
175) Largest Cults in History
Explicit content warning
05/25/22 • 87 min
10 Listeners
We've all heard of the most famous cults out there: The People's Temple (a.k.a. Jonestown), the Manson Family, Heaven's Gate. Despite their infamy, these cults are not the largest in history, or even close to it. On this episode, Nick and Josh Schell from the Let's Start a Cult podcast cover the Top 10 Largest Cults in History, ranked by their peak membership.
PLUS: the history and belief system of each cult, what makes a cult?, which mainstream religions should be considered cults?, doomsday cults, sex with Jesus, UFO religions, the cult that wanted to rub your feet, and MUCH more.
IMAGES (contains spoilers):
- David Berg, leader of Children of God
- Marshall Applewhite, leader of Heaven's Gate
- Sean Moon, leader of the off-shoot Unification Church cult
NOTE: this episode contains some content that may be uncomfortable for some, such as violence, sexual abuse, and other sensitive topics.
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Hear more from Josh on his podcasts, Let's Start a Cult and Reddit on Wiki.
On Let's Start a Cult, Join Josh in diving into the dark and interesting world of cults! Each episode is a journey of how cults form, who their leaders are, and how they almost always come to an end. Listen now at https://www.letsstartacultpodcast.com.
On Reddit on Wiki, Josh and co-hosts, Sean and John, chat about life and research a topic from Wikipedia. On Fridays, they scroll Reddit on their quest for the biggest a$$holes on the platform! Listen now at https://www.redditonwiki.com. Listen to the April 8, 2022 episode for Nick's guest appearance!
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We've all heard of the most famous cults out there: The People's Temple (a.k.a. Jonestown), the Manson Family, Heaven's Gate. Despite their infamy, these cults are not the largest in history, or even close to it. On this episode, Nick and Josh Schell from the Let's Start a Cult podcast cover the Top 10 Largest Cults in History, ranked by their peak membership.
PLUS: the history and belief system of each cult, what makes a cult?, which mainstream religions should be considered cults?, doomsday cults, sex with Jesus, UFO religions, the cult that wanted to rub your feet, and MUCH more.
IMAGES (contains spoilers):
- David Berg, leader of Children of God
- Marshall Applewhite, leader of Heaven's Gate
- Sean Moon, leader of the off-shoot Unification Church cult
NOTE: this episode contains some content that may be uncomfortable for some, such as violence, sexual abuse, and other sensitive topics.
----------------------------------------------
Hear more from Josh on his podcasts, Let's Start a Cult and Reddit on Wiki.
On Let's Start a Cult, Join Josh in diving into the dark and interesting world of cults! Each episode is a journey of how cults form, who their leaders are, and how they almost always come to an end. Listen now at https://www.letsstartacultpodcast.com.
On Reddit on Wiki, Josh and co-hosts, Sean and John, chat about life and research a topic from Wikipedia. On Fridays, they scroll Reddit on their quest for the biggest a$$holes on the platform! Listen now at https://www.redditonwiki.com. Listen to the April 8, 2022 episode for Nick's guest appearance!
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Listen to the podcast, No Bad Reviews: A Coffee Podcast, on any podcast app or at https://www.nobadreviewspodcast.com.
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Listen to the podcast, Starfleet Leadership Academy - Leadership Through Star Trek, on any podcast app or at https://www.starfleetleadership.academy.
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Hackbeat by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
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Onion Capers by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
Background Music during 10ish Podcast Reviews:
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https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4071-monkeys-spinning-monkeys
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Previous Episode

174) Most Populous Cities in Canada
On this episode, Nick welcomes back guest sidekick host, Brad Choma from the Doomsday podcast, to put his Canadian pride to the test. Brad is forced to guess the Top 10 Largest Cities in Canada, ranked by total metropolitan population as of 2021.
PLUS... the history of every city on the list, how each city was named, fun facts and trivia about each city, Brad's personal experiences in Canada, the deadliest city in Canada, riding on a moose, and MUCH more.
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Hear more from Brad on his podcast, Doomsday, History's Most Dangerous Podcast. Doomsday is a history lesson that disguises itself as a horror story. We explore the most bizarre disasters from around the world. Listen now at https://funeralkazoo.com/doomsday.
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Listen to the new bonus episode on 10ish Pod+, where Nick tries to guess the Top 10 Largest Objects in our Solar System. Listen now at https://www.patreon.com/posts/bonus-38-top-10-66309071
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Next Episode

"BEST OF" 2-PACK: Seinfeld + The Office
In this 10ish Podcast "BEST OF" 2-Pack, we're revisiting two of our all-time favorite TV shows.
First, Nick and Brandon discuss their favorite characters, quotes, moments, and more from Seinfeld (Episode 32). Then, immediately following that, we'll be shifting focus to the U.S. version of The Office (Episode 80).
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Summary of Episode 32: SEINFELD - Favorite Characters, Moments, Quotes, & More, originally released May 2019
The podcast about nothing sits down in their favorite coffee shop booth to discuss the show about nothing...Seinfeld! In this rare opinion-based episode, Nick & Brandon reveal their favorite side-characters, episodes, scenes, quotes, and life lessons from the Seinfeld universe.
PLUS...fun facts about the history of Seinfeld, the business of Seinfeld, behind-the-scenes stories, being raised on Seinfeld, analyzing some of the key storylines, humans with detachable butts, Brandon is staying up too late, stopping short, Seinfeld actors that are dead now, thoughts on a Seinfeld reunion, Bryan Cranston, more on Brandon's inflatable family, characters you forgot about, spanking oneself in excitement, eating ravioli over a trash can, and MUCH more!
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Summary of Episode 80: THE OFFICE - Favorite Characters, Moments, & More, originally released April, 2020
We're taking a rare break from our traditional format to present this episode dedicated entirely to the U.S. version of THE OFFICE; Nick & Brandon guess the other's favorite characters, episodes, quotes, and more.
PLUS...the history of The Office, the evolution of the show over its nine seasons, The Office vs. Seinfeld, listeners submit their favorites, behind-the-scenes notes and fun facts, The Office reunion, unsung heroes of The Office, is Michael Scott the greatest character in TV history?, early seasons vs. later seasons, Brandon's #HotTakes on Oprah, characters that get on our nerves, Nick & Brandon roast the DVD/Blu-Ray industry, Will Ferrell telling you your parents have died, HOT TAKES, and MUCH more.
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