Date: Fri, 4 Apr 1997 02:10:10 -0600 (CST)
From: Amy Hebert <yelorose@swbell.net>


                          The Cult Of The Two, Part II

Continued...

I was about to give a brief presentation about photographs taken during an
encounter when I was told The Overcomers were in the area.  I found Dr.
Turner pounding a group of about five Overcomers with questions.  Dr. Turner
was furious that they should go around giving UFOlogy a bad name by
proclaiming UFOs were going to come and pick them up and take them to a
higher level of existence.  Throughout the entire "confrontation" the
Overcomers remained calm and placid.

I found another group of six Overcomers standing on the other side of the
room so I went over and started talking with them.  Unlike Dr. Turner, I did
not believe these were "soulless" people who may be part "alien" or actual
aliens themselves.  I was just curious about their philosophies and why they
believed what they believed.

They were extremely friendly, warm and open.  The more I talked with them,
the more I felt as though we'd been friends all our lives.  We discussed
theories and ideas and philosophies.  There were young people around the
ages of 19 to 25 as well as older members between the ages of 30 to 50 or 60
years old.  They all wore the same short cropped hair styles, no jewelry,
comfortable, casual clothes and tennis shoes.  There was nothing fancy or
odd about them in their outward appearance and they blended easily with the
rest of the crowd.

During the conversation, one young man said, "Have you heard of a woman
named Amy in Dallas who has been saying awful things about us on Prodigy?" I
grinned, looked at my name tag and back at the young man until he realized I
was the "Amy" he was talking about.  He only said, "Oh."

We continued to converse for almost an hour.  Dr. Turner kept trying to
literally pull me away reminding me of the presentation but I was enjoying
their company so much, I wouldn't leave.  It was just a small presentation
so I asked my associate to do it and returned to the conversation.  Dr.
Turner was certain they had some kind of "brain lock" on me and was quite
worried that I might up and leave with them right then and there or they
might "suck" my soul from my body.

They told me they travel from town to town telling others about their
philosophies.  They take only two days worth of clothes for each member and
camp out or stay in motel rooms donated by compassionate managers.  And like
the Texas group, they do not use their real names because they don't want
family members to find them and try to take them away from the cult.  They
said there were groups in almost every state in the United States and some
in other countries.

When asked if they were a cult, they said "yes" and explained that all
religions are cults too, according to the definition.  I found this point
hard to argue with because it is basically accurate.  I asked about
Applewhite or "Do" as he was called and they described him as an "Elder"
with great wisdom.  There are a lot of hardships and discipline in the
groups and they  said many who join the cult cannot endure for long unless
they are very committed to their ideals.  They said the "Elders" teach them
many things and they spend a lot of time in the "classrooms" but they
wouldn't say where those "classrooms" were located.

In reference to people abandoning their children to join the cult, the main
speaker for the group, a white haired woman of about 50, said they do not
accept children into the cult because they are not old enough to make such
choices in their lives.  She said only adults are accepted and when their
children are old enough, they, too, can join if they so desire.  When I
asked about the emotional trauma these abandoned children must feel when one
or both parents leave to join the cult, the white haired woman said the
children are always left in the best possible care and the parents - as
spirit beings in these vehicles -had their choices to make and that's the
way it happens.  Though we reached agreement on many concepts, this was the
main objection I had to the group's belief systems.

The cult seems to place the individual in a "vacuum" within a "family".
Each person is held responsible for his or her decisions but they are also
expected to function as a family, a unit or a ..."hive".  These seem very
contradictory expectations and I cannot imagine any group functioning under
these circumstances.

The Arkansas Overcomers were the most intelligent, open, friendly and caring
group of people I'd ever met.  I wanted to take them all home with me and
keep them.  Now whether this was due to some cult "brainwashing" techniques
or some unsatisfied need within myself, who knows?  They seemed to have
found what they wanted in life and wanted to share everything with others.

I apologized for being so unfair in my comments about the cult on Prodigy
and promised to always represent the cult in an objective, unbiased manner
in any articles I may write about them.  I intend to live up to that promise
with any persons or groups I investigate.

Just before we parted company, I asked the group if I could take their
picture and they said that was fine with them.  They gathered together and
smiled broadly and openly for the camera.  I look at that photo now and
remember the warmth and kindness I felt when with these wonderful human
beings.  It also causes me great sadness because I believe the little white
haired woman who often spoke for the group was among the 39 who ended their
lives and are no longer with us.  I liked her best of all and would have
loved to have known her better.

As the group left, Dr. Turner rushed outside and wrote down the license
plate number of one of the vans the group was driving.  She later had it
traced and discovered it was not registered to the vehicle on which it was
posted.  She tried to talk with the people to which the license plates were
registered but was unable to locate them.

I learned a sharp lesson from these, my first encounters with a "cult".  I
learned not to judge others so quickly just because their beliefs are
different from my own.  I learned that no matter how bizarre or strange
one's beliefs, they can still be warm, caring human beings (even if they
don't want to be human).  And now when I listen and read all the harsh words
and hushed whispers about the Heaven's Gate cult, I feel anger and pain
because so few are stopping to mourn the loss of these 39 fellow human
beings.  Now that they are gone, we may never know all they had to share and
this is a great loss for those of us who prefer to remain in these
"vehicles" in this dimension.

Most of us never got to know who these people were or what they thought.
All we seem to see is "39 CULT MEMBERS COMMIT SUICIDE".  Perhaps their
philosophies were a little messed up but there were/are a lot of good, sound
concepts in their "religion".  Maybe they were ashamed to be "humans" and
wanted to leave their identities to reach for something better.  When I look
around at the way humans treat others of their own species, I can hardly
blame them for being embarrassed by their "humanness".  But there are many
good things about humans too.  I hope these 39 have found what they were
looking for but we will never know.  As far as I know, Applewhite, aka "Do",
did not return after three and a half days of being dead as promised.
Easter '97 came and went with no sign of anyone returning from the dead.

After I heard of the relationship between these 39 people and the
Overcomers, I called several local TV stations and offered to share the
information I had gathered in my files about this cult.  Before I could turn
around, there was a reporter and a camera-man on my doorstep wanting to
interview me!  I told them before they ever left the station that I would
NOT appear on camera but they acted so disappointed and had such a "lost
puppy" look I finally agreed to an on-camera interview only if they hid my
identity.  The reporters interviewed me for an hour and a half and when it
was over, we discovered a huge van blazoned with the TV station's logo
parked in front of our house with telescoping poles towering over the
neighborhood topped with all kinds of camera equipment and microwave dishes.
So much for anonymity!  The whole neighborhood was standing outside watching
and wondering who I had murdered or what I may be "hiding".  After that, I
told all the TV stations and newspaper reporters calling that I would have
to think about any future interviews and I'd let them know.

I am not an "expert" on this cult or any cult.  But because of their covert
lifestyles, few people know much about them.  The media must have had a hard
time scurrying to find information about this cult.  I'm sure the FBI knew
them well.

It is just my personal opinion based on my studies and interactions with
these individuals but I believe the cult is by no means "dead".  If there
were "24 Elders" and 6 members sent to "spread the word" in Texas and 11
members in Arkansas, there may be more members scattered over the United
States and the world.  Applewhite would not leave his followers unless he
felt his "teachings" would be carried on by others.  I believe Applewhite
planned this mass suicide as a "demonstration" to gain attention for his
cult and add funds to the cult treasury.

Applewhite probably planned this mass suicude for some time.  The use of
expensive rental property indicates his intentions to "go out in style".  He
knew the media attention 39 suicides would draw and planned his final
"appearances" even beyond his death.  His choice of an expensive, lavish
mansion (paid for by members) rather than a cheap, simple house or warehouse
gives us a clear indication of the way he wanted the world to remember him
and the 39 members of his cult.

Many people ask if the cult ever gave any indications that suicide was an
option.  Even as far back as 1976, the press expressed concerns that cult
members might commit mass suicide in one of their secret camps. Letters left
by those who abandoned all they cherished to join the cult often sounded
like suicide notes and reflected desires to leave "this plane of existence".
So the possibility has always been part of the cult personality.

I've also noticed that the ex-cult member who "discovered" the 39 bodies
stopped long enough to video tape the scene before calling the police.  What
person claiming to be in "shock" would have the presence of mind to video
tape such a grizzly discovery?  Could this video tape be part of
Applewhite's plans and was the video sold to the media to add funds to the
remaining cult's treasury?  Applewhite may have been suicidal but he wasn't
stupid.

And finally, the media has overemphasized the cult's connection to the comet
Hale Bopp and it's alleged "companion".  Why didn't these 39 people kill
themselves last week or a week later?  Why did Applewhite time the mass
suicides to coincide with Hale Bopp AND Easter?  Applewhite was often quoted
as saying he and "Peep" (Bonnie Lu Trousdale Nettles) would be assisinated
and would rise again in three and a half days and be taken up in a UFO to
the "Next Level".  This is very similar to Christ's return from the dead and
ascension into Heaven.  Perhaps Applewhite believed he would arise from the
dead like Christ and ascend into "Heaven" on or before Easter Sunday.

The Heaven's Gate cult is not just a bizarre anomaly to be dismissed and
forgotten.  They are part of the Zeitgeist, a sign of the times we are
living in.  They are human beings who want to be something more than human.
Rather than improve the human species as a whole, they seek only the
transendence of their individual souls.  We must ask ourselves in what ways
we, as a society, prompted or promoted the events which led 39 people to
leave this classroom called "Earth" and seek alternative experiences to
life.  These drop outs from life will not "graduate" with the rest of us and
may, indeed, be left waiting at Heaven's Gate.  The entrance to the "Next
Level" may rest solely on our ability to evolve as a species and THAT is the
most important lesson we must all learn.

Yellowrose

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