I found this list below on another site.
You've no doubt seen these lists...or lists similar to them: they give you marked ways to identify a cult.
Now, I'm sure many of us agree that these signs eerily match a certain Watchtower-slangin' group we're all familiar with.
And Im sure that what I'm about to bring up has probably been discussed here sometime before 'my' time.
But, look at these 'cult i.d. symptoms' below...and let your mind go. No pre-dispositions, no holy-cows, etc.: let your mind freely wander.
Who else do these signs apply to...if you think wider? Wider than just sects or 'religions'. Bigger. Who else do they match?
For instance, the first point...who does that remind you of?
And no cheating: you can't discount someone just because you 'believe' in him...
-The leader of the group sets himself up as the sole conduit between man and god. He alone is 'the way'.
-The group displays excessively zealous and unquestioning commitment to its leader and (whether he is alive or dead) regards his belief system, ideology, and practices as the Truth, as law.
- Questioning, doubt, and dissent are discouraged or even punished. -The group is elitist, claiming a special, exalted status for itself, its leader(s) and members (for example, the leader is considered the Messiah, a special being, an avatar—or the group and/or the leader is on a special mission to save hu manity.
-The group has a polarized us-versus-them mentality, which may cause conflict with the wider society. -The leader is not accountable to any authorities except god (unlike, for example, teachers, military commanders or ministers, priests, monks, and rabbis of mainstream religious denominations).
- The leadership induces feelings of shame and/or guilt in order to influence and/or control members. Often, this is done through peer pressure and subtle forms of persuasion.
- Subservience to the leader or group requires members to cut ties with family and friends, and radically alter the personal goals and activities they had before joining the group.
- The group is preoccupied with bringing in new members. -Members are expected to devote inordinate amounts of time to the group and group-related activities.
- The most loyal members (the “true believers”) feel there can be no life outside the context of the group. They believe there is no other way to be, and often fear reprisals to themselves or others if they leave (or even consider leaving) the group.
The CULT that rarely gets called a CULT...but sure does look like a CULT...
by Unlearn 18 Replies latest jw friends
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Unlearn
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sd-7
Well, one could probably argue that even the original Christian religion would fit this description pretty well. I've thought about that, about how Jesus' death could have been used the same way cults of our time have used cult leaders' deaths to inspire followers. (ie. Russell-Rutherford; Joseph Smith-Brigham Young)...
It gets awkward when you think about it...
--sd-7
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Broken Promises
Apple/Steve Jobs?
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sd-7
We are the only way for you to watch movies, listen to music, and read books...only through THE CLOUD...only through THE CLOUD...
--sd-7
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ziddina
Okayyyy....
You're going to have to help me out, here.
Because some - perhaps most - of these characteristics could be said to be true of Christianity, Judaism, and Islam...
Could also be true of "Holiday Magic" ™ skin-care products, "Amway" ™, "Nutralife" ™, and so on...
Could be said to be true of whichever political leader one does NOT agree with - or feels should never have become president based on skin color or I.Q. level...
Zid
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Unlearn
@ sd-7
Yes...interesting, huh?
In fact, to mainstream religions back then, it was seen as a cult...a contemporary of other 'cults' like the cult of Mithras and so on.
Christianity as a whole seems to fit the bill.
The charismatic carpenter from Galilee sure does fit all the signs of 'cult leader'.
Unless you believe he really WAS who he said he was.
But then, all cult members believe in their guy. That's how it works. -
sd-7
Man, that would suck. If we've all suffered like this because of a 2,000-year-old cult started by a carpenter. Talk about a mindfrak--no, a clusterfrak! A clustermindfrak!
--sd-7
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ziddina
Ah, there we go!!
Yes, I've long felt that Christianity itself had many - all - of the hallmarks of a cult. That's not an opinion that I air very often, for obvious reasons...
If I were to be REALLY technical, then every Goddess-worshipping religion that existed LONG before Christianity came to be, would ALSO have been a 'cult'...
Zid
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Unlearn
What's interesting as well is a point you can pick up from the actual list. Notice this point:
-The leader is not accountable to any authorities except god (unlike, for example, teachers, military commanders or ministers, priests, monks, and rabbis of mainstream religious denominations).
Notice that even the makers of this list (who obviously acknowledge that cults exist and are potentially dangerous) seem to qualify that 'mainstream religious denominations' sort of absolve a group from being called a 'cult'...even if they qualify in every other factor. To me, thats disingeniuous...very much so.
Because a cult is 'large' doesn't mean it's not still a cult.
There's this stereo-typical idea that a cult cannot be massively populated...and that's nuts. Mass hysteria is nothing new to the human race. When does the population of a belief legitimize it?
I also think that many people mistakenly view 'Christianity' as more of an 'idea' and not necessarily a 'religion'. It definitely IS a religion...and all of the so-called 'Christian religions' are just sects of the actual religion itself. This adoration of Jesus Christ IS the religion...and, according to any cult-signs list you can find, the man was a cult leader. From his own lips, 'There is no way except through me. I am the way...'
Again, if you believe his presentation, then of course you will disagree.
You believe. -
jay88
Just a matter of time,......This should be good!
