Let's Talk About Sects

Dec 03 2024 88 ep. 64 mins 16.5k
Let's Talk About Sects Podcast artwork

Let's Talk About Sects is an award-winning monthly podcast focusing on a different cult each episode. Sarah takes a storytelling, deep dive approach, looking at the history of a sect's leaders, the recruitment of members, their experiences, psychological aspects, and notable incidents during its existence.

You can support us on Patreon, with a one-off donation, or grab some merch. Sarah Steel's debut book Do As I Say is available now.

“A fascinating and well-researched look into cults and the charismatic leaders behind them.” Peter Wells, The Sydney Morning Herald

“A fantastic examination of sects, cults, and religion… a fact-based program that’ll hook you in and keep you coming back for more.” Zach Johnston, Uproxx

“Cleverly named, meticulously researched.” Elena Nicolaou, Refinery29

“The best podcast of its kind – I can’t wait for another episode!” Apple Podcasts review from a US listener

“I study cults and sects and for this reason listen to many podcasts on these subjects. This one is by far the best.” Apple Podcasts review from a US listener

“Best podcast about cults I’ve found.” Apple Podcasts review from an Australian listener

Subscribe and support the production of this independent podcast, and you can access early + ad-free episodes at https://plus.acast.com/s/lets-talk-about-sects.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  True Crime  Society & Culture  Religion & Spirituality
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Bonus Episode: A New Media Narrative at Decult

Dec 03 2024 61 mins  
Sarah moderated a panel discussion at the recent Decult conference in Christchurch, New Zealand, entitled 'A new media narrative: Survivor-focussed cult reporting'. The panel featured MISA survivor Bec Sonkkila, documentary filmmaker Natalie Malcon, RNZ investigative reporter Anusha Bradley, and media law Professor Ursula Cheer. This bonus episode is a recording of the session, cou

The Revival Fellowship

Nov 19 2024 67 mins  
The Revival Fellowship is a Pentecostal Australian sect that believes in Bible Numerics, a thoroughly debunked theory about numerical patterns found within the Bible. It also teaches British Israelism, generally considered to be unscientific and ahistorical and by some as a justification for racism. The Fellowship would say its teachings are in line with 'complementarianism', thoug

Running River: the Divine Madness School

Oct 08 2024 65 mins  
AJ was sent to the Running River school in around 2007, to attend kindergarten when she was five or six years old. The school was headed up by longtime Divine Madness community member Nancy Monson, and founder Marc ‘Yo’ Tizer didn’t have a whole lot to do with it. AJ stayed in the school up until sixth grade, when a new teacher became concerned and shared with parents some of

ICAM & The Freedom Train Project

Sep 10 2024 52 mins  
Dr Tabitha Chapman is the founder of The Freedom Train Project, a 501(c)(3) non-profit that provides crucial services for individuals exiting cults or coercive environments. One initiative of the project is International Cult Awareness Month (ICAM) which just concluded its third annual instalment in August 2024 with a focus on policy and cults. In this episode, Tabit

Cults & Healthcare Neglect

Aug 20 2024 60 mins  
Dr Caroline Ansley is the founder of Centrepoint Restoration Project, a website that serves as a connection point, archive of information and safe landing space for former children of New Zealand’s notorious Centrepoint cult – with which Caroline has personal experience. She is also a General Practitioner, with over 20 years' clinical experience in community medicine, and 10 ye

Universal Predator with Esther Rockett

Jul 16 2024 58 mins  
You may recall the name ‘Esther Rockett’ from episode 2, season 3 of this podcast, which was all about Universal Medicine – Serge Benhayon’s esoteric healing cult in the Northern Rivers region of NSW. Esther has been blogging about the more alarming elements of Serge’s ‘modalities’ since 2012, and he sued her for defamation in 2015. The case went to trial in 2018, and

Cult Information and Family Support with Tore Klevjer

Jun 18 2024 46 mins  
Tore Klevjer has been involved with the volunteer charity organisation Cult Information and Family Support (CIFS) since its very formation almost three decades ago, in 1996. Avid listeners of this podcast will know that the end of every episode mentions CIFS. We’re lucky in Australia to have this incredibly dedicated group of volunteers who support those impacted by cults and off

Escaping Twin Flames with Cecilia Peck & Inbal B. Lessner

May 06 2024 58 mins  
Cecilia Peck and Inbal B. Lessner are the director/producer/editor team behind the award-winning Escaping Twin Flames, a three-part documentary series for Netflix about Twin Flames Universe – a cult you may remember from season 5. This powerhouse duo has turned their talents to investigating high-control groups over their last couple of projects, with Cecilia and Inbal

Interview Episode: LGATs with John Hunter PhD

Apr 16 2024 94 mins  
For his 2017 PhD, John Hunter put forward a hypothesis that offers insights into both the “transformational” experiences associated with large group awareness training (LGAT) participation and the common claims of psychological harm and problematic behaviour associated with participation. Dr Hunter presented his work at the 2023 International Cultic Studies Association conferen

Message from Sarah

Mar 26 2024 5 mins  
A little update from Sarah about what to expect with Let's Talk About Sects now that we're winding up the sixth season of the show. Don't worry, we're not going anywhere! But there are a few small changes to make sure that this project remains sustainable.Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/ltaspodhttps://www.ltaspod.com/supporters Subscribe and support the production of this