Cult Rapture

by Adam Parfrey (Feral House)
by Lex Marburger

In the tangled web of conspiracies and cults, it’s easy to stake out a plot and stick to it, judging by every weird scene that floats by based on pre-conceived notions. Adam Parfrey offers a way out. His book, Cult Rapture, takes a look at some of the stranger elements of belief in America, and (in most cases) does his best to portray them in a humorous, negative light. Granted, some of the articles deserve the ridicule-disguised-as-objective-journalism, such as his skewering of the porcine and rabid Andrea Dworkin, or the exposé on mail-order brides (“…obviously this is going to be better than a puppy”). But some of his ridicule seems too anxious, like when he goes after supposed mystic, guru, etc. Sai Baba. He jumps to the attack so quickly in his article, we aren’t allowed to make an informed decision, not to mention the fact that Parfrey doesn’t really acknowledge Campbell’s and Jung’s assertion that the human race needs their myths and beliefs to stay whole.

Though the first half of the book focuses on the ridiculous (The Ginger “Last Girlfriend to See Elvis Alive” Alden Fan Club, G.G. Allin, Satanic conspiracies, et al), he takes a political swing in the second half, and tends to lean in favor of the Militias. His change of bias is rather obvious, and throws the first half of the book into a new light. He even goes so far as to criticize a Time article for throwing a negative spin onto an article, apparently not realizing that his literary dissection techniques could be used on his own pieces. After seeing his own preconceived notions, you look back over the book and see that throughout Cult Rapture, his writing style is absolutely consistent, it’s just your personal convictions that skew your thoughts. So read the book again with this in mind, and you’ll start coming to a new version of the truth.