Saints or Sinners? The History of 20 Spiritual Leaders Who Turned Out to Be Terrible People

Power corrupts all doesn’t it?

We expect our spiritual leaders to be, well, spiritual. Wise, kind, maybe a bit eccentric, but ultimately rooted in some higher calling that makes us want to be better versions of ourselves. But what happens when those who lead us into the light turn out to be casting some pretty dark shadows themselves?

In this collection of spiritual misadventures, we delve into the lives of 30 spiritual leaders who climbed the ladder of faith only to leap off headfirst into scandal, abuse, and even outright horror. Hold onto your incense sticks — it’s going to be a wild ride.

1. Jim Jones: The Man Who Ordered Mass Suicide

Let’s start with the most notorious of the bunch, Jim Jones. This man led the infamous People’s Temple, convincing over 900 people to drink cyanide-laced Kool-Aid in a mass suicide in Jonestown, Guyana. What began as a movement promoting racial equality ended in one of the most tragic acts of mass murder-suicide in history.

2. Shoko Asahara: The Cult of Doom

Shoko Asahara led the Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo, which started as a small group of spiritual seekers. Things took a darker turn when Asahara decided his enlightenment required unleashing sarin gas in the Tokyo subway in 1995, killing 13 people and injuring thousands. His mix of Buddhism…