Is there a difference between a "Cult" and a "Religon" other than the # of followers?

[Eukaryote]

It's a question that I think has stood the test of time around here. Is there any difference between a cult and a religon other than the number of followers? I've never thought so, but I'm interested to hear what it is if it exists.

 

[skadistic]

Maybe mainstream acceptance but that stems from its greater numbers.

 

[Mr. Dictator]

cults arent tax exempt.

 

[Leonel]

I think so. The teachings of a religion are free for anyone to read and generally inclusive. Like you can just buy the Bible in a bookstore or read the Quran in the library without strings attached. Cults are generally very exclusive and won't tell you anything about their true teachings unless you sign yourself away to them. Like a certain group that was founded by a certain science fiction writer that won't even start telling you their teachings unless you give them all your contact information and even then they won't tell you until you give them a significant 'donation' before you learn about it.

 

[dwaxe]

Cults are far more exclusive.

I should--not know.

 

[Birdjaguar]

I think so. The teachings of a religion are free for anyone to read and generally inclusive. Like you can just buy the Bible in a bookstore or read the Quran in the library without strings attached. Cults are generally very exclusive and won't tell you anything about their true teachings unless you sign yourself away to them. Like a certain group that was founded by a certain science fiction writer that won't even start telling you their teachings unless you give them all your contact information and even then they won't tell you until you give them a significant 'donation' before you learn about it.

I would agree, cults tend to have some 'barrier to entry' that must be overcome to join. Religions tend to accept all who are interested.

 

[Leonel]

I would agree, cults tend to have some 'barrier to entry' that must be overcome to join. Religions tend to accept all who are interested.

And if you want to leave a religion, you'll generally have some people be sad but will eventually accept that. However cultists will generally harass you and send death threats if you don't return.

 

[Eukaryote]

Hmm, interesting. But here's a point, do you guys consider The Secret aka The Law Of Attraction to be a cult, a religon, or neither. Keep in mind that the The Secret has no beliefs about creator god(s) or lack thereof but it does require faith and promises a sort of "heaven on earth."

Also, The Secret is not old enough and has too few followers to generally be considered a religon. But it is inclusive, it has no strings attached if you read the book or watch the movie, and you are free to stop believing whenever you wish.

 

[Erik Mesoy]

A cult is a group of people, while a religon is a particle. (Its anti-particle is the atheon.)

 

[Defiant47]

A cult is a group of people, while a religon is a particle. (Its anti-particle is the atheon.)

Always with the amusement

 

[Arwon]

Cults are more specific in their typology and you can have cults within organised religions. There are probably cults with more members than some legitimate non-cult religious denominations.

Things like extremeness, control by leaders, isolation, and rigidity, are the hallmarks, there´s some fairly specific psychological or sociological markers that place a particular organised faith community within the subset of organised religions that are cults.

My guess with no evidence is that just as there are some universal species-wide neurological or sociological quirks that make us prone to religion, so too are there less common universal things that produce extreme cultish varieties of it.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Hmm, interesting. But here's a point, do you guys consider The Secret aka The Law Of Attraction to be a cult, a religon, or neither. Keep in mind that the The Secret has no beliefs about creator god(s) or lack thereof but it does require faith and promises a sort of "heaven on earth."

Also, The Secret is not old enough and has too few followers to generally be considered a religon. But it is inclusive, it has no strings attached if you read the book or watch the movie, and you are free to stop believing whenever you wish.

From their website, it appears to be a marketing scheme. The minute you have to pay to learn about something that claims to reveal life's secrets, it is most likely just a product promotion and therefore suspect.

 

[Shekwan]

Religions are there to guide you in everyfay life. Cults are there to be you life.

 

[Elrohir]

It's a question that I think has stood the test of time around here. Is there any difference between a cult and a religon other than the number of followers? I've never thought so, but I'm interested to hear what it is if it exists.

I guess that would depend on how you're defining "cult" and "religion."

In general, though, cults are distinguished from regular religions by a couple of things. They tend to be very exclusive and secretive, they're usually controlled by an individual or a small group of people in a very absolute and dogmatic fashion. They often use violence or break the law for their own ends. And they often demand unusual things of their members - all their money, their lives, their property, etc - and require absolute devotion to that cult leader.

'Mainstream' religions, in contrast, are a bit different. They're usually open about what they believe, and are open to religious seekers. (Even the ones that aren't real big on people converting, like Judaism, aren't really secretive or cultish about it) More importantly, though, they tend to demand loyalty or submission or support for something besides a single leader. For instance, a Christian church might teach that you should be willing to die for your faith in Christ - but not to serve the whim of your local pastor. Or they might say that you should "give your all to Christ" - but they usually don't presume to tell you exactly what that means, or insist that "giving to Christ" means handing over all your possessions to one particular church or one particular Christian leader.

I use Christianity here as an example because most of us are at least somewhat familiar with it. I'm sure other parallels could be used for other religions. Do you see my point, though?

 

[MobBoss]

cults arent tax exempt.

They most certainly can be.