Are all religions a cult?

flowperson said:
Art:

I've read in some scholarly works covering the early years of Christianity that the movement was commonly referred to as "the cultus of the man Jesus " Upon looking it up in my 10" Webster's I find that "cultus" is a rather archaic root of the word we're discussing, and generally means a religious movement, and nothing of a perjorarive nature is mentioned.
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This sounds like the most logical "official" definition to me. I realize that those of you who have a lot of emotional baggage around cults will want a definition with more "substance" or whatever. But for an objective definition I'll go with this one.
 
I agree Flow...and I liked your comment:

I think of this practice as "subliminal demonization" when used with malice.

Quahom1:

Yes sir... I wasn't really brainwashed but the experience matured me.
 
I think it likely that the religion one is currently partaking in is never a cult, falsely accused often..but never a cult...tis always someone elses religion that is a cult.

One of my preacher friends does some self deprecating standup schtick, he says they answer their phone, "The cult that cares", and in these days of caller ID I would bet that for certain numbers...he actually does.
 
jiii said:
"Cult" is a pretty subjective word, really. Consider when one talks about films that have a "cult following". All this is really saying is that the whole nation didn't seem to love the film, and so those that do like it for one reason or another are said to be "cult-followers" of the film. This is meant to imply, I think, that they must be strangely hung up on the film...because the ordinary person decides that based on an ordinary viewpoint the movie is just too ordinary to impress ordinary people. By this strange logic, the "cult followers" are deemed to be "out of the ordinary", which I guess could mean many different things. Whether or not the term "cult" is used with a negative or positive connotation usually has to do with its juxtaposition to a set of standardized values. Who is to be the authority on those values remains unanswered.
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I like that explanation, and I hadn't thought of apply that sense of "cult" to religion...hmm...interesting stream of consciousness...

I could check my Webster's, but before I'll say that I've always thought of a "cult" as being a religion which venerates a human being, usually the founder, as God, a God, or God-like.

Chris
 
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