(http://img2.tfd.com/wiki/3/38/Heavensgatelogo.jpg) Established in 1972, Heaven's Gate was a cult that advocated self-renunciation, to the point of castration, as preparation for the "transition" to a new life on a spaceship, which adherents believed was trailing behind the comet Hale-Bopp. As the comet made its closest approach to Earth, 39 members of the group committed suicide. Authorities found the dead lying neatly in their bunk beds, dressed identically and wearing armbands that read "Heaven's Gate Away Team."
How did the group fund itself?
Source: Heaven's Gate Cult Members Found Dead (1997) (http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/Heaven's+Gate+(cult))