Posted on 11/17/2014 3:57:54 AM PST by lifeofgrace
Are you in a cult? Nobody ever answers that question yes.
Yes, I am a follower of Zorg who tells me what to think, and instructs me on life from the time I awake each day, until he summons me to bed each night. I live to do what Zorg desires because Zorg loves me and knows best. Zorg is from the planet Org, and he hears their psychic transmissions. The Orgians are coming to get us soon, and well all have one cosmic Orgy.Dude, youre in a cult.
No! Zorg told us youd say that! When the Orgians come for us, youre going to be so sorry you missed the cosmic Orgy, and then they are going to destroy Earth to make room for a new Org. Youll get blasted into eternal stardust with all the other unbelievers.All righty then. Enjoy your life. Bu-bye!
Cults are destructive, oppressive, life-sucking zombie-producing groups that enrich their leaders at everyone elses expense. Cult members drink poisoned Kool-Aid, murder whole families, and serve as willing objects of sexual abuse by monomaniacal autocrats. Nobody wants to be in a cult.
But people are in them. Lots of people. Replace that line about Zorg with some real cult (if there are any Zorgians who are offended that I used your cult, please forgive me, I am a very unenlightened soul who never studied Zorg in college) and youve probably heard someone say almost exactly those words. Then you told them theyre in a cult, and they denied it.
People stay in cults because only people outside the cult see the cult. From the inside, its a mirror ball designed to focus you on the thought that you and your fellow cultists are right and everyone outside the ball is wrong. Mind control? Very much so. Why dont those poor souls in cults see it? They dont see it precisely because they dont think theyre in a cult.
Cults and genuine faith are difficult to discern, and for many, they look so alike that theres no difference at all. But there is a huge difference. You might even be in a cult and not realize it. There are some simple tests we can use to find out.
Here are eight signs you might be in a cult.
Im not referring to political parties, although this sometimes happens with dyed-in-the-wool party faithful. Some political parties resemble cults in their fervor (I wont mention themLibertariansoops I slipped), but they are not cults. They are just strong believers in their own solutions.
Cults dont withstand outside scrutiny very well, so they encourage people to exclusively associate with other cult members in the extreme cases. In the more subtle cults, youre not limited in your associations, but you are guided to seek advice only from the approved sources, like your friends inside the cult. Old friends outside the cult are met with suspicion.
If youve had a friend since high school, and you were best men at each others weddings, and he suddenly stops calling you to ask advice like he used to, start asking questions. If you live close enough, visit. If he suddenly gives you the warm handshake and the cold shoulder, and avoids personal subjects, yet asks all kinds of personal questions from you, your cult sense should be tingling.
If you find yourself feeling awkward around your old pals, and your new friends are encouraging you to seek their advice them before you accept old friends advice, you might be headed for cult membership. Its time to check yourself and check your new friends.
Within a cult, youre not really encouraged to question authority, but to submit to it. Theres nothing wrong with submitting to authority. Romans 13:1-2 says
Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves.Cults which rely on the Bible will pound this one (and others like 1 Corinthians 7:3-4) into your mind so that you dont ever question their authority. If you are being told that your church is built on a unique authority or revelation, but you shouldnt question the validity of that authority or the truthfulness of that revelation, you should take a second look.
Cults are built on unquestioning loyalty. In this way, every military service in the world functions like a cult. The recruits are broken down, given a new mindset of instant and unquestioning obedience, and taught deadly skills. This enables them to run to the sound of gunfire and place their lives in danger. The main difference between the military and a cult is that military service is more or less temporary, and leaders change frequently.
Some rather well-known military cults have gotten out of hand. The Nazi SS and the Japanese Imperial Army in WWII are two examples. A modern day example might be the North Korean army, although you could also argue the whole country is one big cult.
If youre in an organization where unquestioning loyalty and obedience to authority is demanded (aside from the military), you may be a cult member.
This is especially true of religious cults. They almost always, I say again always, have one person as the source of authority and doctrine. This personal foundation is also what separates entire religions from each other. Christian apologist and author Ravi Zacharias said
We often hear that all religions are the same, but this is not true. They are superficially the same, but they are fundamentally different.The fundamental difference lies not in how religious ceremonies, rites and rituals are carried out, but in their source of authority and truth. Islam is based on Mohammeds revelations, Christianity is based on Jesus Christ, Judaism is based on the Law of Moses. All claim their authority is ultimately from God. The specific claims of one religions authority cannot always be true unless the other religions are false. This is called exclusivity.
Theres a simple test we can apply to religious groups to determine the source of their authority. Just follow the root and find single sources of revelation. Its obvious that if Mohammed was a false prophet then Islam would be false, or if there were no God then most monotheistic religions would be false. But these are hard to prove without substantial philosophical, historical and metaphysical argument, and I am not interested in proving or disproving them for this purpose. I mean a simple test, and within the bounds of a particular religious tradition (so dont email me saying that all of Christianity is a cult).
Since I know Christianity best, Ill use that for my examples. The Seventh Day Adventist church professes 28 fundamental beliefs. Number 18 is entitled The Gift of Prophecy and states in part:
One of the gifts of the Holy Spirit is prophecy. This gift is an identifying mark of the remnant church and was manifested in the ministry of Ellen. G. White. As the Lords messenger, her writings are a continuing and authoritative source of truth which provide for the church comfort, guidance, instruction, and correction.The simple test is this: would the Seventh Day Adventist beliefs survive independently if Ellen G. White were a false prophet? I am not arguing whether she is or is not, but you see how the test makes this question very clear. If a Seventh Day Adventist would defend Ellen G. Whites standing as a prophet above the Bible she preached from, thats a sign.
Lets apply the same test to the Jehovahs Witnesses: if Charles Taze Russell was a false prophet, would their doctrine fall apart? For Mormons, if Joseph Smiths teaching was false, would there be a need for the LDS church? Outside the Christian world, would Scientology survive the debunking of L Ron Hubbard?
A final example: would the Assemblies of God survive if it turned out that William J. Seymour faked the revival at Azusa Street in Los Angeles?
Full disclosure: I am a member of the Assemblies of God. Ive asked that question, and the answer is that the AG would continue to thrive. Seymour was a preacher like any other man, and his doctrine carries no special weight. Only Scripture informs AG doctrine. AG has survived worse scandals with Jim Bakker and Jimmy Swaggart, without falling apart. This is true of most Protestant denominations; they may interpret scripture differently, but they do not weight any one persons authority as its equal.
If you find yourself part of a group that bases its doctrine and truth on one person, whether they are alive or dead, you need to ask some hard questions. If you find yourself or your peers immediately getting defensive at the mere suggestion that questions the authenticity, truthfulness or authority of the person whose name adorns your groups most sacred traditions and writings, you ought to check yourself for other signs of being a cult member, because this sign is a big one all on its own.
Of course, ive never tried coconut bowling, and Ive never written down the rules. Until I do, you have no reason to trust my authority to determine who the champion is (its me though). My point is that genuine authority cannot be claimed unless its independently witnessed and testified to.
Once again, Ill use Christianity as my example. According to the New Testament, Jesus never claimed authority without testimony. There was the genealogy testifying to Jesus direct lineage from King David; there was the journey of the wise men to worship Jesus; there was John the Baptists testimony and baptism of Jesus (John was also a first-person hearer of Mary and Josephs testimony of the virgin birth); there were the disciples who were witnesses of Jesus miracles. And Jesus never had to eat his words.
Another simple test: has the groups leader ever written or said something and then been forced to walk back their words? Every single person who has ever claimed to know the date of Jesus return to Earth has had to eat their words. Theres a few who claim they are Jesus (one of them must be wrong, as Mark Knopfler wrote). The late Harold Camping, president of Family Radio, made two predictions of Christs return: May 21, 2011, and then October 21, 2011. I dont doubt Campings sincerity in his quest for the ultimate mystery of Christianity, but I doubt his mental state when he made the predictions. He died in December 2013 at 92 years old.
If Campings followers started a religion, it would be a cult, pure and simple, based on false teachings. Camping had no authority to claim a date for Christs return. Jesus said in Matthew 24:35-36: Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away. But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. If you make claims of authority regarding Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ is not your witness, youre in cult territory.
Beware groups whose source of authority lacks evidence. It leads to blind faith, and blind faith is never good. Never.
At first, the teacher takes questions, and honestly tells you when he doesnt know the answer. You spend time together learning the Scriptures and digging into its rich treasures. Then, when the teacher becomes well-known and popular, and writes a few books, he becomes less accessible. Those same mysteries you used to study together become less interesting study subjects, and more doctrinal in nature.
Soon you find that if you question whats written in the books, you get one of three answers:
When you are criticized for even questioning, thats the sign of a cult. Knowledge and learning thrive on questioning and challenging what is known and what isnt known. When what is known directly contradicts whats being taught, or just doesnt line up with the groups doctrine, its time to ask questions and challenge doctrine.
Authentic groups welcome the challenge in any form. With matters of faith, God is not afraid to be questioned: he made us, so why would he oppose his creation asking questions or challenging His words? Im not talking about rebellion and questioning Gods truth. Thats a whole different subject for another post (see Eve and the serpent). I mean questions of faith and the heart.
If your group, directly or indirectlythrough peer pressurediscourages questioning of its values, doctrines, or teachings, you should mentally note that this is what cults do. Any group that cant stand by its teachings without punishing the questioner is not a group Id want to join, and if you value independent thought, you should avoid them too.
When the phone call or visit turns from a simple how have you been to you have betrayed the group or your salvation is in jeopardy, thats moving toward a cult.
Some groups require their members to take oaths of secrecy when they join. Freemasons have this practice. The oaths are supposed to be in effect even if you leave the organization (called a demit). Former Masons are not to speak about the rites, rituals, and writings of Freemasonry. This practice has made Freemasonry widely viewed as a cult.
Secrecy in itself doesnt make a group a cult. Some rituals are deeply personal, and some programs are designed to use surprise as a tool to help teach hard concepts. One example is the Tres Dias Christian movement. Tres Dias (and its sister movements called Walk to Emmaus and Cursillo) community members are discouraged from publicly discussing some aspects of the three day teaching weekends. From personal experience, I can tell you that Tres Dias is not a cult, but some people are frightened of the secrecy. There are no oaths or penalties involved for members who let the cat out of the bag, but it ruins the experience, like telling the guest of honor about his own surprise party.
Secrecy, when in combination with disfellowship or shunning of former members, is one of the hallmarks of a cult. Remember that cults perpetuate themselves by keeping outsiders at a distance, and keeping insiders within a bubble that reflects all feedback and discourages questions. Secrecy and oaths are one of the ways that cults keep members in and outsiders out.
If you are in an organization which discourages you from speaking to former members, or hushes up those who leave as a scandalous event, flee. Even if the group youre in isnt a cult, its better to separate yourself from people who consider themselves above basic human courtesy, who dont seek reconciliation with those who disagree.
This doesnt mean that your church should be forced to fellowship with individuals or groups who are diametrically opposed to your own churchs teaching. It means that when people who are in your group leave, if there are bridges to burn, it shouldnt be you who burns them.
The best way to detect a cult is to discern real faith. A few simple principles can help us here.
Hale-Bopp was at least a real comet, but thats where reality ends. There was zero evidence that a spaceship was trailing the comet, zero evidence that the promised aliens would end the world. In 2012, the remaining members of that cult were still waiting to be whisked away. They will wait forever, because its not going to happen.
There are more whack-a-do cults on this planet than you might think. People are searching for something more real than their boring day-in-day-out lives, and just about anything could attract followers, no matter how ridiculous. These extreme examples have something in common with the more popular groups operating today. It doesnt matter if the disconnect from reality is big or small, if faith cant relate to real things, then its false. If a groups teachings on faith dont result in real changes, then that faith is in false things.
If Scientology really could produce spontaneous healing, telekinesis, mind control, and power over nature, then wed all join up today. Im sorry, followers of L Ron Hubbard, but your faith in his fictional book is false. You might say that about Christianity too. But miracles (unexplained events like spontaneous healing) do happen, and Christians never claim that miracles are the exclusive domain of televangelists or laying on of hands, but they are the sovereign will of God.
I cant explain the peace I have inside or the change to my personality, my outside, that occurred when I put my faith in Christ. I know its real, and my friends know its real. They know Im a better person for it, and not because all my friends are Christians many of them are not. The Christians prize is to be more like Christ. Paul writes in Philippians 3:14
I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.This is the goal, to be in Christ Jesus, to be like Him, in deed, in thought, in speech. Its not an easy goal, and in fact its impossible without faith, and without divine help. There is absolutely no way I can achieve pressing toward the goal secretly. As I grow in God, all who see me see more of God. Thats the result of true faith.
If youre in a religion or a group that teaches that you need to make this journey without divine aid, or that you must do it without the security of knowing you are in Christ Jesus (secure in salvation), then your faith should be challenged. Is it real? Do people see more of God in you or just a better version of you being you?
There is only one goal that God has for us. John 3:16:
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.If theres anything added to that goal, or any requirement preceding it, its not true faith. At least not if you call yourself a Christian.
If youve read this and you see yourself exhibiting several of these signs, the best answer is to get a Bible. Any translation will do, except the one youre using now. Sit down like a child who has never read it, and begin reading. Start with the book of John. Read the words and verses for the first time, as someone who has never read the Bible before. (By the way, thats how I came to faith, honestly, absolutely true).
There is only one way out of a cult and false teaching, and thats learning the truth. It has always be thus, and it always shall be. John 8:31-32.
Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Let me see, if I look at this very skeptically, what well-known and prominent group matches #s 1-3, 5 & 6? Hint: they never heard of J.Gruber!
“Living or dead, most cults have their genesis rooted in an individual, whose special skills, revelation, or understanding have a unique, exclusive quality and magnetism to which people are drawn.”
Mohammed’s “special” skills consisted of child rape, violence against “non-believers,” and hatred of women.
1. Democrats
2. Some Republicans
If I list more, people will have irrationally exhuberant rage, so, won't.
omg that explains it!
the democrat party is a CULT!!
“Smithmas time will soon be here.....”
“Debate of any kind is not appropriate on a devotional thread. They are closed, i.e. to be treated as if they are occurring behind the closed doors of a church.” -Religion Moderator
I’ve never heard of the author until now (maybe I need to get out more).
I read this one and the one on liars. I like his work. Thanks for posting it.
M4L
Everyone has a tendency to fall into this to some degree or another. We prefer to hang out with people who believe like we do.
Most people resist having their beliefs challenged.
People tend to relish the idea that they think they know more about a topic than someone or everyone else and that is why they understand it and everyone else(except their like minded friends) does not.
I know this thread has a religious bent, but all of the signs describe liberalism to a perfect ‘T’.
The author has a rather loose and imprecise definition of “cult”. As a result, many religions and other belief systems fit his description.
He should study the subject further before rendering the word so useless.
For the record, I never defined “cult” in any formal or precise way, on purpose. I also didn’t attribute faith in God or a particular religion as a cult. These are signs not definitions. Feel free to (please) supply me with some formal definitions and let’s see if the signs apply.
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