My New Favorite Cult

A UK news story about a bishop denouncing a cult brought me to this wacky tale. Apparently, the host of the UK version of the TV gameshow "Deal Or No Deal" has been talking up this wacky German book called "The Cosmic Ordering Service: A Guide To Realizing Your Dreams." In short, just relax: if you want something, write it down and ask for it and you'll get it. The talk show host now appears on air with symbols written on his hands (such as stars, rain clouds and GRAPES) indicating his affinity for this.

[The talk show host] has said that four of his six wishes have come true, including the acquisition of a holiday home in the South of France. He believes that he got what he wanted within six months of reading Mohr’s book, given to him by his reflexologist.

In a recent interview, he said: “You’ll think I’ve gone away with the fairies — but it’s fantastic. It is quite reassuring about life after death and spiritual things. I have faith. I don’t know what shape it is. I feel uncomfortable to think it’s purely Church of England, and I’d like to learn more about Islam.”

The Cosmic Ordering Service has sold a million copies in Germany alone. Mohr maintains that if you write down a wish, or shout it out of a window, it is likely to come true.

Indeed, the author Mohr said she got the castle she asked for! (Imagine if we all asked for castles -- and you thought the real estate boom had peaked.) But the plot thickens. Look up the book on Amazon.co.uk and you find out it's the Number One bestseller for them -- and yet, there are NO official reviews or fan comments. Huh? The most obscure books in the world have at least a few reader comments and the number one book on Amazon has NONE? Fishy. The US listing does have eight or so comments, including one from a guy who finds it helpful to write down his requests on a piece of paper and then set them on fire. (I'll stick to bellowing out my window "I want my computer to work!")

But the fun doesn't stop there: the books recommended for people checking this one out have such delightfully absurd titles as "I'm Rich Beyond My Wildest Dreams. I Am. I Am. I Am. How To Get Everything You Want In Life" and "Write It Down, Make It Happen: Knowing What You Want And Getting It" and "Ask And It Is Given: Learning To Manifest Your Desires." Oh the fun goes on.

But caveat emptor. One review on the American site says this: "Yes, "cosmic ordering" works, but if you're tempted to try it, resist! It's not the "Unified Field" that answers your request, but a far more sinister, demonic personality. You'll likely experience a string of fullfilled requests, but eventually, there's a price to pay: broken home, depression, drug addiction, miserable unhappiness - any number of possiblilies from a long list of the signs and symptoms of spiritual death." Yeah, miserable unhappiness...IN A CASTLE!

And finally, for the capper, when did the UK paperback come out? September 11, 2001.