Sects short lived?? Flashcards
Why are Sects thought to be short lived? 3 brief reason
1) PROBLEM OF MAINTAINING COMMITMENT AND FERVOUR = world-ejecting NRM = heavy req = hard maintain.= hard to sustain after 1st gen
2) LOSS OF CHARISMATIC LEADERS
3) CHANGING CIRCUMSATANCES OF MEMBRES AND APPEAL OF SECTS = social deprivation, marginality, anomie and the search for meaning, may cease to be relavent.
Explain Problems maintaining commitment could result in short-lived sects
Barker–people are unable to cope with the strict discipline and rules imposed on members. The heavy and often extreme commitment required is difficult to maintain so people leave.
Niebur- However, once the first generation started having children, second-generation members would not be able to sustain the enthusiasm and commitment of the first generation. This leads to wither the death of the sect or it will adapt and become less of a protest movement and more tolerate of mainstream society. What Becker referred to this process as “a sect cooling down” and becoming more like a denomination.
Explain Loss of the leader. could result in short-lived sects
• Sects that overly rely upon a charismatic leader often do not survive the death of that leader.
EXPLAIN how Changing circumstances of members could result in sects to bein shor-lived?
The social circumstance and personal reasons that originally led to someone to join a cult may change or disappear over a period of time making membership to the cult redundant. Second generation members may not have felt the initial reason for joining the sect so are more likely to leave.
• Niebuhr argued that the ideology or beliefs of many sects contain the seed of their own destruction. Sects often encourage their members to work hard and save their money. As a result the membership may become upwardly mobile and may no longer wish to belong to a religious group which mainly caters for the poor. Consequently, the sect would either need to change its beliefs and accommodate this by becoming a denomination or die out altogether.
Explain why postmodernist believe sects thought to be short lived?
PM socitiies are charaterised by a fragmentation of belief and a wide diversity of religious, spiritual and other beliefs. PM tend to see the beliefs of ppl as purely PERSONAL MATTER and they can go spiritual and RELIGIOUS SHOPPING, Picking nd CHoosing and changing beliefs as freely as they might want. = greater toleranc today for all beliefs = this may mean that religious sects have a short lived shelf life as consumer tastes and current fads change
Explain Aldridge’s examples of when and why sects are not always short lived.
Jehovah’s Witness
- Developed in the 1880’s and is still going strong today.
- Started by Charles TazeRussell, but has had a number of different leaders since then.
Are all sects necessarily short lived? Aldridge Why
1) Many sects have existed for a long time and retain their features as a sect.
3) Not all sects have a charismatic leader.
2) Many sects are successful in socialising the next generation into the sects beliefs and practices as well as converting more followers.
What does Wilson mean by Established Sects? Give examples.
Rejected view that disappearanc eof sects or its becoming denomiation are only alternatives = point to jehovahs witnesses = long standing gorup =
What does Wilson mean by Conversionist Sects? Give examples.
These are sects which think that the best was to save the world is to be engaged with it, and try to change or onvert individuals by spreading religious messages and ‘saving souls’ = successful
Salvatoin army example of former conversionist sect that has turned into a conversionist denomination
What does Wilson mean by Interversionist or Advent Sects? Give examples.
These are sect which Wilson saw as not being able to survive in denominational form- the introversionist and adventist or revolutionary sects
