Cult Specialist Shows the Surprising Connection Between Narcissism and Cover Up Culture: Prelest.

Anna Kitko is a cult specialist. Interviewing her is basically theological catnip for me. In this conversation, she introduces a word I’d never heard before: prelest. Basically, this describes the spiritual self-deception that can show up in narcissistic church leadership, cover-up culture, and practices like Sozo that are done at Bethel church and deliverance ministry. I'm fascinated with why we see legitimate narcissism in certain spaces within the church. Narcissism is so overused, but she helps explain exactly what it is and how to spot it. We also discuss why people choose to cover up abuse in the church instead of calling it out. Timestamps: 00:23- Anna’s VERY interesting and unique credentials. 05:04- Defining spiritual abuse 05:53- A new word to describe everything we’re talking about today: Prelest. What is this? 10:00- Narcissism in the Church. This word is very overused, but what exactly does it mean, and how do we spot a narcissist? 13:16- Are narcissists born or are they made? 16:23- Naming some names: an example of who fits this description 21:11- What about all the “good” these people do though? Isn’t it good fruit? What does an actual Shepherd look like? 26:39- How all of this contributes to cover-up culture. Why do we protect abusers, false teachers, and corruption? How can Christians spot cover up culture in their own church? 34:10- Addressing a VERY controversial deliverance ministry at Bethel Church called Sozo. 38:44- Anna shares her first hand *direct* experiences with those who have been harmed by deliverance ministry. 43:45- What what Anna say to someone who is claiming that Sozo is biblical? 45:56- Addressing deliverance ministry specifically. 51-07- How does all of this play apart with what we talked about in the beginning with narcissism? Why does there seem to be an abundance of cover-up culture and narcissistic leaders within hyper-charismatic and deliverance spaces? 👉My Website: https://www.melissadougherty.co/ 💡Want to know more about this "New Thought" thing? Order Happy Lies: ● Barnes and Noble: https://tinyurl.com/h3yb2vmz ● Audible: https://tinyurl.com/4b8j88vp ● Christianbook: https://tinyurl.com/msvjxt2e ● Amazon: https://amzn.to/46XmuZO 👀RESOURCES MENTIONED IN VIDEO👀: ●Anna's YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/@annakitko?si=B0Y_RXX-ocmeKMvO ●BeEmboldened website: https://www.beemboldened.com/ ●My video on Bethel’s SOZO: https://youtu.be/BailnQ_1CCs?si=884MfKePIEngQKil ●Anna’s video with Alisa Childers on Deliverance Ministries: https://youtu.be/MdCZa8jrGtU?si=tfGiNd6l5srnPlGz ●Alisa's series on deliverance ministries: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RzL-Vhk5_o&list=PLVzXPaR4yH-LrMjlrPebImPhI2WMxTAXw 📚OTHER RESOURCES📚: https://www.amazon.com/shop/melissadougherty 📲FOLLOW📲: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NewAgeToChristianity/ Instagram: @melissaldougherty TwiX: https://twitter.com/Meldougherty77 💡SEMINARY💡: Looking for a solid theological education? Look at Southern Evangelical Seminary: https://ses.edu/melissa/ 🤗SUPPORT🤗: If you are led: https://paypal.me/MelissaDougherty77