Meet Vissarion, the modern eco-Jesus and his cult followers
During the nineties, Sergey Torop, a former traffic policeman from Krasnodar, changed his name to Vissarion and claimed he was a reincarnation of Jesus. His scriptures’ message of spiritual unity and an approaching ecological Armageddon resonated with thousands from Russia and beyond. Disciples flocked to the Church of the Last Testament in remote, unpolluted Siberia. There, far away from consumer society, they built eco-villages and adopted a vegan lifestyle.
RTD travels to the Mountain for the movement’s holy day, to try and understand the source of Vissarion’s extraordinary drawing power. Join RTD to see an apparition of the Teacher and hear him explain why the Promised Land is now in Russia.
Hear from Russian, Belgian and Cuban devotees what keeps them in the group and meet a former member trying to rebuild her life. She is heartbroken because her daughter and grandchild refuse to leave what she now believes to be a cult. We also meet the daughter herself, who says she stays because of the way people treat each other. Are the believers blessed or deluded? You decide.