After the Sun Templar drama 30 years ago, the cult scene continues to flourish
Published: Monday, Sep 23rd 2024, 09:40
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30 years ago, the drama surrounding the Sun Temple sect caused worldwide consternation. 53 people died, most of them in French-speaking Switzerland. Some died voluntarily, others were murdered.
23 charred corpses were discovered at dawn on October 5, 1994 on a farm in the small Fribourg village of Cheiry, the bodies wrapped in cult robes. A short time later, the fire department found 25 bodies in the rubble of a chalet in Granges-sur-Salvan in Valais. Another fire with five fatalities was reported from Canada.
It quickly became clear that all three estates belonged to the Order of the Solar Templars - a little-known sect until then. At first, it was assumed that they had committed mass suicide, especially as there was a letter of farewell: "We leave this earth without regret." The sect leaders Luc Jouret and Jo Di Mambro were among the dead.
However, the investigations showed that many of the people had been shot. The fires were only started afterwards using a timer.
Many of those murdered were dropouts
Some of the victims were people who had left, as religion expert Georg Schmid from Relinfo told the Keystone-SDA news agency recently. The church's specialist agency has been dealing with religions, sects and world views for decades.
"The people who left wanted their money back, which they were promised. However, they were then lured into a trap by the cult leaders and shot in cold blood," explained the religious expert. Other cult members had themselves shot or committed suicide.
Cocktail of faith
The history of the Sun Templars began in the 1980s as an esoteric circle. The Belgian alternative practitioner Jouret attracted people who dreamed of a more peaceful, ecological world. Jo Di Mambro, a notorious fraudster and soul catcher, helped him build the community.
In 1989, the Sun Templars had 442 members, most of them in France, Canada and French-speaking Switzerland. The community was well known and repeatedly drew public attention to itself. What was unknown was that there was also an inner circle of just a few dozen people.
Jouret and Di Mambro led them to believe that they were the chosen ones and could survive the apocalypse in "survival centers". Di Mambro mixed them a cocktail of mystical-religious and esoteric elements. Above all, however, he exploited people, controlled their social lives and deceived them at will.
Transit to Sirius
The dramatic turning point came when Sun Templars in Canada were convicted of illegal possession of weapons. The order was monitored for months and negative press reports piled up. Donors pulled out. Di Mambro and Jouret decided to leave what they perceived as a hostile world. They spoke of the "transit to Sirius".
The drama had two aftershocks. In 1995 and 1997, another 21 bodies were discovered in Grenoble and in Canada. In both cases, these were cult members who had missed the first "transit". They died voluntarily or were shot by other members. In total, 74 cult members lost their lives in Switzerland, Canada and France.
After each drama, the investigators came to the conclusion that all the culprits were dead. Only a conductor from Geneva who was close to Di Mambro stood trial - he was acquitted in France. Many victims are still bitter today that no one was ever convicted.
Fertile ground for sects
According to experts, Sun Templars no longer exist today. However, the sectarian scene in Switzerland continues to flourish. "Switzerland has an enormous density of groups in the ideological scene with sect-like characteristics," said religion expert Schmid.
According to the scene expert, there are two main reasons for this. Firstly, this is due to Switzerland's liberal tradition. Freedom of religion makes it easier for sect-like groups to establish themselves and gain a foothold, says Schmid.
Secondly, many of these associations are dependent on prosperity. As a result, only in parts of the USA, particularly California, is the density of sect-like groups anywhere near as high as in Switzerland.
Few "highly dangerous sects"
According to Schmid, there are an estimated 100,000 followers of associations with sectarian characteristics in Switzerland, depending on which groups are included. However, the number of "highly dangerous sects" is rather small.
The point at which a sect is considered problematic is difficult to define and depends on the individual situation of a member of such a group, Schmid continued. If, for example, an adult decides to join a sect of their own free will, this usually leads to fewer difficulties than if a child is forced to join without free will.
©Keystone/SDA
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