MIAMI SECT TRADEMARKING PEOPLE WITH DEVILISH 666 TATOO

Members of of the controversial religious sect headquartered in Doral, said they were following the example of their leader, Jose Luis De Jesus Miranda, who has claimed to be Jesus and recently declared himself the Antichrist. Critics have called De Jesus a cult leader who manipulates followers. Church members say he has brought them happiness and spiritual fulfillment. 

It’s a sign most Christians would shun, because for centuries the numbers have been associated with Satan. But for the 30 or so sect members who branded themselves with 666 and SSS -- the initials of De Jesus’ motto, “salvo siempre salvo,” or “saved always saved” -- it’s a mark of their absolute faith in De Jesus....end time things.

Sect members say the symbol doesn’t connect them to Satan but rather to De Jesus’ claim that he has replaced Christ’s teachings with a new gospel. 

Scholars and critics of the movement say the tattoos offer frightening evidence of the influence De Jesus commands over his followers. 

De Jesus --who preaches that sin and the devil were destroyed when Jesus died on the cross and that God’s chosen already have been saved -- has built a massive movement around his claim to divinity. Followers call him “Daddy” and “God” and lavish him with $5,000 Rolexes and sometimes 40 percent or more of their salaries. 

In 1988, De Jesus announced he was the reincarnation of the Apostle Paul. In 1999, he dubbed himself “the Other,” a spiritual super being who would pave the way for Christ’s second coming. In 2004, he proclaimed himself to be Jesus Christ. That claim caused some prominent members to defect from the movement — including De Jesus’ first wife, Nydia, and his son Jose Luis Jr., who started his own church in Puerto Rico. 

In January, during a packed worship service at the church, De Jesus took off his coat and revealed the numbers 666 on his forearm. 

“This is a congregation of Antichrists,” De Jesus said, drawing whistles and cheers.

Christian leaders have denounced De Jesus, saying he distorts the Bible. 

The number 666 appears in the Book of Revelation, a portion of the New Testament that details the prophet John’s apocalyptic vision of the rise of the Antichrist, the tribulation and Christ’s return. In Revelation, a horned beast appears on earth and requires everyone to get his mark — 666 — on the right hand or forehead.