A closed, self-contained fundamentalist Christian commune of roughly 600 residents in New Zealand's remote Haupiri Valley, founded by convicted sex offender Neville Cooper ('Hopeful Christian') and characterized by zero private property, arranged marriages, child labor, and total geographic and informational isolation.
Category Directory · 2 Sourced Profiles
Communal and Intentional Communities
Groups that share living space, money and daily routine. Sourced profiles of residential communes, totalistic intentional communities, and closed compounds sharing property, labor, and daily schedules.
Not sure how to evaluate a group? Check the warning signs of a cult, take the "Is this a cult?" checklist, or browse the full cult directory.
Profiles in Communal and Intentional Communities (2)
under-scrutinyBITE: 95/100
The Geographic / Total Isolationist Evangelical CultRead sourced profile →
defunctBITE: 95/100
Founded in 1958 by Charles Dederich as a groundbreaking peer-led drug rehabilitation program, Synanon evolved into a violent totalitarian commune and self-declared church that pioneered 'The Game' (attack therapy), forced vasectomies, mandatory partner-swapping, and paramilitary terror.
The Therapeutic / Rehabilitation-to-Terror CultRead sourced profile →