It’s been a massive month of cult media – while we’re preparing an exciting event: Scroll down for the Decult Fund & Film Night in Christchurch and save your space!
THE MP, THE TRUTH AND THE MEDIA
Even after covering cults for a decade, I’d never heard about The Truth until a year ago when RNZ reporter Amy Williams broke the first New Zealand story about the deeply conservative “church without a name” that has managed to stay under the radar for decades. The fundamentalist Christian cult is now more commonly known as the Two by Twos (2x2s) – with an increasing media focus because of child sexual abuse allegations and cover-ups.
The FBI is currently investigating the secretive congregation that has no official website or leadership but between 2,000 to 3,000 members in Aotearoa New Zealand alone, over 7,000 in Australia and about 80,000 around the world. That’s a staggering number. Former members who were born into the 2x2s have since come forward and turned into activists, like Christchurch artist and DJ Tristan Phipps who first went public in the Survivor Story Jam at Decult 2024 – and Australian victim advocate Laura McConnell Conti who now has her own podcast (all on her website, together with her Decult session). Let’s Talk About Sects and Cult Chat also covered the cult in insightful episodes.
There’s s been a flurry of media lately, listed chronologically in this useful document. The recent local exposés by Ryan Boswell (1News) and Anna Leask (NZ Herald) flushed out National MP Hamish Campbell as an elder in the 2x2s, which led to questions in Parliament after the politician initially downplayed his involvement. Another big story just dropped on the weekend, confirming that 27 reports of sexual abuse within the 2x2s have recently been filed in New Zealand. There’s more to come this week on 1News (TVNZ) with cult survivors and Lindy Jacomb from the Olive Leaf Network. Stay tuned.
“SO MUCH FEAR”: DESTINY CHURCH EXPOSED
TVNZ has outdone itself lately: John Campbell took a deep dive into Destiny, a homegrown evangelical church with nine registered charities and a gang-like appeal. It has made headlines for its homophobic and transphobic attacks on drag performers and for its controversial Man Up program. But there’s an even darker side to it. 22 interviews and endless hours of “apostle” Brian Tamaki’s sermons later, the reporter concludes: “I’ve never talked to so many people as afraid as the women I encountered in this investigation.”
When we planned our Decult 2024 conference, I was looking for former Destiny members who would share their stories. Now I know why they were too afraid to come forward. More questions need to be asked and ex-members interviewed to better understand the coercive control of the Destiny cult. Please watch John Campbell’s gutsy investigation “Under His Command” on TVNZ+. This series is a huge first step. Ka pai.
FALUN GONG FOLLOW-UP When we had a call to action in January to boycott the Auckland shows of Shen Yun, a dance troupe run by the Trump-supporting Chinese meditation cult Falun Gong, our volunteer Jaya Gibson protested outside the venue and was filmed for a US documentary. Since then, a law suit has been filed, followed by more international coverage. Last week, Let’s Talk About Sects ran a fascinating episode with Jaya who was the global marketing director for Falun Gong’s propaganda newspaper Epoch Times in New York. Have a listen.
SAVE THE DATE: DECULT DOCO RELEASE
If you’re in Ōtautahi Christchurch, don’t miss our midwinter community event that doubles as a fundraiser for our fledgling charity on Friday, 13 June: The release of the crowdfunded Decult documentary that was filmed at our conference, plus a raffle where you can win a free ticket for Decult 2026. Prizes, special guests and speakers will be announced in May. All proceedings go towards the Decult Trust. Limited space, so book now! Tickets & info here:
Follow us on social media and in the private FB group Culty Conversations NZ, watch the highlights from our conference and listen to speaker sessions on Decult Talks. Thanks for your cult awareness – we’ll be back soon.