I believe it was GK Chesterton who once said 'When men cease to believe in God they do not believe in nothing, they believe in anything'. Looking around the Western world today it is not hard to see the truth of that remark. We seem to be surrounded by an ever-increasing number of new sects, religious groups and cults which clamour for our attention and all too often claim to be in the sole purveyors of the truth. Sadly these groups frequently claim to be Christian, indeed often start out as Christian, and that can cause real confusion both inside and outside the church.

Working in Central London has brought this home to me in a new way. Perhaps following the example of the Apostle Paul, sects and cults have often targeted big cities, particularly those with students and transient populations, because they recognise, as we Christians do, the potential and strategic importance of that work. Indeed one group has called student work 'The Goose that laid the Golden Egg.'

My own involvement has been largely with the Central London Church of Christ, who have attracted much disgrace in recent years in both secular and religious press. Very close to orthodox Christianity, they claim to be more evangelical than evangelicals and certainly they show a devotion to the Bible and a zeal for evangelism that puts most of us to shame. However, they have left an enormous emotional and psychological deposit: Families broken up, personalities changed, and people forever embittered against what they see as the Christian faith.

Although my experience has been largely limited to one group, nevertheless the principles that I, as a Christian, apply to them are relevant in any discussion of deviant religious groups.

I hesitate to use words which are capable of misunderstanding, so, for what it is worth., can I offer a brief definition of terms? A sect is a religious group which has split off from more mainstream groupings. Sects may not be a particular threat, indeed they may be relatively orthodox in their belief, but they are nonetheless not regarded as central. Certain denominations are often regarded as sects and that should not make us too concerned. Indeed evangelicals in the Church of England are often referred to, albeit pejoratively (and incorrectly, since we probably constitute a majority and still believe the fundamentals of the faith!), as a sect.

However, a cult is something different, or at least the word is usually used with a different connotation. It denotes a group that may not only be deviant theologically, but also adopts certain techniques and practices that evoke suspicion and controversy. There are many ways of categorising the marks of the cults, but I offer six features that mark out cults as we find them:

1. A cult exercise some form of mind control. This is perhaps the most obvious and widely recognised feature, and certainly the one that the media have focused upon. Techniques such as group pressure, restricted sleep and diet, and love-bombing form a central part of their strategy. As a result of this, those leaving a cult group often need some careful and consistent support and counseling to enable them to cope with society again. They have often lost the ability to make their own decisions, so much have their personalities been squashed.
2. Cult members believe themselves to be part of an elitist group. 'Do you want the truth? We have the truth, and we alone. We are God's chosen people, his crack troops and we will change the world.' It is very attractive to those seeking an identity.
3. Cults centre around a charismatic (in the colloquial sense), and non-accountable leadership. These leaders are held in enormous esteem and although nominal authority may be credited to other sources (eg the Bible) it is always the leadership that determines what the group believes and how they act. That is how members can be persuaded to do extraordinary things (Jonestown, Waco etc). This adulation of the leadership is very carefully manipulated and at times bears an uncanny likeness to the leadership cult in totalitarian regimes.
4. Cults believe that the end justifies the means. Members are often happy to lie and use deceit to gain their objectives. The reasoning is quite simple: since we are right, and we offer the true salvation, any means to achieve that objective must be acceptable. So the Moonies operate under 380 different names (at the last count!), the Children of God practise their 'flirty fishing' (sexual enticement), and there is often a deliberate attempt to keep people from realising the exact nature of the group until it is too late to get out.
5. Another area where the cults have almost invariably been found out is in their use of money. Money is collected which goes to benefit neither the ordinary member nor society in general, but usually the leadership. It is remarkable how many of the cults have been found either negligent or actively fraudulent in this area. Yet this is only what one would expect of a group whose leadership is accountable to nobody and nothing else. So it is no surprise to hear of major irregularities in the accounts of the Moonies, and that the London Church of Christ is under investigation by the Inland Revenue.
6. Cults basically believe another gospel. The previous five points can be accepted by Christian and non-Christian alike, but this is the area where the Christian can see more clearly. It is striking that cults start in such a similar way. Initially a dynamic leader - often purportedly Christian and claiming the authority of the Bible - begins to teach slightly strange doctrines. Quickly these doctrines become more important than the Bible itself. Hence the JW's have their Watchtower, the Mormons their Book of Mormon, the Pearl of Great Price etc. Whilst the claim of such groups is that they still believe the authority of the Bible (The Mormons ingeniously state that the Bible is the Word of God 'in so far as it is correctly translated') the truth is that the new teaching has taken precedence over the old and the Gospel has been changed.

Most of this is relatively clear, straight forward and easily recognisable, if not by those inside the movements, then certainly by those related or close to them. Nor is it anything new. A brief glance at some of Paul's epistles reveals that the Apostle himself often tangled with similar sorts of things. Note in particular 2 Corinthians 4:1-6 where he speaks against deceit, changing the Gospel, and the doubtful use of money. However, perhaps it would be helpful to amplify the sixth point a little since often the cults, with which we have to deal, seem so close to the Christian faith.

The one sure way to work out whether a group is on the right track is to find out their understanding of the Cross, or their emphasis upon it. Jesus taught unequivocally that he had come to die, and wasted no opportunity to teach his disciples that. Indeed three times in Luke 24 we find the centrality and importance of the Cross being stressed. Paul too declared that whilst in Corinth he had resolved to know nothing 'except Jesus Christ and him crucified' (1 Cor 2:2). For Paul to teach about Jesus was to teach about the Cross. And of course we see why this is so. Without the Cross we have no gospel. The message of the Cross is the message of the Gospel.

One should not therefore be surprised to find that the Cross is either misunderstood or ignored within the teachings of cults. To the Reverend Moon it was a mistake, to Herbert Armstrong (of the Worldwide Church of God) Christ's work was only begun on the Cross, to the Mormons it was inadequate, since allegiance is also required to Joseph Smith and Brigham Young. Even in the Central London Church of Christ you will find that the emphasis is consistently placed elsewhere, on our works not on his finished work.

Essentially therefore what we have in the cults is a false salvation depending either on a special knowledge, as the early Gnostics, or works, as the early Judaisers. To the question 'How are we saved?' you will always receive an inadequate answer. The traditional Gospel may well be nominally accepted but it is never quite enough. There is always an extra work, or an extra bit of knowledge that is needed. The Gospel is added to, and of course, whenever we add to the Gospel we effectively subtract from it - we are saying that it was somehow deficient before.

We can easily over-react when we come to think about the cults. For the most part they come and go and are quickly forgotten. We hear little today about the Guru Maharaj Ji and his Divine Light Mission, the Children of God are largely a spent force, as are the followers of Baghwan Sree Rajneesh. In any case, they are simply modern manifestations of heresies that were apparent even in New Testament times. Yet, in the meantime, they can cause enormous pain and distress to those involved in them, and their friends and relatives. So how should we react?

First it is right that we should pray. We are involved in a spiritual battle. Our enemy seeks someone to devour, and he is not particularly choosy as to how he does it, whether through secular materialism or through false teaching.

Second, we must be prepared ourselves. It is not that we must bone up on every false religion and cult around there would not be the time. Rather we should be sufficiently well-taught in the fundamentals of the faith that when error comes in we can spot it. Many young Christians today are vulnerable simply because they are so badly taught.

Finally,we must take up the challenge of the Gospel ourselves. It is often said that the reason the cults flourish is because of the vacuum left by Christians. That is perhaps a little over-simplistic, but very often the dedication, enthusiasm and commitment of cults is a rebuke to us. We may not admire their techniques, but we could certainly do with a little of their passion!