By the way, regarding the name of Knapp’s non-profit, he changed it several times before starting it. Its name in the summer 2010 was the Knapp Center. Later, he renamed it into the Center for Spiritual and Cultic Abuse (CSCA) and eventually into the Center for Healing Spiritual and Cultic Abuse (CHSCA). So, the last change was when the word “healing” was added. Quite frankly, I doubt that there is any “healing” in this center. So, this change was quite misleading. I am not a native English speaker, but I think that “the Center for Spiritual and Cultic Abuse” was more appropriate name for this organization.

Recently, John M. Knapp, LMSW started a new website and claims that he founded a new non-profit corporation, The Center for Healing Spiritual and Cultic Abuse (The CHSCA) and is the executive director of it. He highly promotes this new organization, including their services and even international support. However, I think that potential clients should be aware of some facts regarding this organization and John M. Knapp.

Since he lives and practices in New York State, his non-profit corporation is supposed to be on file with NYS Department of State. However, anyone can search NYS Department of State The Corporation and Business Entity Database and see that it is not there. The current information messages by this database are the following:

NYS Department of State
Division of Corporations
Informational Message
The information contained in this database is current through March 25, 2011.
No business entities were found for The Center for Healing Spiritual and Cultic Abuse.
No business entities were found for The Center for Healing Spiritual & Cultic Abuse.
No business entities were found for The CHSCA.
No business entities were found for CHSCA.

John Knapp started his website in the beginning of March and claimed to have created The Center for Healing Spiritual and Cultic Abuse as a non-profit corporation, but it is still not on file with NYS Department of State. The only conclusion I can make is that his non-profit corporation is non-existing or illegal.

As far as I know, one of the main reasons for John Knapp to supposedly create his non-profit corporation is to attract more clients. However, I would warn people about hiring him as a therapist. Here is a report of one of his former clients: http://tossandripple.blogspot.com/2011/01/john-m-knapp-lmsw.html. I know of this situation and am aware that he caused a serious damage to this person.

Another problem with his counseling is that he practices online counseling, using Skype and similar programs. Many therapists have doubts regarding this way of counseling because Skype has security flaws and because there is a great difference between seeing somebody in person and on video. According to my understanding, the position of the NYS State Boards for the Professions, that is, the organization that certified him as Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) is that they do not tend to consider online therapy as true therapy.

In Ethical Standards for Thought Reform Consultants, section II, point A, sub-point 5:

A subscribing consultant will not employ methods or techniques such as neuro-linguistics programming, hypnosis or Ericksonian hypnosis or other techniques similar to those employed by cult groups without fully informed consent of the client.

I know that not all the thought reform consultants, exit counselors or whatever they call themselves, subscribed by these ethical standards. Although these methods are not illegal per se, they are used by cults. This is why most professionals who work with ex-cult members (including those who did not subscribed by these ethical standards) consider that it is unethical to use them.

Since John Knapp is LMSW, he is required to have a supervisor who is LCSW. His supervisor and her husband are certified NLP trainers. John Knapp and his supervisor even have offices in the same building. Well, there is nothing illegal with having a supervisor who is a certified NLP trainer, but it definitely indicates that John Knapp seriously studied NLP. People usually study NLP to use it, not just to have information about it. I have never been his client, but I used to be a co-moderator and a co-administrator of his forum and I can testify that he used NLP techniques toward me.

John Knapp keeps posting in his new Twitter account that certain people joined his Center for Healing Spiritual and Cultic Abuse. I doubt that this information is correct. In any case, I will not join his new organization under any condition. In the past, he tried to involve me there, using manipulations. I have never given my agreement to join it. Although he still lists me in his forum as one of moderators and administrators, I am not a moderator and administrator of his forum since August 1, 2010. I had no contacts with him since this time. I do not endorse him and will not work together with him any longer. This is my firm position and I will not change it.

Although I do not believe that all the ex-members of cults need therapy, I admit that some of them need. However, ex-members of cults need to be aware that some therapists may harm them rather than help them. So, I recommend them to read this abstract from “Crazy” Therapies: What are They? Do They Work? and better the whole book before hiring a therapist.

In order to access the books, you will be asked to answer a few questions:
http://icsahome.com/infoserv_respond/free.asp

Part 1

Part 2

Videos:
Lecture 1: Healthy and Abusive Spiritual Dynamics (55 min)
Lecture 2: The Abusive Religious System (59 min)
Lecture 3: How We Get Hooked (60 min)

Audios:
Lecture 1: Healthy and Abusive Spiritual Dynamics (55 min)
Lecture 2: The Abusive Religious System (59 min)
Lecture 3: How We Get Hooked (60 min)