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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 26, 1995)
3 iursday >er 26, 1995 s pay ■ ■ ce r; , ies.:,: tior.; leu® The Battalion a turn UOK National expert warns A&M students of the signs and effects of satanic cults «IHtS By Tara Wilkinson The Battalion s are a Sa- nist, you are e to do what- ver you want, ven if it causes thers pain. Ronald Loomis cult authority ord SSOf ?nlo(Pt , presets lessHfl I Unite ins all •°rs relT tudents might want to be aware of pentagrams, , anarchy signs, goat heads, yin and yang symbols, upside-down crosses, 666, schwastikas and logos of heavy metal bands. Ronald Loomis, a nationally recognized authority on cults, told A&M students and College Station residents last night that members of satanic cults often mark their belongings and their bodies with these symbols, even though many of the symbols originated as expressions of unrelated belief systems. Loomis said the creed of most satanic cults, “Do what thou wilt shall be the whole law,” is a dangerous philosophy that leads many cult members into crimi nal activity. “If you are a Satanist, you are free to do whatever you want that causes you pleasure, even if it causes others pain, or even causes their deaths,” he said. Satanists reverse Judeo-Christian ethics, hailing Satan as the ruler of the Earth and future ruler of the universe. Most satanic groups participate in rituals involving the sacrifice of animals and humans, believing that control of the “life force” makes them powerful. Loomis, former president of the Cult Awareness Network (CAN), a national non-profit educational or ganization, described Satanism and six other cult types during a lecture sponsored by the MSC Great Issues Committee. Satanic cult activity must be seen as part of a larger picture. Not all cults are satanic, or even religious in nature, Loomis said. Political, business, mass I therapy, new age, and para military white supremist groups are also classified as cults. Loomis said mind control and manipulation of its mem bers are the the defining characteristics of all cults. CAN members focus on the unethical and illegal practices of cults, avoiding criticism of religious beliefs. Loomis said the fight against cults is not against particular religious beliefs, but a fight against human oppression. The typical cult member, Loomis said, is a loner who feels powerless and alienated from mainstream society and family members. People, particularly adolescents, ini tially join cults as an act of rebellion, out of curiosity, or to feel part of a group, Loomis said. He said people are slowly sucked in to cult activity, begin to avoid family and friends, lose their senses of hu mor, exhibit changes in sleeping patterns, abuse alcohol and drugs, keep secrets, and perform poorly at work or school. Shane Wells, a junior philosophy major, said the warning signs offered by Loomis were a bit too general to be helpful. “The possible signs included just about everyone I know,” Wells said. Nevertheless, the necessity of detect ing cult influence in the lives of loved ones was driven home by a video Loomis showed of an interview between Geraldo Rivera and a Pete Roland, con victed murderer and Satanist. Roland, who began dabbling in sa tanic activity in high school, participated with three other high school friends in the brutal beating and murder of one of his class mates. Roland said power, which attracted him to Sa tanism in the first place, became an obsession. “Sometimes I didn’t feel like the master of my own body,” Roland said. “Sometimes it was like something else took over.” He described that “something else” as violence, Sa tan, lust and greed. When asked how he chose his murder victim, Roland said it was “just because he was a human” who “could be deceived easily.” To keep from students hearing such testimonies W/;rf/f tudents help exposure art on campus and panicking, Loomis said only a tiny minority of A&M students might be involved in Satanism and he has not heard any reports of satanic activity. “There are people who may have assumed that since this program was sponsored by a campus group, there must be satanic activity on this campus,” Loomis said, “but I don’t have any information that it is going on here.” Adam Richards, a senior wildlife ecology major, said given the amount of time Loomis had to work with, his presentation did an adequate job of provid ing a general background about cults. “He seemed fairly well informed,” Richards said. “As far as generally informing the public, he did a pretty good job.” '>r~ Amy Uptmor he Battalion 'bTr l\ comm ittee of A&M students i ' . Li are making sure Aggies are iefott ^-exposed to art. ra ij 0I1 v IThe Visual Arts Committee is a oup of students dedicated to find- , seivif: g new artists and bringing their defeaii ork to the committee’s Visual nab*' rts Gallery on the second floor of ineKi^ | MSC. , |Libe Goad, public relations direc- introl' )r f or the Visual Arts committee )en and a senior journalism and English ' orts ' lajor, said all meetings are open to ‘^ r be student body so it can see what fe committee does. | A lot of people come to our meet- ngs thinking we’re artists and leave jappointed because we just main- ih the galleries,” Goad said. lAmy Day, adviser for the Visual " Pts committee, said committee En' 10 embers have a lot of responsibility E |,ITl * Ice they actu- - — ! ly maintain S' * Students are Kponsible for Tara" jiding artists, -te*' Jntracting chan., f m cre- hei Ba"' [vely setting i, Lisab’' 1 1 the gallery bring to A&M. The committee sponsors Art Fest every year, which is a chance for stu dents to submit their artwork for cash prizes. Goad said these activities pro mote art on a campus where it is scarce. “It’s a nice thing to have, especial ly at A&M since it’s not a big art school,” she said. Day said the 150 to 300 entries Art Fest has is amazing since A&M does not have an art school. “The entries are always amazing to see, on a campus without an art school, just how many artists there are,” Day said. “They seek us out. “There are artists here — they’re just studying under differ ent curriculum,” she said. “Some are business majors who happen to be artists.” Day said the committee occasion ally sponsors art exhibits by stu- ^— dents who Something wicked this way comes . |j L [Lch often involves painting the jails to suit the mood of the exhibit. ionists *" I "It becomes a lot of work since here are a lot of details to take /nCai 11 are of,” Day said. “Anything jjat’s not taken care of for one ex- ,es pit just means more work for Sl te next exhibit.” [Day said committee members ; j |in a better understanding of con- Ahl,lt piporary art and its makers. One >r exhibits. "It's a nice thing to have, es pecially at A&M since it's not a big art school." — Libe Goad, Visual Arts committee public relations director /ersity 1 lines 00, ' Ford* pallia* 1 by the committee does this is by javeling to see what artists’ estyles are like. Day said this ts rid of a lot of the preconcep- >ns of art. “A lot of people have a fear of the Its," she said, “and when they get meet the artists and learn how ^ 'Hnal they are, it de-mystifies a lot their misconceptions about how ird all artists are.” The students on the committee jso take cultural trips to increase pip a year a* 1 I840 ,: , the fa 1 ssions , ySec 0 ’ teir own exposure to art. The mmittee will travel to Houston ov. 4 to find potential artists to Texas 0 show extraor dinary skill but they are excep tions to the gallery’s usual atmosphere. “Since this is the only art gallery of its ; kind on cam pus, we try to keep professional ex hibits in the gallery,” she said. The committee currently has an exhibit of modern sculptures by Richard Neidhardt, a professor emeritus from Austin College in Sherman. The exhibit consists of 23 sculptures of wood and bronze. Kathy Aceves, chair of the Visual Arts Committee and a junior mar keting major, said the artist’s sculp tures are of “very simple images of life people don’t think about.” “He uses art as a metaphor for certain things to show how art is a part of life,” Aceves said. The exhibit ■will run through Nov. 30. Aceves said the committee hopes to offer a free art workshop after the exhibit closes so that students will have the opportunity to learn a craft from an artist, such as painting or jewelry making. “It would be right before finals,” she said, “and would just be a good chance for students to interact with an artist.” By Amy Protas The Battalion imps running -through the woods, an 1800’s ‘haunted mansion” — the time to be scared is closely approaching. With the com ing of Halloween, groups are sponsoring haunted houses in the Bryan-College Station area. Kappa Sigma is taking a different spin on the tradition- III III !■■ ■•■mumYl PIT Robyn Calloway, The Battalion The Zeta Psi fraternity opens their "haunted man sion" during the Halloween season. al haunted house by offering haunt ed woods. James Webb, a Kappa Sigma mem ber and a junior psychology major, said the fraternity is transforming two acres of woods surrounding its frater nity house into an area of fright. “The woods lining our house are scary enough during the day,” Webb said. “The unique thing is that it’s the only outdoor haunted house. It’s a lot more frightening than a house would be.” Webb said people will get to witness gruesome acts in the woods. The money raised from the haunted woods will go to the Brazos Val ley Church Pantry. The Zeta Psis will turn their abode into a haunted mansion to raise money for the March of Dimes and the Brazos Food Pantry. James Blue, a Zeta Psi member and a senior history and English major, said the antiquity of the mansion, which was built in 1876, is its main appeal. “This house is nat urally scary because it’s from a different era,” Blue said. “The antiquity alone will make people feel out of place — like some one should at a haunted house.” Blue said the fact that the mansion once belonged to the mayor of Bryan adds to the mystique. Hd Another variation of the haunted house will be Sigma Phi Epsilon’s haunted building. The 5,000 square-foot-building will have rooms featuring black lights and evil clowns. Jeff Montgomery, a Sigma Phi Epsilon member and a senior ac counting major, said the building is truly a maze. “It’s hard for me to describe in words how unique our haunted house is,” Montgomery said. “Ours is bigger than any of the other houses in this area. The whole idea behind this is that when you have so many rooms, you can do so much with it.” The money raised will go to Scot ty’s House, a child advocacy charity for physically and sexually abused children. The residents of Hotard Hall will transform their entire dorm into Ho tard From Hell, a tradition that has been around for over 10 years. Each floor has its own maze or theme. Chris Oxner, Hotard president and a junior biology major, said being on campus is a large advantage.. “Hotard From Hell is kind of a pride thing,” Oxner said. “The fact that it’s a tradition is important. People can walk here because we are on Northside.” The money raised from Hotard From Hell will go to a local charity the dorm will choose later. Blue said the reason haunted hous es are popular with college students is because it gives them an excuse to par ticipate in a holiday that is traditional ly enjoyed by children. “We want to give college students something to do,” he said. “You stop trick-or-treating at a certain age. Everyone wants to be scared and go to a haunt ed house.”