Love Has Won
Love Has Won was an American new religious movement led by Amy Carlson, who proclaimed herself "Mother God" and claimed to be a divine, 19-billion-year-old being. Blending New Age spirituality with conspiracy theories and pop culture, the group drew both devoted followers and intense criticism, often being labeled a cult. Its story culminated in Carlson's bizarre death in 2021, leaving behind a complex legacy of belief, abuse, and fervent devotion. Love Has Won's theology was a unique blend of New Age beliefs, ancient myths, and dangerous modern conspiracy theories, with its leader, Amy Carlson, at its divine center. The group, often described as a cult, was accused of serious abuses, including physical harm, psychological manipulation, and exploiting vulnerable members. Amy Carlson's death was attributed to severe medical decline exacerbated by alcohol abuse, anorexia, and the consumption of colloidal silver, a product her group promoted as a cure-all.
AI Summary
Love Has Won was an American new religious movement led by Amy Carlson, who proclaimed herself "Mother God" and claimed to be a divine, 19-billion-year-old being. Blending New Age spirituality with conspiracy theories and pop culture, the group drew both devoted followers and intense criticism, often being labeled a cult. Its story culminated in Carlson's bizarre death in 2021, leaving behind a complex legacy of belief, abuse, and fervent devotion.
- Love Has Won's theology was a unique blend of New Age beliefs, ancient myths, and dangerous modern conspiracy theories, with its leader, Amy Carlson, at its divine center.
- The group, often described as a cult, was accused of serious abuses, including physical harm, psychological manipulation, and exploiting vulnerable members.
- Amy Carlson's death was attributed to severe medical decline exacerbated by alcohol abuse, anorexia, and the consumption of colloidal silver, a product her group promoted as a cure-all.
The Enigma of Love Has Won
In a quiet corner of the internet and rural America, a new religious movement known as Love Has Won emerged, captivating some and alarming many others. At its heart was Amy Carlson, known to her followers as 'Mother God'—a figure who claimed cosmic significance far beyond human comprehension. This was a group that truly believed it held the keys to humanity's ascension.
Before 'Mother God'
Amy Carlson's life began far from any galactic federation, growing up in Dallas, Texas. Her family remembered her as a bright, if somewhat ordinary, student. Yet, as she moved into adulthood, hints of an extraordinary belief system began to surface, with conversations increasingly featuring 'outlandish concepts' like starships.
Her journey into New Age philosophy intensified in the early 2000s, leading her to forums like Lightworkers.org. It was there she connected with Amerith WhiteEagle, also known as Robert Saltsgaver, who became pivotal. He reportedly convinced Carlson of her own divine nature, sparking her claims of experiencing paranormal phenomena.
By late 2007, Carlson made a dramatic break from her conventional life. She left her third husband, her children, and her job as a McDonald's manager, severing ties with most of her family. This marked her full immersion into the nascent movement, then known as the 'Galactic Federation of Light,' alongside WhiteEagle in Colorado.
From this point, the group began sharing its unique worldview online, posting their first videos to YouTube in 2009. Central to their doctrine was Carlson herself—proclaimed as a divine, 19-billion-year-old being who had literally birthed all creation.
A Cosmic Tapestry of Beliefs
Love Has Won's theology was a fluid, ever-evolving blend. It wove together threads of New Age spirituality, elements from traditional Abrahamic religions, dangerous conspiracy theories, and even mainstream popular culture, all filtered through Carlson's self-proclaimed divine insight. She was the anchor of their reality, the universal mother.
Carlson claimed a staggering 534 reincarnations throughout history, identifying herself as iconic figures like Jesus, Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, and even Marilyn Monroe. She asserted her destiny was to lead 144,000 chosen people into a mystical '5th dimension'—a new enlightened state of being. Her various male partners, including WhiteEagle, were designated 'Father God,' a divine counterpart to her own cosmic role.
The group's narrative delved deep into esoteric lore, asserting Carlson was the queen of the lost continent of Lemuria and believing Lemurians resided within California's Mount Shasta. Their beliefs also embraced ancient alien theories, referencing Atlantis and the Anunnaki, and even incorporating the infamous 'reptilian conspiracy theory' into their cosmology.
Beyond ancient myths, their cosmology also included modern figures. Carlson claimed Donald Trump was her father in a past life and conversed with deceased celebrities like Robin Williams, whom she called Archangel Zadkiel, along with Whitney Houston and Rodney Dangerfield, who were part of her 'Galactic' spirit guides. They believed a 'cabal' ran the world, keeping Earth in a 'low vibration' state.
Disturbingly, their worldview extended into a dark web of modern conspiracy theories. They adopted elements of QAnon and propagated narratives denying the COVID-19 pandemic's reality, the events of 9/11, and the Holocaust. They even claimed the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting was a hoax, frequently making antisemitic and racist remarks, and expressing support for figures like Adolf Hitler. It was a stark contrast to their name: Love Has Won.
The Inner Circle and its Shadow
At its peak, a core group of about 12 to 20 members lived with Carlson in rural Colorado. Their daily lives revolved around promoting LHW's message through YouTube livestreams—recruiting new followers, soliciting donations, and marketing New Age goods, alternative medicines, and vitamin supplements. Among their most unusual offerings was 'etheric surgery'—a supposed energy healing for $88, claiming to remove sickness and 'negative energy' from the body.
But beneath the surface of cosmic claims and healing remedies, a much darker reality unfolded. Love Has Won has been widely described as a cult by former members and numerous media outlets, citing severe allegations of abuse. Ex-members reported physical abuse, financial exploitation, and extreme sleep deprivation, with members allegedly limited to just 4-5 hours of sleep per night.
Authorities received 'many complaints' of 'brainwashing' and fraud. One stark incident involved a member found disoriented, naked, and dehydrated in the wilderness, after the group had deemed them to possess the 'wrong energy.' Despite banning substances for followers, Carlson herself was accused of heavy alcohol consumption, often leading to abusive behavior towards her inner circle. The group's practices and Carlson's conduct even drew the attention of national television, with an appearance on 'Dr. Phil' in 2020 where accusations of abuse were denied.
A Movement on the Move
The group's journey was marked by shifts in leadership and location. After Amerith WhiteEagle departed around 2014—reportedly for another lightworker—Miguel Lamboy joined, taking on the crucial role of managing the group's logistics and finances. Love Has Won began to grow its online presence, traveling between various states like Colorado, Oregon, California, and Florida before settling in Moffat, Colorado.
In 2018, Jason Castillo assumed the mantle of the final 'Father God.' A particularly tumultuous period occurred in August 2020 when the group moved to Kauai, Hawaii. Carlson's public declaration that she was the Hawaiian goddess Pele ignited widespread outrage among locals, leading to multi-day protests with driftwood fires, chanting, and even thrown eggs and rocks. The island's mayor intervened to ensure their departure from Kauai, and after a brief stop in Maui, the group returned to Colorado.
By September 2020, Carlson's health was in rapid decline. She was reportedly paralyzed from the waist down and claimed to have cancer. The group continued to move, briefly residing in an RV park near Mount Shasta, California, in early April 2021 before being asked to leave. Amy Carlson was last seen alive by an outsider on April 10, 2021, her physical deterioration becoming starkly apparent.
The Final Ascent
On April 28, 2021, authorities made a grim discovery in a mission house near Crestone, Colorado: Amy Carlson's mummified remains. She was 45 years old, and the advanced state of decay suggested she had been dead for several weeks. Her body was found in a sleeping bag, adorned with Christmas lights and glitter on her face—a macabre 'makeshift shrine' in the eyes of investigators.
Crucially, authorities determined Carlson had not died at the property in Colorado but had been transported there after dying in California. Seven members of Love Has Won were charged with abuse of a corpse, and also child abuse due to two children being present in the house with the deceased. Photos from weeks before her death showed Carlson severely emaciated, with thinning hair and discolored, purplish skin, raising immediate concerns about her final days.
The Saguache County Coroner, Tom Perrin, revealed Carlson had been ingesting large amounts of colloidal silver. This substance, which the group had promoted as a cure-all, including for COVID-19, had even earned them a warning from the FDA. Long-term consumption of colloidal silver can lead to argyria—a blue-grey discoloration of the skin—along with more severe health issues like seizures and organ failure.
An autopsy report later confirmed Carlson's cause of death as a 'global decline in the setting of alcohol abuse, anorexia, and chronic colloidal silver ingestion.' Deputy District Attorney Alex Raines initially announced plans to upgrade charges to tampering with a deceased human body, among others, but all charges against the members were eventually dropped. Despite the official findings, the group's Facebook page announced her 'ascension,' and their website was taken offline, maintaining their narrative of her divine journey rather than a tragic end.
Legacy and Successors
In the wake of Carlson's death and the ensuing legal complications, Love Has Won fractured. Co-leader Jason Castillo formed a successor group called Joy Rains. Meanwhile, another faction, controlling the group's online activities, rebranded their social media presence and launched a new website under the name '5D Full Disclosure.'
The story of Love Has Won has since captured national attention, shedding light on the complexities of new religious movements and the darker sides of spiritual seeking. It has been the subject of a two-hour 'Dateline NBC' documentary and, more recently, an in-depth HBO documentary series titled 'Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God.' Journalist Leah Sottile also authored a book about the group, 'Blazing Eye Sees All,' further cementing its place in the annals of modern cult history.
Article
Love Has Won
Love Has Won (LHW), also known as the Galactic Federation of Light, is an American new religious movement that was led by Amy Carlson until her death in 2021. Carlson was referred to within the group as "Mother God", who described herself as, among other things, the creator of the universe, with the movement combining New Age spirituality, ideas from Abrahamic religions, conspiracy theories, and popular culture more broadly. The group has been described as a cult by many, including ex-members and media outlets. The group had between twelve and twenty full-time members who lived with Carlson at the time of her death. Following Carlson's death, the group split into several successor groups, including 5D Full Disclosure and Joy Rains.
Origins
Love Has Won
According to her family, Carlson (born November 30, 1975) grew up in Dallas, Texas, and was a "straight A student". Her mother, in the HBO documentary Love Has Won, clarifies that she was a good student who earned As and Bs. In Carlson's early adult life, however, she began to talk increasingly about "outlandish concepts" such as starships.
Sometime between 2000 and 2007, Carlson developed an interest in New Age philosophy and became a regular poster on the Lightworkers.org website's forums. On the forum, she met Amerith WhiteEagle (Robert Saltsgaver), who convinced Carlson that she was divine, and Carlson began to claim to experience paranormal phenomena.
In late 2007, Carlson left her third husband, her children, and her job as a manager at McDonald's, and ceased contact with most members of her family, joining up with WhiteEagle in Colorado. The group was originally known under the name "Galactic Federation of Light". The group posted their first videos to YouTube in 2009.
Doctrine and beliefs
Love Has Won
The theology of Love Has Won has been described as fluid, combining New Age spirituality, conspiracy theories, elements from mainstream Abrahamic religions, and popular culture. The group proclaimed that Carlson was a divine, 19-billion-year-old being who had birthed all creation. Carlson claimed she had been reincarnated 534 times, including as Jesus, Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, and Marilyn Monroe and would lead 144,000 people into a mystical "5th dimension". Carlson had several romantic partners throughout the group's history, beginning with Amerith WhiteEagle, who was referred to as "Father God", and who played a counterpart role to Carlson in the theology of the group.
The group claimed that Carlson was the queen of the lost continent of Lemuria, and the group incorporated the belief that Lemurians live within Mount Shasta in California. Carlson had stated that Donald Trump was her father in a past life, and that she had spoken to the spirit of deceased actor Robin Williams, who she claimed was archangel Zadkiel. Williams was considered by the LHW members to be part of a group of spirit guides called "the Galactics” who communicated with Carlson, also including other celebrities like the singer Whitney Houston and the comedian Rodney Dangerfield. The group's theology also included references to the concepts of Atlantis, the Anunnaki and "reptilians". They believed that the world was run by a "cabal" determined to keep the planet in a "low vibration" state.
The group also adopted elements of the QAnon conspiracy theory. Recordings made by the group also show support for other conspiracy theories, including that the COVID-19 pandemic was planned, 9/11 denial, Holocaust denial, and that the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting was a hoax. They also show its members making antisemitic and racist remarks, including support for Adolf Hitler.
Structure and abuse allegations
Love Has Won
A core group of 12–20 members lived with Carlson in Crestone, a small town in Saguache County in southern Colorado. The group did daily livestreams on YouTube to recruit more members, solicit donations, and promote New Age goods, alternative medicine products, and vitamin supplements. The group offered "etheric surgery", which cost $88 per session, claiming that it could remove sickness and "negative energy" from the body.
The group has been described as a cult by ex-members and numerous media outlets. Ex-members accused the group of physical abuse and sleep deprivation, with members allegedly only being allowed to sleep for 4–5 hours a night. The Saguache County Sheriff's Office reported that they had received "many complaints" about the group from families, about "brainwashing" and fraud. In May 2020, a member of the group was found wandering the wilderness disoriented, naked, and dehydrated, after being described by the group as lacking the "right energy" and being on "the wrong side of the mountain". Despite the group banning drinking and drugs for members, Carlson was accused of drinking large amounts of alcohol and subsequently behaving abusively. The group was featured on an episode of Dr. Phil in September 2020, where Carlson and two members were confronted with claims of abuse, which they denied.
History
Love Has Won
WhiteEagle left Carlson for another lightworker he had recruited from New York around 2014. Carlson gained her first follower, Miguel Lamboy, the same year. Miguel would serve as the manager of the group's logistics and finances. The movement began to grow from 2014 onwards, mainly through the internet. The group travelled between Colorado, Oregon, California, and Florida before 2018, before moving to Moffat, Colorado. Jason Castillo became the final "Father God" in 2018. The group briefly moved to the island of Kauai in Hawaii in August 2020, where they were met with hostility from locals after Carlson publicly proclaimed that she was the Hawaiian goddess Pele. A multi-day protest ensued, with protestors lighting driftwood fires and chanting Hawaiian prayers around the rented property the group were staying in. Video footage provided to The Denver Post by Love Has Won member Lauryn Suarez showed eggs and rocks being thrown at the house, as well as broken windows and an SUV parked in the driveway. The mayor of Kauai, Derek Kawakami, intervened to negotiate the departure of the group from the island. They subsequently flew to Kahului Airport on Maui, but were convinced to fly back to Colorado in September 2020.
In September 2020, Carlson reportedly was in poor health and was paralyzed from the waist down, with Carlson herself stating that she had cancer. In early April 2021, the group was located in an RV park in Mount Shasta in northern California, but were asked to leave due to overcrowding. Carlson was last seen alive by someone outside the group on April 10, 2021.
On April 28, 2021, the mummified corpse of Carlson was discovered in the mission house near Crestone. Its state of decay suggested that she had been dead for several weeks. She was 45 at the time of her death. The body was found in a sleeping bag wrapped in Christmas lights, the face covered in glitter, in what authorities stated was a makeshift shrine. Seven members of the group were charged with abuse of a corpse as well as child abuse due to the presence of two children in the property. A photo from a few weeks before she is thought to have died shows her appearance to be emaciated, with thinning hair and discoloured skin with a purplish hue. According to Saguache County Coroner Tom Perrin, Carlson had been ingesting large amounts of colloidal silver, which the group had been previously promoting as a COVID-19 cure, even receiving a warning from the FDA. Consuming colloidal silver over a long period of time can lead to blue-grey discolouration of the skin, as well as seizures and organ failure. An autopsy report released in December 2021 revealed that Carlson had died from "global decline in the setting of alcohol abuse, anorexia, and chronic colloidal silver ingestion". On May 5, Deputy District Attorney Alex Raines announced plans to upgrade the abuse of corpse charges to the more serious charge of tampering with a deceased human body, and the group members were reported to be facing a mix of charges of child abuse, abuse of a corpse, tampering with deceased human remains, and false imprisonment. The charges were later dropped.
Authorities stated that Carlson had not died at the property, but in California; her body was subsequently transported back to Colorado. After Carlson's death was publicized, the group's Facebook page stated that she had "ascended", and the website Lovehaswon.org was taken offline.
In the aftermath of Carlson's death, the group splintered, with co-leader (Father God) Jason Castillo forming the group Joy Rains. A faction of opposing members that had control of the group's online activities renamed the Facebook page and YouTube channel to "5D Full Disclosure" and launched a new website, 5dfulldisclosure.org.
Television and books
Love Has Won
Dateline NBC aired a two-hour documentary about the group on October 15, 2021.
An HBO documentary series, Love Has Won: The Cult of Mother God directed by Hannah Olson, premiered on November 13, 2023.
Journalist Leah Sottile authored a book about the group, entitled Blazing Eye Sees All, that places Carlson and her followers in the wider context of American New Age spirituality.