Welcome to Cults.co.nz

and the New Zealand Cult List

New Zealand Cults, Sects, Religions, Christian Organisations, and other groups.

"Cult" is an emotive word. It brings to mind all the worst religious groups, where people commit suicide thinking they're going to meet a UFO, launch deadly nerve gas attacks in subways, or stockpile guns and ammunition fearing the end of the world, only to die in a blazing inferno. But most cults don't do those things – quite the opposite. The people in most cults are often model citizens. They live moral lives and care about their community, their children do well in school. But cults have a strong tendency to harm and control their members. This site explains how and describes many of the cults in New Zealand.

Although called "The New Zealand Cult List", the list is now much broader than just a list of the cults in this country. It contains both religious and secular groups, Christian and non-Christian groups. Some individuals are also included. The list is written from a Christian perspective and is primarily intended as a resource for New Zealand Christians. However, it may still be of some use to non-Christians, and people in other countries. For more information, please see the About Cults.co.nz page.

If you have information or would like to contribute to this site please see the Contact page.

The Main List

The list has grown to the point where each letter is now separate.

Featured listings for September 2020: Liberal Friends (the most common branch of Quakers in NZ).

Featured listings for August 2020: Manifesting and the Law of Attraction.

Featured listings for July 2020: Miracle Mineral Solution, Roger Blake and the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing.

Also on this site

Cult Closeups – a look at some of the biggest cults in New Zealand, in more depth than the list provides.

Cult FAQ – includes answers to the most commonly asked questions about cults.

Books – religious books, publications and other writings held holy or highly regarded by various cults and religions.

Movies – movies with religious content.

TV/Radio – religious programs on New Zealand television and radio.

Glossary – terms used to describe religious ideas and terms, and jargon used by religious groups.

Census figures for religions in New Zealand for the last few years (five year intervals). Also features basic election results for the last several decades and a few of the moral laws introduced by New Zealand governments.

Wanted – a list of the groups, practices and people currently under review or investigation. If you have information about these groups, please let us know.

Ratings and Other Symbols

To help distinguish between the good and the bad, several icons are used to rate the listings.

Danger: The group/person or belief/practice is considered dangerous due to mind control or particularly bad doctrine. These groups (or people) have a strong tendency to damage their members/followers. Caution: The group/person or belief/practice has false or questionable doctrine that to varying degrees may be directly or indirectly harmful to its members/followers and their families. Such groups/people/beliefs/practices are not necessarily bad but should be approached or used with caution. OK: The group/person or belief/practice is considered OK and/or helpful - at least most of the time. Neutral: The group or belief/practice is considered spiritually neutral, or quite secular (most companies and ecological groups, for example). This list mostly does not attempt to define the pros and cons of such organisations, or their morality. False Religion: (Also used for false worldviews.) According to Christian belief Jesus Christ is the only way to God. All other religions fail to deal with the issue of sin, which sets us apart from God. Only Christianity provides forgiveness of sin because of Jesus paying the penalty that we should have paid. The price that Jesus Christ paid is a free gift that we can choose to accept or reject. For more on this read the Pastor Notes pamphlet We All Need Our Sins Forgiven. Not Yet Rated: The group or belief/practice has not yet been assigned one of the above ratings. This is often because not enough is presently known about the group to be able to issue a rating. Hot Topic: The group/person or belief/practice has recently featured in the secular news media, has generated notable correspondence, is a popular conversation topic, etc. Note that this rating has nothing to do with the "cultishness" of a group. Very Hot Topic: At present we only have four listings which are so hot they deserve two flames – Abortion, which claims the lives of thousands of New Zealanders each year, Scientology which actively tries to suppress the rights of personal freedom, in particular free speech and religious freedom), and Mark Holloway and his book The Freedom Diaries because they are so unbiblical but so widely supported. Note that this rating has nothing to do with the "cultishness" of a group. Printable: The listing has a printable version. In a listing with this icon, click on the icon to get a pop-up window with just that one listing. To comment on this feature please see the Contact page.

All links to other web sites open in a new window and are indicated with a small arrow thus:

Words linked to definitions in the Glossary are designated in green. Words linked to Cult Closeups are designated in brown.

Please note that not all listings have been rated. For example, we normally consider it inappropriate to rate people, or particular practices of world religions, so they will not typically get ratings. The ratings are often over-simplified, and are intended as generalisations only.

Note that whatever rating we give a group/person or belief/practice, visitors to this site are free to come to their own conclusions – preferrably after reviewing much more information – and might personally rate listings quite differently. We also note that even in groups given the Danger rating (or False Religion rating, for that matter) it is very unusual not to find at least some positive aspects, and often there are many – if a group is completely bad there would be no reason for people to join, after all. If you think that we should be rating the listing differently, you are welcome to tell us why you think we should change the rating. Please see the Contact page.