Celebrities and cults are two great tastes that taste great together.
Obviously, the most famous example of a pseudo-spiritual organization that exists for the singular purpose of robbing gullible actors of their royalties is Scientology.
But there are other, lesser-known cults that you might not have heard of, yet likely hold similar aspirations of one day fleecing as many D-listers as L. Ron Hubbard.
And it seems Teen Mom 2 star Leah Messer may have fallen victim.
At least it sounds like one of these organizations has gotten its tentacles around her. We could stage an intervention, but cults have a way with mind control.
Maybe signing her house over to these weirdos is the only way she’ll learn. We kid, mostly, but what kind of group has she gotten involved with … and why?
Take a look and see for yourself.
Sister Leah
Well, we guess it was bound to happen. One of the stars of MTV’s Teen Mom franchise has joined a wacky celebrity cult. We don’t throw that term around lightly. That’s really what this sounds like, whatever terms you want to dress it up as.
What a Twist!
Yeah, we thought it would be Jenelle Evans or, more likely, Farrah Abraham who would take the bait first, but instead, Ms. Messer was the one to drink the Kool-Aid and immerse herself in a new, unorthodox belief system.
Enlightened Leah
According to celebrity gossip stalwarts Radar Online, the West Virginia native has joined Mastery in Transformational Training, an organization that’s allegedly just as culty as it sounds.
Beamed Up
Look, we don’t want to judge. We really would like to believe the group has been unfairly characterized as a cult, when in reality it’s just an innocuous self-help organization. But man, Leah’s tweets have been highly suspect lately.
Rollin’ With the Chosen
It all started back on October 1, when Leah posted this picture of herself with a bunch of randos.
Strong Words
“A powerful, strong, trusting force we are! I love each and every single one of you!!” Messer captioned the picture, already evangelizing the brand. “You can count on my word!”
We Get It
“Each one of you have changed my life and we will forever be connected!!,” she went on. “I AM A POWERFUL, CONNECTED, INSPIRATIONAL LEADER! I LOVE ALL OF YOU!†We understand, you’re really into this. No need to go CAPS LOCK on us, honestly.
Not a Good Sign
Okay, so, if you want to give her the benefit of the doubt, Leah Messer really, really, really likes her new group of friends, whom she hangs it with at secretive conventions. That might be okay on its own …
Creepy Tags
But some fans began to grow concerned when they noticed hashtags that Leah used, including “MITT16Heaven” and “mitttransformation†– hashtags that were also used by attendees at the weekend’s conference.
Looking For Signs of Hope
So Ms. Messer joined a group of people with similar self-help goals. It’s not like she’s doing the thing where she’s trying to leverage her newfound spiritual beliefs to curry favor with other celebrities, right?
Aw, Crap …
No, as it turns out, that’s exactly what Leah’s doing. As we said, the plausible and harmless explanations for these life choices keep dwindling the longer you look into it.
Fixated
Leah has been tweeting kind of non-stop about this MITT crap and tagging entertainers like Rihanna, Beyonce, Madonna, and Ricky Martin.
It Keeps Getting Weirder Yet
Are these people involved with the organization, or does Leah just think they would benefit from it? We have no idea, but either way, it’s weird.
Oh, This is Just Embarrassing
“We the powerful, authentic, revolutionary leaders of LP16HEAVEN are committed to creating a world of LOVE, FREEDOM, and UNITY!†Leah tweeted. She added the hashtag, “lp16Heaven†… cringe.
Okay, Yeah, No
It probably goes without saying, but Rihanna and company have not responded to Leah’s tag as of press time.
What’s the Deal?
So who are these people Leah has gotten involved with? Well, according to its website Mastery in Transformational Training (M.I.T.T.) is a California-based self-help organization.
Sounds Suspect, to Say the Least
“These dynamic workshops are a caring, inspirational, and educational environment for generating breakthroughs in the most crucial aspects of your life,” the site reads. The description continues:
Big Promises
“You will realize new ways to be more effective, giving and fulfilled in both your personal relationships and your career while experiencing new levels of self-confidence, vitality, joy, and satisfaction.”
Creepy Stuff
“You will see the degree to which your current thinking and behavior is or is not consistent with your highest aspirations and your vision for life.”
Who Doesn’t Like New Possibilities?
You will discover new possibilities for yourself that are not determined by your past, but generated by your commitment to the future, the organization promises, high on hope and low on details.
Sounds Expensive
“You will leave this life-altering experience with the tools for immediately creating more of what truly matters to you,†the site concludes, setting up the vulnerable and easily manipulated for the hard sell.
It Is
MITT offers participants a series of three training sessions, all of which cost a pretty penny. What, you think getting in touch with your inner higher power comes cheap??
Starting Small
The first session is known as “The Basic Training.†The 5-day workshop costs $495. Not a small sum, but nothing too outrageous … yet.
Enlightenment is Apparently Expensive
From there, though, things get considerably pricier. “The Advanced Course,†goes for $1,195. It’s followed by the final stage, “The Legacy Program,†for $1,595.
Money Not Well Spent
Leah tagged one of her posts “LP” for “Legacy Program,” so it’s safe to assume she’s completed the course … and flushed a decent amount of cash down the drain as a result.
How Did This Happen?
It’s unclear how Leah found out about the MITT. Of course, she’s a high-profile single mom with one child battling a serious medical condition, and who has lots of money and even more personal demons – so there’s a good chance they caught wind of her situation and came to her.
Whatever Works
Hey, maybe she got a lot out of the program. Whatever the case, we hope she’s done writing them checks now. If you know anyone else involved in this, please try to talk some sense into them immediately if not sooner.
UPDATE: Sounds Like Trouble!
According to a new report from Radar Online, MITT was recently sued by a former member who accused the organization of brainwashing and inflicting emotional distress.
Does Leah Know?
In December of 2017, Dana Sabre sued Mastery in Transformational Training, leader Margo Majdi and other Defendants for fraud, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent infliction of emotional distress, and more.
Yikes
Dana claims that without her consent, she was subjected to “training” that imposed “techniques of brainwashing†and resulted in lasting psychological damage.
Scary Stuff
“Such non-consensual imposition of brainwashing techniques generated massive psychiatric stress, which caused Plaintiff to suffer a psychiatrically diagnosed psychotic break,†Sabres’ court filing read.
Seriously Frightening
“Such psychiatrically diagnosed psychiatric break rendered Plaintiff to suffer severance from reality which included cycling among extreme confabulations, violent acting out and a catatonic state requiring four-point restraint and psychiatric hospitalization.” the filing continued.
It Gets Worse …
Sabre claimed that during these intense training sessions, her fellow students “suffered miscarriage, psychotic breaks and injury.†She also says that several students, including her sister, were subjected to inappropriate sexual contact.
Run, Leah!
We have no way of knowing if Leah had access to this information before she got involved with MITT. But here’s hoping she’s taking steps to protect herself!