Overview

Growing up in the southern Australian countryside in Lal Lal, Claire Ashman knew there was something different about her strict Catholic upbringing. Largely isolated from the outside world, Claire and her siblings were raised by parents who rejected the post-Vatican II attempt to modernize the Catholic church by following the Tridentine teachings of the Society of Saint Pius X (SSPX). As a result, Claire and her siblings spent their days alternating between caring for the land and the animals they owned and praying, studying the Bible and preparing for the End of Times. At eighteen, Claire married a man twelve years her senior with whom she would have nine children, and who would move the family to a doomsday cult (the Order of St. Charbel) in Nowra. After years of scraping by on next to nothing and living in fear of the next End of Times prediction, Claire was torn between being a good Catholic (and honoring the vow she made to a man who didn't love her or their children) and wanting out of the cult. When an unexpected visit from the police gave her an opportunity to finally escape, Claire took it and never looked back.

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Reviews

Claire's story is one that would shock most people, but it is her ability to rise from her circumstances and her desire to help others do the same that inspires me. She's able to share her story with strength, courage and insight to create a powerful message that resonates with people facing any number of challenges. Claire is a powerhouse of hope, spirit and determination and her success on the TEDx stages is a true testament to her ability to engage and inspire her audiences. Natasha Vanzetti ACT Australia. Claire is one of the most inspirational women I've had the pleasure to meet. Her story shows that even in one of the most extreme examples of entrapment, a woman who is determined to find a way out and create a better life, will! Claire broke free from physical, psychological, financial and spiritual control which the sect and the cult had used to hold her and her children captive for many years, and went on to create a magnificent life for her family. There can be no greater inspirational story for women than this! Claire's courage, determination, positivity and knowledge show women the victory that is possible, when they believe in themselves. Claire genuinely and passionately cares about women and children regaining their power, knowing their value, and living the life they deserve. Faye Hurley, UK.

"""Claire's story is one that would shock most people, but it is her ability to rise from her circumstances and her desire to help others do the same that inspires me. She's able to share her story with strength, courage and insight to create a powerful message that resonates with people facing any number of challenges. Claire is a powerhouse of hope, spirit and determination and her success on the TEDx stages is a true testament to her ability to engage and inspire her audiences."" Natasha Vanzetti ACT Australia. ""Claire is one of the most inspirational women I've had the pleasure to meet. Her story shows that even in one of the most extreme examples of entrapment, a woman who is determined to find a way out and create a better life, will! Claire broke free from physical, psychological, financial and spiritual control which the sect and the cult had used to hold her and her children captive for many years, and went on to create a magnificent life for her family. There can be no greater inspirational story for women than this! Claire's courage, determination, positivity and knowledge show women the victory that is possible, when they believe in themselves. Claire genuinely and passionately cares about women and children regaining their power, knowing their value, and living the life they deserve."" Faye Hurley, UK."

Author Information

Claire, 4-time TEDx speaker is known for her strength, courage, and determination in pushing through difficult obstacles in order to create a life of freedom beyond barbed wire fences for her and her 9 children. Audiences are drawn to Claire's passionate, inspiring and enlightening accounts of her upbringing in a strict religious sect, followed by a decade spent in one of Australia's largest Doomsday cults. Listeners are amazed by her story but the revelation that some new religious groups aren't all what they seem surprises them. The various forms of abuse that goes on behind closed doors in some groups is shocking. Claire's book, Lessons From A Cult Survivor, changes our perception of sects and new religious movements as a bygone era to noticing that there are still a number secretive groups in Australia. The cult-like mindset isn't limited by fences, it bleeds into modern societal cult-ure through social media, corporate culture, and exploitation. Claire shares lessons on how despite most of her life being indoctrinated and manipulated she taught herself to live in a world she knew very little about. Determinedly believing in herself, she broke mental, emotional and financial barriers to forge a new life for herself and her children. When Claire isn't speaking out, you can find her exercising, playing the pipe organ and creating patchwork quilts.

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