Netflix is dedicating a documentary to the “Twin Flames Universe” movement. Described as a cult by those who have escaped it, this online group run by an American couple aims to bring love to people suffering from loneliness… in exchange for large sums of money.
Behind their screen, sitting in their armchairs, they dictate the behavior they should adopt: following their true love, changing gender, separating from their family… As part of the “Twin Flames Universe” program, Jeff and Shaleia give orders Divine teaches people in love, looking for their soul mate, more specifically their “twin flame”.
According to this concept of New Age spirituality, a person has a soul twin, the only one who can enable one to achieve the highest happiness once found. Every person has a “twin flame” somewhere in the world.
The rest after this ad
Several celebrities have also mentioned theirs, from Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly to Demi Lovato. But this idea, which at first glance is romantic for those who choose to believe in it, is widely criticized for its sectarian aspect.
The rest after this ad
With “Twin Flames Universe”, Jeff and Shaleia Divine – false names – have been relying on this concept for years, which they sell at a high price. The couple, whose controversial routine is the subject of a new Netflix documentary, have tens of thousands of followers hoping to pay big bucks to meet their twin flame.
For this they do not need to travel, they just need to subscribe to online coaching courses to gradually climb the ladder towards the final goal. But on Netflix, former subscribers recount how they were mistreated by someone described as a guru.
What’s next after this ad? What’s next after this ad?
The couple’s personalities were decoded
If the exchanges are initially polite to maintain the loyalty of the program participants, the documentary reveals Jeff’s personality and his increasingly extreme ideas. He is specifically described as an angry man who presented himself overnight as the new Jesus.
Along with his wife, he claims to have visions that would allow him to find out who a person’s twin flame is. On the Twin Flames Universe website, the all-inclusive package costs almost $9,000, but also includes other advice – also paid – such as a nutritional program supposedly designed for peaceful coexistence with your twin flame. Another program promises to heal childhood trauma with the help of a coach, while an entire religion – the Union Church – has even been founded.
Lots of testimonials
Most notably, by exploiting the gullibility of sometimes fragile people, Jeff and Shaleia managed to convince a young girl barely 18 years old that her twin flame was a man who had randomly contacted her one day on Facebook. Not necessarily happy about this announcement, but under pressure from the whole group, Marlee explains to Netflix that she has entered into a relationship with this stranger, ten years her senior. A violent stranger who suffers from psychiatric disorders and has had problems with the law.
Regardless, Marlee had to do everything she could for Jeff and Shaleia to keep this man by her side. Only when her big sister, who had enrolled in the program herself before becoming one of the high-ranking figures, realized that she was part of a cult, did Marlee manage to escape.
Other victims and their families testify on camera, including this mother and daughter who are trying to reconnect with Stephanie, who is in a relationship with her twin flame and who has completely cut off contact with them. Many of Jeff and Shaleia’s followers become convinced that they have been abused by their loved ones or suffered childhood trauma and end up distancing themselves from them and even refusing contact with them.
One follower ended up in prison
But other elements presented in this documentary also illustrate the possible misuse of this program. One of the young women who speaks in the documentary explains how Jeff and Shaleia convinced her that her ex, who had just left her, was her twin flame. Instead of experiencing her breakup away from him, she was then pressured into following him and harassing him despite a distancing measure. To the laughter of the “gurus” couple, she explains via video that she is no longer allowed to approach him. But according to them, it is an ordeal that she has to go through to find her twin flame. She was eventually arrested and imprisoned.
Worse, when followers began to question the results of the Twin Flames Universe program, seeing that they were still single or that the people they were pursuing were moving away, Jeff and Shaleia developed a new one Rule. Back in the day, anyone could find their twin flame anywhere in the real world. From now on, every twin flame must be registered in the program.
However, since the majority of women were taking these online courses, a solution had to be found. In this way, some registrants, who until then had never felt that they were not born in the wrong body, were pressured to change their sex or gender. Women were invited to cut their hair short and sometimes have their breasts removed in order to become “the male bias” of their twin flame.
Jeff and Shaleia’s answer
Jeff and Shaleia, who were first accused in an article in Vice, claim to be victims of a smear campaign by former members of the group. They did not respond directly to Netflix and sent them a press release reaffirming that they were not gurus of a cult.
On November 13, they responded to the allegations they faced on Facebook. “Those who become our students are treated with love and support,” we read. “We take allegations that we inappropriately monitor our members very seriously,” the pair continued, reiterating that all “participants in the program are free.” They also say they are prepared to face the allegations honestly. In response to an Internet user who explains in a comment that the videos presented in the documentary show the couple insulting their members, the Facebook page responds: “The videos are taken out of context.” Jeff and Shaleia loved all of their students and always will. If you have any questions, we’ll be happy to answer them.”
Farmington Hills, Michigan police investigated TCU in 2020 but found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing, according to Netflix. However, according to a note at the end of the documentary series’ first episode, they forwarded their findings to the FBI for review for possible federal crimes. In the meantime, Jeff and Shaleia continue their online course. Her Facebook page has more than 70,000 members.