What is it that differentiates a religion from a cult?

Question

What is it that ostensibly legitimates one and condemns the other?

Thank you for your considered answer, Big Brother - your insight dazzles me.

So please DO enlighten me...

Who, apart from your learned self said I was attempting to de-legitimise religion of any denomination? I have absolutely no agenda. I am asking a question to seek opinion, rather than casting judgment of any description.

n.b. To anyboy reading this for the first time, Big Brother firstly replied with "Dumb Question". Everything else he has subsequently added.

"anybody", rather...!

Answer 1

Laird Rice's definition of a cult is that it,

1) uses deception to attract/keep members, and
2) actively engages in hiding, denying, obscuring factual information that is damaging to their history/theology.

One cult that is extremely large and popular and that most people consider to be a mainstream religion does both of these things by:

1) Not revealing "advanced" information to newcomers, saying that certain information is only for when you have reached a certain level in your understanding. Once you have been "qualified" by a leader, then you can be told this advanced information, usually in a special "temple" ceremony.

2) Actively engaging in buying-up damaging documents written by early leaders or founders (documents that are theologically incompatible with today's teachings - for example, that there are a race of men living on the moon) and storing them in a vault in their head office.

There are many religions that I, as a Christian, disagree with. However, if they do not do either of these things, then I do not consider them a cult, but an alternative religion.

For me, I refuse to judge that only my faith is correct - I have met very spiritual, very fulfilled persons who practice other religions. In my view, all religions are MODELS for understanding the spiritual side of life. Some models work better for me, maybe some work better for other people. As much as I benefit from my model, I refuse to point a negative finger at other peoples' models.

Sadly, you don't have to look very hard to find "religions" that fail my two tests for a cult. Some even use drugs, brainwashing or even sex (Moses David and "flirty fishing") to attract, confuse and entrap new members. The founder of one infamous cult was known for saying (before he started his cult), "If you really want to get rich, start your own religion." He did... and he did. Pathetic.

Answer 2

Counterfeit Christianity is probably the best description I can give for a cult. Counterfeit Christianity is an imitation of real Christianity. Bible terms like "Jesus Christ, Resurrection, Salvation, and Atonement" are used by the Cult, but the various cult groups have assigned entirely different meanings to these terms.
Like counterfeit money which is sometimes difficult to detect, so it is difficult to detect counterfeit Christianity, since it looks like the real thing. Experts examining counterfeit money often hold it up to a strong light and look for identifying marks. Counterfeit Christianity also has identifying marks, which can be seen when, held up to an even stronger light, the light of God's word, the bible.
We are at an advantage if we know what to expect from a cult. Cultists are very well trained to appear "Christian", and indeed believe they are the true churches, and you need the deliverance! Therefore, be bold and ask the question, "do you believe the group you represent is the only true church on the face of the earth?"
If they reply that they are, or if they are evasive, making remarks like "Well, every church has a measure of truth but...", you have made an early detection of a Cultist.
Every true Christian, if asked the same question, regardless of his denomination, would reply that the true church is comprised of believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, and HE (not some organization) is THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE, (John 14:6). No legitimate denomination would claim that they alone and their members have salvation exclusively, but the cults (the counterfeits) do.

Answer 3

This question has always interested me, particularly since some people claim Mormonism is a cult, of which I'm a part. So perhaps it would be interesting to get a Mormon's view of what a cult is. :-)

I suspect a great deal depends on your own belief system. For example, I suspect atheists will tend to believe all religious organizations are cults.

I think the connotation of the word is a bit elusive but an organization might be considered a cult to the extent it uses force, particularly emotional force, in some way to control members.

By this definition, many families could be considered cults to some extent. Ironically I've heard of families disowning their children when they became a Mormon.

Is Mormonism a cult? I don't believe it is according to my understanding of its teachings (I've been a member 39 years). Joseph Smith made a statement once that I consider illustrative of what the Church teaches, "I teach them correct principles and they govern themselves." There are many other Church references that clearly condemn the use of force, or, "unrighteous dominion."

However, we are all imperfect, and that includes Mormons. I suspect most of us, myself included, sometimes inappropriately try to control others including family members. I care about my children deeply and don't want them to suffer the consequences of bad decisions. This doesn't excuse using force of any sort, but I can understand the feelings involved.

Answer 4

Mr Webster defines cult as "a faith acknowledged as unorthodox or spurious" the three mainstream religions are Judaism, Islam and Christianity. A cult should be any important deviation from the ideologies of any those 3.

Answer 5

This is the best definition [from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

"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."

So a cult follows a HUMAN leader who is very authoritive.

Religion is: "a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects"

Religion and cult are not related to each other. Religion is a big concept.

Answer 6

Christ himself said that his teachings would "divide families" as one answerer defined a cult. So what does that imply then?

See Matthew 19:29, Luke 14:33, Philippians 3:8

"Cult" is a name applied to any belief that the label-giver places on something they do not fully understand.

Answer 7

Cults are based on compulsion. The term "religion" is a very general one, but also a technical term in academic disciplines of study, like sociology, psychology, philosphy of religion, etc., so it varies in specific connotation.

This is a definition that i got from a website but i think there isnt really any real difference besides the connation people associate with them.

Answer 8

In religion and sociology, a cult is a term designating a cohesive group of people (generally, but not exclusively a relatively small and recently founded religious movement[citation needed]) devoted to beliefs or practices that the surrounding culture or society considers to be outside the mainstream or reaching the point of a taboo. Its status may come about either due to its novel belief system, its idiosyncratic practices, its perceived harmful effects on members, or because it perceived opposition to the interests of the mainstream culture. Non-religious groups may also display cult-like characteristics.

In common usage "cult" has a negative connotation and is generally applied to a group by opponents for a variety of reasons. "This popular use of the term has gained such credence and momentum that it has virtually swallowed up the more neutral historical meaning of the term from the sociology of religion" James T. Richardson wrote in 1993. Understandably, most, if not all, groups that are called "cults" reject this label. Some anthropologists and sociologists studying cults have argued that no one has yet been able to define “cult” in a way that enables the term to identify only groups that have been identified as problematic: Richardson's 1993 article summarized the scholarly dialogue.

The literal and traditional meaning of the word cult is derived from the Latin cultus, meaning "care" or "adoration", as "a system of religious belief or ritual; or: the body of adherents to same" 32. In English, it remains neutral and a technical term within this context to refer to the "cult of Artemis at Ephesus" and the "cult figures" that accompanied it, or to "the importance of the Ave Maria in the cult of the Virgin." This usage is more fully explored in the entry Cult (religious practice).

In non-English European terms, the cognates of the English word "cult" are neutral, and refer mainly to divisions within a single faith, a case where English speakers might use the word "sect", as in "Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy and Protestantism are sects (or denominations) within Christianity". In French or Spanish, culte or culto simply means "worship" or "religious attendance"; thus an association cultuelle is an association whose goal is to organize religious worship and practices.

The word for "cult" in the popular English meaning is secte (French) or secta (Spanish). In German the usual word used for the English cult is Sekte, which also has other definitions. A similar case is the Russian word sekta.

Some Cults do become accepted religions over time.

Answer 9

A cult or sect in the religious meaning is when a small religious or politcal group break off from the main denomination, (RC, CofE,) one reason being a difference of opinion on doctrine.

Answer 10

Apparantly, according to definition, not much. Good question.

Peace,

Beki



Cult:

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.
The followers of such a religion or sect.
A system or community of religious worship and ritual.
The formal means of expressing religious reverence; religious ceremony and ritual.
A usually nonscientific method or regimen claimed by its originator to have exclusive or exceptional power in curing a particular disease.

Obsessive, especially faddish, devotion to or veneration for a person, principle, or thing.
The object of such devotion.
An exclusive group of persons sharing an esoteric, usually artistic or intellectual interest.

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Religion:




Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.
A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship.
The life or condition of a person in a religious order.
A set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader.
A cause, principle, or activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion.