controversial-teacher-group-center-questionable.html[/url]

Love & clear light,
Rudy]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,25113,78847#msg-78847 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:55:25 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,25113,78846#msg-78846 Dorje "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,25113,78846#msg-78846 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:36:28 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78845#msg-78845 The Anticult Where are they moving to?

They had some health code violations
___________________________________
http://www.city-data.com/sf-restaurants/ONE-TASTE-URBAN-RETREAT.html
024 (Ready-To-Eat-Food) Food Contact surfaces not cleaned/sanitized
Violation descriptions:
024 Ready-To-Eat-Food - Exposed to Possible Contamination from Raw Meats/Poultry/Fish/Eggs All food shall be manufactured, produced, prepared, packed, served so as to be pure, free from contamination, adulteration and spoilage. All food must be stored in an approved facility.
Read more: http://www.city-data.com/sf-restaurants/ONE-TASTE-URBAN-RETREAT.html#ixzz0XOBqkgLc
_________________________________




[quote lessthanzero]This might be of interest. On my way to work today I noticed that the One Taste building had a big old For Sale sign on the side of it.

http://www.loopnet.com/property/16359467/1074-Folsom/

http://www.hcmcommercial.com/resources/1074folsom_0914.pdf

Two different prices- have they had to come down?

This is my first post- I came hear over a year ago to read about Landmark, then stumbled onto this thread. I had experience with the One taste people years ago- an outside company was using their space for a series of classes. That was the only time that company used their space. I know I wasn't the only person who complained about the resident "hosts!"[/quote]]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78845#msg-78845 Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:11:45 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,2579,78837#msg-78837 corboy
http://www.google.com/search?q=%22evolutionary+spirituality%22&spell=1&ie=UTF-8&spell=1&hl=en&source=hp&btnG=Search]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,2579,78837#msg-78837 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:02:21 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78836#msg-78836 corboy "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78836#msg-78836 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:59:01 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78833#msg-78833 lessthanzero
http://www.loopnet.com/property/16359467/1074-Folsom/

http://www.hcmcommercial.com/resources/1074folsom_0914.pdf

Two different prices- have they had to come down?

This is my first post- I came hear over a year ago to read about Landmark, then stumbled onto this thread. I had experience with the One taste people years ago- an outside company was using their space for a series of classes. That was the only time that company used their space. I know I wasn't the only person who complained about the resident "hosts!"]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78833#msg-78833 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 07:46:59 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,77450,78831#msg-78831 The Anticult Byron Katie does the same thing.

In order to "work" for James Ray, you literally have to take every single course he offers, which costs a fortune. So he makes a fortune, and gets to completely indoctrinate/brainwash you at the same time.

Then after all of that, if you get "hired", then you do not get paid, commission only.
http://jamesray.com/pdf/careers/cert_hw_coach.pdf

This is how these LGAT companies operate.
Force people to take every single course, and "volunteer" to work for your private company.

Then, pick a few "sharks" out of the group who are skilled salespeople, and get them to "work" for you, totally on commission.
Its all free money for the Guru.]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,77450,78831#msg-78831 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 06:15:50 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78829#msg-78829 The Anticult [excerpts for educational research and analysis]


__________QUOTE______________________
About Us
History

Trellis House was purchased in February 2007 after a year of dreaming and searching by Marc and Rebekah Beneteau. Rebekah had been living for 5 years, and Marc 3 years, in the Yonkers Morehouse, and we both had taken a lot of courses with the Lafayette Morehouse (previously More University). The experience of living in the communal environment of Morehouse, and the courses, had inspired and fundamentally transformed both our relationship to each other and our world views, and led us into a kind of agreement, intimacy and enjoyable synergy that neither of us had experienced before in any kind of sexual or romantic partnership. ...

Since our founding, we have developed partnerships, and produce courses for, a number of schools of spiritual and social development, in addition to Morehouse (see our Partner's page). We continue to have a deep respect and appreciation for the lifestyle that was pioneered by the Lafayette Morehouse, and for the teachings of the late Victor Baranco, founder of Morehouse, in the areas of group living, sensuality, and communication. We live to the best of our understanding by the viewpoints and zest for life embodied by Vic and his wife Cindy Baranco, and we continue to study with, grow and learn from the Lafayette Morehouse.

Rebekah Beneteau

Rebekah is a coach and energy healer, whose passion is to empower her clients in the areas of relationships, sensuality, spirtuality, and professional fulfillment. She has worked as a waitress and restaurant manager, real-estate writer, stand-up comedian, clown, and most recently, office manager of a synagogue. ...
While studying energy healing at the Barbara Brennan School of Healing in 1996, she was introduced to the Yonkers Morehouse and started attending Mark Groups. That summer, she began taking courses with Lafayette Morehouse, an adventure that continues to this day. In 2001 she moved into the Yonkers Morehouse along with her daughters and then-husband. The husband left, but Rebekah felt she had discovered “the only way I want to live for the rest of my life.” An ordained non-denominational minister, Rebekah feels The Trellis Community is a ministry of love, fun and companionship. Her favorite things to do in life are sex, sitting around laughing with friends, singing, dancing, and working with groups and individuals to see “their lights go on, their passion get plugged in.” She is still active in her Professional Energy Healing Practice. Her primary mentors and inspiration come from Victor and Cindy Baranco of Lafayette Morehouse, Jerry Jud and Shalom Mountain, A Course in Miracles, Esther Hicks/Abraham, Conversations with God, Twelve Step programs and Barbara Brennan.
...

Marc Beneteau

Marc started his communal living experience in a student housing co-operative in college. This house was the place where the best parties happened and the most interesting conversations were to be had - and his fundamental communal needs and instincts have changed very little over the years. His greatest turn-on nowadays is still those magical moments of deeper contact and understanding with people, whether it be a passing nod of friendship and complicity with a stranger, or an all-night merging of hearts and minds in a conversation in which time stops.
Marc runs Trellis House and works as a freelance Internet marketing & social media consultant and Lifestyle Design Coach. He is connected with / inspired by a wide range of human potentials and "new culture" movements, including the Lafayette Morehouse, Saniel Bonder / Waking Down in Mutuality, the Essential Experience Workshop, Pachamama Alliance, Shalom Mountain Retreat Center, Quakers, ZEGG / Network For a New Culture, David Deida / Tantra Sexuality, Ecology / Sustainability, Voluntary Simplicity, Non Violent Communication (NVC), Evolutionary Spirituality, Landmark Education, and others. ....



Mark Groups - Trellis House
Mark Groups
A Mark Group is an evening of social conversation games, designed for meeting people and having fun. Participants can get to know people from many walks of life in a relatively short time, within a safe and controlled environment.
Mark Groups are an opportunity to "know and be known" in a deeper way than in your typical cocktail party. They run the gamut from fun and light-hearted, to hilarious, to quiet and deeply intimate. A Mark Group is an enjoyable evening of surprising intimacy for less than the price of a movie and popcorn!
Mark Groups are scheduled regularly at Trellis and at other hosts throughout the city.



Cuddle Party - Trellis House http://cuddleparty.com/about/whatis.cfm. Location: Trellis House, 16** Dekalb St, Norristown PA


Residential Program - Trellis House
Residential Program
After you have experienced Mark Groups, and/or courses and other gatherings, you may decide you want to try out living with us! We provide the opportunity to do this in a course called "A Taste of Trellis", which is a 12-day intensive in which you reside in our one-no-vote communal environment and get to experience the ins and outs of communal living. The course allows you to evalute our lifestyle for yourself and explore / experiment with your participation. This course is a prerequisite to living in our community house, however, above and beyond that, it is a stand-alone learning experience of living in a group, responsible hedonism, and conscious creation of your life.
...
For more information please write or call us.



Essential Experience Workshop - Trellis House
From Thursday, 14 May 2009 - 19:00
To Sunday, 17 May 2009 - 22:00
Essential Experience Workshop (http://ee.org).

EE is a 3 1/2 day (Thursday night through Sunday night) transformational workshop. Some of us will be attending and others will be on team. This is an extremely rich environment for exploring and creating your life, I hope you will join us. It's also a home-based Philadelphia group so the opportunities for networking and community-building after the workshop are very real. The write up from the website below.

The workshop offers a safe place to explore feelings and experiment with changes in attitude and behavior. ...
After The Workshop
The Workshop is primarily a beginning. After graduation, the real work of making and sustaining lasting change begins in earnest. This ongoing work requires ongoing support.
While each graduate creates support in his or her own way, a number of structures have been created by the hundreds of people who have graduated from the workshop in Philadelphia since 1989. Each workshop goup meets for a reunion following the workshop, and many groups have continued to meet thereafter.




Frequently Asked Questions

Do residents pay rent?
No. Residents pay tuition for a residential educational experience on group living, relationships, communication, and conscious creation of your life. Lodging is included in the tuition amount, which is currently $600.

Do you miss your privacy?
When we want our privacy, we put a sign on our door that says "Later Please," which is an inviolable request. The gift of living with a group is that you only have to be alone when you want to. A major premise of our lives together is that everyone is perfect, including the potential for change. In our experience, one's needs for privacy change when they live in an atmosphere of non-judgement.

What are the requirements for living at Trellis?
The main requirement for living here is a desire to have fun and to serve others. Beyond that, we require potential new residents to take our 12-day residential intensive course, and to commit to taking at least one Morehouse course in the upcoming year. To actually move-in and become a full community member, you must receive a "yes vote" from all all residents, which happens towards the end of your trial.

What is your governing structure?
Our governing structure is the "One No Vote," in which any member of the community can block any proposed new action, forever. The "One No Vote" is very rarely invoked, its purpose is mainly to ensure ongoing conversation on important issues. We believe that a win-win exists for every issue, and that "there is only one appetite" (meaning that everyone in a conversation tends to converge towards the same goal when the conversation is handled lovingly and respectfully by all).

Is the house under communal ownership?
Not currently, although that is a goal we are moving towards. The house is currently owned by the "Housemothers," Marc and Rebekah.
....

What is your connection to the Lafayette Morehouse?
The Lafayette Morehouse originated the concept of One No Vote and has greatly inspired our lifestyle. Although we have tremendous respect for what they have done and continue to do, we do not have any formal affiliation. We are students of their material, have produced courses for them in the past and probably will in the future.

....

Are you polyamorous?
No. However, we do respect people's right to enjoy whatever types of relationships bring them pleasure, within the law and within common-sense responsibility and ethics.


What charitable activities are you involved in?
We are involved in "food gleaning" (recycling surplus food from stores to those in need) and are building a transitional housing program. Our registered 501(c)3 charity, which is called the Stone Soup Collective, accepts donations for these purposes. We do charitable work because we believe that unselfish giving is a wonderful source of fun and personal transformation.
...

______________QUOTE_____________________]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78829#msg-78829 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:51:28 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78759,78826#msg-78826 The Anticult
Also, that thread was merged, so it begins with posts by Marc Beneteau about Baranco and Daedone, where Beneteau is putting out all sorts of false and self-serving disinformation.

Victor Baranco, Lafayette Morehouse,Nicole Daedone, One Taste - cults? http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400

The title of that old book "Mindfuckers" cuts to the core of this area of sex-groups.
Mindfuckers: A Source Book on the Rise of Acid Fascism in America, Including Material on Charles Manson, Mel Lyman, Victor Baranco, and Their Followers
http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,62459#msg-62459


What will they do next?
Change the name of the group, move, and start over.
Just like ole Vic Baranco, keep changing those group names and addresses, and keep hunting for your "Marks".]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78759,78826#msg-78826 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:19:51 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78825#msg-78825 The Anticult
His wife Rebekah Beneteau is mentioned in the article.
http://www.timesherald.com/articles/2009/11/16/news/doc4b00be3032043133483088.txt

Here is Marc Beneteau running his Victor Baranco apologetics and deceptive tactics. http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,page=1

Notice how Marc Beneteau was directly identified for what he was doing, and challenged right here in this forum about what was going on, and gave the typical deceptive responses that can trick many people.
Many of these destructive groups try to market themselves with the "soft-sell".

ManKind Group "elders" do the same thing.That's how they think...misdirect.
Mankind project deception http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?4,12552,78393#msg-78393

Its a fatal mistake to fall for the soft deceptive presentation these groups and their leaders give.

Even in the article, they are still trying to run their Victor Baranco mind-game.
QUOTE: "have a charity program where we collect surplus food from Wegmans and Paneras and we give it out on street corners in Norristown". http://www.timesherald.com/articles/2009/11/16/news/doc4b00be3032043133483088.txt

That is the EXACT SAME TACTIC used by Victor Baranco, they literally "use" people in need as a type of marketing device.
If they REALLY wanted to help feed hungry local people, then just anonymously donate food and money to the local food bank.
But NO, they want to go and turn it into advertising and STREET RECRUITING, exactly like Victor Baranco, who literally used homeless people as bargaining chips. Literally, read the press from the era in this thread.
They also used sex as a recruiting device.

Who else is doing the same thing?
OneTaste by Nicole Daedone, with their so-called "Fill-Up America" which is also openly USING those in need for their own purposes, which they learned from Victor Baranco and Morehouse.
http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,62539#msg-62539
another exact similarity.
One Taste has a non-profit called "Fill Up America".
Morehouse has a non-profit called "Turn On To America".

The names both sound like names created by Vic Baranco. They both are double entendre's as well, typical to Vic Baranco.
Trellis House by Marc Beneteau was trying to use similar tactics.

One year ago it was asked if Trellis House had the proper permits.
November 01, 2008 "One has to wonder, do these other offshoots like OneTaste and Trellis House have the proper permits for group living for profit, zoning laws, etc? That is what seems to have started the problems for Victor Baranco."
http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,62487#msg-62487

The entire thing stinks to high heaven. And how long before OneTaste also hits the papers?
Seem there is about a 3 year lag from being analyzed in this forum, until it hits the news.
James Arthur Ray was pointed out 3 years ago as being very dangerous. http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,77450
Byron Katie will hit the news one day, once it gets bad enough.
http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,12906
Byron Katie and "The Work" Participant Reports http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,67778

They always try to dupe and deceive people with a soft-sell and "gentle debate". That's how they find their Marks.



______________QUOTE____________________
http://www.timesherald.com/articles/2009/11/16/news/doc4b00be3032043133483088.txt
Officials shut down ‘boarding house’

Monday, November 16, 2009

By CARL ROTENBERG
Times Herald Staff

NORRISTOWN — Municipal officials are closing down a self-described “intentional community” in the 1600 block of DeKalb Street that occupied a single-family home.

A neighbor called code enforcement nearly two weeks ago to complain that a family was running an illegal rooming house in the Residental A zone, said Jayne Musonye, the Director of Planning.

An inspection by code enforcement officer Debbie Van Allen on Nov. 4 confirmed the complaint, Musonye said.

On Nov. 5, the owners of the home filled out a “use and registration” form as a first step toward requesting a zoning variance from the Zoning Hearing Board to operate the rooming house.

“Rooming houses are not permitted in that district,” Musonye said, “and we told them they had to seek a zoning variance. They have 30 days to apply to the zoning board.”

Musonye said six individuals unrelated to the family were living at the home last week.

They included a mother-daughter family, two single men and a couple, said one of the owners.

The family has two children.

“We are running an intentional community on the 1600 block of Dekalb that is called Trellis House,” said the other owner. “We are a 501(C)3. Our goal is to provide services to the community and to be a force for good in the community. We have a charity program where we collect surplus food from Wegmans and Paneras and we give it out on street corners in Norristown.”

The owner said municipal officials “came on Monday and told us we had to vacate all non-family members. We are doing that. We consider this is extremely harsh to vacate a whole house in four days.”

Musonye said code enforcement had notified the family on Tuesday that all unrelated tenants had to move out by Friday. The family will be allowed to remain in the home.

An inspection of the home by code enforcement officers was conducted on Friday afternoon.

“It’s our understanding they were running a boarding house,” said Joseph Januzelli, the municipal code enforcement manager. “There were multiple, unrelated tenants in the building.”

Rebekah Beneteau said the family had decided, following the inspection, they were returning to being a nuclear family and would not pursue a variance for a rooming house from the zoning hearing board.

“We vacated all of our tenants and people we considered extended family so code enforcement said that we were in compliance,” Beneteau said.

___________QUOTE_______________________]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78825#msg-78825 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 05:09:14 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78759,78823#msg-78823 The Anticult
Yes it is, his wife Rebekah Beneteau is mentioned in the article.
http://www.timesherald.com/articles/2009/11/16/news/doc4b00be3032043133483088.txt

Notice how Marc Beneteau was directly challenged right here in this forum about what was going on, and gave the typical responses that can trick many people.
Many of these destructive groups try to market themselves with the "soft-sell".
ManKind Group "elders" do the same thing.

Its a big mistake to fall for the fake and deceptive presentation these groups and their leaders give.]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78759,78823#msg-78823 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:37:57 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78759,78806#msg-78806 Fran221 "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78759,78806#msg-78806 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:13:56 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78805#msg-78805 Fran221 "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78805#msg-78805 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 00:13:35 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78779#msg-78779 corboy
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&source=hp&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=%22trellis+house%22+%22andrew+cohen%22&btnG=Google+Search

http://whatenlightenment.blogspot.com/2009/11/william-yenner-reflects-on-responses-to.html]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,62400,78779#msg-78779 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:28:10 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,64837,78776#msg-78776 notanantiGnostic
Those other sources are never properly explored, philosophically, culturally or spiritually. They are simply accepted the way the leader presents them. If you disagree with that interpretation, which is in itself a manipulation you are eventually ostricized and you leave.

There is a statement made by Victor Gomez ("Samael Aun Weor") that the true occult is Gnosticism (what he called Gnosticism). As a result he called any other form of the occult the pseudo-occult. By the way he seems to have loved calling others pseudo whatever to imply they were not the real deal. This coming from a pseudo-Gnostic.]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,64837,78776#msg-78776 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:50:28 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,25113,78769#msg-78769 Blue Dakini I searched your site as best I could, but did not find the reference to CH that you mention. I checked Web Sherriff..hmmmm. IMHO-- it would be almost impossible to legally enforce anything they mention, but I admit to a cursory scan rather than an in depth survey. IMHO (again) if Hansard had a case against individuals who have posted on this site, he would have sued by now. I don't think you have anything to worry about.
A request -- please can you make your Controversial Groups section easier to find? And BTW I hope you include Rigpa and Sogyal Lakar aka Rinpoche in this category.]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,25113,78769#msg-78769 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:24:01 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,49190,78767#msg-78767 zeuszor
OVER 5000 HITS IN APPROXIMATELY THREE WEEKS, CHECK IT OUT!]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,49190,78767#msg-78767 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 04:13:03 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,49190,78764#msg-78764 zeuszor "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,49190,78764#msg-78764 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:15:07 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,25113,78763#msg-78763 rudyh01
Just for your information, I placed Chris Hansard on my website http://www.viewonbuddhism.org under controversial people and groups. And guess what, today I received an aggressive mail from http://www.websheriff.com. I have never ever read such an open and gross threat to my freedom of speech on the internet. They threaten to take my site down just because there is a link to [b]this thread[/b].
This is the text of the email from SL@websheriff.com:
---

[i]Please be advised that Web Sheriff represents Christopher Hansard in relation to the above matter, as his on-line, intellectual property, rights agents.

It has been brought to our said principal’s / client’s attention that your blog (situated at http://www.viewonbuddhism.org/controversy-controversial-teacher-group-center-questionable.html and hereinafter referred to as the “Infringing Site”) has published posts headlined ‘A View On Buddhism’ that contains a link to highly defamatory material (hereinafter referred to as the “Infringing Post”). Whilst our client reserves his position as regards the aforementioned material generally, the Infringing Post is both untrue and a gross distortion and, moreover, are not only libellous of Mr. Hansard, but also potentially constitute malicious falsehoods injurious his business interests: as such, the Infringing Site and, equally, all of its directors, officers and administrators are liable to our client in damages.

That having been said, we would invite you to simply remove the Infringing Post immediately, whereupon our client would consider not pursuing his claims further. Should you fail to immediately remove the Infringing Post, however, (a) Web Sheriff shall be obliged to take direct action to have your web-site taken off line and (b) our client’s litigation attorneys, solicitors and advocats shall also be obliged to take all necessary action (via the Courts and on a multi-jurisdictional basis) to seek legal redress for our client in this matter.

In view of the very serious nature of this matter, we must insist that you revert to us by return / overnight, with confirmation of the above request (or otherwise – as applicable). In this regard, we must also insist upon separate confirmation from all other owners, officers and admins of the Infringing Site as, clearly, there would be a conflict-of-interest between you should this matter proceed to litigation / enforcement and damages actions in the Courts. Similarly, should you / your colleagues be unwilling or otherwise unable to comply with our, in the circumstances, very reasonable request, we must ask that each owner, officer and admin of the Infringing Site provide us - by return - with the names and addresses of the (again separate) US attorneys, UK solicitors, French advocats and German advocats whom you respectively intend to instruct in relation to this matter, for the purposes of accepting the service of the proceedings that our client’s appointed litigation attorneys, solicitors and advocats would issue against - inter alia – the Infringing Site and its owners, officers and admins on behalf of our client in such an event. Naturally, however, we trust that such a course of action shall not prove to be necessary and that common-sense (on your part) shall prevail.

Whilst writing, we would strongly advise you against communicating or otherwise 'posting' any correspondence and / or remarks to third parties that could, in any way, be construed as being defamatory of our client or which could otherwise constitute malicious falsehoods injurious to our client’s business interests. We would further advise you that this e-mail / communication is both confidential, without prejudice (save as to Court costs) and the copyright of Web Sheriff and that, accordingly, any publication and / or communication to third parties (other than, of course, your legal representatives) is prohibited and would be actionable: furthermore and for the avoidance of doubt, Web Sheriff cannot be held liable for the consequences of the publication and / or communication of this e-mail to third parties in circumstances where such publication and / or communication originated from you and / or parties acting in unison with you.

As you will appreciate, this e-mail – containing, as it does, a position that is potentially prejudicial to our client’s open / formal position – is written on a without prejudice basis (again save as to costs) and, as such, all of our client’s accumulated, worldwide rights and civil and criminal remedies – including, but not limited to, the right to apply for injunctive relief, damages, costs and interest on a multi-jurisdictional basis, the right to cite further infringements by you, the right to subpoena all historical records relating to the Infringing Site and the Infringing Post and the right to report your activities to the appropriate, regulatory and Federal authorities (all as applicable), together with the right to join and / or institute proceedings against your ISP and your domain maintainer for, inter alia, knowingly hosting the Infringing Site and the Infringing Post respectively - are hereby strictly reserved : please excuse this required formality which, hopefully, we shall soon be able to dispense with.

Once again, we shall look forward to hearing from you by return / overnight and, in all of the circumstances, trust that you shall comply with this request.

Yours Faithfully,

WEB SHERIFF[/i]
---

I don't know Chris Hansard, but if he resorts to such gross gun-slingers, it only seems to justify his placement on my website as a controversial teacher.

Love & clear light,
Rudy]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,25113,78763#msg-78763 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:10:03 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,49190,78762#msg-78762 free of DM "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,49190,78762#msg-78762 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:03:08 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,10965,78761#msg-78761 free of DM
http://www.myfoxla.com/dpp/news/investigative/jesus_christians_cult_justice_20091110]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,10965,78761#msg-78761 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 22:02:25 +0100 http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78759,78759#msg-78759 Fran221
It was just shut down by local zoning officials--at least temporarily: http://www.timesherald.com/articles/2009/11/16/news/doc4b00be3032043133483088.txt,
but for some reason the reporter didn't go into a lot of detail about the cult aspects of this place--even though it was all right on their website--Trellishouse.org. In the meantime they shut down their website and any old blog posts connected to it (and there were a lot).

Someone posted a lot of comments on this news article, with links to the old information--but then, for some reason, the newspaper deleted all of the links.

This is a creepy bunch of people--AND there are kids living in the house too.]]> "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements" http://forum.rickross.com/read.php?12,78759,78759#msg-78759 Tue, 17 Nov 2009 21:26:43 +0100