I recently caught this episode of the Simpsons and I couldn't help notice certain similarities to the JWS
and the cult thats portrayed in this skit.
The leaders promises the followers that he's going to take them to Paradise, when all he does is take everyone for a ride with all of their money in tact.
Movementarianism
The Movementarians Mass Marriage.
Movementarianism, whose followers are known as Movementarians, is portrayed as an evil brainwashing cult which for a brief time ensnared many of Springfield's citizens in the episode "The Joy of Sect". The Movementarians are led by a mysterious figure known only as "The Leader" who is seen only in portrait.
[edit] Recruitment
Movementarians recruit new members using the following method:
- Attracting the attention of potential members at airports and other public places and inviting them to a free weekend retreat.
- At the weekend retreat, the attendees are shown brainwashing films. Should that fail, the Movementarians use other techniques like feeding them meals of low-protein gruel, getting them to participate in chanting rituals or forcing them to sit before the circle of judgment where they are ridiculed to conform.
- Once members are ensnared, the recruits are obliged to hand over their life savings and the deeds to their houses. The recruits then move into the Movementarian agricultural compound to harvest lima beans.
[edit] Beliefs
The Movementarians believe that their religious figurehead - The Leader - will one day open the doors of "The Forbidden Barn" and lead them to the planet of "Blisstonia" ("well known for its high levels of bliss"). The Cult members live in a Movementarian compound, where they do backbreaking labor all day and watch as the Leader rides around in what appears to be a Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud. Cultists are forced to perform labor for thousands of years before being able to travel to Blisstonia. The religion also includes a mass marriage in which all of its members are matched up on a printout. These marriages include same sex marriage and the marriage of parents and children. The Leader's will is actually carried out by a small group of especially devoted followers who recruit members, perform rituals (such as the mass marriage) and run the compounds.
[edit] The Leader
The Leader is a mysterious figurehead who is worshiped completely by the Cult followers. He aspires to brainwash and dominate the will of the people of Springfield and take their money. His followers try to bend others' wills to worship the leader via methods such as chanting, brainwashing videos and low protein gruel. The Leader lives in the "Forbidden Barn," and would sometimes observe the workers, while driving around in a black limo, and would wave his visible white-gloved hand to the people. In the end, it is revealed that The Leader is actually a fraud after Homer opened the doors to The Forbidden Barn. The cultists see a spaceship inside, which rises but eventually falls apart, revealing the Leader who is riding a flying bicycle filled with money bags, and making spaceship sounds with wax paper and a comb. At first, Kent Brockman, a local news anchor, was extremely skeptical of the leader, even starting a brief expose in which an image of the Leader looking like a hick is shown. But, it turns out that the station was bought by The Leader and Kent immediately begins singing his praises. The Leader is eventually caught after crash landing on Cletus's dirt farm - with Cletus claiming the town's money carried by the Leader with the aid of a shotgun.
[edit] Education
In grade school the children are asked questions by a teacher with all answers being "the Leader". In pre-school Barney the Dinosaur sings "We love him. He loves we. We're the Leader's family, with a big great hug to the leaders family, don't you love the leader too?"