Cult Chat

Following the release of the newly released 3-part documentary series "Devotion: The Gloriavale Story", former member John Ready joins Liz Gregory to unpack the documentary’s themes, messages and claims. Together they explore whether high-control organisations should be allowed to rehabilitate their public image before genuine accountability has occurred.
John reflects on the pain experienced by former members, his own journey, and what true repentance looks like. They also discuss cognitive dissonance, institutional dependency, the creation of the “eternal child”, and whether Gloriavale’s leadership has truly accepted responsibility for the harm that has occurred.

In this second episode, we go beyond the documentary and talk to Christine Marie about how Short Creek, home of the FLDS (polygamous Mormons), changed after Warren Jeff was imprisoned, and what the risks are when closed communities start to open up. We talk about the power of non-judgmentally loving people who are nothing like you. Christine and Liz discover their shared experience as outsiders supporting people impacted by cults. This conversation is a personal exploration of the far-reaching and multi-layered impacts on communities dominated by coercive control.

Have you watched Netflix’s documentary series Trust Me: The False Prophet? You may find it helpful in advance of this week’s episode with Dr Christine Marie, who featured in the very successful 2026 documentary. She shares her journey of documenting and eventually exposing the sexual abuse of under-aged girls in Sam Bateman’s offshoot FLDS polygamous cult, and the legal case to follow. It's a conversation about building trust, juggling moral ambiguity and the personal toll it takes, doco ethics, and the power of a story told well.

This week we interview therapist & cult expert Rachel Bernstein (LMFT), who will be keynote speaker at the upcoming Decult Conference. Join the Cult Chat trio for this heart-warming episode with Rachel as she shares wisdom from over 30 years working clinically with cult survivors. The conversation ranges from how to support families to deal with loved ones in a cult, to the unexpected strengths survivors can display, and to the small examples that healing and recovery is occurring. 
Show notes
https://rachelbernsteintherapy.com/index.html
https://decult.net/conference-2026/
https://www.podpage.com/indoctrination/
If you’d like to contact us to tell us your story or to give us some ideas about future episodes, reach us by emailing info@cultchat.org.nz
To learn more about the organisations which our hosts run when we are not Cult-Chatting, check out:
Gloriavale Leavers’ Support Trust https://www.gloriavaleleavers.org.nz/

Olive Leaf Network https://nz.oliveleaf.network/

Cult-Informed Professional Network https://www.cipnetwork.org/

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Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@CultChat

Many thanks to Plains Media for helping us to get our message out on the New Zealand airwaves.

In this important episode Caz chats with Dr Natalie Fabert, psychologist and academic, about her interest in cults and those harmed by them. You’ll learn about the prevalence of Complex-PTSD in cult survivors, why therapists need to see cult-impacted people as a distinct population, and how therapists can start to develop skills to support them. They discuss the course she has designed for mental health workers (accessed through the Lalich Centre) and the core competencies needed to become cult-informed. 

Show Notes:
https://lalichcenterce.thinkific.com/courses/lalichcenterCE