Flashcards in Organsiations, Movements And Members Deck (66)
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1
Identify 5 characteristics of a church
Large organisation, many members, bureaucratic hierarchy of priests, claim a monopoly of the truth, inclusive
2
Why are churches more attractive to the middle class?
They are ideologically conservative and are often closely linked to the state
3
Identify 5 characteristics of a sect
Small organisation, exclusive, hostile to wider society, expect a high level of commitment and often have charismatic leaders
4
How are sects similar to churches?
They claim a monopoly of the truth
5
What sort of people do sects attract?
The poor and oppressed
6
What two types of religious organisation does Richard Niebuhr describe?
Denominations and cults
7
What two types of religious organisation does Ernst Troeltsch distinguish between?
Churches and Sects
8
How does Neibuhr describe denominations such as Methodism?
He describes them as lying midway between churches and sects
9
Identify 5 features of denominations
Quite large, membership is less exclusive than sects, they accept society's values, low levels of demand from members and they do not claim a monopoly of the truth
10
Identify 5 key features of cults
Poorly organised, highly individualistic, small, tolerant of other organisations and they do not demand strong commitment from followers
11
Who do cults tend to be led by?
Practitioners or therapists who claim to have special knowledge
12
According to Roy Wallis, how do churches, sects, denominations and cults differ in the way they see themselves?
Churches and sects claim that their interpretation of the faith is the only legitimate or correct one whereas denominations and cults accept that there can be many valid interpretations
13
According to Roy Wallis, how do churches, sects, denominations and cults differ in the way they are seen by wider society?
Churches and denominations are seen as respectable and legitimate, whereas sects and cults are seen deviant
14
Since the 1960s what sort of religious organisations have significantly increased?
New religious movements
15
Give two examples of NRMs
Moonies and Transcendental meditation
16
Row Wallis categorises NRMs into three groups. What are they?
World-rejecting NRMs, World-accommodating NRMs and World-affirming NRMs
17
Give 3 examples of World-rejecting NRMs
The Moonies, Branch Davidians and the People's temple
18
Identify 5 key features of World-rejecting NRMs
They have a clear notion of God, they are highly critical of the outside world, they demand significant changes from members former lives, members have restricted access to the outside world and they often have conservative moral codes
19
What do World-accommodating NRMs tend to be breakaways from?
Existing mainstream churches or denominations
20
Give an example of a world-accommodating NRM
Neo-Pentecostalists who split from Catholicism
21
Name 4 features of World-accommodating NRMs
They neither accept or reject the world, they focus on religious rather than worldly matter, they seek to restore the spiritual purity of religion and their members tend to lead conventional lives
22
Give an example of a World-affirming NRM
Scientology
23
How do World-affirming NRMs view the world?
They accept the world as it is
24
Are World-affirming NRMs exclusive or non-exclusive?
Non-exclusive
25
How do World-affirming NRMs view other religions, and what do they claim to offer?
They are tolerant of other religions, but they claim to offer additional special knowledge or techniques that enable followers to unlock their own spiritual powers and achieve success or overcome problems such as unhappiness or illness
26
What are most World-affirming NRMs, and how are their followers described?
Cults whose followers are described as customers rather than members
27
What is Wallis criticised of ignoring?
The diversity of beliefs that may exist within a NRM
28
What two types of religious organisation does Stark and Bainbridge identify that are in conflict with wider society?
Sects and cults
29
According to Stark and Bainbridge, how are sects formed?
Sects result from schisms - splits in existing organisations
30
