In the Shift

Episode 116: In this episode, we’re joined by journalist and author Anke Richter, author of the book "Cult Trip: Inside the world of Coercion and Control" and founder/director of Decult, New Zealand’s cult awareness conference.

This conversation explores Anke’s work around two of New Zealand’s most notorious cults, Centrepoint and Gloriavale, as well as the wider world of sex cults, guru movements, fundamentalist Christian communities and what we call the “culty spectrum” - the blurry territory where belonging, belief, power, coercion and control intersect.

We talk about the “prison of the mind,” the seductive power of charismatic leaders, the dark side of idealism, and the persistent role of misogyny and patriarchy, even in communities that present themselves as liberated or enlightened. There is loads of crossover with the world of coercion  among the high-control, high-demand Christian spaces we have explored here on In the Shift.

*** Content Warning: This episode includes conversations about the prevalence of sexual abuse and sexual assault in the world of cults ***

If you'd like to know more about the Decult conference - which is being held on Labour weekend 2026 in Christchurch and online - you can click here!

For info on Anke's book "Cult Trip" you can click here.

Episode 115: In the last episode of our series on non-coercive community, we ask the question: what if Christianity is actually just coercive? If that's the case then all this talk of non-coercive community is just pushing against the inherent nature of Christian religious belief, our ideas about God, and the story of Jesus.

We discuss belief in an all-powerful God and the concept of hell as eternal punishment/suffering. If these are at the centre of a faith system, then they give rise to something that is fundamentally coercive at its very core. But we also talk through the fact that everyone makes choices about the kind of story they're going to embrace, and that we all have the freedom and permission to evaluate our beliefs about God and make different choices. An all powerful deity who threatens eternal conscious torment has never been the only way to read the story - and when we move in a different direction we may find room for a life-giving and nourishing spirituality that is non-coercive, even as it calls and invites us to care more deeply about others and the world around us.

Episode 114: We're back and talking about the challenges and possibilities of non-coercive community. In this conversation, Shane and Michael dive into the complexity of what happens when the forces of capitalism and individualism and/or the toxicity and abuse of previous religious communities make belonging to any community really challenging. One of the really potent aspects of high-demand religious communities is the degree of belonging people can experience, and then the overwhelming betrayal when that belonging is ruptured. What does this mean as we attempt to build safer non-coercive communities of trust and care in non-coercive ways? Are there still ways to belong to community when our previous experiences make this so difficult? How do communities speak about reciprocity, sustainability, mutual obligation and so on, when people have become understandably suspicious or triggered by the dynamics of community life?

Shane Meyer-Holt co-leads Fitzroy North Community Church in Melbourne and Michael Frost is involved in leading Edge Kingsland in Auckland.

Episode 113: In the Shift is back for 2026, and so is Shane – and we’re continuing our conversations about non-coercive community and how we build communities of care in a world shaped by capitalist individualism. In this episode we look at how society has changed over time, toward what is often called secularisation. In the secularised West, participation in communal life has become something of a free market choice that we must add to our already full lives. In that sense, participation in faith communities and other communities of care become choices we need to continually make, against the overwhelming tide of energy, demand and resources. But what if the full life we live is not neutral or a given, but is itself shaped by a set of default fundamental commitments built into contemporary capitalist society? Is it possible to ‘convert’ away from this mode of being, toward something more sustainable and life-giving?

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For more information on the Open Table gathering in Auckland this coming June, visit https://theopentable.nz/

Episode 112: In this episode Shane Meyer-Holt returns for another conversation about the journey of engaging in and building non-coercive communities. We talk about how individualism and capitalism have profoundly shaped so many of us in themes of self-reliance and the importance of opportunity (as well as the freedom to take up those opportunities). These are deeply inbuilt into the psyche of our societal assumptions - and they happen to make regular sustainable commitment to communities of care and mutual obligation an incredibly difficult prospect. If we ultimately believe (and in many respects, understandably so) that we are on our own in keeping our heads above water - then commitment to community can come into conflict with our need for self-reliance. And if we think that we must be free to take every opportunity available to us, then mutual care and genuine healthy obligations to one another may well get in they of those opportunities. In many respects, all modern collectives are struggling with this new reality. Some embrace a model of high-reward, high-punishment community as a mechanism to sustain participation. But what happens if you don't believe in that kind of church or collective dynamic?

We come to this conversation as people involved in leading church communities (Shane, at Fitzroy North Community Church in Melbourne, and Michael, at Edge Kingsland in Auckland).

Contact: feedback@intheshift.com

Support: www.patreon.com/intheshift