MSIA has been criticized by a variety of people over the years, but David C. Lane and Peter McWilliams provide the most substantive body of criticism, both of which focus on the role of founder John-Roger. The gist of Lane’s criticism of Hinkins is that he uses spiritual teachings taken from Paul Twitchell’s Eckankar, who in turn took them from Radha Soami Satsang Beas, with which Lane is actively involved. MSIA has also been referred to as an “offshoot” of Lifespring.

Ex-MSIA Minister Peter McWilliams wrote ”Life 102: What to Do When Your Guru Sues You,”, which was critical of Hinkins. McWilliams also dismisses MSIA as little more than a personality cult. In his book McWilliams asserts that Hinkins suffers from narcissistic personality disorder, possibly due to his 1963 coma. At the time of writing the book McWilliams, by his own admission, was treating himself daily with medical cannabis for chronic nausea.

McWilliams chronicles his extended relationship with Hinkins, accusing him of various misrepresentations and improprieties. However, McWilliams later agreed to abandon the copyright to MSIA to settle libel litigation over the contents of the book, and later asked that the book be removed from circulation in a notarized letter [http://www.life102.com/life102.pdf], stating “the content of the book is no longer one with which I would like to have my name associated”.[http://www.life102.com/].

Cult allegations

MSIA has frequently been accused of being a Cult of Personality. Whether or not MSIA should be labeled a

Some researchers of new religions object to the pejorative term “cult” because all religions go through internal and external disputes. These conflicts are often stereotyped in the press and by others as evidence of cult practices.

On the topic of MSIA’s potential to cause harm to its members or the world, James R. Lewis further asserts:

when compared with other movements stigmatized as destructive cults, MSIA is one of the most innocuous groups I have ever studied .. MSIA specifically states that … anything … relating to a person’s physical life … is up to each person to decide for himself/herself. In fact, as with joining any mainstream denomination, almost nothing changes in one’s lifestyle when one becomes involved in this church … Given the lack of outward requirements, I have a difficult time imagining how the organization would go about operationalizing “destructiveness” even if the group’s leadership decided it wanted MSIA to start acting like a destructive cult – it would be like the Elks Club trying to transform itself into a destructive cult.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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Early Muslim philosophy -

Earth religion -

Easter -

Eastern Christianity -

Eastern Orthodox Church organization -

Eastern Orthodoxy -

Eastern Rite Catholic Churches -

Ecclesia -

Ecclesial communities contrasted -

Ecclesiology -

Eckankar -

Economics of religion -

Economy -

Ecumenical -

Ecumenical council -

Ecumenism -

Mary Baker Eddy -

Jonathan Edwards -

Egyptian mythology -

Emanationism -

Emergency baptism -

Emerging Church -

The Enlightenment -

End of the world -

End times -

Epiclesis -

Epiphany -

Episcopacy -

Episcopalian -

Episcopal Church in the United States of America -

Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East -

Episcopal Church of Scotland -

Episcopal see -

Eritrean Orthodox Church -

Esbat -

Eschatology -

Esoteric cosmology -

Eternal Marriage -

Eternity Eternity -

Ethics -

Eucharist -

Evangelicalism -

Evolution -

Ex cathedra -

Excommunication -

Book of Exodus -

Exorcism -

Expository preaching -

Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Index of religion-related articles, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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According to the 2006 census, the city proper of London had a population of 352,395 people, 48.2% male and 51.8% female. Children under five accounted for approximately 5.2% of the resident population of London. 13.7% of the resident population in London were of retirement age (65 and over), which is also the percentage for Canada as a whole. The average age is 38.2 years of age, compared to 39.5 years of age for all of Canada.

Between 2001 and 2006, the population of metropolitan London grew by 4.7%, compared with an increase of 6.6% for Ontario as a whole. Population density of London averaged 837.9 people per square kilometre, compared with an average of 13.4 for Ontario altogether.

According to the 2001 census, the majority of Londoners profess a Christian faith, which accounts for 74.1% (Protestant 40.7%, Roman Catholic: 29.1%, other Christian: 4.3%). Other religions include Islam: 3.4%, Buddhism: 0.7%, Judaism: 0.5% and Hinduism: 0.4%. There are also centres for the International Gnostic Movement, Theosophy and Eckankar devotees, as well as a centre for Unitarians. There is also an active Bahá’í community in London.

According to the 2006 census, 84.8% of the population of London are White, 2.2% are Latin American, 2.2% are Arab, 2.2% are Black, 1.8% are Chinese, 1.8% are South Asian, 1.4% are Aboriginal, 1.1% are Southeast Asian, 0.6% are West Asian, and 1.9% are other ethnicities.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article London, Ontario, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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During the decade of his leadership of Eckankar, Gross expanded the physical organization and membership of Eckankar substantially. His leadership was considered important for the followers of Eckankar during the time. Current students of Darwin Gross, who still study his discourses and books, consider Gross to be a very ancient master. Gross, like his teacher Paul Twitchell – the originator of Eckankar, is considered a spiritual master who has descended from an ancient and direct line extending into a history that is said to predate the early history and existence of our planet and solar system.

Darwin Gross’s writings and talks are, available from the ATOM web site [http://www.atomshop.org/main/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1] and through on-line bookshops such as Amazon.com.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Darwin Gross, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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Harold Klemp’s autobiographical writings include the following:

* ”Autobiography of a Modern Prophet”, ISBN 1-57043-163-9

* ”The Wind of Change” ISBN 0-88155-055-8

* ”Child in the Wilderness” ISBN 0-88155-080-9

Other books by Harold Klemp, which often consist of edited transcripts of his seminar talks, include the following:

* ”Truth Has No Secrets”, (2005) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-218-X

* ”Those Wonderful Eck Masters”, (2005) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-217-1

* ”Animals Are Soul Too!” (2005) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-214-7

* ”Past Lives, Dreams and Soul Travel” (2003) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-182-5

* ”Love: The Keystone of Life” (2004) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-208-2

* ”The Language of Soul” (2003) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-195-7

* ”How to Survive Spiritually in our Times” (2001) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-167-1

* ”Spiritual Laws of Life” (2002) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-176-0

* ”Is Life a Random Walk?”(2002) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-172-8

* ”The Art of Spiritual Dreaming” (1999) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-149-3

* ”Our Spiritual Wake-up Calls (Mahanta Transcripts XV)” (1998) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-135-3

* ”Journey of Soul (Mahanta Transcripts I)” (1997) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-003-9

* ”The Spiritual Exercises of Eck”, (1997) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-001-2

* ”The Slow Burning Love of God (Mahanta Transcr

* ”How to Find God (Mahanta Transcripts II)” (1997) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-004-7

* ”The Golden Heart (Mahanta Transcripts IV)” (1997) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-002-0

* ”Cloak of Consciousness (Mahanta Transcripts V)” (1997) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-006-3

* ”Unlocking the Puzzle Box (Mahanta Transcripts VI)” (1997) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-007-1

* ”The Eternal Dreamer (Mahanta Transcripts VII)”(1997) ISBN 1-57043-008-X

* ”The Dream Master (Mahanta Transcripts VIII)” (1997) Eckankar; 2nd edition ISBN 1-57043-009-8

* ”The Secret of Love (Mahanta Transcripts XIV)” (1997) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-114-0

* ”The Drumbeat of Time (Mahanta Transcripts X)” (1995) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-011-X

* ”What is Spiritual Freedom? (Mahanta Transcripts XI)” (1995) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-101-9

* ”How the Inner Master Works (Mahanta Transcripts XII)” (1995) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-103-5

* ”We Come as Eagles (Mahanta Transcripts IX)” (1994) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-010-1

* ”The Secret Teachings (Mahanta Transcripts III)” (1989) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-005-5

* ”A Cosmic Sea of Words: The Eckankar Lexicon” (1998) Eckankar, ISBN 1-57043-142-6

* ”Ask the Master”

* ”Spiritual Wisdom on Relationships” (2007) Eckankar, ISBN 978-1-57043-242 2

* ”Spiritual Wisdom on Prayer, Meditation and Contemplation” (2008) Eckankar, ISBN 978-1-57043-282 8

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Harold Klemp, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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Note(s):

* Catholic includes Roman Catholic, Eastern Catholic, Polish National Catholic Church, and Old Catholic

* Other Religions also includes Bahá’í Faith, Eckankar, Jainism, Shinto, Taoism, Zoroastrianism, Aboriginal belief systems, Neo-Paganism, Wicca, Unity – New Thought – Pantheist, Scientology, Rastafari movement, New Age, Gnostic, Satanism, et cetera

* No Religion includes Atheism, Agnosticism, Humanism, et cetera

However, a more recent research in 2005 indicates that the non-religious group has risen significantly. [http://www.pitzer.edu/academics/faculty/zuckerman/ Phil Zuckerman], an Associate Professor of Sociology at Pitzer College writes of several academic sources who have in recent years placed atheism rates in Canada between 19% and 30%.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Demographics of Canada, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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* Sacrifice: (from a Middle English verb meaning ‘to make sacred’, from Old French, from Latin sacrificium : sacer, sacred; sacred + facere, to make) Commonly known as the practice of offering food, or the lives of animals or people to the gods, as an act of propitiation or worship. The term is also used metaphorically to describe selfless good deeds for others.

* Sadhana: Spiritual exercise by a Sadhu or a Sadhaka to attain a desired goal. The goal of sadhana is to attain some stage, which can be either moksha, liberation from the cycle of birth and death (Samsara), or a particular goal such as the blessing by a deity through his or her appearance before the Sadhaka at the end of the limited Sadhana. Sadhana can involve meditation, puja to a deity, namasmarana (sometimes with the help of a japa mala), mortification of the flesh or unorthodox practices such as in a smashana sadhana on a cremation ground. Each type of Yoga entails its own type of sadhana. To embark on a sadhana, a guru is required to give one the necessary know-how and the seed for the future result, in the form of some diksha, initiation, which he or she has received from his or her guru.

* Saint: Generally refers to someone who is exceptionally virtuous and holy. It can be applied to both the living and the dead and is an acceptable term in most of the world’s popular religions. The Saint is held up by the community as an example of how we all should act, and his or her life story is usually recorded for the edification of future generations.

:The process of officially recognizing a perso

* Salvation: Refers to deliverance from undesirable state or condition. In theology, the study of salvation is called soteriology and is a vitally important concept in several religions. Christianity regards salvation as deliverance from the bondage of sin and from condemnation, resulting in eternal life with God.

* Satguru: (or Sadguru) Means true guru (Sanskrit सदगुरू sat=true), literally: true teacher. The title means that his students have faith that the guru can be trusted and will lead them to moksha, enlightenment or inner peace. It is based on a long line of Hindu philosophical understandings of the importance of knowledge and that the teacher, guru, is the sacred conduit to self-realization.

* SBNR: Acronym used by individuals who define themselves as Spiritual But Not Religious.

* Self-realization: In yoga, self-realization is knowledge of one’s true self. This true self is also referred to as the atma to avoid ambiguity. The term “self-realization” is a translation of the Sanskrit expression atma jnana (knowledge of the self or atma). The reason the term “realization” is used instead of “knowledge” is that ”jnana” refers to knowledge based on experience, not mere intellectual knowledge.

:As discussed in the article on yoga, while the goal of self-realization is the same in all yoga paths, the means used to achieve that goal differ. For example, in hatha yoga, self-realization is said to be achieved when the serpent force or kundalini rises through the shushumna nadi to the sahasrara chakra. The following terms are related to self-realization or atma jnana: moksha (liberation from the cycle of birth and death); samādhi (Supreme or Divine Bliss).

* Seven Virtues: Derived from the Psychomachia, an epic poem written by Prudentius (c. 410). Practicing these virtues is alleged to protect one against temptation toward the Seven Deadly Sins. The ”Seven Virtues” considered by the Roman Catholic church are those of humility, meekness, charity, chastity, moderation, zeal and generosity. These are considered to be the polar opposite of the seven deadly sins, namely pride, wrath, envy, lust, gluttony, sloth and greed.

* Shabd: (or Shabda) Literally means “sound” or “word” in Sanskrit. Esoterically, Shabd is the “Sound Current vibrating in all creation. It can be heard by the inner ears.” Variously referred to as the Audible Life Stream, Inner Sound, Sound Current or Word in English, the Shabd is the esoteric essence of God which is available to all human beings, according to the Shabd path teachings of Eckankar, the Quan Yin Method, Sant Mat and Surat Shabd Yoga.

:Adherents believe that a Satguru, or Eck Master, who is a human being, has merged with the Shabd in such a manner that he or she is a living manifestation of it at its highest level (the “Word made flesh”). However, not only can the Satguru can attain this, but all human beings are inherently privileged in this way. Indeed, in Sant Mat the raison d’être for the human form is to meditate on the Sound Current, and in so doing merge with it until one’s own divinity is ultimately realized.

* Shamanism: Refers to the traditional healing and religious practices of Northern Asia (Siberia) and Mongolia. By extension, the concept of shamanism has been extended in common language to a range of traditional beliefs and practices that involve the ability to diagnose, cure, and sometimes cause human suffering by traversing the axis mundi and forming a special relationship with, or gaining control over, spirits. Shamans have been credited with the ability to control the weather, divination, the interpretation of dreams, astral projection, and traveling to upper and lower worlds. Shamanistic traditions have existed throughout the world since prehistoric times.

* Shinto: (神道 ”Shintō”) (sometimes called Shintoism) A native religion of Japan and was once its state religion. It involves the worship of ”kami”, which can be translated to mean gods, spirits of nature, or just spiritual presences. Some kami are local and can be regarded as the spirit or genius of a particular place, but others represent major natural objects and processes, for example, Amaterasu, the Sun goddess. The word Shinto was created by combining two kanji: “神” ”shin” meaning god (the character can also be read as “kami” in Japanese) and “道” ”tō” meaning Tao (“way” or “path” in a philosophical sense). Thus, Shinto means “the way of the gods.”

:After World War II, Shinto lost its status of state religion; some Shinto practices and teachings, once given a great deal of prominence during the war, are no longer taught nor practiced today, and some remain largely as everyday activities without religious connotations like omikuji (a form of sortition).

* Shunyata: (Śūnyatā, शून्यता (Sanskrit, Pali: ), or “Emptiness”) A term for an aspect of the Buddhist metaphysical critique as well as Buddhist epistemology and phenomenology. Shunyata signifies that everything one encounters in life is empty of soul, permanence, and self-nature. Everything is inter-related, never self-sufficient or independent; nothing has independent reality. Yet shunyata never connotes nihilism, which Buddhist doctrine considers to be a delusion, just as it considers materialism to be a delusion.

* Simran: ‘Simran’, derived from the word ‘Smarana,’ (from Sanskrit), means: remembering or contemplating on the highest – that which should be valued in memory, in general. It teaches that: everything changes while inner and outer purity naturally happen. Smarana does not project about restriction through God or religion. It shows that remembering the highest aspect of life that one has seen will eventually open up what’s important to an individual.

* Soul: The soul, according to many religious and philosophical traditions, is the ”ethereal substance” — spirit (Hebrew:”rooah” or ”nefesh”) — particular to a unique living being. Such traditions often consider the soul both immortal and innately aware of its immortal nature, as well as the true basis for sentience in each living being.

:The concept of the soul has strong links with notions of an afterlife, but opinions may vary wildly, even within a given religion, as to what happens to the soul after death. Many within these religions and philosophies see the soul as immaterial, while others consider it possibly material.

* Spirit: The English word spirit comes from the Latin ”spiritus”, meaning breath. In religion and spirituality, the respiration of the human being has for obvious reasons been strongly linked with the very occurrence of life. A similar significance has been attributed to human blood. ”Spirit” has thus evolved to denote that which separates a living body from a corpse, but can be used metaphorically (she performed the piece with spirit or she put up a spirited defence) where it is a synonym for such words as ‘vivacity’.

* Spiritism: A religious and philosophic doctrine established in France in the mid 19th Century by Allan Kardec. The term was coined by him as the specific name of the doctrine he was about to publish but, given the fact that the word was created from roots taken from the common language, it was soon incorporated into the normal use and has been used to name other doctrines as well, though the authentic Spiritists protest against this usage.

: During the late 19th century, many well educated people from Europe and the United States embraced Spiritism as a logical explanation of themes related to the Christian Revelation. However, most of the initial enthusiasm receded. But in some places the work of a few dedicated preachers managed to achieve a solid foundation — more notably, in Brazil, and to a certain extent in the Philippines. In Brazil, more than 2 million people declare themselves Kardecist spiritists, according to the last IBGE census data, which makes Brazil the largest Spiritist country in the world. Spiritism has influenced syncretisms like Brazilian Umbanda and Vietnamese Caodaism.

:Spiritism is not to be confused with spiritualism. Its use with that meaning is regarded as pejorative by both Spiritualists and Spiritists. Uncapitalised, the word, in English, is an obsolete term for animism and other religious practices involving the invocation of spiritual beings, including shamanism.

* Spiritual evolution: The philosophical/theological/esoteric idea that nature and human beings and/or human culture evolve along a predetermined cosmological pattern or ascent, or in accordance with certain pre-determined potentials. Predeterminism of evolution concept is also complemented with the idea of a creative impulse of human beings, known as epigenesis.

:Within this broad definition, theories of spiritual evolution are very diverse. They may be cosmological (describing existence at large), personal (describing the development of the individual), or both. They can be holistic (holding that higher realities emerge from and are not reducible to the lower), idealist (holding that reality is primarily mental or spiritual) or nondual (holding that there is no ultimate distinction between mental and physical reality). All of them can be considered to be teleological to a greater or lesser degree.

* Spiritualism: May refer to a variety of modern religious ideologies, primarily active in the United States and Europe. Central tenets of Spiritualist liturgy and dogma are the beliefs and practices of mediumship which purports to be evidence of the continued existence of an individual’s spirit or soul after death. The origin of Spiritualism is commonly considered to be the Modern Spiritualist movement of the 19th century United States.

* Spirituality: In a narrow sense, is a concern with matters of the spirit, however that may be defined; but it is also a wide term with many available readings. It may include belief in supernatural powers, as in religion, but the emphasis is on personal experience. It may be an expression for life perceived as higher, more complex or more integrated with one’s worldview, as contrasted with the merely sensual.

* Sufi whirling: The practice of Sufi whirling (or Sufi spinning), is a twirling meditation that originated among the ancient Indian mystics and Turkish Sufis, which is still practiced by the Dervishes of the Mevlevi order. Following a recommended fast of several hours, Sufi whirlers begin with hands crossed onto shoulders and may return their hands to this position if they feel dizzy. They rotate on their left feet in short twists, using the right foot to drive their bodies around the left foot. The left foot is like an anchor to the ground, so that if the whirler loses his or her balance, he or she can think of their left foot, direct attention towards it and regain balance back.

* Sufism: (Arabic تصوف taṣawwuf) A mystic tradition of Islam, which is based on the pursuit of spiritual truth as a definite goal to attain. In modern language it might also be referred to as Islamic spirituality or Islamic mysticism. While fiqh focuses on the legal aspects of Islam , Sufism focuses on the internal aspects of Islam, such as perfecting the aspect of sincerity of faith and fighting one’s ego. Sufi practitioners are organized into a diverse range of brotherhoods and sisterhoods, with a wide diversity of thought. Sufi orders (“tariqas”) can be Shi’a, Sunni, both or neither.

* Supplication: (also known as petitioning) The most common form of prayer, wherein a person asks a supernatural deity to provide something, either for that person who is praying or for someone else on whose behalf a prayer of supplication is being made. One example of supplication is the Catholic ritual of novena (from ”novem”, the Latin word for “nine”) wherein one repeatedly asks for the same favor over a period of nine days. This ritual began in France and Spain during the Middle Ages when a nine day period of hymns and prayers led up to a Christmas feast, a period which ended with gift giving. In Islam, the Arabic word ”du’a” is often used for supplication. ”Du’a” may be made in any language, although there are many traditional Islamic supplications in Arabic, Persian and Turkish.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Glossary of spirituality-related terms, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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Morrisseau was a self-taught artist.

He developed his own techniques and artistic vocabulary which captured ancient legends and images that came to him in visions or dreams. He was originally criticized by the native community because his images disclosed traditional spiritual knowledge.

Initially he painted on any material that he could find, especially birchbark, and also moose hide.

Dewdney encouraged him to use earth-tone colors and traditional material, which he thought were appropriate to Morrisseau’s native style.

The subjects of his art in the early period were myths and traditions of the Anishnaabe people.

He is acknowledged to have initiated the Woodland School of native art, where images similar to the petroglyphs of the Great Lakes region were now captured in paintings and prints.

His later style changed: he used more standard material and the colors became progressively brighter, eventually obtaining a neon-like brilliance.

The themes also moved from traditional myth to depicting his own personal struggles.

He also produced art depicting Christian subjects: during his incarceration, he attended a local church where he was struck by the beauty of the images on stained-glass windows.

Some of his paintings, like ”Indian Jesus Christ”, imitate that style and represent characters from the Bible with native features.

After he joined the new age religion Eckankar in 1976, he started representing on canvas its mystical beliefs.

The cover art for the Bruce Cockburn album ”Dancing in the Drag

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Norval Morrisseau, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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Medieval Sufi poets such as Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi, as well as Sindhi poets, are considered to have many similarities with the poet-sants of Sant Mat.

The Radhasoami movement in North India regards itself as the main repository of the tradition of the Sants and their teachings, as well as their approach to religious endeavors, and presents itself as the living incarnation of the Sant tradition. The most notable being Radhasoami Satsang Beas, situated on the banks of the river Beas, whose current living master in Maharaj Baba Gurinder Singh Dhillon. According to Mark Juergensmeyer, that claim is also made by the Kabir-panthis, the Sikhs and other movements that continue to find the insights from the Sant tradition valid today. David Christopher Lane has emphasized ‘unknowingness’ of Baba Faqir Chand regarding appearances of his holy forms, regarded by Faqir as projections of minds of followers and explained as Maya only. Lane has termed this phenomena as ‘Chandian Effect’.

Guru Maharaj Ji (Prem Rawat) and the Divine Light Mission (Elan Vital) are considered to be part of the Sant Mat tradition by J. Gordon Melton, Lucy DuPertuis, and Vishal Mangalwadi, but that characterization is disputed by Ron Geaves. The 20th century religious movement Eckankar is also considered by David Lane to be an offshoot of the Sant Mat tradition. James R. Lewis refers to these movements as “expressions of an older faith in a new context.”

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Sant Mat, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wi

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In the 1980s and early 1990s, several former members of MSIA accused Hinkins of various crimes and abuses, including high-tech charlatanism, the sexual coercion of young male staffers, brainwashing and intimidation, and plagiarism. These allegations, as well as the revelation of the high-profile Ariana Huffington’s association with the group, led to a series of investigations by publications such as People, Playboy, the Los Angeles Times and Vanity Fair. MSIA was sometimes referred to by the elements of the media as a cult.

Charlatanism

Dissidents in the organization say he employed covert listening devices at MSIA’s Santa Monica headquarters to support his claim of possessing extrasensory perception. One disenchanted member claimed “What people thought was J-R’s clairvoyance was just his cunning and deceitful information gathering.”

Sexual coercion

Susan and Wendell Whitmore, who joined MSIA in the early ’70s, finally decided to leave MSIA in 1983 after several male staff members confessed during an informal group discussion that Hinkins had used spiritual threats and promises to coerce them in to having sex with him. The Whitmores claim that MSIA members had been led to believe that Hinkins had taken a vow of celibacy, and therefore did not question the series of attractive young men that stayed in his house. “He always had someone sleeping in his bedroom at night, supposedly to protect his body while he was out of it,” says Whitmore. Former MSIA members charge that staffers who submitted to their leader’s

Intimidation

Wesley Whitmore, Wendell’s twin brother and also former MSIA staffer, recalls that in “contrast to his public behavior, Hinkins in private was often angry, vindictive and bizarre, occasionally shouting that he was under attack from negative forces.” He and his wife said that their devotion to Hinkins kept them from addressing these issues.

According to Susan Whitmore, MSIA defectors hesitated to challenge Hinkins publicly even after leaving the movement “because we were made to be afraid.” She claims that Hinkins would declare that people who questioned him had placed themselves “under the Kal [a devil-like spirit] power and its field of negativity, known as the Red Monk,” and would essentially be warning that members who associated with defectors risked spiritual disaster. Whitmore alleges that one woman was told she had had a miscarriage because she had hugged one of the defectors.

The Whitmores also claim that after they left MSIA, their cars were vandalized, they received obscene letters accusing them of homosexuality, and phone calls in which threats were made on their lives. Similarly, Eve Cohen, the daughter of ex-MSIA ministers Matthew and Ellen Cohen, and at the time a teenager, received a letter graphically alleging that her father had had sexual acts with other men. The letter claimed to be from a friend of Eve’s in Los Angeles.

Religion academic and writer David C. Lane claims that in the fall of 1983, after he called Hinkins, who at that time he considered to be a friend, to get his response to the allegations of plagiarism, sexual manipulation, and charlatanism that had been raised by other friends, he was subjected to a series of threats, including several made against his life and the lives of his friends/informants. His home was subsequently ransacked and a number of his research files were stolen. He claims that documentary evidence implicates John-Roger with the robbery, as well as with implementing a smear campaign including threats against Lane and other of his critics. This included setting up a front organization called the “Coalition for Civil and Spiritual Rights”, an act which was eventually traced directly back to Hinkins.

Plagiarism

Claims of plagiarism have also been levied against Hinkins, in connection with both MSIA’s core teachings and as other publications. Many of these have centered on the reportedly close similarity between certain MSIA materials and doctrine and that of Paul Twitchell’s Eckankar, known prior to 1985 as “The Ancient Science of Soul Travel”. One of the main allegers, religion academic David C. Lane, has published evidence that Hinkins took without attribution key spiritual teachings from Twitchell, who, Lane further claims, took them in turn from Radha Soami Satsang Beas, a movement with which Lane was at the time actively involved.

Hinkins, himself, admits that he had some level of involvement with the group: around the time of his surgery and religious experience, he had been exploring a variety of different spiritual teachings, and these explorations included Eckankar. Religion scholar James R. Lewis, in his book on Hinkins and MSIA, quotes a conversation in which Hinkins acknowledges that he studied with Eckankar, had a private interview with Twitchell, and received information from the group stating that he was an initiate, but denies being formally initiated into the group. Nonetheless, side-by-side text comparisons of materials published by Lane appear to clearly show that Hinkens copied nearly verbatim, Twitchell’s idiosyncratic cosmology (as found in Twitchell’s 1971 ”The Spiritual Notebook”) in his own 1976 publication ”The Sound Current”. Hinkens also appears to have clearly plagiarized in his work ”Affirmations” (1981) from Florence Scovel Shinn’s book, ”The Game of Life and How to Play It” (DeVorss & Company, 1925).

In 1994, Peter McWilliams, a former high-level member of MSIA, published ”Life 102: What to Do When Your Guru Sues You”, which charges that Hinkins had repeatedly abused his power as a guru. McWilliams claims, among other things, that he was the sole author of the highly-successful ”Life 101” and several subsequent books purportedly coauthored by Hinkins (as “John-Roger”), who was his spiritual adviser and church leader at the time. Hinkins countered with a libel lawsuit. Ultimately, McWilliams agreed to abandon the copyright to ”Life 102: What to Do When Your Guru Sues You” to Hinkins to settle the suit.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Roger Delano Hinkins, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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