Dr.Who
Well-Known Member
Cults. The original french word just referred to a type of religion.
In the 20's in America it was used to refer to any group claiming to be Christian which did not actually subscribe to the core beliefs of Christianity. This is the theological definition.
In the 70's it was used by secular media to describe religious groups that used mind control to manipulate its recruits. This is the sociological definition.
But that definition from the 20's is still very much alive and in use today and is by far the more common definition.
Many people use the former word quite often to refer, not to sects or denominations, but to groups that everyone knows about that are making claims to be Christians but in fact are not Christians. The Moonies would be one example, they are both a religious cult and a secular cult. The Jehova's Witnesses claim to be Christians and there is a lot of overlap between Watchtower teachings and Christian teachings. But ask a JW to pray with you and he will promptly tell you that he cannot because you do not worship the same God as him. He knows as well as Christians do that the Core Christian teachings and the teachings of JW are so far apart that they are just not the same. By a definitional accounting they are a cult - it is not negative like the secular definition that implies they are brainwashing people. Though according to orthodox Christianity it is negative merely because it is not orthodox.
And the reason the for this thread: Simply that by the original theological definition the Mormon religion of Mitt Romney is a cult. That does not mean that he is necessarily unsaved. He could belong without understanding that their beliefs are not orthodox. He might believe things that are contrary to Mormonism and consistent with orthodoxy. But he might also understand the difference very well.
And in case you were wondering what one major distinction is: Orthodox Christianity says there is one God alone. Mormons say that each and every person becomes a God. They are not bad or evil or sick or weird. Th Mormons I have been friends with have been wonderful people. They are simply not orthodox Christians.
In the 20's in America it was used to refer to any group claiming to be Christian which did not actually subscribe to the core beliefs of Christianity. This is the theological definition.
In the 70's it was used by secular media to describe religious groups that used mind control to manipulate its recruits. This is the sociological definition.
But that definition from the 20's is still very much alive and in use today and is by far the more common definition.
Many people use the former word quite often to refer, not to sects or denominations, but to groups that everyone knows about that are making claims to be Christians but in fact are not Christians. The Moonies would be one example, they are both a religious cult and a secular cult. The Jehova's Witnesses claim to be Christians and there is a lot of overlap between Watchtower teachings and Christian teachings. But ask a JW to pray with you and he will promptly tell you that he cannot because you do not worship the same God as him. He knows as well as Christians do that the Core Christian teachings and the teachings of JW are so far apart that they are just not the same. By a definitional accounting they are a cult - it is not negative like the secular definition that implies they are brainwashing people. Though according to orthodox Christianity it is negative merely because it is not orthodox.
And the reason the for this thread: Simply that by the original theological definition the Mormon religion of Mitt Romney is a cult. That does not mean that he is necessarily unsaved. He could belong without understanding that their beliefs are not orthodox. He might believe things that are contrary to Mormonism and consistent with orthodoxy. But he might also understand the difference very well.
And in case you were wondering what one major distinction is: Orthodox Christianity says there is one God alone. Mormons say that each and every person becomes a God. They are not bad or evil or sick or weird. Th Mormons I have been friends with have been wonderful people. They are simply not orthodox Christians.