Cult status

The following are other evil cults, as defined by the quasi-governmental China Anti-Cult Association.迷你倉 The Shouters and the first six on this list were named by the Central Committee of the Communist Party and the State Council, the final seven by the Ministry of Public Security. All were listed between November 1995 and March 1999. The Falun Gong would not be branded an "evil cult" until July 1999, so does not appear on the association's list. According to Yang Fenggang, author of Religion in China: Survival and Revival under Communist Rule, there are more than 20 groups categorised as evil cults nationwide, as well as others listed as such by provincial governments.The DisciplesAlso known as The Narrow Gate in the Wilderness in Hubei province, The Disciples were founded in 1989 by Ji Sanbao, a Shaanxi province farmer. By 1995, The Disciples had spread to 300 counties in 14 provinces and had 350,000 followers. Ji claimed to be Jesus himself and have 12 disciples. He predicted the end of the world would come in 2000. Ji died in a traffic accident in 1997.All Ranges ChurchAlso known as the Born Again Movement, the All Ranges Church was founded in Pingdingshan, Henan province, by Peter Xu Yongze, in 1968, during the Cultural Revolution, when all churches were officially closed. It is a house-church network whose membership may run into the millions. Xu taught that weeping was essential evidence of repentance. He was arrested in 1997 on charges of "being a leader of a banned religious cult, disrupting public order and spreading religious heresy about the imminent end of the world". He was jailed for three years and moved to the United States upon release.The Spirit-Spirit SectAlso known as Spiritual Religion and the Spirit Sect, this movement was founded in 1983 by Hua Xuehe, a farmer in Huaiyin, Jiangsu province. Hua claimed that one "could only be saved" through believing in his sect. At its peak, membership reached 15,000. The Spirit-Spirit Sect is also believed to have encouraged its members to oppose the local government and the Communist Party, and attack the Three-Self Patriotic Movement (the state-sanctioned Protestant church). They declared that "the nation must be ruled by the Gospel" and that "the Spirit-Spirit section should unify the world". Hua was arrested in the early 1990s and sent to a labour camp despite 700 members protesting.The New Testament ChurchThis church was founded by Hong Kong-based actress Kong Duen-yee in 1963, three years after she was diagnosed with terminal cancer. After Kong died, in 1966, Ruth Cheong, her daughter, took the New Testament Church to Taiwan. Its current leader is Elijah Hong, who exported the New Testament Church around the world, including to the mainland. Hong claims he is the last prophet, New Testament is the only true church and that all other church groups, as well as all nations, are satanic.Goddess of Mercy DoctrineFounded in 1988 by Shi Ching-hai, in Taiwan, the Goddess of Mercy Doctrine was introduced to the mainland in 1992. By 1999, the organisation claimed to have 500,000 followers in 20 provinces and cities.Lord God ReligionFounded in 1993 by Liu Jiaguo, the Lord God Religion had more than 10,000 followers in more than 22 provinces, autonomous regions and cities before it was banned as a cult in 1998. Liu was executed the following year.Established KingEstablished King was founded in 1988 by Wu Yangming, a peasant in Anhui province. Wu, who had only a primary school education, became a Christian in his late 20s but shortly afterwards was drawn into "cultist" activities. By the late 1980s, he was actively spreading his teachings and proclaiming himself to be the messiah. Group members zealously evangelised, attacking the Communist Party and the Three-Self Patriotic Movement, and declared the end of the world was imminent. Claiming to be God incarnate, Wu reportedly raped more than 100 female followers. One of them escaped and alerted the police, who arrested him. He was executed on December 29, 1995.Unification ChurchAlso known as The Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, and by the nickname The Moonies, the Unification Church was founded in South Korea in 1954 by the late Sun Myung Moon, who claimed he was the messiah. Born in what is now North Korea, he had been jailed for preaching Christianity there. He was also known as an anti-commu-nist activist. He attracted media attention for presiding over mass weddings and marriage rededication ceremonies.Three Grades of ServantsThe sect was founded by Xu Wenku, who began preaching in the early 70s in central Henan province. In November 2006, Xu and two other members of the sect were executed in secret, for allegedly murdering 20 members of a rival group.True Buddha SchoolA new sect using teachings taken from Buddhism and Taoism, the True Buddha School was founded by Taiwanese-born Lu Sheng-yen, who is revered by his disciples as a living Buddha. In 1989, he presided over a ceremony in Hong Kong to pray for the souls of compatriots who had died on June 4.Family InternationalFormed as the Children of God, this religious group was started in 1968, in California, by David Berg, who took the titles of "King" and "Moses". He communicated with his followers via Mo Letters - letters of instruction and counsel on myriad spiritual and practical subjects - until his death in 1994. The group encouraged children to have sex with adults and each other.The Dami MissionA Christian movement founded in 1988 in South Korea by Lee Jang-rim, the mission reached China in early 1992. Lee predicted the Rapture and the end of the world would occur on October 28, 1992. When they didn't, Lee was convicted of defrauding his followers out of millions of dollars.World Elijah Evangelical MissionCurrently known as the Elijah Ten Commandments Stone Country Korean Farmers Salvation Association, this group was founded by Park Myung-ho in 1980. Park claimed to be the last prophet, Elijah, and asked his believers to worship him as "the Immortal Stone". He named his organisation Stone Country, for which he drafted up a constitution, a national flag and an anthem. He predicted doomsday would come in 2000.