Cults: Contemporary Issues in Religion

501 (c ) (3)

tax exempt status for churches and non profits

Basically means they dont have to pay taxes

apocalypticism

1884- An apocaplyptic doctrine or belief, especially one based on an expecation of the emminent end of the present world order

apotheosis

the elevation of someone to divine status; deification

authoritarian

1862- Favorable to or to characterized by obedience to authority as opposed to personal liberty; strick dictatorial

cargo cult

diverse spiritural and political movments that emerged in Melanesia, characterized by the belief in the arrival of material wealth and prosperity through ancestral spirits or supernatural means.

charisma

1. 1641- Theological use: A free gift or favor specially vouchsafed by God; a grace a talent

   1. 1930- A gift or power of leadership or authority; aura. Hece, the capacity to inspire devotion or enthusiasm

Conversion

The bringing of any one over to a specific religious faith, profession, or party, esp. to one regarded as true, from what is regarded as falsehood or error

cult

1. 1613- The action or act of paying homage to a divine bein; religious worship. Now rare.

2. 1679- A particular form or system of religious worship or veneration, esp. as expressed in ceremony or ritual directed towards a specific figure or object. Frequently with a modifying word

   2b. 1875- A relatively small group of people having (esp. religious) beliefs or practices regarded by others as strange or sinister, or as exercising excessive control over members.

   3. 1711- In extended use: a collective obsession with or intense admiration for a particular person, thing, or idea.

Fringe

Something regarded as peripheral, marginal, secondary, or extreme in relation to something else

Historicize

To make (a person or thing) historical or the subject of a history

To situate in a historical context

millenarianism

The doctrine of or belief in the coming of a millennium: (Christian Church) the belief in a future thousand- year age blessedness, beginning with or culminating in the Second Coming of Christ. In extended use: belief in a future golden age of peace, justice, and prosperity, typically posited on an end to the existing world order.

monolith

1836-

1. A single block of stone, esp. a large one shaped (frequently in prehistoric times) into a pillar or monument.

1880-

2. In extended use: a person or thing resembling a monolith, esp. in being massive, immovable, or solidly uniform; large, impersonal political or corporate body.

movement

a diffusely organized or heterogeneous group of people or organizations tending toward or favoring a generalized common goal

orhoodox

1. Right, corrective, true; in accordance with what is accepted or authoritatively established as the true view or right practice

   1a. 1454-

   Of belonging to, or in accordance with the accepted theological or ecclesiastical doctrines of a particular religion, etc; (also) designating practices or beliefs conforming with these.

   1b.

   In extended use: of or in accordance with views, attitudes, beliefs, or practices prevalent or established in a particular society, field, profession, party, etc.; conventional

revivalism

1803

1. Belief in or the promotion of a revival of religious fervor

1843

2. Tendency or desire to revive something which has gone out of use or fashion, or which belongs to the past. Frequently with a modifying word

sect

1a. A branch of subdivision of a larger religious group, typically distinguished by differences in doctrine and observance; esp. a recognized autonomous branch of a religion; a religious denomination. Also: the members of a religious group of this kind.

1b. depreciative. A religious denomination or group characterized as heretical or departing from orthodox tradition in doctrine and observance, or as dissenting, seperatist, or schismatic; esp. a group dissenting from the national church of England or Scotland in the 17th and 18th centuries. Also the members of such a group collectively

secular

circa 1290

Belonging to the world and its affairs as distinguished from the church and religion; civil, lay temporal.

circa 1450

Of literature, history, art (esp. music) hence of writers or artists. Not concerned with or devoted to the service of religion; not sacred; profane. Also of buildings, etc, Not dedicated to religious uses.

soteriology

n. a doctrine of salvation

totem

1. An emblem representing a clan or other hereditary social unit, having the form of an animal or other natural object; the animal or natural object itself; a depiction or representation of this animal or object

   2. A sign, symbol, or example: a guiding principle or value

   Originally with reference to some Indigenous peoples of North America but used by anthropologists with reference to other groups with similar practices or beliefs

   A totem is typically considered to be ancestrally or fraternally related to the clan and is treated with particular care

utopia

1601-

An imagined or hypothetical place, system, or state of existence in which everything is perfect, esp. in respect of social laws, and politics

Baptist

Protestant Christian Denomination that emphasizes baptism by immersion for professing believers, local church autonomy, and evangelical preaching. Baptists grew rapidly in the early republic, particularly in the South and the frontier.

Burned Over District

term referring to western and central New York, where intense religious revivals and reform movements during the early 19th century led to frequent religious enthusiasm, leaving the area metaphorically “burned over” with no unconverted people left.

Charles Finney

(1792-1875) prominent revivalist preacher of the Second Great Awakening who emphasized personal conversion, emotional preaching, and social reform; played a key role in the revival movements in the Burned-Over District

Evangelical

a broad term referring to Protestant movements that emphasize personal conversion, the authority of the Bible, and active evangelicalism. Evangelicalism was a driving force behind the religious revivals of the First and Second Great Awakenings

Later- Day Saints (LDS; Mormons)

A religious movement founded by Joseph Smith in the 1820s in New York. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints emphasizes additional scriptures such as the Book of Mormon and new prophetic revolution

Methodist

Protestant denomination that emerged from the teachings of John Wesley. Methodists were known for their circuit riding preachers, emotional conversions, and social activism; the denomination expanded rapidly during the Second Great Awakening

Religious Populism

Movements within American religion that emphasized the power of common people in spiritural matters, often rejecting established church authority in favor of personal experience and direct relationship with God

Second Great Awakening

A widespread religious revival movement in the early 19th century that emphasized personal salvation, evangelical fervor, and social reform. It led to the growth of Methodist and Baptist Churches, as well as new religious movements.