CultNEWS101 Articles: 12/24/2025

[Patrick Ryan]

Unification Church, Israelite House of David, 764

KBS: Police Grill Unification Church Leader about Political Gift Scandal

"A National Police Agency team visited the Seoul Detention Center on Wednesday morning to grill Unification Church leader Han Hak-ja, who is currently detained on charges of bribery and violation of the Political Funds Act.

Wednesday marked Han's first interrogation since she was named a suspect in a wide-ranging political gift scandal.

Police believe the church provided tens of millions of won in cash and luxury watches to former Oceans Minister Chun Jae-soo, former ruling Democratic Party(DP) Rep. Lim Jong-seong and former main opposition People Power Party(PPP) Rep. Kim Gyu-hwan between 2018 and 2020.

The police suspect that Han ordered the deliveries because former church second-in-command Yun Young-ho testified before the special counsel team assigned to former first lady Kim Keon-hee that he had made them on Han’s orders.

Aside from questioning Han about the cash and luxury watches, police likely grilled her about whether 28 billion won, or around 19 million U.S. dollars, found in her personal safe, had been used to lobby politicians.

Police seized the cash, along with the church’s accounting records, during a raid of ten locations linked to the church on Monday.

Police will use the documents to trace the flow of funds and identify any money or gifts that may have been used for lobbying."

Grand Rapids Magazine: Odd ballers: The cult next door

"The Benton Harbor commune known as the Israelite House of David is a fascinating chapter in American religious and cultural history, blending spiritual ambition with public spectacle. Founded in 1903, the community grew out of a religious movement that began in late 18th-century England, with members—mostly Anglo-American or European Christians — identifying spiritually as Israelites. The House of David gained national fame for its accomplished baseball team, amusement park, and touring musical acts. At its peak in 1918, it counted more than 1,000 members—all of whom gave up their assets and personal agency in search of a better way of life."

" ... Yet, for all their public achievements, the community’s legacy is equally tied to scandal. Near the end of his life, founder Benjamin Purnell was placed on trial for fraud and accused of engaging in sexual relations with young women in the commune. The allegations cast a long shadow over the group, reshaping its national image.

Today, only three members of the House of David survive—two from the original community and one from an offshoot called Mary’s City of David, formed by Purnell’s wife. Their work now centers on preserving the commune’s history."

ABC: In rare public comments, career DOJ officials offer chilling warnings about online network 764

Members use social platforms to push vulnerable teens into harming themselves.

"In striking and chilling terms, several career Justice Department officials on Thursday offered dire warnings about the online extremist network "764," whose young followers around the world use popular social media platforms to target, groom and push vulnerable teens into harming themselves and others.

"I don't think Stephen King is dark enough to come up with some of the stuff that these kids are coming up with," said Justin Sher, a trial attorney with the Justice Department's National Security Division.

"It is as serious a threat as you can imagine," Sher's Justice Department colleague James Donnelly said. "[And] they're trying to metastasize the evil."

Their comments came during a panel about 764 hosted by George Washington University's Program on Extremism. It was a rare public appearance for two career prosecutors who the panel's moderator described as "the point people" on 764 within the department's National Security Division.

Sher and Donnelly both noted that 764 members are increasingly trying to push victims to take deadly actions, including suicide or school shootings and other mass-casualty attacks.

As ABC News has previously reported, 764 members find vulnerable victims on popular online platforms, elicit private information and intimate sexual images from them, and then use that sensitive material to threaten and blackmail victims into mutilating themselves, harming others, or taking other violent action --- all while streaming it on social media so others can watch and then disseminate recordings of it.

'For them, content is currency," Sher said. "So they are building their content inventory ... and putting it out there to build their status within these groups.'"

News, Education, Intervention, Recovery

CultMediation.com   

Intervention101.com to help families and friends understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement.

CultRecovery101.com assists group members and their families make the sometimes difficult transition from coercion to renewed individual choice.

CultNEWS101.com news, links, resources about: cults, cultic groups, abusive relationships, movements, religions, political organizations, and related topics.

Facebook

Flipboard

Twitter

Instagram

The selection of articles for CultNEWS101 does not imply that Patrick Ryan or Joseph Kelly endorse the content. We provide information from multiple perspectives to foster dialogue.

Please forward articles that you think we should add to cultinte...@gmail.com.

Thanks,

Ashlen Hilliard (ashlen.hilli...@gmail.com)

Joe Kelly (joeke...@gmail.com)

Patrick Ryan (pryan...@gmail.com)

If you do not wish to be subscribed to this list, or you think you are being maliciously subscribed to the list, or have any other questions, send them to: pryan...@gmail.com or send an email to: cultnews101...@googlegroups.com.