It might by the largest least known religious movement, despite its controversial doctrine and allegations of sex abuse that have landed its leader in a California prison, sentenced to more than 16 years.
Thanks to the brave testimony of former members of La Luz del Mundo, whose name means “Light of the World” in Spanish, leaders of the fundamentalist Christian church are facing criminal and civil investigations in both the US and Mexico for crimes including sexual abuse, human trafficking, and forced labor.
One of the leading voices exposing the abuse is Sochil Martin, a fourth-generation former member of the church who shares her incredible true story in the Audible Original podcast Darkness of the World, a 10-part series that blows the whistle on La Luz del Mundo and its criminal “apostle,” Naasón Joaquín García.
A documentary from Alex Gibney’s Jigsaw Productions, Unveiled: Surviving La Luz Del Mundo brings the story to viewers on HBO Max this week. But is La Luz del Mundo really “the largest religious cult in the world that no one's ever heard of,” as multiple sources call it in Darkness of the World? Here’s what we know about the controversial organization.
What is the La Luz del Mundo church?
La Luz del Mundo (LLDM) was founded in Mexico in 1926 by Aarón (born Eusebio) Joaquín González, who followers believe to be the church’s first “apostle.” The church has been led by three apostles in its history, all from the same family—after Aarón Joaquín’s death in 1964, leadership passed to his son Samuel, who died in 2014 and was succeeded by his son Naasón.
LLDM doctrine teaches a primitive form of Christianity; followers believe that after its founding by Jesus Christ and the deaths of the apostles, Christianity became corrupt and lost its way. According to LLDM, a restoration of primitive Christianity—which includes unquestioning service of the church’s chosen apostle on earth—is the only path to eternal salvation. Sources in Darkness of the World describe expectations of “unconditional” devotion and obedience to the apostle’s will and the relinquishment of personal relationships with anyone outside the church.
From its origins in 1920s Guadalajara, Mexico, the church's influence has spread to the US and is especially strong in areas with large Hispanic populations, including California. While definitive statistics on LLDM’s total membership are not currently available, the church claims to have baptized more than five million people worldwide.
Who is the leader of La Luz del Mundo?
The third and current leader of the church is Naasón Joaquín García, 53, the grandson of founder Aarón Joaquín González. In 2019, Naasón was arrested at Los Angeles airport along with two of his female followers. He has since pleaded guilty to three counts of sexually abusing girls from his congregation and was sentenced in a Los Angeles court to 16 years and eight months in prison.
According to survivors including Sochil Martin, Naasón sexually abused female followers, many of them minors. But the secrecy of the church, the enforced isolation of its followers, and the power of its leadership intimidated many of them into staying silent. After Martin and a group of Jane Does provided evidence and testimony accusing Naasón of sexual abuse between 2015 and 2019, Naasón brokered a plea deal ahead of a trial, resulting in a considerably shorter sentence.
Despite pleading guilty, Naasón still leads the church from behind bars, and members of his congregation continue to consider him their leader and apostle. Further criminal and civil investigations are pending against him in the US and Mexico.
What are the allegations against La Luz del Mundo church?
According to official claims made in court against La Luz del Mundo and Naasón Joaquin Garcia as well as numerous news sources and articles, LLDM leadership is accused of grooming and abusing multiple female victims, including girls as young as 15. Naasón pled guilty and was convicted of three charges of sexually abusing children. His associates, Susana Medina Oaxaca and Alondra Ocampo, were also charged. A fourth defendant, Azalea Rangel Melendez, who was previously charged with rape, is still at large.
As Sochil Martin explains in Darkness of the World, the culture of secrecy and expectation of complete, lifelong devotion for the church’s “unconditionals” meant submitting to the abuse without question, beginning as early as one’s teens. “Once you have this responsibility to be an unconditional,” Sochil explains, “that's for your entire life. So, you don't expect to be married. Or he decides, if he marries you off to a politician. But for about 10, 15 years, sometimes it's complete servitude for the apostle: mind, body, and soul.”
Cult members often lack the outside perspective and context necessary to identify and understand wrongdoing within the organization. As cult expert, therapist, author, and ex-Moonie Steven Hassan says in Darkness of the World, “People who are born in cults and are living in an isolated psychological mindset ... if they leave the group, they often don't know who they are, what to believe. They don't know how to function.”
With the support of other LLDM dissidents, many of whom connect via online groups for ex-members, survivors of La Luz del Mundo are bringing worldwide attention to their experiences and pursuit of justice. To hear some of their stories, listen to Darkness of the World, an Audible Original podcast by James Bruce and Peter McDonnell, produced by XG Productions. Please note, this series includes details of sexual abuse. Listener discretion is strongly advised.
