True Crime

The Cult on the Cape

This is podcast about the Community of Jesus in Orleans, Massachusetts and its affiliated boarding school, Grenville Christian College. Join us as we talk to survivors who lived inside this system, survived it, escaped it, and are now telling the truth of what happened to them.

Latest Episodes:

Episode 29 Born Inside - Part 2 May 26, 2026

Show notes

In Part 2 of Bryan Catlin’s powerful story, Bryan shares what happened after he fled the Community of Jesus — terrified, exhausted, and completely unprepared for the outside world. What followed was a mental health crisis, arrest, hospitalization, and ultimately the beginning of rebuilding a life from scratch.

Bryan speaks candidly about fear, isolation, survival, and the lifelong effects of growing up in a high-control environment. He also shares the people who helped save him — a social worker who understood cult dynamics, a father who kept showing up, friends who opened their homes, and the woman who would eventually become his wife.

This episode is a raw and deeply human conversation about trauma, forgiveness, family estrangement, parenting after coercive control, and learning how to trust yourself after a lifetime of being told who you were supposed to be.

At its heart, this is a story about survival, healing, and building a life that finally belongs to you.

Episode 28 Born Inside May 19, 2026

Show notes

In this deeply personal conversation, Bryan Catlin shares what it was like to be born into the Community of Jesus as the Grandson of the Mother and raised entirely within its world. From loneliness, homeschooling, and life with the brothers, to fear, control, emotional confusion, and repeated attempts to leave, Brian reflects on the complexity of growing up inside a high-control religious environment — where even understanding what was “normal” became difficult. This is Part 1 of an honest and powerful survivor story.

Episode 27 8 Months May 12, 2026

Show notes

Note: We have edited the audio to remove the last name of the Community's inside attorney and the Busar mentioned in the podcast. To read the correspondence discussed, go to :8 Months | My Life During and After The Community of Jesus

Carrie Buddington responds to statements made about her departure from the Community of Jesus

After living inside the Community of Jesus for 40 years—including 20 years as a vowed sister—Carrie Buddington says she left with a small suitcase, a bus ticket to Boston, and $1,000.

In this episode, Carrie responds directly to comments made by attorney Jeff Robbins in a Cape Cod Times article by Denise Coffey published April 29, 2026. She reflects on the years leading up to her departure, repeated requests for a leave of absence that she says were denied, and the difficult process of rebuilding a life after decades inside a high-control religious environment.

The title of this episode, 8 Months, refers to the amount of time Carrie says it took to recover a single personal belonging: a cross-stitch piece she had made herself.

This is a conversation about autonomy, loss, survival, and what it means to rebuild a life after leaving with almost nothing — and, most of all, about refusing to remain silent in the face of narratives that do not share the full truth.🎧 Listen as we continue telling the story of The Cult on the Cape.

Episode 26 Before We Knew - Part 2 May 05, 2026

Show notes

Ken McCormick on surveillance, control, and seeing behind the curtain

In Part 2 of Ken McCormick’s story, the deeper mechanisms of control inside the Community of Jesus begin to come into focus.

Ken shares what it was like working with the Community’s audio systems—and the unsettling realization that conversations throughout the property could be monitored through hidden microphones and listening systems connected directly to leadership spaces.

What began years earlier as a search for meaning and belonging slowly revealed something far more complicated: exhaustion, fear, hierarchy, surveillance, and an environment where privacy and individuality were steadily eroded.

This episode explores what happens when spiritual authority becomes intertwined with control—and the moment when people begin to see behind the curtain.

🎧 Listen as we continue telling the story of The Cult on the Cape.

A Special Episode for International Cult Recovery Day May 01, 2026

Show notes

In this special episode for International Cult Recovery Day, Bonnie shares a speech recorded by her son Brendan for a college class final project.

In it, Brendan reflects on the Community of Jesus, Rock Harbor Truth, survivor stories, and the importance of listening to people who have too often been silenced or dismissed.

This episode is a reminder that recovery begins when people are willing to speak and to hear the truth — and that the next generation is paying attention. 🕊️

Episode 25 Before We Knew Apr 28, 2026

Show notes

Listen to Ken McCormick share his experiences during the early days of the Community of Jesus

Episode 24 Not A Path, The Path Part 2: From Harm to Healing Apr 21, 2026

Show notes

What happens after you survive?
In this powerful continuation, Bonnie and Jeffrey Wilkinson explore the long road from harm to healing. They talk about shame, identity, self-worth, and the quiet, difficult work of rewriting the messages that were never yours to carry. If you’ve ever struggled with “Who am I now?”—this conversation is for you.

Episode 23 Not A Path - The Path Apr 14, 2026

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Dr. Jeffrey Wilkinson on trauma, memory, and healing after the Community of Jesus

Episode 23 Not a Path—The Path Apr 14, 2026

Show notes

Dr. Jeffrey Wilkinson on trauma, memory, and healing after the Community of Jesus

Episode 22 The Truth about Rock Harbor Truth Mar 31, 2026

Show notes

This episode is hosted by Mel McDaniel as she interviews Shawn DeLude and Bonnie Zampino about how Rock Harbor Truth came to be and its vision and mission for the organization.

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