Volume I
Issue III
From the Editor:
After just one and half
years of operation the New CAN is proud to update you with our latest figures
more than 5,500 calls handled and over 5,500 visitors to our website.
This means that not
only were over 11,000 people directly enlightened on religious freedom and the
right for all people to believe as they wish (as per CAN's purpose of educating
the public to religious rights, freedoms and responsibilities); there is also
the ripple effect of all the family and friends which each of those people subsequently
spoke to or dealt with.
This newsletter will
give you a few examples to help you a gain a concept of the true impact of those
calls, plus update you on some of CAN's other activities. Read on!
Religious
Choices
An excellent paper titled
"Joining a "CULT":
Religious Choice or Psychological Aberration"
was released late last year. The author,
PhD Dena Davis, agreed to let CAN
publish the paper on the Internet where it
is now located at
"www.rligioustolerance.o org/cult_
art.htm".
The well-cited paper is a definitive work
which clearly debunks much false
information about new religious
movements saying, "In practice it turns
out that one person's cult is another's
valid religion" and also makes clear that
the so called "mental health" movement is
an avenue of opposition to religion
Look this up on the web, or write to CAN
and we will send you as many copies of
this paper as you need. It's articulate
message of religious tolerance and
understanding of diverse religious
experiences is very strong.
Around the
U.S.:
Illinois:
The Chicago parents of
a woman just graduating
from college in Florida called CAN asking for a deprogrammer to get her out
of a fundamentalist Christian group. After CAN provided them with true information,
the parents decided they should NOT kidnap their grown daughter the first time
she made a major decision they didn't like. Instead, (following CAN's suggestion)
the parents drove to Florida, met with the daughter and her local minister,
and worked out an arrangement they could all agree with (for her to attend the
same church but in Chicago where she has much better job opportunities).
A little mutual respect
goes a long way.
Texas:
A man called in to CAN
from Waco, Texas planning to "snatch" someone from a "cult" he'd heard about
lead by "Angel Lightening". He was encouraged by CAN to meet the people and
find out about them himself, instead of listening to others. The result? The
Texan learned that Angel and his "cult" were ex-bikers who had become evangelical
Christiansdoing carpentry work for a living.
The caller was profusely
grateful to CAN for the direction given him and pleasantly surprised with the
new friends he had made!
California: A woman
from northern California
called in desperate to extract her son from a "cult" group who had possibly
abducted him. She was especially stressed because she knew her son had a serious
drug abuse problem.
CAN quickly ascertained
that her concerns were based on false information, and in reality the organization
is a Baptist-funded drugfree rehab ranch, where the clients are also taught
life skills.
The son could not
have been in better hands and Mom sure had a change of heart about "cults"!
Spiritual Freedom
Pledge
As part of CAN's ongoing
activities, we coordinated the creation of a new "Pledge for Spiritual Freedom".
Now posted on the Internet at www.rehgioustolerance.org/ spir_fre.htm, the pledge
reads in part:
"... We, the undersigned,
do hereby pledge to respect the right of all members of the human family to
believe and practice the spiritual belief, faith or religion of their choice,
AND We further pledge our support for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
...AND We, the undersigned, do hereby pledge to encourage others to read, sign,
and live up to this pledge in order to help establish a new era of respect for
human spirituality around the world "
The pledge was an
immediate hit and has had hundreds of visitors and dozens of people who have
signed on in support. Some samples:
"The Spiritual Freedom
Pledge is an excellent idea ...I definitely shall add a link to this page from
mine..." J.D.
"We wholeheartedly
support this pledge and promise to work cooperatively to implement it through
educational programs to promote religious freedom for all people." D.F.
"I would like to
thank you for posting this wonderful pledge."N.W.
"We must support
all persons that fight for religious freedom whether local, national, or international..."
L,&G
"Well done for creating
this pledge and making it available on the Internet ...We must be constantly
vigilant and we must never allow violation of another's right to freedom of
thought, conscience and religion to go unchallenged..."G.S.D.
PLEASE SIGN
ON YOURSELF!
Experts Help
A
man from New York called in asking about a Buddhist group, emphatic that CAN
tell him what they "really" say about the group. CAN referred him to Dr. Jim
Lewis, a religious scholar with a true expertise on the group.
The man shortly called
CAN again delighted with what he had heard from Dr. Lewis. Turns out he was
a member of this group, knew the old CAN gave out only derogatory data and was
just checking to see if what he'd heard about the new CAN using qualified resources
was true!
A
parent from the Midwest, upset about her son's planned involvement in a small
communal group, asked CAN for advice. She was put in touch with Professor Tim
Miller who knew the group well, having studied them as a scholar. Prof. Miller
advised the parent to visit the group herself. She did so and concluded that
her son's business of making stained glass would be very doable amidst this
community's uncomplicated life. In fact, as she made clear to CAN, "He sure
won't have to worry about the chlorine level of his swiming pool."
Religious Respect
is a Two-Way Street
A woman caller felt
that a friend was not respecting her religious choice and was harrassing her
to find out more about the friend's "true" beliefs.
After a phone call
to CAN the woman realized that, in fact, SHE was not respecting the other person's
religion as much as she could and was then able to very smoothly sort out the
situation.
INTERNATIONAL
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM CONFERENCE
CAN recently attended
an international religious freedom conference sponsored by the International
Coalition for Religious Freedom (ICRF). Representatives of greatly diverse faiths
from many nations including Venezuela, Canada, Germany, Denmark, Russia, Belgium
and the Ukraine met in Washington, D.C. and reviewed the key areas where religious
persecution is still occurring around the world.
All attendees were
greatly enlightened, valuable connections were made and plans were worked out
for actions to be taken to effectively promote religious pluralism and end religious
intolerance.
JOIN CAN
OR
RENEW YOUR
MEMBERSHIP
NOW!
The New CAN
is financed through donations to cover its costs which include the 1-800 number.
It is the 800 number (free to the caller) which makes the new CAN so accessible
and keeps CAN as THE key resource for media, law enforcement, pastors, priests,
nuns, master's degree students, high school students, and most of all dads,
moms, sisters, brothers, wives, husbands, and friends who don't understand a
group the person they are concerned about has become involved in.
Join newly or renew
your membership for $40 annually, or turn your annual membership into a lifetime
membership for $500 and help provide the energy to keep the hotline and other
activities running!
DO IT TODAY!
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