The Church Universal and
Triumphant: Elizabeth Clare Prophets
Apocalyptic Movement by Bradley
Whitsel
A Rare Analysis Of The Church Universal & Triumphant From A University Press
Bradley C. Whitsels vivid account of the Church Universal and Triumphant
(CUT), from its modest origin as a tiny fragment of the esoteric community
through its growth into a wealthy and formidable organization in the 1960s
and early 1970s, examines one of the most compelling new religious
movements in America. Founded in 1958 by the charismatic Mark
Prophet and continued after his death by his wife Elizabeth Clare Prophet,
the Church combined New Age beliefs with an anti-Communist mindset
based on the conviction that America was imperiled by left-wing enemies.
In his skillful analysis of the groups evolution, Whitsel uses internal church
documents and other resources to trace CUTs development of its dark
apocalyptic vision. He places the Church Universal and Triumphant within
the context of other millennial groups sharing a similar psychology of crisis

and disaster and analyzes the churchs interactions with its political
environment. This work fills a void in the literature available about the
Church Universal and Triumphant and offers a comprehensive perspective
that is conspicuously absent from the existing literature. The book will
appeal to general readers as well as political scientists and sociologist
specializing in the fields of political sociology, millennialism, and radical
religio-political movements.
Personal Review: The Church Universal and Triumphant:
Elizabeth Clare Prophets Apocalyptic Movement by Bradley
Whitsel
Bradley Whitsel is an assistant professor at Pennsylvania State University,
and he is writing this book from the perspective of a political scientist,
rather than from a religious/spiritual viewpoint. He is particularly interested
in the "doomsday" predictions that were made by the leader of the Church
Universal and Triumphant (CUT), Elizabeth Clare Prophet during the late
1980s, resulting in church members and followers taking shelter in early
1990 in underground shelters that CUT had constructed beneath their
headquarters in Montana.
Whitsel chronicles the history of the group from its origins out of Guy and
Edna Ballard's "I AM" movement, through the years of Mark Prophet's
marriage to Elizabeth Clare, then her ascendancy to lead the organization
after mark Prophet's death in 1973.
Whitsel notes that "CUT attracted an unusual degree of attenton from
journalists for its unique blend of Ascended Master spirituality and scientific
inquiry. Its meetings and events on topics such as the dangers of genetic
engineering, problems with the Federal Reserve system, and the potential
for nuclear war, reflected the organization's concerns with concrete worldly
issues, a characteristic that separated CUT from the stereotypical 'airiness'
of the New Age."
However, Whitsel notes that "Disillusioned CUT members fled Paradise
Valley in droves after the nuclear disaster failed to happen. By some
accounts, half of the three to four thousand CUT adherents who had come
to Montana from 1986 until the time of the emergency call suddenly left the
area once expectations for a massive Soviet strike dissapated."
Nevertheless, although "CUT lost about one-third of its total membership in
the immediate aftermath of the shelter period, but for the most devoted, the
nonappearance of the expected disaster was not enough to cause them to
break ties with CUT nor to shake their faith in the Messenger."
Whitsel suggests that the fall of communism sped up the Church's decline.
"W)hen the Soviet for disintegrated politically in 1991, Prophet's church
was left without the historic enemy against which the group's spiritual battle
for world freedom was conducted. The conclusion of the Cold War
effectively stripped from CUT a long-standing part of its theology and left
the organization ideologically rudderless."

Whitsel's book is more of a political/sociological portrait of CUT than a
religious/spiritual one, so readers looking for a sympathetic
analysis/discussion of channeling, "ascended masters," etc., will have to
look elsewhere. But for readers looking for a fascinating portrait of CUT
from an "outsider"---who isn't a fundamentalist Christian looking to criticize
a "cult"---Whitsel's book is highly recommended.
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