"John Frum is a God:" how religions are made

[Hagoth]

Werner Herzog's documentaries tend to wander off topic but he always wanders in interesting directions. I just watched Into the Inferno on Netflix, which is ostensibly about volcanoes, but toward the end Herzog interviews the leaders of a cargo cult in Vanuatu. It's a very revealing look at how the origin events of a religion can evolve from real human events to supernatural manifestations in a single generation. If you've got a couple of hours, the whole movie is worthwhile. If you've only got 20 minutes, just watch the end. You will find yourself thinking about Moses, Joseph Smith and others and realizing how easily reality can blossom into myth.