Jan Groenveld (1945 – 22 October 2002) was an Australian Christian countercult activist. She was a member of the Latter-day Saints Church and the

Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a Christian denomination that is an outgrowth of the Bible Student movement founded by Charles Taze Russell in the nineteenth century. The denomination is nontrinitarian, millenarian, and restorationist. Russell co-fou ...

. She spent fifteen years in these and other organisations before leaving them in 1975 and resolving to make more information about what she saw as

cult Cults are social groups which have unusual, and often extreme, religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals. Extreme devotion to a particular person, object, or goal is another characteristic often ascribed to cults. The term ...

s available to the general public.

Anti-cult activities

Groenveld first began providing information about groups she referred to as

cults Cults are social groups which have unusual, and often extreme, religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals. Extreme devotion to a particular person, object, or goal is another characteristic often ascribed to cults. The term ha ...

to the public and

counselling Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes. This is a list of c ...

affected individuals in 1979. In 1980, she founded the Freedom in Christ ministry, whose purpose was to counsel former members of controversial groups and provide information about coercive religious sects. Groenveld founded the Cult Awareness and Information Centre (CAIC) in 1990. Groenveld's CAIC website was started in 1991. Groenveld was particularly active against the

, modern Satanism, and the

occult The occult () is a category of esoteric or supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of organized religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving a 'hidden' or 'secret' agency, such as magic and mysti ...

, but she also combatted the influence of other groups – like

Scientologists Scientology is a set of beliefs and practices invented by the American author L. Ron Hubbard, and an associated movement. It is variously defined as a scam, a business, a cult, or a religion. Hubbard initially developed a set of pseudoscientif ...

– in Australia. Groenveld first met

Steven Hassan Steven Alan Hassan (pronounced ) is an American mental health professional and author who specializes in the area of cults. He worked as a deprogrammer in the late 1970s, but since then has advocated a non-coercive form of exit counseling. Ha ...

in 1993, when she brought him to

Brisbane, Australia Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

, from the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

for a seminar. Hassan educated Groenveld as to the "serious potential for doubt and lack of veracity in

satanic ritual abuse The Satanic panic is a moral panic consisting of over 12,000 unsubstantiated cases of Satanic ritual abuse (SRA, sometimes known as ritual abuse, ritualistic abuse, organized abuse, or sadistic ritual abuse) starting in North America in the 19 ...

stories".

Presence in media

In 1999, a

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

tabloid, ''The Sunday Mail'', interviewed Groenveld on the likelihood that more

destructive cult Cults are social groups which have unusual, and often extreme, religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals. Extreme devotion to a particular person, object, or goal is another characteristic often ascribed to cults. The term ha ...

s would show up in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

during 1999 before the new millennium. The publication and others credited Groenveld as a "cult specialist".Griffith, Chris. (10 January 1999) "Doom Cults Aussie Alert", ''The Sunday Mail'' (Brisbane, Australia) 1, 4. Other Australian publications like ''

The Courier-Mail ''The Courier-Mail'' is an Australian newspaper published in Brisbane. Owned by News Corp Australia, it is published daily from Monday to Saturday in tabloid format. Its editorial offices are located at Bowen Hills, in Brisbane's inner norther ...

'', a

tabloid, and ''The Mercury'', a tabloid in

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

, titled her a "cult expert." She warned the publication about a cult called the Twelve Tribes Mission, believing them to possess militant tendencies. She warned that "There are people out there all over the place who would like to be another

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American cult leader, preacher and mass murderer who founded and led the Peoples Temple between 1955 and 1978. Jones and the members of his inner circle planned and orchestrat ...

", referring to the

Peoples Temple The Peoples Temple of the Disciples of Christ, originally Peoples Temple Full Gospel Church and commonly shortened to Peoples Temple, was an American new religious organization which existed between 1954 and 1978 and was affiliated with the C ...

suicides. Groenveld's work has also been cited in Robert L. Snow's '' Deadly Cults: The Crimes of True Believers''.

Death

Jan Groenveld died in October 2002, and was survived by her husband, 3 sons, 2 daughters and 2 foster daughters.

References

External links

Cult Awareness and Information Centre
(under construction as of August 2022) {{DEFAULTSORT:Groenveld Australian educators Australian Pentecostals Former Latter Day Saints Exit counselors Former Jehovah's Witnesses 2002 deaths 1945 births Critics of Mormonism Critics of Jehovah's Witnesses Critics of new religious movements Former members of new religious movements People of the Christian countercult movement

Anti-cult activities

Presence in media

Death

See also

References

External links