Interesting Jesus cults (page 3)

problemaddict

Isn't there an actual disorder that makes people visiting Jerusalem thing they are Jesus? Jerusalem Syndrome?

They made fun of it in the Simpsons episode, "The Greatest Story Ever D'ohed"

tec

But the line is stepped over once someone claims to KNOW.

What line? What does it define?

Peace,

tammy

When people claim to have special KNOWLEDGE and claim to KNOW stuff because they have information directly from Jesus so they can CORRECT other peoples understanding. THAT is often when we start to see the birth of a CULT....or maybe an individual with problems.

Here is an extreme example From a book about Jim Jones to explain what I mean. Bult cults don't start off extreme. They suck people in....slowly. As many of us now know after our experience with JWs...and they have special knowledge...just look how the light gets brighter...and they offer 'new light'.

The combination of domination and submission, crticism and adulation, was not accidental; Malmin could see that Jones was setting himself as an oracle. Whenever someone took a position contrary to his, Jones would take the extraordinary step of critisizning the person publicly, of accusing the person of going against God. To support his contention, he would say The Lord told him this or that, or it was revealed to him by Holy Spirit."

Cults often appear to be harmless....but underneath the loving exterior is a measure of Authority. Especially if they claim to speak FOR Jesus or on behalf of him ie...sharing what is 'heard' and so on. In effect, if you disagree with the person who is correcting or sharing what 'Jesus' supposedly said. YOU ARE GOING AGAINST GOD...BECAUSE JESUS/GOD TOLD THEM. They have placed THEMSELVES in a position of authority, but will sometimes, like Jones, pretend to be submissive. It's either a great act, or an illness...or maybe its both, I don't know.

The cult my inlaws were involved with appeared harmless on the surface, but they were very controlling and caused a lot of damage to their family.

DANGEROUS STUFF INDEED.

tec

You can see something like that. But there are a lot of other warning signs of a cult that need to accompany just someone who claims to know something; or someone who claims to hear from the Spirit. I can understand what you are saying if someone is saying that they alone hear and can receive this special knowledge, and your life or knowledge or whatever depends upon them coming to that person, or listening to that person.

That does seem to be a common denominator in some cults (maybe even all)

Encouraging or threatening people to follow you could be an early warning sign of a cult that could form if people actually listen.

Controlling others seems to be an underlying thread as well.

One of the reasons no one should follow another person who claims anything, but rather test and test and question and decide for yourself.

Someone who knows something should also not have to water that down just because it bothers others. But at the same time, no one should listen to someone else just because they claim to know something. Who are they to you that you should blindly follow them?

Peace to you,

tammy

sizemik

Weren't the 1st century Christians just another "Jesus cult?"

Their leader displayed all the exact same traits . . .

1) He openy invited followers . . . "Come be MY follower"

2) He claimed divine origin and connection . . . "I speak not of my own originality . . . but speak the words of him that sent me." But at times was evasive . . . Q: "Are you the son of God?" . . . A: "You yourself are saying it."

3) He condemned established religion . . . pointing to it's flaws and demonising the leaders . . . "The Pharisees have taken the seat of Moses" "They pray in the broad ways." "Your house has been abandoned."

4) He created a "them v us" mentality . . . "You are no part of the world" "He who is not with ME is against ME"

5) He invited persecution . . . "The nations will hate you on account of my name" "Let he who wants to come after me, pick up his TORTURE STAKE and follow me continually."

6) He displayed hypocrisy and double standards . . . He advised the disciples to assemble some weapons (swords) and the said to Peter "He who takes up the sword will perish by the sword."

7) He claimed poverty and frugality . . . "The son of man has nowhere to lay his head" but they clearly they had income, as Judas was assigned to care for the money.

8 ) They proselytised enthusiastically.

9) He made ambiguous prophecies that sounded imminent, to create fear . . . "The time is coming and it is now . . . "

10) He legitimised the break-up of families . . . "I come not with peace but a sword, to seperate a mother from her daughter in law etc . . . " To a man that lost his father . . . "Let the dead bury their dead"

11) He was rejected by the mainstream and considered dangerous.

Without the enthusiastic complicity and endorsement of his followers, who we rely on as the sole source of information, Christ is just another religious cult leader in the same vein as the above. His followers were never raptured, didn't go to heaven, and didn't experience any miraculous transformation into paradise. I fail to see any difference.

mP

The best and yet most unknown Jesus cult was that of his little brother in China.

In typical Christian style, he managed to create a human disaster where more people died than in WW1.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiping_Rebellion

The Taiping Rebellion was a widespread civil war in southern China from 1850 to 1864, against the ruling Manchu-led Qing Dynasty. It was led by heterodox Christian convert Hong Xiuquan, who, having claimed to have received visions, maintained that he was the younger brother of Jesus Christ. About 20 million people died, mainly civilians, in one of the deadliest military conflicts in history. [2]
Hong established the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom with its capital at Nanjing. The Kingdom's army controlled large parts of southern China, at its height containing about 30 million people. The rebels attempted social reforms believing in shared "property in common" and the replacement of Confucianism, Buddhism and Chinese folk religion with a form of Christianity. Because of their refusal to wear the queue, Taiping troops were nicknamed "Longhairs" (simplified Chinese: ? ? ; traditional Chinese: ? ? ;pinyin: Chángmáo) by the Qing government. The Taiping areas were besieged by Qing forces throughout most of the rebellion. The Qing government crushed the rebellion with the eventual aid of French and British forces.
In the 20th century, Sun Yat-sen, founder of the Chinese Nationalist Party, looked on the rebellion as an inspiration, and Chinese leader Mao Zedong glorified the Taiping rebels as early heroic revolutionaries against a corrupt feudal system. [3]

mP

size:

He openy invited followers . . . "Come be MY follower"

Dont go around making false statements attributing goodness and other good qualities to Jesus. Firstly he was a racist pig. The scrpture in Mat24 about preaching to the world, is in complete contrast to his main message about jewish exclusiveness which he repeated multipel times.

mP

size:

9) He made ambiguous prophecies that sounded imminent, to create fear . . . "The time is coming and it is now . . . "

mP:

Not quite, he prophecy did come true in his generation. The old people of Jesus time aka 30AD did see a god come to Jerusalem, his name was Titus Flavius. Read the apocalypse in Mark literally and its obvious the character being predicted and the event being recorded. To twist it to be some future prophecy that has yet to come true is totally dishonest because thats not what the text says.

still thinking

You can see something like that. But there are a lot of other warning signs of a cult that need to accompany just someone who claims to know something; or someone who claims to hear from the Spirit. I can understand what you are saying if someone is saying that they alone hear and can receive this special knowledge, and your life or knowledge or whatever depends upon them coming to that person, or listening to that person.

A person telling others they can go staight to Jesus and ask...while dishing out special insights from Jesus/God and correcting people. Is contradicting themselves.

And you have to wonder....WHY?

still thinking

Someone who knows something should also not have to water that down just because it bothers others. But at the same time, no one should listen to someone else just because they claim to know something. Who are they to you that you should blindly follow them?...tec

THAT is a total contradiction.

Since you cannot KNOW what someone else is saying or claiming to be the truth, why listen to anyone making that claim or anything they have to say at all? Why not just go straight to the source and cut out the middle man ALL TOGETHER.

If everyone can go straight to the source...anyone sharing any so called KNOWLEDGE is superfluous...and should probably get out of the way and let people get the information for THEMSELVES.

Interesting Jesus cults

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