He told his followers to reject their families because he wanted total control over their hearts, minds and eventually their souls. What scares me the most is the fact that there are more Marshall Herff Applewhites out there. We must ask ourselves why more and more people are seeking God, heaven or Nirvana outside the organizations that supposedly are meant to assist the faithful in their search for the divine. Whoever does not find food in one place abandons it for another where nourishment is promised. At a moment of crisis, when people most need supernatural assistance, all they find are hollow temples given to worldly pursuits.
Spiritual hunger is a natural part of the human psyche, but so are self-centeredness and obstinacy.
To a decaying society rife with addicts and 39 dead Trekkies. It's time to get our heads out of the stars and turn back to that old-time religion. With a little extra effort, they could have bored themselves to death. What happened in Rancho Santa Fe, California, was by no means a tragedy. Thirty-nine people did what they felt was necessary to achieve eternal happiness.