Seed of David / faith-healing isolates
Cluster of small high-control faith-healing Christian communities (similar pattern to Followers of Christ) where members refuse medical care for serious illness. Several state-level child-death prosecutions documented.
CLCI radar
BITE breakdown
0 — covers small high-control faith-healing communities; child-death cases documented.
Profile facts
In context
This entry covers small high-control faith-healing communities of the Followers of Christ pattern beyond the Oregon group covered separately. Members refuse all medical care, attribute illness to spiritual failure, and bury children in private cemeteries without medical certification. Several state-level child-death prosecutions across multiple US states have established the pattern.
Key control doctrines
- Faith healing as exclusive medical response
- Severance from outside medical authority
Recovery resources
- Tears of Eden — Christian spiritual-abuse-survivor support and clinician referral.
- Recovering Grace — Originally IBLP-focused; archive includes broader fundamentalist Christian high-control material.
- Reclamation Collective — Religious-trauma-aware therapist network; relevant for post-exit identity-rebuilding.
- ICSA (International Cultic Studies Association) — General referral and cult-aware therapist directory.
- Freedom of Mind Resource Center — Steven Hassan's organisation; BITE-model resources and family-side exit guidance.
See the full curated list at /resources.
Legal cases & controversies
- Multiple US state child-death prosecutions
Evidence by BITE axis
- Refusal of all medical care including for children
- Multiple state-level child-death prosecutions
- child-death cases documented
- Severance from outside medical and religious authorities
- Faith healing as exclusive medical response
- Severance from outside medical authority
Timeline
- 20th c.Various faith-healing isolate communities crystallise
Sources
We cite sources by name and outlet rather than fabricating links. Where a source includes its own URL, the open ↗ link opens it directly; otherwise search ↗runs a Google Scholar query for the cited title — useful for verifying academic sources. For news outlets, search the outlet's own archive.
Change history
Substantive edits logged per the score-updates policy.
- 2026-05-29Phase 1 Batch J: per-group recovery resources applied via programmatic palette (closest-fit by category + subCategory + score). Palette: Christian high-control.
- 2026-05-20Source-density flags derived from existing free-text sources[]: court records. Heuristic auto-flag; subsequent editorial pass will populate structuredSources[] with reliability tiers.
- 2026-05-20Score band scheme migrated from 4 bands to 5 (Minimal 0–5 / Low 6–12 / Moderate 13–20 / High 21–30 / Extreme 31–40). No CLCI value changed; the new Minimal band was carved out of the bottom of the previous Low band.
Relevant hubs
Curated entry points on CLCI Hub for situations connected to this group.
You may also want to explore
Frequently asked questions
Q.Is Seed of David / faith-healing isolates a cult?
CLCI Hub deliberately avoids the binary label "cult." Instead it places groups on a transparent 0–40 spectrum of documented control using Steven Hassan's BITE model (Behaviour, Information, Thought, Emotional). Seed of David / faith-healing isolates scores 29 out of 40 — "High Control", at low confidence. The score describes documented control patterns, not a judgement of members' sincerity or beliefs; many members do not personally experience the patterns listed.
Q.What is Seed of David / faith-healing isolates's CLCI score?
Seed of David / faith-healing isolates scores 29 out of 40 on the Cult-Like Control Index, which falls in the "High" band. That total is the sum of four BITE axes — Behaviour 8, Information 7, Thought 7, Emotional 7 — plus a signed modifier of +0 for aggravating or mitigating factors.
Q.Why does Seed of David / faith-healing isolates score 29 on the CLCI?
The score reflects publicly documented patterns including: Refusal of all medical care including for children; Multiple state-level child-death prosecutions; Severance from outside medical and religious authorities. These map onto the BITE axes of behaviour, information, thought, and emotional control, and a signed modifier of +0 is applied for factors such as financial demands, leadership accountability, and exit costs. Every claim is backed by the citations in the Sources section on this page.
Q.How reliable is the Seed of David / faith-healing isolates rating?
This profile is rated Low confidence. Low confidence means the available evidence is fragmented or largely anecdotal, so the score may change as more documentation emerges. CLCI scores are not fixed — they are revised whenever new public evidence appears, and groups that reform can score lower over time.
Q.Where can I get help regarding Seed of David / faith-healing isolates?
If you or someone you care about is affected by Seed of David / faith-healing isolates, start with the Recovery resources listed on this page. General cult-aware support is available from the International Cultic Studies Association (icsahome.com) and the Freedom of Mind Resource Center (freedomofmind.com). CLCI Hub is an educational resource, not a crisis service — if anyone is in immediate danger, contact local emergency services.
Found something wrong on this profile?
We accept correction requests from anyone — current and former members, researchers, journalists, family members, and the listed organisation. Submissions are reviewed by an editor; we do not auto-publish.