How to get a friend out of a cult

adamrice — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 08:07:54 -0800

I have a friend who has gotten involved in Avatar, and I want to disengage her from it. She first got involved about 9 months ago; at the time, I knew nothing about Avatar but was instantly suspicious. The more I've learned, the less I like it. She's taken at least three of their courses—these courses are, naturally, very expensive, and she doesn't have a lot of money to throw around. She's actually put what had been her primary source of income on the back-burner and begun teaching these Avatar classes, if I understand correctly.

I don't have direct contact with the rest of her social circle, though I could probably find ways to reach them. Her friendship is important to me, so I don't want to just give up on her. I'm not sure how to broach this with her in a way that will express the gravity of my misgivings without alienating her, or (more importantly) pry her loose. I'm pretty sure she intuits my misgivings, so she'll tell me "I'll be out of town for an Avatar course," but will say very little more than that about it to me.

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How to get a friend out of a cult