What would motivate K. Gordon Neufeld, a highly creative young writer of fiction and poetry, to join an extreme religion like the Unification Church of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon? Having joined, how did Neufeld's involvement in this group impact his writing, and how does his writing impact his involvement? And, having left the group ten years later, how did Neufeld process his experiences with this extreme religion through creative writing? Finally, what value can writing have for other survivors of extreme religions? These are the questions this book explores, while providing samples of Neufeld's creative writing over a 40 year period from 1973 to 2013, including poems, stories, essays, satires, and diary entries which he produced before, during, and after his involvement in the Unification Church. The four questions are explored in a series of four academic papers which were prepared for presentation at conferences of the International Cultic Studies Association. The sample writings range from highly intense personal examinations to hilarious spoofs and include many sensitive, thoughtful short stories and poems. This collection will be of interest to academics wanting to understand the psychological roots and effects of cultic involvement, and also to general readers who just want to read a good story.
