I have to write a research paper on Cults... comparing on contrasting to Christianity... I'm going to need three of the most popular cults, or just three in general. Does anyone have any ideas? Or... any thoughts in general... Just before I start my research... so I know what I'm getting myself into...\nby the way... i mean cults like Mormonism, scientology.. or even muslim... (sorry to offend anyone!)
211119
Three popular cults are the Jehovah Witnesses, Church of Later Day Saints (Mormon) and Adventists of the Seventh Day... \n\nA very easy way to see if a religion is considered a cult is to check if they are exclusivists; which means they think that just their faith is the true one and all other people are apostates, or simply false in their faith... \n\nThey have a very particular interpretation of the Holy Bible, and try to get just one point to make the whole "religion"...\nAs an example, the Jehovah Witnesses uses the blood, the Adventists uses the Saturday law, and it goes on... \n\nAnother way is the use of prophecies, they all claim to know where Jesus is coming back, and when it doest`t happen, they just come up with some "new revelation" from God...\nThose are just few examples, but the most commom ones... I hope I`ve helped a little bit\n\nJust one comment:\nSupernatural, the number of adepts doesn`t show if a religion is a cult or not... It doesn`t matter at all, actually... I didn`t mean to be rude, just to make this point clearer... Have a good week.
581235
Look up statistics on when prayer was in schools and when they took it out. There is some great stuff out there.\n\nI'd love to read your paper when your finished. :)
185462
I had Elder Bednar come to my stake confeerence last sunday and he explained so much to me.  I know how you feel about this but if someone starts telling you that Mormons belive this and that just say "Dude, I am a Mormon. I know what I believe, I don't need you telling me what I believe."  The world is becoming more and more wicked.  Thats not to say that there aren't good people its that we are becoming outnumbered.\nYou just need to ignore what other people say. Don't let that that get in your way.  You need to have a testimony and no one can take that away.\n\nIt drives me crazy when people put our church down.  We DO NOT DO THAT TO THEM.  Just think is there any Anti-Catholic literature?  The adversary is trying hardest to make your faith waver.  Keep your faith strong.\n\nNo way Joseph Smith could have written The Book of Mormon He translated it.  Prophets of old times wrote it just like the Bible.\nIf any one tries to sway you with Anti-Mormon Literature its them who have not studied about the truth of our religion.\n\nI recently heard that another religion told a mother that because her baby wasn't baptized it was damned to hell and she'd never see it again.  That is horrible, Why would anyone continue in a faith that told you that? Can you imagine what that must be like for her? I'm not a mother but still.
157850
The twelve tribes are a cult. Please do not join them. Any group that specifys who their "leader" is, when it is not God, is a cult.
514145
I was born and raised Christian. After studying the Bahai Faith while in high  school, I became a Bahai.  Because Baha' u'llah often quotes from the Quran, I studied Islam. My fascination with religion led me to take two college courses on world religions, so I have studied some forms of paganism, Hinduism, Sikhism,  Judaism, Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Jainism and Taoism.   My participation in forums such as this one -- and the violent attacks on Islam - have  led to more study of the Quran. And when the Jehovah's Witnesses dropped by, I studied  with them for awhile until they give up on me and stopped dropping by.  Since I have lived in Ohio, I became interested in the Amish religion and studied that for awhile. Online discussions and the behavior of some of its followers drove me to read up on Scientology. Basically, I find the variety of beliefs fascinating and love reading about them. I find that understanding religion makes it easier to understand people. More understanding, IMHO, would lead to fewer wars.
594368
A lot of religions share similar themes. Most have taken ideas from past religions and sort of reformed them.  It can be confusing with so many religions out there.  I take a anthropological mostly agnostic view on religion.  I know there is something, but who knows what, and who knows which religion is the one to follow.
10934
By the time I read all of the answers I realized that my thoughts had pretty much been covered. So kudos to all above me!\n\nBut I do want to emphasize what Snehal has proposed. One world........no religions. I agree with the answer that said that religions have basic similarities but that man has chosen to use their religion inappropriately. Wars have been fought merely over "interpretations." People have died for believing differently. Lives have been controlled because of those reading religion as a misinterpreted call for power. People are told what to think and what not to think and are condemned for differing opinions. \n\nI'm sure right now someone reading this is shaking their head thinking, "She has no clue what she is talking about." If it would stop with that, all would be fine. We are all entitled to have our own opinions. It is when someone will write me slamming me for my beliefs and finding  a way to avenge my thoughts by blasting me somewhere that we realize this is symbolic of our world's problems. It's not just because of religion of course. Religion is the scapegoat. Man can blame his judgements of others on the fact that they belong to "the wrong" religion. If we didn't have religions..........we would all have to face what we really are without the use of the scapegoat. \n\nGod? Well I believe we have a higher order. Does he want religions killing and disagreeing? *cough* Think about what He would write if he answered this question. :)
129891
I hope all Christians will pray for everyone sucked into cults like this couple.\n\nPeople involved in cults are taught that if they question anything then they are questionning their loyalty to the group and so just follow the groups line so they are not pushed out.\n\nPeople need friends and acceptance, a sense of belonging somewhere. If there were no problems here, Danny Wallace would not have had such a success with "Join Me", in which he asked people to join him, not knowing what this would mean, and loads of people did.\n\nWider families, friendship groups and the church should be providing this acceptance, so just go out and make friends!
607593
I think it's wrong to generalize about an entire group.  However, I hear where you are coming from with people being too pushy when it comes to their religion, politics, whatever it may be.  Like any other religious group there are going to be fanatics and those individuals that try to push their views on you.  It's unfortunate that some people make others want to stay away.  I thought like you a while back, but then I came to realize that it's not Christians as a group, it is people that use religious texts to fit what they believe.  People that use their own interpretations and then attempt to preach them to everyone.  Again though, it's unfair to generalize.
94219
I read through your paper and I must admit that it must have been difficult to cram so much into something so little. Theological debate can go on and on. Just the history of Christianity can even be volumes. \n\nNow, I don't know where you stand with God, I just know that one thing you failed to mention was (well I guess you touched on it a little) was the fact that Christianity is spiritual, hence, "God is Spirit, and His worshippers must worship in spirit and truth." (John 4:24) Ones own relationship with Jesus Christ cannot be by or through the intellect. There's where faith come in. With all do respect, your presentation was accurate, however, we MUST remember that we cannot bring God down to OUR level, we must assend to HIS level through the Holy Spirit and the only way the Truth can be discovered is by faith alone. Good job, and God bless you.
235109
The term "cult" is just an insulting synonym for "religion". The "c-bomb" has no place in polite theological conversation.\n\nThere are untold numbers of inaccurate websites purporting to present the beliefs of Jehovah's Witnesses. Really, the best place to learn about actual Witness beliefs is by researching their publications, many of which are available instantly on their official website:\nhttp://www.watchtower.org\n\nInterestingly, even Witness schoolchildren are prepared to discuss their faith and defend their beliefs from the bible. By contrast, much of Christendom's belief system comes from pagan tradition and Greek philosophy, and it actually contradicts the scriptures. Presented that way, which seems more "disturbing"?\n\nIf you have some specific question about a particular belief of Jehovah's Witnesses, it would be more appropriate to limit your question to one or two points. In addition, Jehovah's Witnesses offer a free home bible study course at your convenience.
460546
Well im not sure what to say about "Devil Worshippers" other than I think they have been mis-informed, I Myself am a Satanist and basically any information you seek about us can be found at www.churchofsatan.com . We dont kill animals or babies like we have so often been acused, nor do we go out seeking new members, new members seek us. But since im a nice guy you can pm me if you like im bored anyway and I'll help if I can.
397901
Definitely, the Cults! Those Pagans and Branch Davidians are tough!
525044
Wow! I never linked them together but these similarities are uncanny. The Mormons believe that God use to be a man, I don't think that the restoration movement teaches this.
566880
Any church can be considered a cult.  It's a very subjective term.
423464
We actually don't have many wives thankyou lol. We also don't have horns and tails if you hear that rumor too lol. Mormon, or LDS, is a Christian religion. There are differences, and not everybody would agree with that view, however, the religion is centered around Christ. We use the Bible as well as the book of Mormon which is a 2nd testiment of Jesus Christ. Along with these two is the doctrine and covenants which is a book of revelations given to prophets. Do you have any specific questions I can answer? or were you simply looking for a broad overview? If you have more questions just email me and I will be happy to answer them.
572878
Interesting website, but I'm a Hindu and this website is definately just a "Christianity is wrong" website. It's concept of God is limited in its perspective and it doesn't seem to bother to look further into the vast landscape of religious, philosophical, theological, and spiritual diversity that exists. The site seems to be aimed at trying to convince Christians that what they believe is wrong (which seems very similar to how many Christians try to convert people by trying to convince them what what they believe is right). So, for me, the website wasn't of any real interest.\n\nI do have a complaint about the website. It loads its pages too slow (and I'm on DSL!). Not sure why it was moving so slow, but it took me a while to even read through the website. Whoever maintains the website should look into this or contact their host. \n\nOther than that I am sure that the website is of interest to those who would already agree with it. Otherwise I seriously doubt many Christians would take it very seriously and the website isn't speaking to people of other religions (it seems not to even acknowledge the larger more diverse concepts of God, religion, etc). \n\nThanks for sharing the website.\n\nPeace be with you.