What defines a cult as a cult, as opposed to a legitimate religion?

Question

What are the essential elements of a cult? What makes one religion a cult but not another? I'm confused.

Answer 1

I find this a useful measuring stick:

http://www.neopagan.net/ABCDEF.html

It judges organizations/groups based on the following criteria; the higher the score, the more likely the group is to be a cult.

Internal Control: Amount of internal political and social power exercised by leader(s) over members; lack of clearly defined organizational rights for members.

External Control: Amount of external political and social influence desired or obtained; emphasis on directing members’ external political and social behavior.

Wisdom/Knowledge Claimed by leader(s); amount of infallibility declared or implied about decisions or doctrinal/scriptural interpretations; number and degree of unverified and/or unverifiable credentials claimed.

Wisdom/Knowledge Credited to leader(s) by members; amount of trust in decisions or doctrinal/scriptural interpretations made by leader(s); amount of hostility by members towards internal or external critics and/or towards verification efforts.

Dogma: Rigidity of reality concepts taught; amount of doctrinal inflexibility or “fundamentalism;” hostility towards relativism and situationalism.

Recruiting: Emphasis put on attracting new members; amount of proselytizing; requirement for all members to bring in new ones.

Front Groups: Number of subsidiary groups using different names from that of main group, especially when connections are hidden.

Wealth: Amount of money and/or property desired or obtained by group; emphasis on members’ donations; economic lifestyle of leader(s) compared to ordinary members.

Sexual Manipulation of members by leader(s) of non-tantric groups; amount of control exercised over sexuality of members in terms of sexual orientation, behavior, and/or choice of partners.

Sexual Favoritism: Advancement or preferential treatment dependent upon sexual activity with the leader(s) of non-tantric groups.

Censorship: Amount of control over members’ access to outside opinions on group, its doctrines or leader(s).
Isolation: Amount of effort to keep members from communicating with non-members, including family, friends and lovers.

Dropout Control: Intensity of efforts directed at preventing or returning dropouts.

Violence: Amount of approval when used by or for the group, its doctrines or leader(s).

Paranoia: Amount of fear concerning real or imagined enemies; exaggeration of perceived power of opponents; prevalence of conspiracy theories.

Grimness: Amount of disapproval concerning jokes about the group, its doctrines or its leader(s).

Surrender of Will: Amount of emphasis on members not having to be responsible for personal decisions; degree of individual disempowerment created by the group, its doctrines or its leader(s).

Hypocrisy: amount of approval for actions which the group officially considers immoral or unethical, when done by or for the group, its doctrines or leader(s); willingness to violate the group’s declared principles for political, psychological, social, economic, military, or other gain.

Answer 2

Pretty much the only difference is number of adherents. If you have more than 1 million, it's a religion. Less? A cult.

Answer 3

Any religion based on an ordinary man. Jim Jones, Joseph Smith, and several others. Also, those that don't believe in Christ are considered cults.

Answer 4

This definition is from the American heritage dictionary, and it's the one that makes sense to me:

"A religion or religious sect generally considered to be extremist or false, with its followers often living in an unconventional manner under the guidance of an authoritarian, charismatic leader."

When a religious leader ceases to be a teacher, and starts to be a dictator, in my mind, that person has started to lead a cult.

Answer 5

a cult is clearly as cult if; that teaching is originally taken from original religion,and then they change or edit of some teaching that have been taken.

for example,nation of islam (noi) in u.s.a which founded by Wallace Fard Muhammad.that group do 5 basic things of islam,but Wallace Fard Muhammad think he is some kind of god spirit.that statement clearly against teaching of true islam.so,islam a legitimate religion and noi is a cult.that's my example.you understand?

Answer 6

Originally any religion that did not deify christ or believe the bible to be scripture such as muslim, mormons and Jehovah Witness were deemed cult.

The wording has been changed to protect these cults.

Answer 7

no tolerance of questioning "beliefs", discouraging close contact with people who are not part of cult, total devotion to cult

Answer 8

Size. If one believes a fantasy, it is a delusion. If a hundred believe it, it is a cult. If a million believe it, it is a religion.

Answer 9

one's interpretation of religion and cult. they both are the same thing, they're just tagged with different names.

Answer 10

The definition is very shifty but in general it is a group of people that worship a living person and do whatever he says no matter how nuts.

Answer 11

Cult:

Complete adherence to a set of rules and beliefs.

No tolerance for individual thought or expression.

Usually one leader who has absolute control over his followers.