To me, what is a cult and what isn’t, comes down to the question of authority.
Protestants see the Bible alone as their highest authority. All who substitute something else as that highest authority are cults.
The RCC, of course, as everybody knows, see their RCC “traditions” as that highest authority, traditions which establishes the Papacy as that highest authority. It is not the Bible alone, Papists add their “traditions” with the Bible as their authority.
Modern Judaism is Talmudic and sees the Talmud (many include the Kabbalah) with the Old Testament as their highest authority.
Islam has their Koran, of course, as their highest authority.
Mormonism, very similar to Talmudism and Islam, has their writings of Joseph Smith and the Book of Mormon, as their highest authority. Again, not the Bible alone, but the Bible with other writings.
A non-cultist, in my view, looks to the Bible alone as his highest authority. It is Mormonism’s authoritative “sacred” writings that renders them a cult of the first order.
The RCC, of course, as everybody knows, see their RCC “traditions” as that highest authority, traditions which establishes the Papacy as that highest authority. It is not the Bible alone, Papists add their “traditions” with the Bible as their authority.
As a “Papist” myself, i know none of this to be true. The Papacy nor traditions are the highest authority. The highest authority is the revealed Word of God, whether written down as Scripture or orally taught by the Apostles.
i would be careful about saying “as everybody knows” and then making a fool of yourself.
let me leave with a question to meditate on, since the Bible does not contain an inspired table of contents, how do you know which books are Scripture and which are not if not by Catholic tradition?