Posted by:
waunderdog
(
)
Date: December 05, 2017 09:10PM
I was reading about a cult. It's not necessary to know which one. The article says:
"In a cult, corruption of stated purpose is not the result of an eventual straying from a once noble mission; it is the mission. Greed is not an outcome of avarice resulting from success; rather, the amassing of wealth is essential to ensuring the perpetuation and expansion of the cult. Likewise, leaders of cults don’t fall prey to hubris born of a taste of power. They start a cult because they are already prone to such conceit; the cult simply gives them a voice. Leaders of cults don’t simply have large, jealous egos; they are highly charismatic megalomaniacs and narcissists."
I don't know if that's universally true, but I can think of a lot of instances where it is.
I don't think Joseph Smith ever really intended to start a legit religion. It started with a series of lies and cons.