1
00:00:07,190 --> 00:00:10,081
[geese honking]

2
00:00:17,251 --> 00:00:20,130
[flute playing]

3
00:00:38,191 --> 00:00:40,121
SAWYER: Since there was no music
in the group,

4
00:00:40,140 --> 00:00:42,060
I sold all of my instruments.

5
00:00:42,081 --> 00:00:46,081
And so, when I left,
the first thing I did,

6
00:00:46,100 --> 00:00:48,250
it was rent a flute
and buy a harmonica.

7
00:00:49,030 --> 00:00:51,240
I like to, you know,
mix it up.

8
00:00:52,021 --> 00:00:54,081
[playing harmonica]

9
00:00:57,100 --> 00:00:59,221
[harmonica and drums playing]

10
00:01:07,061 --> 00:01:10,090
Yeah, I was hitchhiking
down to Texas one time.

11
00:01:10,111 --> 00:01:13,081
[continues playing]

12
00:01:17,141 --> 00:01:19,240
And I saw a UFO down there.

13
00:01:25,161 --> 00:01:28,100
It was about 1976

14
00:01:28,120 --> 00:01:32,221
after I joined with
what was called the UFO cult.

15
00:01:36,111 --> 00:01:38,180
But anyway, I didn't--
I didn't have any sex

16
00:01:38,201 --> 00:01:40,191
with aliens
or anything like that.

17
00:01:46,161 --> 00:01:48,070
There's other parts of that

18
00:01:48,090 --> 00:01:50,240
that I could keep on
talking about, but...

19
00:01:52,250 --> 00:01:55,250
I don't wanna freak people out.

20
00:01:56,030 --> 00:01:58,161
[playing continues]

21
00:02:11,051 --> 00:02:12,231
Let's see here.

22
00:02:12,250 --> 00:02:17,060
This book was written
by Ti and Do.

23
00:02:17,081 --> 00:02:19,081
The cover says
"How and When

24
00:02:19,100 --> 00:02:21,071
'Heaven's Gate'"--
in the biggest letters--

25
00:02:21,090 --> 00:02:25,171
"The Door to the Physical
Kingdom Level Above Human

26
00:02:25,191 --> 00:02:27,131
May Be Entered."

27
00:02:28,180 --> 00:02:31,171
[music]

28
00:02:38,041 --> 00:02:41,180
"As the two Older Members
put out a 'statement'

29
00:02:41,201 --> 00:02:45,060
"and held public meetings
over about a nine-month period

30
00:02:45,081 --> 00:02:49,191
"in 1975-76, to bring
their crew together,

31
00:02:49,210 --> 00:02:53,090
"the media tagged them
the 'UFO Cult.'

32
00:02:53,111 --> 00:02:56,250
"Because of their expectation
of leaving aboard a spacecraft,

33
00:02:57,030 --> 00:02:59,160
"the two Older Members
then went into seclusion

34
00:02:59,180 --> 00:03:00,210
with their crew."

35
00:03:04,131 --> 00:03:08,081
After that nine-month period
of holding meetings

36
00:03:08,101 --> 00:03:10,240
around the country,

37
00:03:11,021 --> 00:03:12,250
Ti and I felt like
we had instruction

38
00:03:13,030 --> 00:03:17,111
to call the students together
and to begin

39
00:03:17,131 --> 00:03:21,240
an intensive, or in-depth
classroom training program.

40
00:03:31,081 --> 00:03:33,071
The numbers started dwindling,

41
00:03:33,090 --> 00:03:37,160
cut about 50% to somewhere
in the 40s or 50s.

42
00:03:37,180 --> 00:03:40,210
And then, we started

43
00:03:40,231 --> 00:03:42,240
really getting down
to the nitty-gritty.

44
00:04:34,111 --> 00:04:37,170
They said it was gonna be
the most difficult process

45
00:04:37,191 --> 00:04:40,210
that a human could embark upon,

46
00:04:40,230 --> 00:04:44,111
and that it's not likely
that we would all make it.

47
00:04:48,030 --> 00:04:50,050
BENJAMIN: They put this together
out of everything

48
00:04:50,071 --> 00:04:52,061
they thought was important.

49
00:04:52,081 --> 00:04:55,021
This is a list
of their behavioral guidelines.

50
00:04:56,050 --> 00:05:00,201
These were distributed
in November 1976.

51
00:05:01,160 --> 00:05:03,100
The read is very extreme
if you're not a member.

52
00:05:05,160 --> 00:05:08,050
[Frank Lyford speaking]

53
00:05:13,121 --> 00:05:18,241
If you don't want to do those,
then you're not welcome.

54
00:05:19,201 --> 00:05:22,220
SAWYER: The first one is,
"Can you follow instructions

55
00:05:22,241 --> 00:05:25,150
without adding your own
interpretation?"

56
00:05:25,170 --> 00:05:28,021
Two, "Can you deliver
instructions

57
00:05:28,040 --> 00:05:30,030
"as you receive them,
or do they change

58
00:05:30,050 --> 00:05:31,220
according to your programming?"

59
00:05:31,241 --> 00:05:35,090
Three, "Do you participate
in inconsiderate conversation?"

60
00:05:35,111 --> 00:05:37,241
Four, "Are you physically
clumsy?"

61
00:05:38,021 --> 00:05:40,241
Five, "Do you halfway
complete a task because..."

62
00:05:41,021 --> 00:05:44,111
Six, "Do you put tasks off,
procrastinate?"

63
00:05:44,131 --> 00:05:46,121
NARRATOR: Strict obedience
and accuracy

64
00:05:46,141 --> 00:05:48,150
were demanded for entry
to the Next Level,

65
00:05:48,170 --> 00:05:50,191
so every task
was regulated.

66
00:05:50,210 --> 00:05:53,071
You were not to come up with,

67
00:05:53,090 --> 00:05:55,131
"Well, I'm gonna make
the pancakes this big."

68
00:05:55,150 --> 00:05:58,040
There was a mixture,

69
00:05:58,061 --> 00:06:01,141
a size,
how many a person got,

70
00:06:01,160 --> 00:06:04,251
how the syrup was poured on it,
everything.

71
00:06:05,030 --> 00:06:07,230
SAWYER: Nine, "Staying in
my own head,

72
00:06:07,251 --> 00:06:10,081
"having private thoughts,
taking any action

73
00:06:10,100 --> 00:06:12,071
without using
my check partner."

74
00:06:12,090 --> 00:06:14,040
BENJAMIN: Heaven's Gate
practiced a system

75
00:06:14,061 --> 00:06:15,230
called the check partner system.

76
00:06:16,021 --> 00:06:18,061
Your check partner
would be assigned to you

77
00:06:18,081 --> 00:06:20,050
to make sure that
you were following the rules.

78
00:06:20,071 --> 00:06:21,251
LESLIE LIGHT: And they'd pair
you up with the person

79
00:06:22,030 --> 00:06:24,160
you'd least likely
want to be with.

80
00:06:24,181 --> 00:06:27,040
And I didn't have
a lot of rough street edges,

81
00:06:27,061 --> 00:06:30,181
so they gave me this really
crazy, hyper,

82
00:06:30,201 --> 00:06:33,220
speed-freak, street person guy

83
00:06:33,241 --> 00:06:36,150
that was, like,
hard to be around.

84
00:06:37,170 --> 00:06:39,111
SAWYER: "Major Offenses:

85
00:06:39,131 --> 00:06:42,100
"Lying to my teachers
or any of my classmates.

86
00:06:42,121 --> 00:06:45,251
"Breaking any instruction
or procedure knowingly.

87
00:06:46,030 --> 00:06:50,021
Sensuality-- permitting arousal
in thought or in action."

88
00:06:51,241 --> 00:06:53,170
WOMAN: Sex, it's a tough one.

89
00:06:53,191 --> 00:06:54,251
- It's a hard one.
- [laughing]

90
00:06:55,030 --> 00:06:56,241
WOMAN

91
00:06:57,021 --> 00:07:02,050
I mean, are you forgiven once
if you make a slip?

92
00:07:02,071 --> 00:07:03,230
[laughter]

93
00:07:05,110 --> 00:07:07,241
[Frank speaking]

94
00:07:22,090 --> 00:07:24,090
SAWYER: What's left, right?

95
00:07:24,110 --> 00:07:25,210
Right?

96
00:07:25,230 --> 00:07:27,090
Someone would think,

97
00:07:27,110 --> 00:07:29,220
"If I followed
all these things 100%,

98
00:07:29,241 --> 00:07:31,251
then I would be a robot."

99
00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:38,210
I didn't like what I saw,

100
00:07:38,230 --> 00:07:41,210
'cause the rigidity
and the...

101
00:07:41,230 --> 00:07:44,030
was a turn-off to me.

102
00:07:44,050 --> 00:07:47,241
I would never submit
to anything that was controlled.

103
00:07:48,021 --> 00:07:51,081
See, I don't--
anything that controls people,

104
00:07:51,100 --> 00:07:54,180
that's why I became a hippie,
I did not like control.

105
00:07:54,201 --> 00:07:57,220
And those two things,
I just thought, that's--

106
00:07:57,241 --> 00:08:01,071
you know, I don't wanna be
involved anymore.

107
00:08:04,121 --> 00:08:06,110
ROBERT BALCH: As people
left the group

108
00:08:06,131 --> 00:08:08,220
for one reason or another,
got spun off,

109
00:08:08,241 --> 00:08:13,110
the energy inside the group
would actually increase

110
00:08:13,131 --> 00:08:16,110
because everybody
really wants to be there,

111
00:08:16,131 --> 00:08:18,021
and you're getting rid
of the people

112
00:08:18,040 --> 00:08:20,110
that have doubts, questions,

113
00:08:20,131 --> 00:08:23,131
kind of still too much
into their own personal habits.

114
00:08:23,150 --> 00:08:25,170
Those people kind of fall
to the wayside.

115
00:08:25,191 --> 00:08:29,191
TI: Do you feel that
you have made the progress

116
00:08:29,210 --> 00:08:31,081
that you wanted to make?

117
00:08:31,100 --> 00:08:33,251
Have you met the expectations?

118
00:08:34,030 --> 00:08:35,251
Well, the thing is,
our expectations

119
00:08:36,030 --> 00:08:37,101
are constantly growing.

120
00:08:37,121 --> 00:08:42,211
It's like...
I know I've changed some,

121
00:08:42,231 --> 00:08:47,050
but I haven't become nearly
what I want to become.

122
00:08:48,131 --> 00:08:52,231
I don't think people know
how deep their humanness goes,

123
00:08:52,251 --> 00:08:56,131
and what it involves
trying to overcome it.

124
00:08:56,150 --> 00:08:58,091
It gets down
to the nitty-gritty

125
00:08:58,111 --> 00:09:00,070
of your ways
of looking at things,

126
00:09:00,091 --> 00:09:02,050
and your ways of responding,

127
00:09:02,070 --> 00:09:03,241
and things that have been
engrained in you

128
00:09:04,021 --> 00:09:09,111
for years and years in this
particular body that you have.

129
00:09:09,131 --> 00:09:13,121
And there are a lot of things
that I've been feeling,

130
00:09:13,141 --> 00:09:16,040
but nothing I could describe.

131
00:09:16,060 --> 00:09:18,180
[music]

132
00:09:30,160 --> 00:09:32,211
JANJA LALICH: So, this was one
of their publications,

133
00:09:32,231 --> 00:09:34,030
it's called "Ruffles."

134
00:09:34,050 --> 00:09:36,121
It says here
"Snacks for thinkers"

135
00:09:36,141 --> 00:09:40,141
because this spaceship kind of
looks like a potato chip.

136
00:09:40,160 --> 00:09:44,050
This was given to me
by Dick Joslyn,

137
00:09:44,070 --> 00:09:47,150
and everyone was asked
to turn in

138
00:09:47,170 --> 00:09:49,131
some kind of little saying

139
00:09:49,150 --> 00:09:52,231
that fit very much
with their ideology.

140
00:09:52,251 --> 00:09:55,030
For example,
"A goal is not reached

141
00:09:55,050 --> 00:09:57,050
"by just learning
how to reach it.

142
00:09:57,070 --> 00:09:59,251
The goal is reached
by doing what you learned."

143
00:10:00,030 --> 00:10:03,190
So, it kind of shows
their sense of discipline.

144
00:10:03,211 --> 00:10:06,060
"Everyone interprets the truth

145
00:10:06,080 --> 00:10:08,131
at his own level
of understanding."

146
00:10:08,150 --> 00:10:11,211
This is like
alternate facts, right?

147
00:10:11,231 --> 00:10:13,190
This is very relevant
to today.

148
00:10:13,211 --> 00:10:15,251
These people
were very ahead of time.

149
00:10:16,030 --> 00:10:17,121
[chuckles]

150
00:10:17,141 --> 00:10:20,091
"Reality is not something
you escape from.

151
00:10:20,111 --> 00:10:22,251
Reality is something
you escape to."

152
00:10:24,190 --> 00:10:27,150
So, that means you're not really
living in reality.

153
00:10:29,170 --> 00:10:33,160
What cults need to do is to
turn you into a conformist,

154
00:10:33,180 --> 00:10:36,221
you know, to get you, hopefully,
to become a true believer.

155
00:10:36,241 --> 00:10:41,070
They need to break down you
and create a new you.

156
00:10:50,080 --> 00:10:54,200
DO: When you're in the process
of overcoming this vehicle,

157
00:10:54,221 --> 00:10:57,070
it loses its identity.

158
00:10:57,091 --> 00:11:01,021
It loses the consciousness
of who it was.

159
00:11:02,121 --> 00:11:04,241
JANJA: The deepest part
of the indoctrination came

160
00:11:05,021 --> 00:11:09,190
when they were convinced that
they were not human beings.

161
00:11:09,211 --> 00:11:14,030
They were convinced that
they were actually these beings

162
00:11:14,050 --> 00:11:16,101
from the Next Level above,

163
00:11:16,121 --> 00:11:19,160
and that they were essentially
living inside

164
00:11:19,180 --> 00:11:23,070
these human shells,
which they called vehicles.

165
00:11:29,050 --> 00:11:30,211
DO: We'll use the term "vehicle"

166
00:11:30,231 --> 00:11:33,190
when we speak of this body
that we're wearing,

167
00:11:33,211 --> 00:11:37,211
this flesh and bones,
because we don't relate to it.

168
00:11:37,231 --> 00:11:41,030
It's not me, it's just a suit
of clothes that I wear.

169
00:11:41,050 --> 00:11:44,150
BENJAMIN: Any religious group
has its own terminology.

170
00:11:44,170 --> 00:11:46,131
As you join the group,
you have to learn the language.

171
00:11:46,150 --> 00:11:48,241
It's sort of an unofficial
initiation process.

172
00:11:49,190 --> 00:11:52,160
SAWYER: The house was a craft,
like a spacecraft.

173
00:11:52,180 --> 00:11:54,121
The kitchen was the Nutri-Lab.

174
00:11:54,141 --> 00:11:56,150
The laundry
was the Fiber-Lab.

175
00:11:58,060 --> 00:12:01,040
The vehicle's sexual organs
were plumbing.

176
00:12:01,060 --> 00:12:03,241
Sex was sensuality,

177
00:12:04,021 --> 00:12:06,180
not that we talked
about sex much,

178
00:12:06,200 --> 00:12:08,190
except for avoiding it.

179
00:12:10,190 --> 00:12:13,221
They didn't explain it when
they changed the terminology,

180
00:12:13,241 --> 00:12:16,080
but all of these
terminology changes

181
00:12:16,101 --> 00:12:18,121
also changed the way
we thought about things.

182
00:12:18,141 --> 00:12:20,180
So, it didn't stimulate
memories.

183
00:12:22,211 --> 00:12:25,131
One of the things
that helps you, and this is--

184
00:12:25,150 --> 00:12:27,121
this was kind of adopted,
in a way,

185
00:12:27,141 --> 00:12:29,141
in the Catholic church,

186
00:12:29,160 --> 00:12:33,231
when nuns and monks
that isolate themselves

187
00:12:33,251 --> 00:12:37,211
in thoughtful
studying conditions,

188
00:12:37,231 --> 00:12:39,121
they take another name.

189
00:12:40,231 --> 00:12:46,190
It helps disassociate them
with the family tree.

190
00:12:52,111 --> 00:12:55,060
Around 1977,
members of Heaven's Gate

191
00:12:55,080 --> 00:12:56,231
effectively became monks
and nuns.

192
00:12:56,251 --> 00:12:58,070
They became monastics.

193
00:12:58,091 --> 00:13:00,021
Remember,
they were celibates,

194
00:13:00,040 --> 00:13:02,231
they were living exclusively
for trying to achieve

195
00:13:02,251 --> 00:13:06,091
sort of this entrance
to heaven, to the Next Level,

196
00:13:06,111 --> 00:13:07,211
and they were given new names.

197
00:13:07,231 --> 00:13:11,251
The system that eventually
was used by Ti and Do

198
00:13:12,030 --> 00:13:17,030
was to use a single-syllable,
effectively, a first name,

199
00:13:17,050 --> 00:13:19,111
and then a shared last name,

200
00:13:19,131 --> 00:13:20,231
which always ended in "ODY".

201
00:13:24,221 --> 00:13:28,050
SAWYER: Ti and Do
said that the Next Level

202
00:13:28,070 --> 00:13:31,060
was adopting us
into their family.

203
00:13:31,080 --> 00:13:34,030
So, the family name
was O-D-Y.

204
00:13:34,050 --> 00:13:37,060
If I were in the group
and my name was Rob,

205
00:13:37,080 --> 00:13:39,091
I would be "RBBODY."

206
00:13:39,111 --> 00:13:42,080
Three consonants,
always capitalized--

207
00:13:42,101 --> 00:13:46,060
RBB, and then ODY.

208
00:13:46,080 --> 00:13:48,221
So, all the names
were six letters.

209
00:13:48,241 --> 00:13:51,060
And so, I became SWYODY.

210
00:13:52,131 --> 00:13:54,121
DO: Hi, DVVODY.
There's OLLODY.

211
00:13:54,141 --> 00:13:56,190
ALXODY.
There's VRNODY.

212
00:13:56,211 --> 00:13:58,070
STMODY.
DVDODY.

213
00:13:58,091 --> 00:13:59,150
ANLODY.
DSTODY.

214
00:13:59,170 --> 00:14:00,190
JWNODY.
GLDODY.

215
00:14:00,211 --> 00:14:01,231
We call him TLLODY

216
00:14:01,251 --> 00:14:04,080
because he's a little taller
than LGGODY.

217
00:14:04,101 --> 00:14:05,231
"ODY" is a diminutive,

218
00:14:05,251 --> 00:14:07,180
so it means
"a little member,"

219
00:14:07,200 --> 00:14:09,200
and that TLLODY or STRODY

220
00:14:09,221 --> 00:14:11,200
were little members
of the Kingdom of Heaven.

221
00:14:11,221 --> 00:14:15,070
It's like the diminutive
for God,

222
00:14:15,091 --> 00:14:18,050
and they're all on their way
to becoming gods.

223
00:14:20,070 --> 00:14:22,190
SAWYER: And that when
we became adults,

224
00:14:22,211 --> 00:14:24,070
they would drop the "Y,"

225
00:14:24,091 --> 00:14:27,111
so we'd be the family of Od,

226
00:14:27,131 --> 00:14:29,241
which is like a little
Next Level humor,

227
00:14:30,021 --> 00:14:31,141
because we were kind of odd.

228
00:14:33,060 --> 00:14:35,040
ROBERT: They began
wearing uniforms,

229
00:14:35,060 --> 00:14:38,101
and they had a unisex look.

230
00:14:38,121 --> 00:14:41,200
Very short hair,
the women wore no makeup.

231
00:14:41,221 --> 00:14:46,091
They had slacks, tennies,
shirts that they wore,

232
00:14:46,111 --> 00:14:49,251
buttoned clear to the top,
long-sleeved.

233
00:14:50,030 --> 00:14:52,040
If you had a look
that you were attached to,

234
00:14:52,060 --> 00:14:55,121
if you'd worn a beard, you know,
for years and years,

235
00:14:55,141 --> 00:14:57,241
you should get rid of all that
and adopt a new appearance

236
00:14:58,021 --> 00:15:00,040
in the same way
that you took a new name,

237
00:15:00,060 --> 00:15:01,160
because those were all things

238
00:15:01,180 --> 00:15:03,170
that symbolized
your identity as a human.

239
00:15:35,121 --> 00:15:38,211
BENJAMIN:
Members of Heaven's Gate
didn't see themselves as robotic

240
00:15:38,231 --> 00:15:40,180
or having to live
within an oppressive system.

241
00:15:40,200 --> 00:15:43,160
They really saw themselves
as living and enjoying it.

242
00:15:44,170 --> 00:15:46,101
I remember I talked
to one ex-member

243
00:15:46,121 --> 00:15:47,211
who said, "Actually, it was--

244
00:15:47,231 --> 00:15:49,180
"the best part of my life
was when I was with the Class.

245
00:15:49,200 --> 00:15:52,211
I had the most--
I had the greatest growth."

246
00:15:52,231 --> 00:15:55,121
And I think they even used
the word "fun".

247
00:15:55,141 --> 00:15:57,030
Nothing here strikes me as fun.

248
00:15:57,050 --> 00:15:58,251
But I suppose if you're in--
if you're in it

249
00:15:59,030 --> 00:16:01,200
with a group
of several dozen other people,

250
00:16:01,221 --> 00:16:03,190
and you're all working together,
and you think you're doing it

251
00:16:03,211 --> 00:16:05,080
for a greater good,

252
00:16:05,101 --> 00:16:09,080
perhaps that's what...
that's what is so meaningful.

253
00:16:11,050 --> 00:16:13,091
DO: It's not that I enjoy
being the instrument

254
00:16:13,111 --> 00:16:15,030
of giving out these procedures.

255
00:16:15,050 --> 00:16:18,190
But these students love it,
they've seen the value.

256
00:16:18,211 --> 00:16:22,030
It does not restrict them,
it frees them.

257
00:16:23,030 --> 00:16:25,021
But you have to have been there

258
00:16:25,040 --> 00:16:26,221
to know what
we're talking about.

259
00:16:26,241 --> 00:16:29,180
Otherwise, you can
easily doubt it.

260
00:16:29,200 --> 00:16:31,101
Well, one thing
you have to consider,

261
00:16:31,121 --> 00:16:34,180
what we as individuals
wanted to become.

262
00:16:34,200 --> 00:16:37,101
I think everyone in this Class
wanted something

263
00:16:37,121 --> 00:16:39,141
more than the human world
had to offer.

264
00:16:39,160 --> 00:16:42,200
They were seeking
some type of goodness,

265
00:16:42,221 --> 00:16:45,131
some type of rightness that
they did not feel in this world.

266
00:16:45,150 --> 00:16:48,111
I'm seeing people
actually develop

267
00:16:48,131 --> 00:16:50,121
into what I always
wanted to believe

268
00:16:50,141 --> 00:16:52,040
they could develop into.

269
00:16:52,060 --> 00:16:53,241
And it's like I want to go out

270
00:16:54,021 --> 00:16:55,231
and put headlines
on all the newspapers

271
00:16:55,251 --> 00:16:58,190
saying it's possible
to overcome your humanness,

272
00:16:58,211 --> 00:17:00,040
'cause I'm seeing it happen.

273
00:17:00,060 --> 00:17:02,190
[music]

274
00:17:07,050 --> 00:17:09,151
JANJA: Having that kind
of discipline,

275
00:17:09,171 --> 00:17:11,040
and struggling through it,

276
00:17:11,060 --> 00:17:13,130
and knowing that you're all
struggling through it together,

277
00:17:13,151 --> 00:17:15,070
creates this sense of family,

278
00:17:15,090 --> 00:17:18,070
which is part of what binds
people to these groups.

279
00:17:18,090 --> 00:17:22,171
And when you think about years
and years and years of that,

280
00:17:22,191 --> 00:17:25,080
that's what makes it
so difficult for
people to leave.

281
00:17:25,100 --> 00:17:27,070
This is the only world
they know.

282
00:17:28,221 --> 00:17:30,100
It's so hard
not to get choked up

283
00:17:30,120 --> 00:17:31,181
when you talk about this.

284
00:17:31,201 --> 00:17:35,080
But I met the people
that are here.

285
00:17:35,100 --> 00:17:36,211
I met my teachers, Ti and Do,

286
00:17:36,231 --> 00:17:38,060
and I knew that I knew
all of them,

287
00:17:38,080 --> 00:17:39,221
and that they were my family.

288
00:17:39,241 --> 00:17:42,100
And I've been happy
ever since.

289
00:17:42,120 --> 00:17:43,211
I mean, it's been tough.

290
00:17:43,231 --> 00:17:45,201
Anybody who's been honest,
like she said,

291
00:17:45,221 --> 00:17:48,040
you get hit with everything
but the kitchen sink

292
00:17:48,060 --> 00:17:51,130
trying to turn you away,
but it's been wonderful.

293
00:17:51,151 --> 00:17:54,080
And in making the decision
that we made to do this,

294
00:17:54,100 --> 00:17:56,251
we know that we broke hearts,
we know that we hurt people,

295
00:17:57,030 --> 00:17:58,140
and we don't take that lightly.

296
00:17:58,161 --> 00:18:00,251
It-- we didn't want
to hurt anyone.

297
00:18:02,120 --> 00:18:04,241
Unfortunately,
it's the individuals

298
00:18:05,030 --> 00:18:07,211
that these vehicles
cared for the most

299
00:18:07,231 --> 00:18:10,171
that are actually
the greatest threat to us.

300
00:18:20,191 --> 00:18:23,050
BENJAMIN: Ti and Do
were almost paranoid,

301
00:18:23,070 --> 00:18:24,171
to the extent
that they were afraid

302
00:18:24,191 --> 00:18:28,130
they were being tracked
by ex-members, family members.

303
00:18:29,251 --> 00:18:32,161
One of the repercussions is
they were constantly on the move

304
00:18:32,181 --> 00:18:34,221
during the late '70s.

305
00:18:34,241 --> 00:18:37,211
They moved from campground,
to campground, to campground.

306
00:18:39,151 --> 00:18:42,050
ROBERT: They never quit
camping entirely,

307
00:18:42,070 --> 00:18:47,181
but in 1978, they finally
had to move into houses.

308
00:18:47,201 --> 00:18:50,021
Apparently, some members
had inherited some money,

309
00:18:50,040 --> 00:18:52,151
and one of the ex-members
who was close to Bo and Peep

310
00:18:52,171 --> 00:18:57,161
estimated that it was somewhere
between $300,000 and $500,000.

311
00:18:57,181 --> 00:19:00,100
And at that point,
they began renting mansions.

312
00:19:03,161 --> 00:19:09,221
FRANK: My cousin, David,
his dad was the president

313
00:19:09,241 --> 00:19:12,120
of the New England
Phone Company.

314
00:19:12,140 --> 00:19:16,211
And for the first
seven years of the cult,

315
00:19:16,231 --> 00:19:20,070
we lived off of his trust fund.

316
00:19:21,021 --> 00:19:24,021
ROBERT: They liked upscale
suburban neighborhoods,

317
00:19:24,040 --> 00:19:28,251
nice houses, big houses in quiet
upper-middle class areas.

318
00:19:30,090 --> 00:19:32,030
They would move people in,

319
00:19:32,050 --> 00:19:34,120
and none of the neighbors
would know.

320
00:19:35,151 --> 00:19:38,090
We would live
15 people in a house,

321
00:19:38,110 --> 00:19:41,161
and there was designated people
that could go outside.

322
00:19:41,181 --> 00:19:44,110
And the same people were seen
outside all the time,

323
00:19:44,130 --> 00:19:47,070
so it appeared as though
there was just a few people

324
00:19:47,090 --> 00:19:48,151
living in a house.

325
00:19:50,120 --> 00:19:52,251
[Frank speaking]

326
00:20:25,181 --> 00:20:29,060
BENJAMIN: This is Marshall Herff
Applewhite's FBI report.

327
00:20:29,080 --> 00:20:31,040
There's a letter
from a concerned parent

328
00:20:31,060 --> 00:20:34,100
which was sent to a congressman,
forwarded to the FBI.

329
00:20:35,201 --> 00:20:38,120
And the FBI
dutifully responded

330
00:20:38,140 --> 00:20:40,040
and said "there's really
not much we can do

331
00:20:40,060 --> 00:20:42,090
about this group,
they're consenting adults."

332
00:20:42,110 --> 00:20:45,060
Do wasn't worried
about the government

333
00:20:45,080 --> 00:20:51,040
so much as family members
intervening.

334
00:20:56,050 --> 00:20:58,151
NARRATOR: The magnetism
of Ti and Do

335
00:20:58,171 --> 00:21:01,231
enticed 19-year-old David,
Nancie Brown's son.

336
00:21:01,251 --> 00:21:04,130
NANCIE BROWN: I couldn't believe
that he was really going off

337
00:21:04,151 --> 00:21:07,171
to do this, and I had to have
some knowledge of why.

338
00:21:07,191 --> 00:21:10,231
I mean, after all, you've spent
18 years raising a child.

339
00:21:10,251 --> 00:21:12,251
He was now 19,
and he said,

340
00:21:13,030 --> 00:21:15,110
"You know, I can't ever
picture myself

341
00:21:15,130 --> 00:21:18,130
"just living the kind of life
that most people

342
00:21:18,151 --> 00:21:20,171
take to be normal."

343
00:21:22,130 --> 00:21:28,021
He left in '75,
and this was now 1980.

344
00:21:28,040 --> 00:21:31,021
Apparently, some parents
and people

345
00:21:31,040 --> 00:21:33,130
have tried to hire
private investigators,

346
00:21:33,151 --> 00:21:35,171
and nobody's been able
to find out

347
00:21:35,191 --> 00:21:37,231
anything about them.

348
00:21:37,251 --> 00:21:40,181
There was a formation
of a parents network

349
00:21:40,201 --> 00:21:42,201
by the late '70s,
led by a woman

350
00:21:42,221 --> 00:21:44,060
named Nancie Brown.

351
00:21:44,080 --> 00:21:46,021
So, any time
there was any news

352
00:21:46,040 --> 00:21:49,151
that the Heaven's Gate members,
or part of Heaven's Gate

353
00:21:49,171 --> 00:21:52,201
was at a certain location,
she would notify folks.

354
00:21:52,221 --> 00:21:57,130
And this is a newsletter
from-- from that network.

355
00:21:57,151 --> 00:22:00,140
There were many of them.
This is just one.

356
00:22:08,201 --> 00:22:12,021
NARRATOR: As the years past
with no word from David,

357
00:22:12,040 --> 00:22:14,140
Nancie Brown feared
for his safety.

358
00:22:14,161 --> 00:22:16,231
NANCIE: I reached
the pit of despair

359
00:22:16,251 --> 00:22:21,110
when the Jonestown news
broke in '79.

360
00:22:21,130 --> 00:22:25,120
And I remember sitting there
watching this horrifying sight

361
00:22:25,140 --> 00:22:28,241
of bodies scattered
around the compound

362
00:22:29,021 --> 00:22:31,030
like crumpled leaves.

363
00:22:33,050 --> 00:22:38,021
It was just this little message
in my heart all the time--

364
00:22:38,040 --> 00:22:40,251
Where is he?
Is he all right?

365
00:22:42,021 --> 00:22:45,030
[sighs]
Is he alive?

366
00:22:45,050 --> 00:22:47,110
Will I ever see him again?

367
00:23:41,110 --> 00:23:44,080
TERRIE NETTLES:
This is '74, '75.

368
00:23:52,191 --> 00:23:54,251
My mom wrote me
once a month.

369
00:24:06,030 --> 00:24:09,140
My mom did all the things
that they weren't allowed to do.

370
00:24:12,040 --> 00:24:15,040
But she never talked
about the group.

371
00:24:15,060 --> 00:24:16,211
All she wanted to do
was talk about

372
00:24:16,231 --> 00:24:19,050
what I was doing in my life.

373
00:24:19,070 --> 00:24:23,021
And I wanted to know
what was going on,

374
00:24:23,040 --> 00:24:24,140
obviously, in her life.

375
00:24:26,130 --> 00:24:29,120
And we even talked
occasionally on the phone.

376
00:24:29,140 --> 00:24:31,100
But the thing
that I didn't like,

377
00:24:31,120 --> 00:24:34,030
was she mentioned that
any time she called me,

378
00:24:34,050 --> 00:24:36,070
Herff was on the other line.

379
00:24:41,120 --> 00:24:47,040
I received a letter
on August 13th, 1982.

380
00:24:48,161 --> 00:24:51,110
She said, "Terrie,
if you are with others,

381
00:24:51,130 --> 00:24:55,060
"please do not let them know
who this is from,

382
00:24:55,080 --> 00:24:58,140
"especially that network woman,
Nancie Brown.

383
00:24:58,161 --> 00:25:00,221
"She is not to be trusted.

384
00:25:02,021 --> 00:25:05,130
"I am well and safe
as of now.

385
00:25:06,151 --> 00:25:08,110
"Sorry I have to be
so secretive,

386
00:25:08,130 --> 00:25:10,090
but that's the way
it is at this time."

387
00:25:11,100 --> 00:25:13,251
I just didn't know
what that meant.

388
00:25:14,030 --> 00:25:16,021
Are you trying
to tell me something?

389
00:25:16,040 --> 00:25:18,110
Is something going on?

390
00:25:20,021 --> 00:25:22,080
BENJAMIN: Ti had been sick,
Bonnie Lu Nettles had been sick.

391
00:25:22,100 --> 00:25:24,040
She had been diagnosed
with cancer,

392
00:25:24,060 --> 00:25:26,201
and she was exhibiting illness.

393
00:25:33,130 --> 00:25:37,151
She had cancer of the eye.

394
00:25:37,171 --> 00:25:43,030
She had her eye removed
and a prosthetic put in.

395
00:25:43,050 --> 00:25:45,140
She never talked about it.

396
00:25:45,161 --> 00:25:49,151
Never mentioned it,
never complained about it.

397
00:25:51,181 --> 00:25:53,251
SAWYER: They went back
to the hospital,

398
00:25:54,030 --> 00:25:55,161
and she had an examination,

399
00:25:55,181 --> 00:25:59,090
and they said that
the cancer was in her liver,

400
00:25:59,110 --> 00:26:02,040
and that she only had
a short time to live,

401
00:26:02,060 --> 00:26:04,201
and they-- they couldn't do
anything for her.

402
00:26:04,221 --> 00:26:08,040
It was only like
two or three weeks

403
00:26:08,060 --> 00:26:12,021
from finding out
to her passing.

404
00:26:14,021 --> 00:26:16,191
We were all devastated.

405
00:26:17,191 --> 00:26:19,241
Most of all, Do.

406
00:26:20,021 --> 00:26:24,050
How could this happen?
It wasn't supposed to happen.

407
00:26:24,070 --> 00:26:29,151
We were all supposed
to graduate together.

408
00:26:35,251 --> 00:26:38,050
TERRIE: When I didn't hear
from her for a while,

409
00:26:38,070 --> 00:26:43,021
I was going every single day
looking for a letter from her.

410
00:26:45,090 --> 00:26:47,171
I came home
from school one day,

411
00:26:47,191 --> 00:26:51,021
and... I got this phone call

412
00:26:51,040 --> 00:26:53,090
from members
in the group.

413
00:26:53,110 --> 00:26:54,120
[phone ringing]

414
00:26:54,140 --> 00:26:57,030
A couple named
Liv and Dick Joslyn.

415
00:26:58,191 --> 00:27:01,171
They wanted to come talk to me
about my mom.

416
00:27:03,151 --> 00:27:05,050
When they showed up,

417
00:27:05,070 --> 00:27:08,151
Liv said something
about my mom

418
00:27:08,171 --> 00:27:10,030
going to the doctor.

419
00:27:10,050 --> 00:27:11,231
She talked
about my mom's eye,

420
00:27:11,251 --> 00:27:14,070
and that she was having
trouble with it.

421
00:27:14,090 --> 00:27:18,100
And... out of the blue,
I just looked up at her,

422
00:27:18,120 --> 00:27:20,241
and I said,
"Mom's dead, isn't she?"

423
00:27:21,021 --> 00:27:24,201
And, um, she said yes.

424
00:27:27,130 --> 00:27:30,060
At first, I mean,
for the first few seconds,

425
00:27:30,080 --> 00:27:31,171
you're in denial, you know,

426
00:27:31,191 --> 00:27:33,221
and is this one of those dreams
I'm having,

427
00:27:33,241 --> 00:27:36,090
or is this a reality?

428
00:27:39,021 --> 00:27:42,060
I just felt like somebody had
ripped my skeleton out of me.

429
00:27:42,080 --> 00:27:45,021
You know, I just--
I just went limp.

430
00:27:48,241 --> 00:27:50,231
I was a total basket case.

431
00:27:50,251 --> 00:27:55,191
I mean, I...
I was in shock.

432
00:27:55,211 --> 00:27:58,070
And I remember
going to bed that night

433
00:27:58,090 --> 00:28:01,241
and... when I woke up
the next morning,

434
00:28:02,021 --> 00:28:04,060
my pillow was soaked,
my hair was wet,

435
00:28:04,080 --> 00:28:05,211
my face was wet.

436
00:28:05,231 --> 00:28:07,181
I had cried
all night long.

437
00:28:09,221 --> 00:28:12,090
These are the death
certificates.

438
00:28:12,110 --> 00:28:17,171
And this was the first time
I... I ever saw

439
00:28:17,191 --> 00:28:20,130
when my mom died.

440
00:28:23,161 --> 00:28:26,191
She died June 19th, 1985.

441
00:28:26,211 --> 00:28:31,251
I found out
March 22nd, 1986,

442
00:28:32,030 --> 00:28:34,120
nine months after the fact.

443
00:28:34,140 --> 00:28:39,050
Ti's last wishes
were to not tell Terrie

444
00:28:39,070 --> 00:28:42,120
about... her death.

445
00:28:42,140 --> 00:28:45,090
But she was able
to talk some

446
00:28:45,110 --> 00:28:48,040
during that time too,
so she could have called Terrie.

447
00:28:49,100 --> 00:28:50,140
But she didn't.

448
00:28:53,060 --> 00:28:54,251
And I know Terrie
has a hard time with that,

449
00:28:55,030 --> 00:28:56,241
and I understand that,
I'm sorry for that.

450
00:28:57,021 --> 00:28:58,161
I'm sure that's very painful.

451
00:28:58,181 --> 00:29:02,090
But Ti was not the same person
as her mother.

452
00:29:03,201 --> 00:29:05,201
It was the same vehicle,

453
00:29:05,221 --> 00:29:08,100
but none of the mind
came into that vehicle.

454
00:29:15,191 --> 00:29:19,060
TERRIE: I wanted to know
more about my mom.

455
00:29:19,080 --> 00:29:22,040
I tried to contact
Herff Applewhite,

456
00:29:22,060 --> 00:29:25,251
and he wouldn't return
any of my calls.

457
00:29:27,171 --> 00:29:29,211
He wouldn't
respond to anything.

458
00:29:29,231 --> 00:29:33,110
I was constantly fighting
to get answers.

459
00:29:33,130 --> 00:29:35,211
And then all of a sudden,
he sent me a--

460
00:29:35,231 --> 00:29:38,211
an audio cassette,

461
00:29:38,231 --> 00:29:42,021
and he talked about everything
but what I wanted to hear.

462
00:29:47,070 --> 00:29:49,090
DO: Terrie, this is Do.

463
00:29:49,110 --> 00:29:52,251
I'm a bit embarrassed
and awkward

464
00:29:53,030 --> 00:29:56,201
about the fact
that I didn't contact you

465
00:29:56,221 --> 00:30:00,060
when Ti left her vehicle,
or died,

466
00:30:00,080 --> 00:30:03,221
or however
you want to look at it.

467
00:30:03,241 --> 00:30:09,060
I was so torn between trying
to comply with her wishes.

468
00:30:09,080 --> 00:30:12,120
I guess, in honesty,
I was so awkward,

469
00:30:12,140 --> 00:30:14,211
that I might have been chicken

470
00:30:14,231 --> 00:30:17,181
and not just taken it
into my hands

471
00:30:17,201 --> 00:30:20,161
and talking to you.

472
00:30:22,130 --> 00:30:26,060
This task and her mission
for the Kingdom of Heaven

473
00:30:26,080 --> 00:30:28,171
was everything to her.

474
00:30:28,191 --> 00:30:32,080
She felt that this
was the only consistent way

475
00:30:32,100 --> 00:30:35,191
to even end her part
of the task.

476
00:30:35,211 --> 00:30:37,211
I think if you'll think
about that,

477
00:30:37,231 --> 00:30:40,110
you can understand it,
and certainly don't grieve

478
00:30:40,130 --> 00:30:43,030
in thinking that she didn't
want you to know

479
00:30:43,050 --> 00:30:46,070
because of lack of love
for you, or anything,

480
00:30:46,090 --> 00:30:49,030
'cause that certainly
wasn't true.

481
00:30:49,050 --> 00:30:52,090
I'm going to pray
for your release

482
00:30:52,110 --> 00:30:54,151
from this suffering.

483
00:30:54,171 --> 00:30:56,201
The suffering...
[clears throat]

484
00:30:56,221 --> 00:30:59,120
[choking up]
...has been very great for me.

485
00:30:59,140 --> 00:31:03,100
And I want you to...

486
00:31:04,140 --> 00:31:06,191
[clears throat]
...know that I love you,

487
00:31:06,211 --> 00:31:10,171
and I wish I could do
more for you.

488
00:31:13,050 --> 00:31:16,050
TERRIE: It hurt me to hear
the emotion in his voice,

489
00:31:16,070 --> 00:31:18,241
because I understood it.

490
00:31:19,021 --> 00:31:24,080
But at the same time,
this was my mother.

491
00:31:24,100 --> 00:31:27,080
This was a friend to him,
a spiritual partner,

492
00:31:27,100 --> 00:31:29,080
or whatever
you want to call it.

493
00:31:29,100 --> 00:31:31,151
It-- it's just not
the same thing.

494
00:31:33,100 --> 00:31:36,181
I found out later
that my mom lived in Dallas

495
00:31:36,201 --> 00:31:39,060
not far from where
I was staying at the time.

496
00:31:41,201 --> 00:31:44,040
I had moved to Huntsville
for college.

497
00:31:45,140 --> 00:31:47,181
I was four hours away.

498
00:31:50,130 --> 00:31:52,241
I should have been there
when she was sick

499
00:31:53,021 --> 00:31:56,211
to hold her hand,
to tell her I loved her,

500
00:31:56,231 --> 00:31:59,090
to-- whatever I needed to say.

501
00:32:02,080 --> 00:32:05,060
You know, you took all that
away from me.

502
00:32:11,181 --> 00:32:14,070
[interviewer speaking]

503
00:32:18,110 --> 00:32:21,120
No.
Nobody seemed to be interested.

504
00:32:27,151 --> 00:32:30,211
Well, my doctor wanted me
to see a psychiatrist

505
00:32:30,231 --> 00:32:32,191
because I was having...

506
00:32:32,211 --> 00:32:34,130
I gotta stop
for a second.

507
00:32:41,161 --> 00:32:45,040
DO: I feared being left
with the responsibility

508
00:32:45,060 --> 00:32:49,100
of the mission
with my partner being gone.

509
00:32:50,140 --> 00:32:53,080
But I can remember
in the first few weeks

510
00:32:53,100 --> 00:32:56,030
that I met Ti,
that Ti said,

511
00:32:56,050 --> 00:32:58,120
"Why do I feel
that this is something

512
00:32:58,140 --> 00:33:04,100
that I'm to give to you,
and then I'm to go back?"

513
00:33:05,161 --> 00:33:08,211
And I didn't know what
she was talking about.

514
00:33:12,021 --> 00:33:13,171
But I know now.

515
00:33:19,251 --> 00:33:24,241
Do's response
was deep heartbreak.

516
00:33:27,030 --> 00:33:28,151
Grief.

517
00:33:30,211 --> 00:33:36,171
And... to the point
where he questioned...

518
00:33:38,021 --> 00:33:41,140
whether he should continue
the Class.

519
00:34:00,171 --> 00:34:05,080
So, since Erika and I
were both visiting Calgary,

520
00:34:05,100 --> 00:34:07,181
'cause that's where
our parents lived--

521
00:34:07,201 --> 00:34:10,120
Do decided we should
travel together

522
00:34:10,140 --> 00:34:12,160
as check partners.

523
00:34:12,180 --> 00:34:14,100
Of course,
the understanding was

524
00:34:14,120 --> 00:34:16,200
that that's all we were.

525
00:34:18,180 --> 00:34:22,080
When we stopped
for a layover,

526
00:34:22,100 --> 00:34:25,060
and we're sitting
on the same bench

527
00:34:25,080 --> 00:34:28,071
in kind of a secluded area...

528
00:34:29,100 --> 00:34:35,240
I had this
overpowering desire

529
00:34:36,021 --> 00:34:38,251
just to give her a hug.

530
00:34:52,231 --> 00:34:55,111
That was the first time
we had touched

531
00:34:55,131 --> 00:34:58,040
in... about 10 years.

532
00:35:01,200 --> 00:35:06,220
I just felt,
let's run away together.

533
00:35:13,031 --> 00:35:18,180
If she had said,
"Let's stop this...

534
00:35:20,111 --> 00:35:26,040
I've had enough,
let's go do something else,"

535
00:35:26,060 --> 00:35:28,100
I would have said yes.

536
00:35:35,060 --> 00:35:37,100
- Oh!
- You want me to do some work?

537
00:35:37,120 --> 00:35:39,060
[inaudible chatter]

538
00:35:39,080 --> 00:35:40,200
Let's continue with the tour.

539
00:35:40,220 --> 00:35:42,140
NANCIE: He looked well.

540
00:35:42,160 --> 00:35:47,071
Of course, it was absolutely
marvelous seeing him.

541
00:35:47,091 --> 00:35:49,071
Phone calls are nice,
letters are nice,

542
00:35:49,091 --> 00:35:50,220
but to actually...

543
00:35:53,051 --> 00:35:56,200
to see and hug him,
and talk to him,

544
00:35:56,220 --> 00:35:59,021
and spend the couple
of days together

545
00:35:59,040 --> 00:36:04,160
was... very-- very important
to me, and to all of us.

546
00:36:04,180 --> 00:36:06,151
ROBERT: And these parents
literally didn't know

547
00:36:06,171 --> 00:36:07,251
if their kids
were dead or alive,

548
00:36:08,031 --> 00:36:09,220
because they had not heard
anything from them

549
00:36:09,240 --> 00:36:12,031
since '75.

550
00:36:12,051 --> 00:36:14,240
NANCIE: All right!
[cheers and applause]

551
00:36:15,211 --> 00:36:18,120
ROBERT: One woman I talked to
described her son

552
00:36:18,140 --> 00:36:20,151
when he came back
on Mother's Day,

553
00:36:20,171 --> 00:36:23,160
she said she was shocked
because he was clean-cut,

554
00:36:23,180 --> 00:36:26,231
he was polite, he was really
helpful around the house.

555
00:36:26,251 --> 00:36:29,191
Called up his old friends,
went out with them,

556
00:36:29,211 --> 00:36:31,231
stuck around for two weeks,
and then all of a sudden

557
00:36:31,251 --> 00:36:33,180
said, "Well, it's time to go.

558
00:36:33,200 --> 00:36:35,071
"I can't tell you
where I'm gonna go,

559
00:36:35,091 --> 00:36:36,120
"what I'm gonna be doing,

560
00:36:36,140 --> 00:36:38,060
and I'll be back
in touch again sometime."

561
00:36:38,080 --> 00:36:39,220
And then, he vanished.

562
00:37:13,031 --> 00:37:15,211
If they were really
these other beings

563
00:37:15,231 --> 00:37:19,111
that weren't
really in this body,

564
00:37:19,131 --> 00:37:22,160
this body had nothing
to do with them,

565
00:37:22,180 --> 00:37:26,131
why then did she die
a very human death of cancer?

566
00:37:26,151 --> 00:37:29,180
So, this was one
of the snafus that--

567
00:37:29,200 --> 00:37:32,080
that Do had to deal with.

568
00:37:32,100 --> 00:37:36,211
That was a very tough one
for me,

569
00:37:36,231 --> 00:37:39,211
because Ti and I
thought that--

570
00:37:39,231 --> 00:37:44,120
we just knew, it seemed,
that we would both be here

571
00:37:44,140 --> 00:37:46,160
for the full duration
of the task,

572
00:37:46,180 --> 00:37:50,051
and it didn't occur to us
that one might leave

573
00:37:50,071 --> 00:37:53,060
prior to the other one leaving.

574
00:37:53,080 --> 00:37:57,200
One of the most powerful forces
in religion

575
00:37:57,220 --> 00:38:00,251
suddenly reared its head there.

576
00:38:01,031 --> 00:38:03,091
It's what we call
cognitive dissonance--

577
00:38:03,111 --> 00:38:07,060
the moment in which
an event occurs

578
00:38:07,080 --> 00:38:10,251
that seems to undermine
your very theology,

579
00:38:11,031 --> 00:38:12,111
your very doctrine.

580
00:38:18,200 --> 00:38:20,040
BENJAMIN: The basic idea

581
00:38:20,060 --> 00:38:21,180
of Heaven's Gate
up to that moment

582
00:38:21,200 --> 00:38:24,100
was that you would chemically
and biologically

583
00:38:24,120 --> 00:38:26,240
transform your body
from being a human being

584
00:38:27,021 --> 00:38:29,080
into becoming
a Next Level alien,

585
00:38:29,100 --> 00:38:31,200
and then you would physically
get on board the UFO,

586
00:38:31,220 --> 00:38:33,151
which would sail off
into Heaven.

587
00:38:33,171 --> 00:38:36,060
What happens
when Bonnie Lu Nettles,

588
00:38:36,080 --> 00:38:38,021
when Ti dies?

589
00:38:38,040 --> 00:38:39,231
The vehicle broke down,

590
00:38:39,251 --> 00:38:43,060
and humans would say,
well, the vehicle died.

591
00:38:43,080 --> 00:38:45,240
And so, how can you say
she left her vehicle?

592
00:38:46,021 --> 00:38:48,080
The explanation
which was given to members

593
00:38:48,100 --> 00:38:50,180
is that it looked to us

594
00:38:50,200 --> 00:38:52,140
like she was suffering
from cancer,

595
00:38:52,160 --> 00:38:55,180
but in fact,
her Next Level consciousness

596
00:38:55,200 --> 00:38:57,071
burned up her human body.

597
00:38:57,091 --> 00:39:00,111
Cognitive dissonance
comes in.

598
00:39:00,131 --> 00:39:06,071
Your faith system shifts
to make room for the event.

599
00:39:06,091 --> 00:39:09,051
It tested me,
it tested the Class,

600
00:39:09,071 --> 00:39:12,231
and we're all 10 feet taller
because of it.

601
00:39:15,191 --> 00:39:17,131
REZA: There is a parallel here

602
00:39:17,151 --> 00:39:19,191
with Jesus
and the Jesus movement.

603
00:39:24,131 --> 00:39:28,111
Jesus' followers believed
that Jesus was the Messiah,

604
00:39:28,131 --> 00:39:32,171
according to the Jewish
definition of the Messiah.

605
00:39:33,220 --> 00:39:36,151
But there was a huge problem.

606
00:39:36,171 --> 00:39:40,040
A dead Messiah is,
by definition,

607
00:39:40,060 --> 00:39:42,091
no longer the Messiah.

608
00:39:42,111 --> 00:39:45,200
And so, Christianity
didn't just go away.

609
00:39:45,220 --> 00:39:52,151
They fundamentally redefined
what "Messiah" means.

610
00:39:54,240 --> 00:39:56,200
Messiah is not
an earthly King,

611
00:39:56,220 --> 00:39:58,131
it's a heavenly King.

612
00:39:58,151 --> 00:40:00,151
The Kingdom
that the Messiah creates

613
00:40:00,171 --> 00:40:03,211
isn't on this world,
it's on the next world.

614
00:40:03,231 --> 00:40:08,060
Understand that no one had ever
said these things before.

615
00:40:08,080 --> 00:40:09,251
And for Heaven's Gate,
that big shift

616
00:40:10,031 --> 00:40:13,120
would be the idea
that if it happened to her,

617
00:40:13,140 --> 00:40:15,220
it might happen to others
as well.

618
00:40:15,240 --> 00:40:20,111
Ti's thinking was, if that's
what you have in mind for me,

619
00:40:20,131 --> 00:40:23,060
and if that's what
you have in mind for Do,

620
00:40:23,080 --> 00:40:27,051
and for the Class, then
that's-- that's what we want.

621
00:40:27,071 --> 00:40:32,131
When Nettles dies,
it undermines the entire point

622
00:40:32,151 --> 00:40:34,211
of the bodily transformation.

623
00:40:34,231 --> 00:40:39,031
And now, it's a spiritual
transformation.

624
00:40:39,051 --> 00:40:42,180
We're going to leave
our bodies behind.

625
00:40:46,211 --> 00:40:50,140
So, in a strange way,
the tragedy of Heaven's Gate,

626
00:40:50,160 --> 00:40:53,051
the suicide of all those people,

627
00:40:53,071 --> 00:40:59,091
is a direct result
of the unexpected death

628
00:40:59,111 --> 00:41:01,131
of one of the co-founders.

629
00:41:01,151 --> 00:41:04,021
What it meant to me...

630
00:41:06,120 --> 00:41:09,071
even though it still
breaks my heart...

631
00:41:10,240 --> 00:41:13,151
to recall the experience...

632
00:41:15,220 --> 00:41:19,240
it very swiftly

633
00:41:20,021 --> 00:41:23,080
and very solidly

634
00:41:23,100 --> 00:41:26,080
put me on firmer ground

635
00:41:26,100 --> 00:41:30,071
in relationship
to my Heavenly Father.

636
00:41:30,091 --> 00:41:34,140
It put me in a better
relationship with Ti

637
00:41:34,160 --> 00:41:38,080
than I had before
she left her vehicle.

638
00:41:38,100 --> 00:41:42,100
I know that Ti is still,
to this day,

639
00:41:42,120 --> 00:41:47,060
my primary,
if not my total link

640
00:41:47,080 --> 00:41:49,151
with our Heavenly Father.

641
00:41:51,171 --> 00:41:54,111
BENJAMIN: During her lifetime,
she's called the Older Member.

642
00:41:54,131 --> 00:41:57,051
He deferred to her,
and Do also said

643
00:41:57,071 --> 00:41:59,040
that his connection
to the Next Level

644
00:41:59,060 --> 00:42:00,180
went through Ti.

645
00:42:00,200 --> 00:42:04,051
After her death,
Do looked to her

646
00:42:04,071 --> 00:42:08,021
as still guiding him,
but now from outer space.

647
00:42:08,040 --> 00:42:11,091
Ti is my Older Member.

648
00:42:12,151 --> 00:42:15,171
Ti is my Heavenly Father.

649
00:42:18,211 --> 00:42:22,120
And in fact, it's no more than
a decade after her death

650
00:42:22,140 --> 00:42:24,071
that Do publicly
declares himself

651
00:42:24,091 --> 00:42:26,251
Jesus returned to Earth,
and declares that Ti

652
00:42:27,031 --> 00:42:28,151
was the one known
as God the Father.

653
00:42:30,071 --> 00:42:32,140
ROBERT: Even though
she was raised as a Baptist,

654
00:42:32,160 --> 00:42:35,160
Bonnie was involved in
metaphysical teaching.

655
00:42:35,180 --> 00:42:38,240
She's involved
in New Age ideas,

656
00:42:39,021 --> 00:42:40,160
all of this stuff

657
00:42:40,180 --> 00:42:43,051
that must have just
driven Do crazy,

658
00:42:43,071 --> 00:42:46,200
because Marshall Herff
Applewhite, Senior,

659
00:42:46,220 --> 00:42:50,120
was a very prominent
Presbyterian minister,

660
00:42:50,140 --> 00:42:52,051
and by all accounts,

661
00:42:52,071 --> 00:42:54,071
Herff really wanted
to emulate him

662
00:42:54,091 --> 00:42:57,120
and become a minister
just like he had done.

663
00:42:57,140 --> 00:43:00,071
And if you read
the Heaven's Gate book

664
00:43:00,091 --> 00:43:01,251
that came out much later,

665
00:43:02,031 --> 00:43:05,040
Do is, like, really harsh
on the New Age.

666
00:43:05,060 --> 00:43:08,021
And New Age is, like,
that's one of the big ways

667
00:43:08,040 --> 00:43:12,180
that Lucifer is trying
to get his hooks in humans.

668
00:43:12,200 --> 00:43:15,171
After Ti dies,

669
00:43:15,191 --> 00:43:18,251
the message becomes
much more biblical,

670
00:43:19,031 --> 00:43:24,180
moving away from Ti's ideas
to more Do's thinking.

671
00:43:24,200 --> 00:43:27,051
DO: We see the world.

672
00:43:27,071 --> 00:43:32,091
We see the world
as the anti-truth,

673
00:43:32,111 --> 00:43:33,251
the Antichrist.

674
00:43:34,031 --> 00:43:40,111
The world will see us
as anti-truth, Antichrist.

675
00:43:40,131 --> 00:43:43,200
We know that
that is inevitable.

676
00:43:50,140 --> 00:43:54,071
SAWYER: Ti gave us instructions
before she died, of course,

677
00:43:54,091 --> 00:43:56,180
to make our commitment to Do.

678
00:43:56,200 --> 00:43:59,111
Ti trusted Do 100%.

679
00:43:59,131 --> 00:44:00,191
Do came to a meeting,

680
00:44:00,211 --> 00:44:03,100
maybe the second, or third,
or fourth meeting

681
00:44:03,120 --> 00:44:07,180
after Ti left,
and... he said,

682
00:44:07,200 --> 00:44:09,031
"There's something
different about me.

683
00:44:09,051 --> 00:44:10,120
I want to play
a little game."

684
00:44:10,140 --> 00:44:12,200
[people chattering]
That's right.

685
00:44:14,021 --> 00:44:15,211
That's right.

686
00:44:15,231 --> 00:44:18,060
[chattering continues]

687
00:44:18,080 --> 00:44:20,191
ROBERT: Do called everybody
together one day and says,

688
00:44:20,211 --> 00:44:22,120
"Well, I've got a little test
for you.

689
00:44:22,140 --> 00:44:27,100
If you had $100
that you could spend

690
00:44:27,120 --> 00:44:31,220
for something for yourself,
what would you buy?

691
00:44:37,131 --> 00:44:41,040
Apparently, it just drove
everybody absolutely bonkers.

692
00:44:41,060 --> 00:44:43,031
Here, they've been
in the process

693
00:44:43,051 --> 00:44:44,131
of giving everything up,

694
00:44:44,151 --> 00:44:48,111
they have no personal
possessions at all.

695
00:44:48,131 --> 00:44:51,160
And all of a sudden,
$100 to buy something

696
00:44:51,180 --> 00:44:54,171
only for yourself,
what would it be?

697
00:45:02,091 --> 00:45:04,100
DO: Now, when you become
a candidate

698
00:45:04,120 --> 00:45:06,021
for our Father's Kingdom,

699
00:45:06,040 --> 00:45:09,040
our Father then says,
"I'm a jealous god.

700
00:45:09,060 --> 00:45:11,160
"For a period of time,
you might have thought

701
00:45:11,180 --> 00:45:14,231
"you loved me more than
you loved those other things.

702
00:45:14,251 --> 00:45:17,240
"But if you're gonna get
into my house,

703
00:45:18,021 --> 00:45:21,031
you have to love only me."

704
00:45:22,071 --> 00:45:23,160
ROBERT: What it was,
the answer,

705
00:45:23,180 --> 00:45:28,040
was a very simple gold band,
a cheap $100 gold band.

706
00:45:28,060 --> 00:45:29,211
A wedding ring.

707
00:45:29,231 --> 00:45:32,120
["He Needs Me" playing]

708
00:45:41,100 --> 00:45:44,251
♪ And all at once I knew,
I knew at once ♪

709
00:45:45,031 --> 00:45:48,051
♪ I knew he needed me ♪

710
00:45:48,071 --> 00:45:49,211
ROBERT:
Herff doesn't have Bonnie

711
00:45:49,231 --> 00:45:52,080
as his support system anymore,

712
00:45:52,100 --> 00:45:56,131
so the Class itself
becomes his support system.

713
00:45:56,151 --> 00:45:59,200
♪ I knew he needed me ♪

714
00:46:00,231 --> 00:46:04,220
FRANK: Do became
even more obsessed

715
00:46:04,240 --> 00:46:09,171
with control
after she passed on.

716
00:46:09,191 --> 00:46:11,220
And so, he had
a little ceremony

717
00:46:11,240 --> 00:46:14,100
to where we were marrying him.

718
00:46:14,120 --> 00:46:18,231
♪ He needs me, he needs me,
he needs me, he needs me ♪

719
00:46:18,251 --> 00:46:23,060
♪ He needs me, he needs me ♪

720
00:46:23,080 --> 00:46:26,091
The instruction
was to come up one by one.

721
00:46:26,111 --> 00:46:29,251
When I got to be the one
to go up to him,

722
00:46:30,031 --> 00:46:31,180
he was sweating profusely.

723
00:46:31,200 --> 00:46:33,151
I could see the sweat
on his brow,

724
00:46:33,171 --> 00:46:35,060
and he kissed me
on the forehead,

725
00:46:35,080 --> 00:46:37,111
and he was weeping.

726
00:46:37,131 --> 00:46:41,180
♪ It's like a dime a dance,
I'll take a chance ♪

727
00:46:41,200 --> 00:46:46,140
♪ I will because
he needs me ♪

728
00:46:46,160 --> 00:46:48,111
SAWYER: He was giving birth.

729
00:46:48,131 --> 00:46:52,180
♪ Maybe it's because
he's so alone ♪

730
00:46:52,200 --> 00:46:56,240
He was birthing students
into the Next Level.

731
00:46:57,021 --> 00:46:59,071
♪ ...had a home ♪

732
00:46:59,091 --> 00:47:03,180
♪ He needs me, he needs me,
he needs me, he needs me ♪

733
00:47:03,200 --> 00:47:07,180
♪ He needs me, he needs me ♪

734
00:47:07,200 --> 00:47:11,021
ROBERT: Up until this point,
the focus was on the message

735
00:47:11,040 --> 00:47:13,191
or the process
of overcoming.

736
00:47:13,211 --> 00:47:16,180
But what happens
with this marriage ceremony

737
00:47:16,200 --> 00:47:20,231
is now the loyalty is shifting
from the message

738
00:47:20,251 --> 00:47:22,120
to the messenger.

739
00:47:28,140 --> 00:47:30,100
That is why ever after that,

740
00:47:30,120 --> 00:47:31,231
when you see people
in the group,

741
00:47:31,251 --> 00:47:34,040
if there's a picture
that shows their hands,

742
00:47:34,060 --> 00:47:35,191
they'll have wedding rings on.

743
00:47:46,211 --> 00:47:49,100
[music ends]

744
00:47:53,171 --> 00:47:55,200
BENJAMIN: It is a question
that will not go away.

745
00:47:55,220 --> 00:47:58,140
What kind of messenger
could convince 38 followers

746
00:47:58,160 --> 00:48:00,200
to commit suicide
alongside of him?

747
00:48:02,191 --> 00:48:04,131
RIO DIANGELO:
Do was a wonderful person.

748
00:48:04,151 --> 00:48:07,140
He was very helpful,
a very good teacher,

749
00:48:07,160 --> 00:48:09,240
and we had a lot
of reverence for him.

750
00:48:10,021 --> 00:48:11,151
Here's the problem--

751
00:48:11,171 --> 00:48:14,100
once people's lives
are conformed

752
00:48:14,120 --> 00:48:16,140
to predictable patterns
through peer pressure--

753
00:48:16,160 --> 00:48:18,200
and you saw the people,
they were dressed the same way,

754
00:48:18,220 --> 00:48:20,131
they sported the same kinds
of haircuts--

755
00:48:20,151 --> 00:48:22,120
virtually anything is possible.

756
00:48:22,140 --> 00:48:26,091
Ti and Do never...

757
00:48:26,111 --> 00:48:28,251
were out to con anybody.

758
00:48:29,031 --> 00:48:32,100
If they conned anybody,
they conned themselves first.

759
00:48:32,120 --> 00:48:33,211
REPORTER: Miss Lalich,
let me start with you.

760
00:48:33,231 --> 00:48:37,200
Do you believe
this was suicide or murder?

761
00:48:37,220 --> 00:48:39,171
I believe it was murder.

762
00:48:44,091 --> 00:48:47,220
♪ You don't own me ♪

763
00:48:47,240 --> 00:48:51,251
♪ I'm not just one
of your many toys ♪

764
00:48:52,031 --> 00:48:55,100
♪ You don't own me ♪

765
00:48:55,120 --> 00:49:01,171
♪ Don't say I can't go
with other boys ♪

766
00:49:01,191 --> 00:49:05,211
♪ And don't tell me
what to do ♪

767
00:49:05,231 --> 00:49:09,051
♪ Don't tell me what to say ♪

768
00:49:09,071 --> 00:49:13,071
♪ And please,
when I go out with you... ♪♪