Churches must equip young people against cults: Expert
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Young Christians are being left vulnerable to deceptive cult recruiting across Melbourne, an expert warns.
A Victorian parliamentary inquiry is examining whether coercive control tactics used by cults and fringe groups should face criminal sanctions.
The inquiry comes as groups such as Shincheonji Church of Jesus are actively targeting Christians across university campuses and online.
Cult Information and Family Support Australia president Tore Klevjer said churches left young people vulnerable to false teaching by not teaching them reasons for their faith.
He said ministers tended to preach through the Bible week by week, which was fine, but there needed to be a place for real answers to complex questions.
“Church isn’t filling this need otherwise they wouldn’t be joining these groups,” Mr Klevjer said.
“No one joins a cult; they join a friendly group. They want to learn, they’re hungry for the truth.”
St Jude’s Carlton UniChurch assistant minister Sam Oldland said churches had a pastoral responsibility to strengthen Christians with the truth of the gospel.
Mr Oldland said his church had shifted from a quiet, individual pastoral response to a proactive public education approach about Shincheonji.
They now spoke about the group in Sunday services twice a year and tried to teach sound doctrine around topics commonly exploited by the cult.
“We don’t want to be alarming people or creating anxiety or panic about the presence of Shincheonji, but we do want people to have enough awareness to be able to see and identify their activity,” Mr Oldland said.
Allegations of coercive control at organisations including Geelong Revival Centre prompted the Legislative Assembly Legal and Social Issues Committee to launch an inquiry.
The Inquiry into the recruitment methods and impacts of cults and organised fringe groups aims to examine whether coercive control tactics should face criminal sanctions.
Geelong MP Christine Couzens advocated for the inquiry after meeting with former GRC members.
She said the investigation was not about judging religious beliefs but protecting people from coercive control.
Ms Couzens said she met with a father who had not seen his daughters for six years after leaving GRC while his wife and children remained.
She said the man’s experience was traumatic and many others had shared similar stories of family separation and impacts on their mental health.
“This has got nothing to do with religion or religious freedoms,” Ms Couzens said.
“This is about protecting people from something that’s very wrong.”
Content retrieved from: https://tma.melbourneanglican.org.au/2025/06/churches-must-equip-young-people-against-cults-expert/.
