RELS 225 Cults and New Religious Movements RELS 225 Cults and New Religious Movements

RELS 225 Agenda Attendance New Religions in the News (4 minutes) Announcements / Administrativa (2 minutes) Class schedule course site ( ) Explaining a concept (35 minutes) – for the exam’s paragraph answer section. What is a cult? Video with focus questions (20 minutes) and discussion Homework for Next Time (1 minute)

Studying NRMs “Describe what a “cult” is in terms of its necessary and typical characteristics. How are the terms “Sect”, “New Religious Movement” and “High Demand New Religion” different? What is “cult”? What components does a “cult” have? What do “cults” have in common? Are all cults the same?

What would you call a “cult”? What qualifies a group to be called a cult? Name some. Necessary characteristics: What must a movement have in order to qualify as a “cult”? Typical characteristics: What do cults typically but not necessarily have?

Necessary characteristics Fringe (not mainstream in numbers or area) Religious beliefs? Recently begun? High-demands placed on members

(Stereo-)Typical characteristics High-demand Self-sacrifice for the cause Encapsulation (us & them attitudes) Charismatic leader Peculiar scriptures or teachings Difficult to leave? Unreasonable? Aggressive recruiting? Apocalyptic? Violent? Sexually deviant?

Biased portrayals of cults Media portrayals: Dangerous Devotion video Anti-Cult Movement: Walter Martin on Christian Cults

Differences between “cult” and: “Sect” More established than “cult”, a branch within a larger religion. “New Religious Movement” Carries no negative connotations Not everything considered a “cult” (especially by the ACM) is new. (e.g. gnosticism, Freemasonry) “High Demand New Religion” Not everything considered a “cult” puts high demands on its members (e.g., New Age Movement, Wicca).

The solution to the media / ACM problem Academic research that: Doesn’t lump all NRMs together Recognizes NRMs are not something new Does not let truth claims about beliefs interfere with research Seeks to learn about ourselves from NRMs

For Next Time For Thursday, 12:45 Finish reading Chapter 1 of Comprehending Cults i f you haven’t already. Write the online quiz (for marks) for Chapter 1 on the Moodle site. For Monday, 11:30 Read Comprehending Cults Chapter 2 Write the online quiz (for marks) for Chapter 2 on the Moodle site.