religious organisations and movements Flashcards

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1
Q

troletsch features of churches

A
  • large organisation with millions of members
  • monopoly of the truth
  • beuruchraric hierarcy
  • ideologically conservative (attracts higher classes)
  • few demands of members
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2
Q

trolesch features of a sect

A
  • exclusive group
  • world rejecting
  • high level of commitment
  • poor members
  • led my charismatic leader
  • only similarity is monology of truth
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3
Q

criticism of trolesch

A

questions if his typology still apllies to contemporary society, religious pluarism makes it hard for churches to claim monolpy of truth and due to increasing seccularisation there has been increased disagreement between church and government

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4
Q

what is a denomination

A

denominations are a halfway house between church and cult - not as world rejecting but still ciricial of state and with mdeium membership

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5
Q

denomination or death

A

wilson:
sects turn into denomnations by increased beuroracy. if a sect doesnt become a denomiantion it will eventually die out due to death of leader or declining membership

neibuhr; sects rarely last longer than a generation

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6
Q

what are cults

A

wilson-

  • individualised, loosely organised and make few demands on their members
  • dont have monopoly of truth
  • dont condemn people who aren’t members

wilson categorised them as world affirming NRMs

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7
Q

two types of church

A

trolesch

  • monotheistic
  • polytheistic
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8
Q

types of sects

A
  • interventionist
  • conversationist
  • manipulative
  • reformist
  • millenarian (believe there is a judgement day)
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9
Q

types of cults

A

stark and bainbridge

  • audience
  • client (scientology)
  • cultic movement
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10
Q

3 types of new religious movements

A

wallis:

  • categorised NRMs into their view on the world:
  • world rejecting
  • world accommodating
  • world affirming
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11
Q

world-rejecting NRMS

A

similar to trolsechs sects:

  • clearly religious with beleif in god
  • highly critical of world and seek change
  • members must leave old life (high commitments)
  • members living communally with little outside contact

EXAMPLE THE BRANCH DIVIDIANS

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12
Q

example of world rejecting NRM

A

heavens gate:

  • strict commitment with the view that they werent dying but were going to live with aliens on a commet
  • seculded from outfite world
  • all 39 commited suicide
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13
Q

world affirming NRMs

A
  • offer members access to spirituality
  • accept the wrold as it is
  • tolerant of other religouns but offer additional spitirual power to help memebrs overcome problems likle unhappiness and illness
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14
Q

example of world affirming NRM

A

scientology

  • 10 million members world wide
  • offer a thereputic aspect of rehabilitation
  • require less commitmnets
  • one of the most organised cults
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15
Q

world accomodating NRMs

A
  • breakawys from exsiting mainstream churches
  • neither reject of accept the world
  • seek to restore the spirtual purity on mainstream religions
  • members live normal lives
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16
Q

exampled of a world accomodating NRM

A

neo-pentecolsatists

believe that other Christian religions have lost the holy spirit

17
Q

criticism of wallis typology of NRMS

A

wallis himself recognises that real NRMS rarely fit his typology and soem NRMS such as 3HO may have features of all three types

stark and bainbridge reject the idea of constucting such typlogies aktogether instead desingusih between the degree of conflict between religous groupand society

18
Q

stark and bainbridge on the difference between cults and sects

A

sects are a result of a schism in the sectarian cycle from a church due to disagreements over doctrine

cults are new religous such as scientology

19
Q

stark and bainbridge types of cults

A
  • audience cults are least organised with little commitment
  • client cults are those based on the relationship between consultant and client offering services (scientology)
  • cultic movements which have the highest organisation and behand a high level of commitment
20
Q

webers view on why people join sects

A
  • sects arise when people are marginalised in society
  • sects offer a soloution to this problem or a ‘theology of disprivillege’; a religious explaination or justification for their suffering

since 1960s more middle class people have been joining NRMS however they arguably are still marginalised because most woul dbehippies outcasts or drug addicts before joinig the group

21
Q

drane on why NRMS have grown

A

result of apparent failure of science s a beleif system not prividing asnwers that people needed so are turning back to religion

22
Q

relative deprivation as to why NRMS have icreased

A

barker- middle classes and young more likley to join NRM as it provides an alternative family and helps people who are laking meaning in their life

relative depirvation is subjectice which explains why the middle classes and working classes both feel deprived

stark and bainbridge argue that middle classes join wold accepting chrches

and wokring clases need compensation and so going world rejecting ones

23
Q

postmodern explaination for the growth of NRMs

A

herveiu leger
religious pluralism has led to people spiritual shopping and therefore a de-traditionalisation of religion

berger- plausability strucutre due to mant religions impossible to fidn oen universal truth so choose one that fits indivudal lifestyle

24
Q

what is a new age movement

A

a range of beleifs and activies that have been widespread since 1980s
many are loosley organsied audience cults
incliding beleifs in tarot, astology, crystals, yoga and meditation

25
Q

heelas on the themes that new age movements are characterised by

A

two common themes characterising the new age:
- self spirituality: new agers seek spirtuality that they cant fidn in traditinal churches

  • detraditionalisation:
  • new age rejects the spiritual authorutiy of external traditonal sources such as sacred texts but instead values personal experince that we can uncome the turh within outselves
26
Q

why new age movements have become so popular (postmodernity)

A
  • drane argues its appeal is due to a loss of metta-narritives by science not giving us answers. to war genocide and global wrming
    people asa reults have lost faith in experts and professionals such as docots and therfore turn to new age ideas for answers
27
Q

heelas’s 4 reaosns why modernity has influence an increase in NAMs

A
  • rapid social change
  • source of identity
  • consumer culture
  • decline of organised religion