Ch 9 Flashcards
1
Q
Belief systems and deviance
A
- Religion and science represent different belief systems
- belief systems can be deviant (cults or junk science)
- belief systems can be social typers of deviance
→ define unacceptable behaviours and what should be done about them
2
Q
Religion as deviance
A
- Focuses on religion as a social organization: the role of belief systems in society, how religions develop/evolve, their relationship with other social institutions
- typology of religions:
→ ecclesia: state religions (a religion that is adopted as the official religion of the state)
→ churches: large, powerful, established religions with global membership in the millions (churches can be further subdivided into denominations)
→ sects: smaller, rigid offshoots that are less established than churches (break away from the church and renew former belief systems in an extreme way)
→ cults: even smaller, rigger, reactionary oppositional groups (intense levels of commitment and entirely new belief systems from the church they’ve left) - ecclesia and churches are seen as “normal” whereas sects and cults are more likely to be deviantized (in a state of tension with the larger society)
3
Q
Influences on the degree of tension
A
- Magnitude of differences between the group and the rest of society
- level of antagonism for broader society or vice versa
- the extent to which the group segregates itself from broader society
4
Q
Denominational sect
A
- May eventually be seen as a denomination
- less tension with society so not seen as deviant
→ valve of compromise and minimizing tension between them and wider society
5
Q
Established sect
A
- Persist but do not become denominations
- more tension with society, rigid expectations of members, belief systems are antagonistic to other groups and society
6
Q
Destructive cults
A
- Leaders place the group above the law (don’t have to follow society’s laws)
- Leader does not have to follow the same rules group members
- leader exerts control beyond religious beliefs of members (educational, career, romantic partnerships, finances)
- the group has in informal/formal policy of receiving outsiders when recruiting, fund-raising, or answering to authorities
- have an apocalyptic vision of the end of the world (the group plays a key role)
7
Q
Social control of deviant religions
A
- Human right discourse often advocates for “religious freedom” yet governments can exercise reachable control of that freedom ( threat to public health, threat to public order, threat to the rights of others)
8
Q
Anti-cult movement
A
- Comprised of parents of “hippie” children who had joined religious groups as part of the counterculture movement
- initially served as support groups for parents about the dangers of cults; over time, mental heath professionals, lawyers, and academics became involved as experts
- today, that tend to be referred to as cult awareness groups
→ focus an educating people about the dangers of cults, lobby governments for stricter controls of potentially dangerous groups
9
Q
Countercult movement
A
- Has over 100 years of history
- does not target specific groups, is opposed to religious freedom itself (concerned with religious groups whose beliefs after from their own)
- less successful than the more secular cult awareness groups
10
Q
Resistance to social control efforts
A
- Religious groups defending themselves in the media or in court, and / or changing their practices or policies to gain legitimacy
- academics challenging traditional typologies (believe all major religions started out as deviant but then became normalized); also challenge the social typing process (tertiary deviance)
- replacing the term “cult” with ideological groups, novo religious movements, or minority religious groups to distinguish between mainstream and newer religions
11
Q
Religion as a social typer of deviance
A
- At the individual level, religious belief systems provide a moral code for distinguishing between right and wrong
- at the societal level, religious belief systems may influence political belief systems
12
Q
Witch persecutions
A
- Between the 14th and 17th centuries, there was no separation between church and state
- malleus maleficarum (hammer of witches) described what was known about witchcraft
→ convince the reader that witches were dangerous and needed to be controlled, how to identify a witch or witchcraft, and what needed to be done to prosecute witches - women were considered easier influences for the devil (often powerful women who were a threat to male leaders and the church)
- in the face of accusations:
→ calm = knew the devil would help them
→ fearful = guilty - needed a confession so people were tortured (burnt at the stake)
13
Q
Residential schools
A
- Premised on the goal of assimilation (eliminating indigenous cultures)
- initiated by churches to “civilize” indigenous children by removing them from their families; European culture, language, and religion was forced upon the children
- emotional, physical, and sexual abuse
- legacy continues to affect indigenous individuals end communities
14
Q
Victorian child-savers movement
A
- Based on the social gospel (using biblical principles to solve social problems)
- comprised of middle-class reformers who were concerned with the lower classes (believed they were inherently immoral)
- believe children were innocent and pure, needs to be protected from the harmful influence of their impoverished parents (remove them from their homes and place them into state care with the goal of moving them to a good Christian home)
15
Q
Science as deviance
A
- Deviant sciences are often referred to as pseudoscience (astrology), some deviant sciences may be accepted over time
- junk science involves ungrounded claims of people with little or no scientific background or people using their scientific credentials to convince others of their legitimacy
