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PODCAST

Speaking of Cults

A podcast about cults, coercive control and recovery. Formerly called the Sensibly Speaking podcast, in this weekly show host Chris Shelton interviews cult survivors, psychologists and other professionals and specialists about the topics of cult recruitment, retention and recovery. This also includes non-religious cults and extreme political movements including the more divisive elements of MAGA and left-wing culture war issues. There is nothing off-limits but we always try to be respectful of the

education

All Episodes

01:55:06

Speaking of Cults...Good Sex and Bad Groups

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/04/19

This week, I welcome Cara Cordoni, a sex-positive coach, and Dave Booda, to discuss how groups such as the tantric sexual healing group ISTA use the same cult-like tactics known as Large Group Awareness Training. We go into a lot of detail on this. Enjoy!Cara's website: https://caracordonicoaching.com Dave's article: https://boodaism.com/ista/ 3SC Community: https://3sc.community NY Magazine article: https://archive.md/SxPTQ

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01:49:00

Speaking of Cults...Writing Your Cult Trauma Away...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/04/15

This week, I welcome cult survivor, author and consultant Gerrette Buglion to discuss her work, cults in general, and the healing power of writing. This is a wide-ranging conversation which I hope you'll check out. Enjoy! Gerette's website: https://www.gerettebuglion.com/

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13:54

Speaking of Cults...The Myth of Personal Transformation

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/04/15

This podcast was meant to be posted on March 22 but somehow disappeared from the audio lineup, so I'm re-posting it now. This very short episode focuses on an important point in today's self-help-filled world: the myth of instant personal transformation. You may feel you're above such obvious cons, but why do self-help gurus make billions every year peddling life coaching and personal transformation? Someone believes this stuff! Enjoy!

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19:37

Speaking of Cults...Is the United States a Cult Now?

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/04/05

This week, we are back to a very short show as I decided that I would put my expertise to work to try to give some very practical advice on what to do in our current outrageous social/political environment here in the US. I hope it helps. Enjoy!

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02:33:31

Speaking of Cults...What the Mormons Can Teach Us...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/03/29

One thing I know my audience appreciates is the fact we are not afraid to go deep into the details of what goes on in cults and today is a big one. We are looking at the problem of cult leader succession, so let's look at how the Mormons did it. Bryce Blankenangel and Shannon Grover join me and provide a wonderful and nuanced insight into the full history of this topic. Enjoy!Glassbox podcast: https://glassboxpodcast.com/

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55:38

Speaking of Cults...Let's Talk about Grant Cardone

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/03/15

This week by request I am interviewing Ben John, an entrepreneur and social media personality who was taken in by Grant Cardone's 10X MLM-like scheme, paid in hundreds of thousands for class and coaching work which resulted in absolutely nothing and when he tried to seek recourse, he was ghosted and "disconnected." Sometimes the business world can be just as shady as the religious one. Enjoy!Ben's channel: @TodaysMisguidedMentors

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26:28

Speaking of Cults...Is Wokeism a Cult?

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/03/08

By popular demand, I am taking this week to honestly but maybe with a little snark look at the question of whether "wokeism" is a cult. Let's be honest about the problems and bad behavior on the Left, and let's take a look at whether a real cult exists there or not. I look forward to seeing your comments on this one! Enjoy!

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31:57

Speaking of Cults...Is America Becoming a Cult of...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/03/01

This podcast is NOT a rant about any cult of Trump, but the fact I even have to lead with that is a sign of what this podcast is all about. This week I present 10 points of how obedience is coerced in any group (religious, political, sports, etc) and specifically how I see this playing out in Western politics, kind of cult behavior hiding in plain sight. This historically always results in pretty horrible lives for a lot of people and I hope this can help open some eyes. Enjoy!

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01:32:55

Speaking of Cults...Mormonism and Compliance Culture

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/02/22

This week I welcome back Bryce Blankenagel and Shannon Grover, two former members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. In our second discussion about the Mormon church, we go over the Mormon story of Joseph Smith's life and how this and many other things are used to create a compliance culture in the Mormon communities. Enjoy!Find Bryce and Shannon on the GlassBox podcast.

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31:28

Speaking of Cults...Has a Cult Taken Over US Politics?

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/02/15

This week I discuss the fact of Christian Nationalism in the United States and the long-term evolution of what has become a disturbing ideological force in our current political climate. This is not something that just happened, or that happened overnight. In today's show, I discuss the background and agenda of the Evangelical Christian Nationalists. It's not necessarily an enjoyable show, but I hope it is an educational one.

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01:40:19

Speaking of Cults...What is Mormonism?

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/02/08

This week I welcome Bryce Blankenagel and Shannon Grover, two former members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. They not only have personal stories to tell but have dived deep into the details of the Mormon church itself, past and present. In this podcast, we take a broad look at the Mormon Church as a destructive cult and see how there are many layers of deception, unaccountability, political meddling and financial shenanigans that should give anyone pause. Enjoy!Find Bryce and

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01:13:30

Speaking of Cults...Healthy Sex after Leaving a Cult...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/02/01

This week I welcome Jeremiah Gibson and Julia Postema, certified and licensed sex therapists on the East Coast who help me understand honesty, openness and healthy boundaries in romantic/sexual relationships after leaving an abusive relationship or destructive cult. We covered a lot of territory in a short amount of time. Enjoy!J&J's website: https://Sexvangelicals.com and https://LetsHealTogether.org Contact: info@LetsHealTogether.org

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31:49

Speaking of Cults...The Post-Truth World is Making Us...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/01/25

This week I am breaking down the exact reasons why we are living in a post-truth crisis that is quite literally tearing apart the social fabric of our society and institutions. This has allowed populist, dictatorial types like Donald Trump to rise to power and start to destroy everything that has made America great. In addition to defining and explaining how this problem came about, I also offer some ideas of what we can and should be doing about it. It's not a good picture but it's not all doom and

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01:06:36

Speaking of Cults...Parasocial Relationships and...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/01/12

This week we posted the audio stream a little later than usual because we did something special - a live podcast. This particular subject of parasocial relationships with audience members is not a unique problem of YouTube but I thought there was never a subject that deserved an interactive approach with my audience as much as this one. Enjoy!

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01:06:36

Speaking of Cults...Parasocial Relationships and...

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/01/12

This week we are doing something special - a live podcast. This particular subject of parasocial relationships with audience members is not a unique problem of YouTube but I thought there was never a subject that deserved an interactive approach with my audience as much as this one. Enjoy!

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16:18

Speaking of Cults...What Mice Teach Us about Our Purpose

Speaking of Cults ·

2025/01/04

This week we take a dive into the work of ethnologist John B. Calhoun and the very unexpected results of his experiments, and most importantly what this means to us personally. It's a big-picture look, but that's what we do here, so enjoy!Here is the full script of the episode: Hello and welcome back to the Speaking of Cults podcast. I am your host, Chris Shelton. Usually on my podcast we circle around obvious cultic behavior and interviews with former cult members but lately we’ve been taking some

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33:40

Speaking of Cults...Does our Economy Create Cults?

Speaking of Cults ·

2024/12/28

This week I have some economic issues to bring up which I believe help explain not only current ideological divides but also why there has been an apparent rise in cults for the last many decades. It's a big-picture look, but that's what we do here, so enjoy!EPI article cited: https://www.epi.org/publication/charting-wage-stagnation/

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01:01:05

Speaking of Cults...Recovering from Religious Trauma...

Speaking of Cults ·

2024/12/21

This week I welcome Helen Greene, a volunteer worker at the Freedom from Religion foundation and a wonderful guest to talk about the experience of religion (traditional and otherwise) on our psyche and what some people experience when they try to leave religion behind. Enjoy!I'm trying out a new thing this week of including a summary of the podcast. Religion, Spirituality, and Deconversion Journey In the meeting, Chris and Helen discussed their experiences with religion and spirituality

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01:14:48

Speaking of Cults...Scientology, Auditing and the Sea...

Speaking of Cults ·

2024/12/14

In this show, I welcome again Julie McKernan to take what I hope you'll agree is a much deeper and more nuanced conversation about what it's like to be in a cult like Scientology than you'll usually find. We cover a lot of territory in this show about how Scientologists and the Sea Org relate. Enjoy!

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57:54

Speaking of Cults...Can Fiction Work Help Expose...

Speaking of Cults ·

2024/12/07

We are back from our November hiatus with an interview about cult fiction by author Sadie Hoagland. This is particularly important to the ex-cult space because there are tools of exposure available to fiction authors that can help inform and raise awareness about cult phenomena that non-fiction work can miss or ignore. Enjoy!Sadie's website: https://sadiehoagland.com

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