Stephanie Kirchgaessner, Guardian - Donald Trump's nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to the supreme court, to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg, has drawn attention to a secretive Catholic "covenant community" called People of Praise that counts Barrett as a member and faces claims of adhering to a "highly authoritarian" structure.
Interviews with experts who have studied charismatic Christian groups such as People of Praise, and with former members of the group, plus a review of the group's own literature, reveal an organization that appears to dominate some members' everyday lives, in which so-called "heads" - or spiritual advisers - make big life decisions, and in which members are expected to financially support one another.
Married women - such as Barrett - count their husbands as their "heads" and all members are expected to donate 5% of their income to the organization.
Adrian Reimers, a former member turned critic of the group, described in a book available online called Not Reliable Guides his "grave concern" about how the life of People of Praise members were "not his or her own" and how "all one's decisions and dealings become the concern of one's head, and in turn potentially become known to the leadership"...
A spokesman did not immediately respond to requests for comment about allegations of authoritarian structure or why the group has been described as a cult by some former followers. …
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