What is the difference between a cult and a religion?

Answer 1

RELIGION:

"A set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, esp. when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs."

CULT:

"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." -Dictionary.com

Answer 2

It all a matter of your point of view!

cult (kÅ­lt)

n.
1.
a. 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.

b. The followers of such a religion or sect.


2. A system or community of religious worship and ritual.

3. The formal means of expressing religious reverence; religious ceremony and ritual.

4. A usually nonscientific method or regimen claimed by its originator to have exclusive or exceptional power in curing a particular disease.

5.
a. Obsessive, especially faddish, devotion to or veneration for a person, principle, or thing.

b. The object of such devotion.


6. An exclusive group of persons sharing an esoteric, usually artistic or intellectual interest.

Answer 3

Cult:

1 : formal religious veneration : WORSHIP
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

Religion:
1 a : the state of a religious b (1) : the service and worship of God or the supernatural (2) : commitment or devotion to religious faith or observance
2 : a personal set or institutionalized system of religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices
3 archaic : scrupulous conformity :

Answer 4

CULT:

1 a system of religious worship directed towards a roup regarded as strange or as imposing excessive control over members.

http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/cult?view=uk

a religious group, often living together, whose beliefs are considered extreme or strange by many people:

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=18874&dict=CALD

a religion that most (other) members of a society believe to be false, faddish, or unworthy of respect

http://www.wordsmyth.net/live/home.php?script=search&matchent=cult&matchtype=exact

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.

http://www.bartleby.com/61/97/C0799700.html

a system of religious belief, esp. one not recognized as an established religion, or the people who worship according to such a system of belief.

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=cult*1+0&dict=A

Ritual observances involved in worship of, or communication with, the supernatural or its symbolic representations. A cult includes the totality of ideas, activities, and practices associated with a given divinity or social group. It includes not only ritual activities but also the beliefs and myths centering on the rites. The objects of the cult are often things associated with the daily life of the celebrants. The English scholar Jane Harrison pointed out the importance of the cult in the development of religion. Sacred persons may have their own cults. The cult may be associated with a single person, place, or object or may have much broader associations. There may be officials entrusted with the rites, or anyone who belongs may be allowed to take part in them.

The term cult is now often used to refer to contemporary religious groups whose beliefs and practices depart from the conventional norms of society. These groups vary widely in doctrine, leadership, and ritual, but most stress direct experience of the divine and duties to the cult community. Such cults tend to proliferate during periods of social unrest; most are transient and peripheral. Many cults that have emerged in the United States since the late 1960s have been marked by renewed interest in mysticism and Asian religions, but many others have had Christian roots.

http://www.bartleby.com/65/cu/cult.html

Cult or Alternative Religion, religious group whose practices and beliefs differ from those of the dominant or mainstream religions. Cults vary tremendously, and much disagreement surrounds the definition of a cult and which groups should be classified as cults. Today, scholars generally use the terms alternative religion, new religion, or new religious movement to describe groups that deviate from the religious mainstream.

Alternative religions have appeared throughout history. Although many of them soon disappeared, others persisted, and some eventually became established denominations. Religions once classed as cults include the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Theosophy, and Christian Science.

http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/refpages/RefArticle.aspx?refid=761580494

Answer 5

Nothing. All religions are cults.

Answer 6

There is a very thin line between the two. Typically the number of followers contributes to how a group is categorized.

Answer 7

"A religion is just a cult with delusions of grandeur." ~ Maurie Beck
.

Answer 8

No real differences, just imaginary ones.

Hey, wasn't this just asked a few minutes ago?

Answer 9

Nothing

Answer 10

In today's society, their the same! (that's my opinion)!