BOZEMAN - Hundreds of people gathered here Thursday to remember Elizabeth Clare Prophet, the spiritual leader of the Church Universal and Triumphant who died earlier this month.

Prophet, who suffered from advanced Alzheimer's disease or dementia for years, died Oct. 15 at the age of 70. She and her church gained notoriety in the late 1980s for its followers' elaborate preparations for nuclear Armageddon. The New Age sect built bomb shelters and amassed weapons and armored vehicles after Prophet predicted a nuclear missile strike was on the way.

The church declined in the 1990s and transformed into a New Age publishing enterprise and spiritual university.

Catherine Doucas, who joined the church in 1975, said Thursday that "Mother gave me the skills to develop my identity, to develop my soul." Church followers refer to Prophet as "Mother."

Others said during the memorial service that they believed Prophet had "ascended," just like the spiritual leaders she once channeled.

"The majority of people here hope that Mrs. Prophet has had that experience, but we don't know that," said Carol Nicholson, a church representative.

Prophet's daughter, Erin Prophet, said people from as far away as Africa and South America tuned in to watch a live Webcast of her mother's private memorial ceremony, which was held before the public reception.

"I think my mother is more than a church," she said. "She has a worldwide following."

The elder Prophet led the church just north of Gardiner for 25 years until she retired in 1999.

Church Universal and Triumphant, which once boasted 50,000 members, combined icons from the world's major religions, mixing western philosophy and mysticism. Today, the church has 250 chapters around the world and hundreds of followers who attend services at its Royal Teton Ranch outside of Gardiner in Corwin Springs.

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