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→How can any denomination ever start...: hard to define "cult"
It seems to me that most denominations must look an awful lot like a "cult" when they are starting. [[User:Dpbsmith|Dpbsmith]] 18:58, 20 March 2007 (EDT)
It seems to me that most denominations must look an awful lot like a "cult" when they are starting. [[User:Dpbsmith|Dpbsmith]] 18:58, 20 March 2007 (EDT)
:In one sense, a "cult" is just a new religious movement on its way to becoming a "sect" or "denomination". Every major religion started small, and I've heard Christianity referred to as "the cult of the Nazarene".
:My favorite dictionary definition of cult is "A religion regarded as spurious". This leads to the comment that "One man's religion is another man's cult".
:There is no objective standard capable of distinguishing a "cult" from a 'real religion'. Even within Christianity, many sects call one or more other sects "unChristian". It's common with Protestantism to distinguish between "Christians" and "Catholics" - implying that the Roman Catholic Church is non-Christian. --[[User:Ed Poor|Ed Poor]] 20:28, 20 March 2007 (EDT)