whats the difference between religion and cults?

i was recently thinking about an article i saw almost 20 years ago. so unfortunately i have no link being it was in an old paper magazine. (for you kids a paper magazine is like a blog that you can hold in your hands without a computer)

so this article said how to tell if your kid is in a cult. it listed like five things (none i can remember specifically right now. but all 5 of them could easily have fit in with the definition of someone who goes to church regularly. i dont want to go looking up all sorts of facts now since the article is long gone but if there is interest in this subject i will see what i can find.

 

size is the determining factor.

 

I'm a member of the cult of words. Sigh..

difficult culture cultivate occult cult

 

This is my religion

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORGMRi_nAgM"]Craziest by Liz Dubelman - YouTube

 

"cult" has a sort of taboo about it, thanks to the Christians for publicly outing those with unorthodox beliefs.
IMO I believe cults to be more personal then religion. Cults, or societies, like Freemasonry and other magickal organizations seem to work more towards being like God, then just the worship of him..

 

better flavored wine?..

 

Actually, the defining factor is that the prophet is still alive and infallible

This is why Catholicism is considered a cult by definition. The Pope.

 

Although it can be difficult to determine what is the exact difference between a religion and a cult I think it is clear that freemasonry is not a cult at all. Also, the negative connotations on the word cult is not only (or even especially) thanks to the christians but for the most part of cults with dubious practices, people or thoughts that have hit the news and so have ruined the neutral meaning of the word cult.
In general the difference between a cult and a religion seems to be that a religion is accepted as a somewhat mainstream group accepted as such by the consensus, and a cult is either less accepted as mainstream. Or a splinter group so to say of a bigger religion but with distinctive differences.

 

It's not difficult. I just gave the definition.
A cult has a living leader that is infallible.

 

In most cases perhaps.

 

Please explain.
The rest you said is good.

 

It's a semantics things, not an opinion.

 

Its difficult to leave a cult, although I suppose its difficult to leave a religion as well. I stopped believing in God 12 years ago and I still have family members bugging me about going to church.

 

I was going to say Freemasonry is MOST CERTAINLY a cult; they worship higher powers.
oh, they may or may not also perpetrate deviant acts, but that is besides the point.

 

Characteristics of a cult:

- easy access, hard to leave. Opposite is true for the freemasonry: it seems you get in through a lot of procedures and stuff but can leave if you want.
- loss of autonomy. Opposite is true for freemasons. If you join the freemasonry it is to work on and improve your own autonomy.
- a cult often allows minors to join. Freemasonry is for adults only.

Last but not least:
Freemasons look to expand knowledge and find truth by use of the scientific method, which is generally not one of the agenda points in a cult.

 

My granddad nagged on my pants-wearing nieces until he died. Didn't made it harder for my nieces to leave church or religion at all :mickey:

 

I DISAGREE with ALL of your characteristics of a cult Asmo, considering I may or may not even be in a few. Freemasonry is STILL a cult, get over it. Scientific method or not, they still do Theurgy, like practically EVERY cult out there. I dont associate all the negative connotation to cults like others do though.

CULT = Initiated Theurgy Practitioners

 

There is nothing to get over for me, you asked to explain why I said what I think and so I did. You may disagree, especially if you may or may not be in a few :biggrin:

 

you off your meds again?

 

Fuck semantics. Who the hells needs that when I 'feel' that a cult is one thing or another.