94) Deadliest Cults in History

What drives people to join a cult? What drives a cult full of once-normal people to kill? In this episode, Nick & Brandon return to the true crime genre to take a deep-dive into the history of cults. Brandon tries to guess Nick's list of the Top 10 Deadliest Cults in History, ranked by body count. PLUS...what makes for an effective cult leader, common trends among cults, peaceful cults vs. dangerous cults, very famous cults and little-known cults, the Lamb of God vs. the Heifer of God, giving your life-savings to your cult, performing miracles, Helter Skelter, the Bottomless Pit, dark magic and dark rituals, voluntary castration, plenty of cult #HotTakes, the ultimate fate of cults and their leaders, Chris Tucker, cult members "bangin' each other", race wars, Family Feud, Brandon tries to guess all 10 Commandments from memory, being stomped to death, the Mexican George Costanza, Kentucky vampires, and MUCH more. --------------------------------- This episode would not have been possible without the research and expertise of our friends at the L.A. Not So Confidential Podcast. L.A. Not So Confidential is an L.A. based podcast brought to you by two forensic psychologists who dissect the intersections where true crime, forensic psychology, and entertainment meet. They're a must-listen for anyone interested in true crime. Listen to their past episodes, including their own episode on cults, on your favorite podcast app or at https://www.la-not-so-confidential.com. --------------------------------- References & Sources, courtesy of L.A. Not So Confidential: Casale, S. (2015, November 20). 7 Killer Cults From Around the Globe. HuffPost. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/7-killer-cults-from-aroun_b_8612080 Davis, S. (2015, October 23). “Save the Planet, Kill Yourself”: The Contentious History of the Church of Euthanasia. Vice. https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/bnppam/save-the-planet-kill-yourself-the-contentious-history-of-the-church-of-euthanasia-1022 Garcia, G. (1989, June 29). The Believers: Cult Murders in Mexico. Rolling Stone. https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/the-believers-cult-murders-in-mexico-53577/ Glasier, D. (2014, December 30). Kirtland cult killings: Looking back at Lake County’s worst mass murder, 25 years later. The News-Herald. https://www.news-herald.com/news/ohio/kirtland-cult-killings-looking-back-at-lake-county-s-worst/article_ff00b419-31cc-50dc-89b4-d41fab9c732b.html Museum, O. (2017, February 20). The End of Days: 7 of the Deadliest Cults that Ended in Tragedy. The Occult Museum. http://www.theoccultmuseum.com/the-end-of-days-7-most-deadliest-cults-that-ended-in-tragedy/ Occult Museum. (2017, July 31). The Seven Most Infamous and Dangerous Cult Leaders in Modern History. The Occult Museum. http://www.theoccultmuseum.com/7-dangerous-cult-leaders-in-modern-history/ Smith, B. (2019, February 24). What Is The Yahweh Cult? A Sordid Tale Of Slavery, Torture, Sodomy And Murder Among Farmers In Nebraska. Oxygen Official Site. https://www.oxygen.com/deadly-cults/crime-time/yahweh-nebraska-farmers-cults-slavery-torture-sodomy-murder Spaink, K. (2019, April 5). Church of Euthanasia. Churchofeuthanasia.Org. https://www.churchofeuthanasia.org/index.html Wikipedia Contributors. (2019, November 4). Rod Ferrell. Wikipedia; Wikimedia Foundation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rod_Ferrell ---------------------------------- 10ish Podcast Theme Music: Hackbeat by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices