Star Trek Borg

During a planning meeting yesterday with Dr. Steven Hassan of the Freedom of Mind Foundation, I learned something very interesting.  Star Trek's "Borg" exists because of his book, Combatting Cult Mind Control!  The creators of the android beings that were introduced during Star Trek's The Next Generation series were conceptually designed after the hierarchy, structure, cause, and effects of a destructive religious cult.  The Borg's creator had a family member who was involved with the Jehovah's Witnesses and engaged Dr. Hassan to safely rescue them from the cult.  This experience, combined with being educated to understand the nature and mechanics of a cult, was brought to life in movies and television as one of the most interesting features in Star Trek History!  Dr. Hassan was invited to the set of The Next Generation met the cast aboard the Enterprise, and has a large, signed photograph of them hanging on his wall.  We laughed over his telling of the experience; apparently, he was introduced jokingly as a replacement for Brent Spiner, to which "Data" was very surprised to hear!

My mind is still racing while thinking back through all of the themes that quickly stand out.  Though we were not allowed to watch television in the "Message" cult following of William Branham, my family had brief periods of time where a television was in the house.  Star Trek was one of my "secret sins", and I have been a "Trekkie" since The Next Generation.  When "Jean-Luc Picard" met the Borg Queen, he had encountered the Central Figure of the cult hierarchy from which all instructions flowed.  Rank-and-file androids were referred to as the "collective" and were "plugged in" to the flow of information.  If ever disconnected, they were extremely disoriented and desperately sought to reconnect.  If a handful of Borg drones were disconnected together, they isolated and tried to maintain their sub-sect -- still somewhat disoriented.  Those who were able to fully disconnect, such as Star Trek Voyager's Seven of Nine felt extreme isolation and discomfort, lashing out at those desperately trying to help.  Long-lasting effects from the disconnection were often a theme in the series. 

These are all themes that we experienced together both in the cult and after escaping.  Those who are in the support networks of former members of the "Message" experience emotions and distress very similar to the fictional race of beings; Star Trek's Borg is nothing more than a symbolic representation of our lives and journey to seek freedom.  If you are struggling with these effects, please reach out to us on the "Get Help" section of william-branham.org.   In the upcoming months, we will soon have several articles and videos for training and education created by Dr. Hassan in the Get Help section of the site for both those who have escaped and are struggling and those who wish to help someone they know to find freedom from the cult.