Social aspects of cult-like behavior
For a group to be a cult in the social sense, many of the following characteristics would have to be present. For a group to be a cult in the doctrinal sense, essentials (in this case of the Christian faith) would have to be violated. Some of the characteristics are listed below.
Submission:
Complete, almost unquestioned trust in the leadership. Leaders are often seen as prophets, apostles, or special individuals with unusual connections to God. This helps a person give themselves over psychologically to trusting someone else for their spiritual welfare. Increased submission to the leadership is rewarded with additional responsibilities and/or roles, and/or praises, increasing the importance of the person within the group.
Exclusivity
Their group is the only true religious system, or one of the few true remnants of God’s people.
Persecution complex
Us against them mentality. Therefore, when someone (inside or outside of the group) corrects the group in doctrine and/or behavior, it is interpreted as persecution, which then is interpreted as validation.
Control
Control of members’ actions and thinking through repeated indoctrination and/or threats of loss of salvation, or a place to live, or receiving curses from God, etc.
Isolation
Minimizing contact of church members with those outside the group. This facilitates a further control over the thinking and practices of the members by the leadership.
Love Bombing
Showing great attention and love to a person in the group by others in the group, to help transfer emotional dependence to the group.
Special Knowledge
Instructions and/or knowledge are sometimes said to be received by a leader(s) from God. This leader then informs the members. The Special Knowledge can be received through visions, dreams, or new interpretations of sacred scriptures such as the Bible.
Indoctrination
The teachings of the group are repeatedly drilled into the members, but the indoctrination usually occurs around Special Knowledge.
Salvation
Salvation from the judgment of God is maintained through association and/or submission with the group, its authority, and/or its Special Knowledge.
Group Think
The group’s coherence is maintained by the observance to policies handed down from those in authority.
There is an internal enforcement of policies by members who reward “proper” behavior, and those who perform properly are rewarded with further inclusion and acceptance by the group.
Cognitive Dissonance
Avoidance of critical thinking and/or maintaining logically impossible beliefs and/or beliefs that are inconsistent with other beliefs held by the group.
Avoidance of and/or denial of any facts that might contradict the group’s belief system.
Shunning
Those who do not keep in step with group policies are shunned and/or expelled.
Gender Roles
Control of gender roles and definitions.
Severe control of gender roles sometimes leads to sexual exploitation.
Appearance Standards
Often a common appearance is required and maintained. For instance, women might wear prairie dresses, and/or their hair in buns, and/or no makeup, and/or the men might all wear white short-sleeved shirts, and/or without beards, or all wear beards.
https://carm.org/signs-practices-of-a-cult
What a winky-tink. How old is he, 14?
Boy, our language has come in for a real battering this election cycle. “True conservatism” now means working hard to see a hard-left activist Supreme Court and all that entails, open borders, a weakened military, higher taxes, more government regulations, retention of Obamacare and Common Core, a gradual abolition of the Second Amendment, and a soft stance on ISIS and terrorism. Who would have thought?
If these globalist NeverTrumpers on the right love the libertarians, I hope they go ahead and join the Libertarian Party and leave us alone. The moderate neo-conconservative globalists in the party can go ahead and join the no borders globalist one-worlders in the Dem party too, while they’re at it. Patriotic, pro-America, hardworking, reasonable Dems and Indies can replace them.
The dead have arisen! Glad you’re back.