Editing Marshall Applewhite (section)

==Introduction to Nettles and first travels==
{{see also|Bonnie Nettles}}
In 1972, Applewhite met [[Bonnie Nettles]], a nurse with an interest in [[Theosophy]] and [[Biblical prophecy]].{{sfnm|Lewis|2003|1p=111|Raine|2005|2p=103}}{{efn|name=meetcute}} The two quickly became close friends;{{sfn|Lewis|2003|p=111}} he later recalled that he felt like he had known her for a long time and concluded that they had met in a [[reincarnation|past life]].{{sfn|Lalich, ''Bounded Choice''|2004|pp=44 & 48}} Nettles told Applewhite their meeting had been foretold to her by [[Extraterrestrial life|extraterrestrial]]s, persuading him that he had a divine assignment.{{sfn|Balch|Taylor|2002|p=210}}{{sfn|Lalich, ''Bounded Choice''|2004|p=43}} By that time, he had begun to investigate alternatives to traditional Christian doctrine, including [[astrology]].{{sfnm|1a1=Balch|1a2=Taylor|1y=2002|1p=210|2a1=Zeller|2y=2006|2p=77}}

Applewhite soon began to live with Nettles. Although they cohabited, their relationship was not a sexual one,{{sfn|Chryssides|2004|p=355}} fulfilling his longtime wish to have a deep and loving, yet [[Platonic love|platonic]], relationship.{{sfn|Partridge|2006|p=50}} Nettles was married with four children, but after she became close with Applewhite, her husband divorced her and she lost custody of the children.{{sfn|Balch|Taylor|2002|p=211}} Applewhite permanently broke off contact with his family as well.{{sfn|Steinberg|1997}} He saw Nettles as his [[soulmate]], and some of his acquaintances later recalled that she had a strong influence on him.{{sfnm|1a1=Urban|1y=2000|1p=276|2a1=Balch|2a2=Taylor|2y=2002|2p=210}} Raine writes that Nettles "was responsible for reinforcing his emerging delusional beliefs",{{sfn|Raine|2005|p=103}} but psychiatrist [[Robert Jay Lifton]] speculates that Nettles' influence helped him avoid further psychological deterioration.{{sfn|Lifton|2000|p=306}}

Applewhite and Nettles opened a bookstore known as the Christian Arts Center, which carried books from a variety of spiritual backgrounds.{{sfnm|Zeller, "Extraterrestrial Biblical Hermeneutics"|2010|1p=40|Hall|2000|2p=152}} They also launched a venture known as Know Place to teach classes on theosophy and [[mysticism]].{{sfn|Zeller, "Extraterrestrial Biblical Hermeneutics"|2010|p=40}}{{sfn|Lalich, ''Bounded Choice''|2004|p=45}} The pair closed these businesses a short time later.{{sfn|Hall|2000|p=152}} In February 1973, Applewhite and Nettles resolved to travel to teach others about their beliefs and drove throughout the Western U.S.;{{sfn|Chryssides|2004|pp=355–6}}{{sfn|Lalich, "Using the Bounded Choice Model"|2004|pp=228–9}}{{sfn|''The San Diego Union-Tribune'', "Heaven's Gate: A Timeline"|1997}} Lifton describes their travels as a "restless, intense, often confused, peripatetic spiritual journey".{{sfn|Lifton|2000|p=308}} While traveling, they had little money and occasionally resorted to selling their blood or working odd jobs for much-needed funds. The pair subsisted solely on bread rolls at times, often camped out, and sometimes did not pay their lodging bills.{{sfn|Bearak|1997}}{{sfn|''The San Diego Union-Tribune'', "Heaven's Gate: A Timeline"|1997}} One of their friends from Houston corresponded with them and accepted their teachings. They visited her in May 1974, and she became their first convert.{{sfn|Hall|2000|p=153}}

While traveling, Applewhite and Nettles pondered the life of [[Francis of Assisi]] and read works by authors including [[Helena Blavatsky]], [[R.&nbsp;D. Laing]], and [[Richard Bach]].{{sfnm|1a1=Zeller|1y=2006|1p=78|2a1=Bearak|2y=1997}}{{sfn|Zeller, ''Prophets and Protons''|2010|p=123}} They kept a [[King James Version]] of the Bible with them and studied several passages from the [[New Testament]], focusing on teachings about [[Christology]], [[asceticism]], and [[Christian eschatology|eschatology]].{{sfn|Zeller, "Extraterrestrial Biblical Hermeneutics"|2010|pp=42–3}} Applewhite also read science fiction, including works by [[Robert A.&nbsp;Heinlein]] and [[Arthur C.&nbsp;Clarke]].{{sfn|Lifton|2000|p=306}} By June 1974, Applewhite and Nettles' beliefs had solidified into a basic outline.{{sfn|Zeller, "Extraterrestrial Biblical Hermeneutics"|2010|p=40}} They concluded that they had been chosen to fulfill biblical prophecies, and that they had been given higher-level minds than other people.{{sfn|Chryssides|2004|p=355}} They wrote a pamphlet that described Jesus' reincarnation as a Texan, a thinly veiled reference to Applewhite.{{sfn|Balch|Taylor|2002|p=211}} Furthermore, they concluded that they were the [[two witnesses]] described in the [[Book of Revelation]] and occasionally visited churches or other spiritual groups to speak of their identities,{{sfnm|Chryssides|2004|1p=356|Zeller, "Extraterrestrial Biblical Hermeneutics"|2010|2p=40}} often referring to themselves as "The Two", or "The [[UFO]] Two".{{sfn|Zeller, ''Prophets and Protons''|2010|p=123}}{{sfn|Urban|2000|p=276}} The pair believed that they would be killed and then [[resurrection|restored to life]] and, in view of others, transported onto a spaceship. This event, which they referred to as "the Demonstration", was to prove their claims.{{sfn|Balch|Taylor|2002|p=211}} To their dismay, these ideas were poorly received.{{sfn|Bearak|1997}}