Expert: Elizabeth May Have Been Brainwashed With Religion

WLKY ^ | 3/19/03

[hoosierskypilot]

A mental health expert said the man accused of kidnapping Elizabeth Smart may have used religion to help brainwash her.

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Steven Hassan is a psychologist who specializes in cults.

He said since Elizabeth was a Mormon, and suspect Brian Mitchell had been excommunicated from that faith, they shared common religious reference points.

Hassan said Mitchell likely began immediately to lay out his belief system -- that he was a messenger from God and that God wanted him to have many wives.

The expert said the girl was given a new identity and a new name, different clothes and a roaming, isolated lifestyle.

Hassan said when things calm down and Elizabeth's no longer basking in the feel of her own clothes and the taste of home-cooked food, she may long for that other identity.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

I have alway thought he would use his knowledge of her faith to aid in his control of her. He is that evil.

[AppyPappy]

Oh yeah. Walking around in a shroud following a babbling, groping wino. That's the life every 15 year-old wants to live.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

If you are brainwashed, it is kind of hard to walk out of one identity and world, and be expected to adapt to a new one. The process is never quick and clean, and she may wish that she didn't have to go through the painful process. Her recovery is just beginning.

[Adrastus]

What does all this mean,sir???

[vastrightwc]

Somthing tells me this girl may have had some problems before this guy ever came along. I can't believe brainwashing is that easy. I feel sorry for the girl and her family, but something isn't right here.

[Belial]

A mental health expert said the man accused of kidnapping Elizabeth Smart may have used religion to help brainwash her.

I don't think you need to be an expert to arrive at this conclusion.

[End Times Sentinel]

    Just putting it out here as a question, but has anyone heard specifically WHAT religion Mitchell is?  I ask because normally, if he was some sect or denomination of Christianity, the media would be all over it like a bull dog on a meat wagon.  In this case, I haven't heard anything on it. 

 

    Mitchell wearing a kufi hat, a tunic, a beard, etc. makes me wonder if he was possibly a practioner of The Religion of Peace.  It would be par for the course to have that covered up, see Beltway Sniper John Allen Williams (nee Muhamed)

 

Owl_Eagle

”Guns Before Butter.”

[MineralMan]

"Somthing tells me this girl may have had some problems before this guy ever came along. "

And what might that something be? Can you expand on your theory, providing some evidence for your belief? Do you have information that has not been published? Or, like so many others, are you exercizing your imagination?

[vastrightwc]

Although maybe brainwahing is more easily accomplished than I realize- After all... there are an awful lot of Democrats walking around.....

[Belial]

Mitchell wearing a kufi hat, a tunic, a beard, etc. makes me wonder if he was possibly a practioner of The Religion of Peace. It would be par for the course to have that covered up, see Beltway Sniper John Allen Williams (nee Muhamed)

You need a better fitting tinfoil cap, my friend. Mitchell is not a Muslim. He is insane, and an excommunicated Mormon. His insanity makes his religious affiliation irrelevant, however.

Of course, since you seem to have the common fetish of painting entire religions with the actions of a few wingnuts, I doubt that matters much to you.

[VRWC_minion]

may = I get to say and imagine any wild ass theory I want without recourse.

psychologist who specializes in cults= Hates all people of faith.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

He is an ex-Communicated Mormon. But, I don't know what group he would claim to belong to, today.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

Cults are vastly different than recognized religions.

[lady lawyer]

He is, as near as I can tell, the leader of his own "group," consisting of himself and his wife.

[uncitizen]

Ooh good point! And the women wore burka's. Hmmm, if one were to guess his religion, what would one conclude???

[RAT Patrol]

Plus, emotionally it would be easier for her to accept his weird beliefs than to face the sexual abuse trauma. It gave her a psychological "out." But I seriously doubt she ever "longs" for that identity again. She will certainly have lingering and even evolving issues with that whole nightmare, but that does not mean she will long for it in any true sense.

[smith288]

He is, as near as I can tell, the leader of his own "group," consisting of himself and his wife.

Dont forget Elizabeth Smart! < /sarcasm>

[RnMomof7]

    Just putting it out here as a question, but has anyone heard specifically WHAT religion Mitchell is? 

Basically mormon (excommunicated)..but he was more along the lines of the fundamentalists. I think he considered himsel another Joseph Smith

[RAT Patrol]

Trauma can function as a light switch sometimes. Remember her age, her faith, her family, etc... In a weird sort of way, checking out of reality -- necessary to brainwashing -- is the brain's way of protecting the emotional self.