An extraordinary true story about how one woman was broken down by a secretive, predatory cult – and how she broke free and remade her life.
As an 18-year-old on a gap year in Canberra, Liz was approached at a shopping centre by a woman who, unbeknown to her, was a recruiting agent for Providence, a Christian cult that originated in South Korea and currently operates in more than 70 countries. As a new adult, Liz was struggling to navigate the world and her identity, and as cults do so skilfully, they took advantage of her vulnerability.
After months of indoctrination, things escalated: Liz moved in with the cult, was cut off from friends and family, and was eventually appointed to the status of 'bride' to the cult's serial rapist leader, Jeong Myeong-Seok (JMS). She travelled to South Korea to visit JMS in prison and stayed at the cult's extravagant compound.
Upon her return to Australia, Liz was controlled and starved, and underwent a severe physical and mental decline. It was only through the intervention of her parents and professional deprogrammers that she managed to escape.
In Cult Bride, Liz takes us behind the scenes of a terrifying cult to show us how they operate in plain sight – and how we can unpick the systems that enable them to prey on vulnerable people.
