Ben Shenton - Surviving Australia's Most Notorious Cult "The Family"
On this week’s episode, I’m joined by Ben Shenton. Ben is a survivor of "The Family," a notorious New Age cult led by Anne Hamilton-Byrne. At 18 months old, Ben was handed over to Hamilton-Byrne, who falsely claimed to be his mother. Within the cult, children were subjected to severe abuse, including forced conformity through identical appearances and strict discipline. In 1987, at age 15, Shenton was among several children rescued during a police raid on the cult's property. Ben has since become an advocate for survivors of cults and abusive environments and works now as a pastor. He authored the book Life Behind The Wire, detailing his experiences within "The Family" and his journey toward healing.Ben's website - https://www.rescuethefamily.com/Dark Finds Podcast IG - https://www.instagram.com/darkfindspodcast/Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/darkfindspodcast/membershipDark Finds IG - https://www.instagram.com/dark.finds/Dark Finds YouTube Channel for more dark long-form content - https://www.youtube.com/@DarkFindsChannelDark Finds book - https://amzn.eu/d/3VHPOTj Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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About This Episode
On this week’s episode, I’m joined by Ben Shenton. Ben is a survivor of "The Family," a notorious New Age cult led by Anne Hamilton-Byrne. At 18 months old, Ben was handed over to Hamilton-Byrne, who falsely claimed to be his mother. Within the cult, children were subjected to severe abuse, including forced conformity through identical appearances and strict discipline. In 1987, at age 15, Shenton was among several children rescued during a police raid on the cult's property. Ben has since beco...