8
“It’s all about who you know.”
That
saying can apply to both the business world and cults. Namely, if you’re trying to start a cult, you should target the right people. If you happen to know a few wealthy businessmen whose upbringings and beliefs prime them to take every word you say as literal gospel . . . well, you’re in business. “Matthias the Prophet,” born Robert Matthews, figured that out eventually, but there was a lot of tumult leading up to that epiphany. And plenty of tumult after it, of course. “The Prophet of the God of the Jews,” another alias he would assume, came into the world without that lofty title in Washington County, New York in 1788. His parents died in 1795, and Matthews and his nine siblings were split up and sent to the care of neighbors and extended family. Young Matthews ended up with the church elders. Since the community had a strict Presbyterian bent, he was immersed in religion as he grew. For a little while, once he reached adulthood, he led a normal life, with a wife, children, and a store. Then other concerns stole his attention. Religion swallowed him whole, and he took to street preaching. He also indulged in fits of rage, which didn’t really help his business—or his chances at any sort of stable employment. He bounced between Manhattan, where plenty of street corners held willing, or at least curious, ears—and Albany, where his wife and children waited.
Children of God - Founder: David Brandt Berg. Active : 1968 to 1994. Peak Membership: ~10,000
