Austin

Cause that's where Josh and I are going at the end of all this.

No, it's a tried and true rinse and repeat story we have here with a cult leader.

And, you know, much of his sermons, they were just about saving his congregation's soul before it was too late.

And like many cult leaders, he often taught through fear, especially the fear of eternal damnation.

And he used this fear as a form of control.

And he always warned his followers that only a few people would be saved in the end.

I think that also kind of leads back to Revelation as well.

And the rest would go to hell.

So there's only, it's high stakes here.

There's only a few slots.

Yeah, exactly.

Exactly.

But unlike many cult leaders, he did not operate his organization out of a compound, which you don't have to.

That's not in the checklist of cult leaders.

You don't have to have a compound to run a cult.

Yeah, instead, much of Michael's correspondence with his followers, like Josh said, letters, pamphlets, VHS tapes, and cassettes that he would send through the mail.

And in these messages, he would warn that everyone is constantly being tempted by the devil and being led into hell, that Satan was everywhere and even within us.

And of course, Michael, he had all the answers to finding that righteous path.

And the more he and his wife, Rachel, became familiar with their followers, the more personalized their messages became and the more manipulative.

According to Rusty Yates, he and Andrea saw their family as being one with traditional values.