Cults

For the full page visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult

Introduction

In religion and sociology, a cult is a cohesive group of people (often a relatively small and recently founded religious movement) devoted to beliefs or practices that the surrounding culture or society considers to be far outside the mainstream. Its separate status may come about either due to its novel belief system, because of its idiosyncratic practices or because it opposes the interests of the mainstream culture. Other non-religious groups may also display cult-like characteristics.

Definition of "cult" in dictionaries

The Merriam-Webster online dictionary lists five different meanings of the word "cult"

1. formal religious veneration

2. a system of religious beliefs and ritual; also : its body of adherents;

3. a religion regarded as unorthodox or spurious; also : its body of adherents;

4. a system for the cure of disease based on dogma set forth by its promulgator;

5. great devotion to a person, idea, object, movement, or work (as a film or book).

The Random House Unabridged Dictionary definitions are:

1. a particular system of religious worship, esp. with reference to its rites and ceremonies;

2. an instance of great veneration of a person, ideal, or thing, esp. as manifested by a body of admirers; the object of such devotion;

3. a group or sect bound together by veneration of the same thing, person, ideal, etc;

4. group having a sacred ideology and a set of rites centering around their sacred symbols;

5. a religion or sect considered to be false, unorthodox, or extremist, with members often living outside of conventional society under the direction of a charismatic leader;

6. the members of such a religion or sect;

7. any system for treating human sickness that originated by a person usually claiming to have sole insight into the nature of disease, and that employs methods regarded as unorthodox or unscientific.

Cult, NRM and the sociology and psychology of religion

The problem with defining the word cult is that (1) the word cult is often used to marginalize religious groups with which one does not agree or sympathize, and (2) accused cult members generally resist being called a cult. Some serious researchers of religion and sociology prefer to use terms such as New Religious Movement in their research on religious groups that may be referred to as cults by other religious groups. Such usage may lead to confusion because some religious movements are "new" but not necessarily cults, and some purported cults are not religious or overtly religious. Furthermore, some religious groups commonly regarded as cults are in fact no longer "new"; for instance, the Jehovah's Witnesses have been around for over 100 years in the USA; Scientology is over 50 years old; and the Hare Krishna came out of Gaudiya Vaishnavism, a religious tradition that is approximately 500 years old.

Cult leadership

According to Dr. Eileen Barker, new religions are in most cases started by charismatic leaders whom she considers unpredictable. According to Mikael Rothstein, there is in many cases no access to plain facts both about historical religious leaders and contemporary ones, though there is an abundance of legends, myths, and theological elaborations. According to Rothstein, most members of any new religious movement have little chance of a personal meeting with the Master (leader) except as a member of big audience when the Master is present on stage.

For the full page visit: http://www.refocus.org/charcult.html

Characteristics of a Destructive Cult

1. Authoritarian pyramid structure with authority at the top

2. Charismatic or messianic leader(s). Messianic meaning they either say they are God or that they alone can interpret the scriptures the way God intended. The leaders are self-appointed.

3. Deception in recruitment and/or fund raising

4. Isolation from society - not necessarily physical isolation like on some compound in Waco but this can be psychological isolation - the rest of the world is not saved, not Christian, not transformed etc. The only valid source of feedback and information is the group

5. Use of mind control techniques (we use Dr. Robert Jay Lifton's criteria from chapter 22 of his book "Thought Reform & the Psychology of Totalism" to compare whether the eight psychological and social methods he lists are present in the group at question)

Cult Characteristics

With this revised definition we should note some of the characteristics of cults. Evangelical sociologist Ron Enroth notes nine common characteristics of cults.

• Authoritarian: central, authoritarian leadership in one person or small group of individuals.
• Oppositional: values, beliefs or practices at variance with the dominant culture or tradition.
• Exclusivistic: only the group has the truth, usually based on new insights or revelation.
• Legalistic: a tightly structured framework which governs spirituality and the smallest details of daily life.
• Subjective: undue emphasis on experience and emotions often resulting in anti-intellectualism.
• Persecution-Conscious: the belief that their group is singled out for persecution.
• Sanction-Oriented: stern sanctions issued for anything less than total obedience.
• Esoteric: an emphasis on secret, hidden or inner truth.
• Anti-Sacerdotal: lack of paid clergy and an emphasis on laity in leadership.

Cult Categories

To better understand the differences in cultic groups it is helpful to categorize them. Enroth offers the following classification scheme:

• Eastern Mystical: groups related to Hinduism, Buddhism and other pantheistic Eastern religions; examples in this category are Hare Krishnas and Self-Realization Fellowship.
• Aberrant Christian: groups that claim to be Bible-based but which deviate in practice or belief, such as The Way International, the Boston Church of Christ and the Shepherding Movement.
• Psychospiritual or Self-Improvement: groups offering seminars or workshops providing self- improvement or personal transformation (a growing cultic trend), includes Transcendental Meditation, Lifespring and The Forum (formerly est).
• Eclectic/Syncretistic: a combination of several religious traditions, includes the Unification Church (Moonies) and the Church Universal and Triumphant.
• Psychic/Occult/Astral: these groups offer secret wisdom and lost truths; examples include UFO cults and Edgar Cayce's Association for Research and Enlightenment.
• Established Cults: Bible-based, cultic religious movements which have achieved mainstream status; this would include Mormonism, Jehovah's Witnesses and Christian Science.
• Extremist/Political/Social Movements: groups cultic in the psychological or social sense which include the Aryan Nation, White Aryan Resistance and the Ku Klux Klan.

Why People Join

Statistics show that doctrinal issues alone have little to do with why most people join cults. The three main reasons are: (1) healing for emotional hurts, (2) establishing friendships and relationships, and (3) spiritual growth.

To this we would add (4) coercive persuasion or thought reform (popularly called brain washing).

A growing body of research supports the view that many cults effectively utilize subtle forms of psychological persuasion to recruit and retain members.

Contrary to popular myth, virtually anyone can get involved in a cult under the right circumstances, particularly during periods of vulnerability such as emotional trauma associated with illness, loss of a job, death of a loved one, moving or going away.

See also

Cult Apologists