7NEWS Spotlight investigates the ‘Kidney Cult’: Inside the church that encourages followers to donate their organs
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Tucked away in suburban Melbourne is a nondescript home. From the outside, you wouldn’t know that it’s the headquarters of a church referred to widely as The Kidney Cult.
The secretive group, otherwise known as the Jesus Christians, is led by David McKay.
Formed in 1981, the group has established small congregations in Australia and other parts of the world, including Canada, the US, Mexico and Kenya.
But with only a few hundred followers worldwide, they’re a fringe group by anyone’s standards.
Despite this, it’s fair to say that The Jesus Christians punch above their weight when it comes to scandal.
Almost two decades ago, McKay and his followers hosted a whipping of their own members in a public display of supposed atonement for the sins of others.
Other scandals followed. But the group is best known for being referred to as The Kidney Cult, with devout followers encouraged to donate a kidney to complete strangers as an act of kindness.
“Think of the people that have donated kidneys because Dave McKay influenced them and coerced them in his own methodical way to give up a kidney,” cult specialist Rick Ross says.
“Those people are scarred literally for the rest of their lives.
“Dave McKay’s demands on them will change their lives forever.“
Ross says he’s followed The Jesus Christians closely and believes the group fits the profile of a “destructive cult”.
“Over the years, he has recruited very young people often, and they are idealistic.
“They care about the condition of the world. They have faith in God, they believe in the Bible.
“And Dave McKay manipulates that and orchestrates that for his own purposes. I see him as a deeply narcissistic man, a man that craves attention, and he will do virtually anything so that he can get attention.”
Content retrieved from: https://7news.com.au/spotlight/spotlight-exclusives/7news-spotlight-investigates-the-kidney-cult-inside-the-church-that-encourages-followers-to-donate-their-organs-c-14720590.
