Re: Is the Bruderhof a cult? Oxford professor says no

Thinking further about how you assess to see if a group is a cult, is it OK to use reports of visits to the group in question?

Here is a visit report that is broadly positive, but from someone who didn't stay for long: Life among the Bruderhof

Here is one where the people visited for a couple days: Learning from the Bruderhof: an Intentional Community

And most compelling, here is a video of someone who visited for a least a couple weeks: Visiting the Bruderhof - Youtube Video

So of the info on the internet, it seems like ex-members will say it is a cult, based on their personal experience, whereas visitors will have a positive experience.

Now, I know that a religious group could just be putting on a front for a visitor, but surely that would get tiresome after even a couple days, and certainly a couple weeks.

So I am unsure about this one. I guess any intentional community can be seen as cultish just because they are different from society.