...Churches are large organisations often with millions of members. Sects are usually a break away from a church usually because of disagreement and cults are new religions such as Scientology. The view that sects and cults are more important than the church may be due to the fact there are many of these new religious movements gaining status and becoming well known in certain societies. The reason they may be seen as more important than the church may be due to the fact the church is losing members and attendance is low whereas new religious movements are gaining more members and are becoming more socially accepted. People these days are now more individualistic due to modernity. They do things that benefit themselves rather than society for example young people believe in spirituality as it aims to improve the individual. Stark and Bainbridge say sects offer other worldly benefits such as a place in heaven and cults offer worldly benefits in this life. This could be a reason that they seem to be more important than church as people rather follow the new religious movements as opposed to the church because they are fulfilling the individuals need to feel they may have a better life now and after death . This could also be showing that people feel so oppressed in this life that they need to follow a new religious movement like a sect as it gives them comfort knowing in the afterlife they will be saved and free of the oppression they are faced with in today’s...
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...Crime and Deviance Revision SCLY 4: Crime and Deviance with Methods in Context Sociology Department Greenhead College SCLY 4: Crime and Deviance with Methods in Context Remember: You have to revise everything, because you have no choice on the exam paper. The specification 1 Different theories of crime, deviance, social order and social control * Different definitions of crime, deviance, social order and social control * The distinction between sociological theories of crime and other theories (eg biological, psychological); crime and deviance as socially constructed * Functionalist theories of crime: Durkheim, anomie, collective conscience; Merton’s strain theory; manifest and latent functions; functionalist subcultural theories * Marxist and neo-Marxist theories of crime: classical Marxism, laws reflecting class interests; Neo-Marxism, hegemony, the CCCS studies, critical and new criminology * Interactionist theories of crime: labelling theory, the self-fulfilling prophecy * Feminist theories of crime: patriarchy, male control of women’s lives * Control theory and other contemporary approaches to crime: social bonds, communitarianism, situational prevention; postmodern theories; Foucault on individualisation and surveillance * Realist theories: New Left Realism and Right Realism * The relevance of the various theories to understanding different types of crime, and their implications for social policy. 2 The social distribution...
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...Describe and evaluate one other explanation of criminal/anti-social behaviour. (12) * One other explanation for criminal behaviour is labelling and the self-fulfilling prophecy. Labelling theory states that criminal or anti-social behaviour is a consequence of the application of a criminal label given to the individual by others around them. * This explanation has four main stages. Firstly, a label is assigned to the individual by others around them; such labels are derived from stereotypes. For example, hoody wearers being labelled as troublemakers because of their physical appearance. * Secondly, the labelled individual will be treated according to their label by others around them. For example, if a crime such as graffiti occurs and a hoody wearer is nearby they will be blamed because their label is of a troublemaker. * Thirdly, the labelled individual reacts by starting to believe their assigned label. As a reaction to constantly being treated differently, the hoody wearer starts to believe that they are a bad person. * Finally, this results in the labelled individual behaving in line with the expectations of those around them which confirms the label. For example, the hoody wearer engages in criminal behaviour therefore a self-fulfilling prophecy (SFP) has occurred whereby the label has become true. * One example to illustrate how labelling and the self-fulfilling prophecy occurs is the naming of boys in the Ashanti tribe according to the day of the week...
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...the difference between a sect and a cult?" Answer: The word sect comes from the Latin word secta, which means “school of thought.” It is a subjective term that may apply to a religious faith or denomination, or it may refer to a heretical splinter group. Sometimes, the connotation is one of disapproval, similar to the “destructive heresies” spoken of in 2 Peter 2:1, though there are no consistent or accepted exemplars to use to identify a sect. Sects are found in all religions. Islam has Sunnis and Shias, Judaism has Orthodox and Karaites, Hinduism has Shiyaism and Shaktism, and Christianity has Baptists and Lutherans. These are all examples of religious sects, and they can be thought of as “branches” of different religions. There are also non-religious sects, such as capitalists and socialists among economists, or Freudians and Jungians among psychiatrists. In contradistinction, the word cult always carries a negative connotation. There are specific criteria used to identify a cult. In Combatting Cult Mind Control, deprogrammer Steven Hassan singles out what he refers to as “destructive cults,” which he defines as “a pyramid-shaped authoritarian regime with a person or group of people that have dictatorial control. It uses deception in recruiting new members (e.g. people are NOT told up front what the group is, what the group actually believes and what will be expected of them if they become members).” Hassan also correctly points out that cults are not only religious;...
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...Difference Between, Cult, Sect and Church Mashell Chapeyama Zimbawe I have the opportunity to look deeper into the difference among the three aspects, sect, cult and church which seem to be closely related. They are related in that they deal with spiritual aspects of human beings and humanity in general. A cult and a sect are similar in that these are usually newly created religious groups of people. These two are similar in that they have a relatively fewer followers who, however are very committed to the group. A sect and a cult are also similar in that they usually originate around very charismatic leaders. These are not very established groups. The people are really devotees to their religious beliefs and standings. A cult has been described as a newly established religious group which is led by a charismatic leader. On the other hand a sect is described as a newly formed religious group, which has split from a parent religious group. The other similarity between a cult and a sect is that these two are said to be in high tension with the society. Being in tension with the society arise from the fact that these two’s teachings are a deviant from the normal teachings of the other religious groups. These two are viewed as weird by most people in the community, who do not believe in their principles and practices. A sect or a cult can grow up to become a denomination or a church. As soon as it gets more followers and the society has started accepting its teachings then...
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...Discuss the differences between churches, sects and cults. A church: is a religious group that accepts the social environment in which it exists. In more plain language, a church is widely accepted by the host culture in which it resides. In America, Protestantism would be a church. It is generally accepted by the whole and is consistent with the culture's values (maybe not traditional Protestantism, but what forms we have of it today). Church may have denominations which are small changes made in the church that are still accepted by the host culture. A sect: is a religious group the rejects the social environment in which it exists. Now, it's not as extreme as that definition makes it seem. A sect doesn't necessarily share the same values as the host culture. This causes some friction between the religious group and the host culture, but we accept the group as a society because we're more tolerant to differing religions in this day and age. Many churches started as sects. One well-known example was the Nazarenes. This was an reform movement within Judaism formed by Jesus' apostles after the execution of Jesus circa 30 CE They were largely dispersed or killed some four decades later when the Romans attacked Jerusalem and destroyed the temple. Again the most obvious North American example of a sect that evolved into a denomination is the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), the Mormons. Their founder, Joseph Smith, had a revelation from God that the...
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...Assess view that cults, sects and New Age Movements are fringe organisations that are short lived and of little influence in society. Churches and denominations are generally seen as respectable, mainstream organisations, whereas cults, sects and NAM’s are seen as more deviant, which involve belief systems that are viewed as odd or bizarre. The terms ‘sect’ or ‘cult’ have been stigmatised, due to the mass media view on them as controlling, brainwashing and manipulative to its members. Many believe cults, sects and NAM’s are short-lived, as they will, over time, either turn into denominations or disappear altogether. For example, The Quakers originally began as a world-rejecting religious sect. However, over time they abandoned their world rejecting view and evolved into a highly respectable denomination, while others, such as The Peoples Temple, have disappeared altogether. Many sociologists believe NAM’s have little influence over society, and are just ways of showing change in society. Wallis identified three different types of these religious movements: World affirming, world accommodating and world rejecting groups. World rejecting religious movements, such as The Moonies are seen to be the most short-lived groups with little influence over society. These groups hold strict guidelines to members which demand high commitment from their members who obtain a view that the outside world is evil. There are a number of reasons that sects are destined to be short lived. Barker...
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...Assess the view that cults and sects are fringe organisations that are inevitably short lived and of little influence on contemporary society. Cults and sects are often hard to differentiate from one another, as a lot of them have very similar features such as a world-rejecting values and the offer of alternative explanations to traditional beliefs. According to Troeitsch, sects tend to be small, tight-knitted groups of individuals that often disagree with mainstream values and attempt to change society for the better. Cults on the other hand, are loosely knit, require a lot less commitment and do not always hold concrete beliefs. While some sects are low profile and harmless, others carry out horrific actions and rituals which have become apparent to the public through the media, such as 'Heaven’s Gate': a sect that conducted mass suicides as a way of gaining access to heaven, and the 'People’s Temple', a sect lead by the Reverend Jim Jones who famously drove a mass suicide in a jungle campsite in South America. The idea that neither sects nor cults are long lasting is an important one, with theologians such as Richard Neibuhr suggesting that sects cannot survive beyond one generation. He states that as they are often led and “held together” by one charismatic individual who claims to have some kind of “divine power”, following the death of this leader, the sect usually disappears. Furthermore, second generation members that are born into sects may not maintain...
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...Troeltsch believed that a sect was “the opposite of a church” and he describes this type of religious organisation as a small, tightly knit group of individuals that often criticise mainstream values and attempt to change society in some way. Cults on the other hand, are loosely knit and don’t tend to have any firm beliefs. There are therefore some significant differences between these two organisations, however it is widely accepted that they are similar, in that they are usually short lived. Many sociologists state that sects, cults and New Age movements only appeal to a minority of the population. For example, people on the margins of society who are poor are often attracted to sects as they offer them a sense of belonging. Others, who may be undergoing a personal crisis such as the death of a loved one, may find that belonging to a sect or cult may help them to overcome this crisis. However, when they feel they have been helped to get over the crisis, they often leave the sect, as there is no further reason to belong to it. This seems to suggest that these organisations only appeal to a small section of the population perhaps seeking short-term help, so they will remain fringe organisations. However, other organisations such as the Scientology movement are still around today with a well recognised and idolised member such as Tom Cruise has helped to increase the popularity of the sect. Supporting the view that sects and cults are short lived, Niebuhr produced some explanations...
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...Assess the view that cults and sects are fringe organisations that are inevitably short lived and of little influence on contemporary society. Cults and sects are often hard to differentiate from one another, as a lot of them have very similar features such as a world-rejecting values and the offer of alternative explanations to traditional beliefs. According to Troeitsch, sects tend to be small, tight-knitted groups of individuals that often disagree with mainstream values and attempt to change society for the better. Cults on the other hand, are loosely knit, require a lot less commitment and do not always hold concrete beliefs. While some sects are low profile and harmless, others carry out horrific actions and rituals which have become apparent to the public through the media, such as 'Heaven’s Gate': a sect that conducted mass suicides as a way of gaining access to heaven, and the 'People’s Temple', a sect lead by the Reverend Jim Jones who famously drove a mass suicide in a jungle campsite in South America. The idea that neither sects nor cults are long lasting is an important one, with theologians such as Richard Neibuhr suggesting that sects cannot survive beyond one generation. He states that as they are often led and “held together” by one charismatic individual who claims to have some kind of “divine power”, following the death of this leader, the sect usually disappears. Furthermore, second generation members that are born into sects may not maintain the...
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...Evaluate the view that new cults and sects are replacing traditional religion as the means for experiencing and expressing religious belief in the world today In this essay, I will be evaluating the view that cults and sects are replacing traditional religion as for expressing religious belief in the world today. To do this I will be referring to a number of sociologists view on the idea of sects and cults. New religious movements such as sects and cults have become more common over the years. Many people are becoming influenced by these religious groups which tell citizens in society if they join them they will lead a better life. Many sociologists have argued that NRMs are increasing in size and popularity due to unjust events people are seeing in modern society. To begin with, many sociologists have argued that NRMs are no big influence on society and are just really to some extent a way of showing societies change, which is sure to happen over the years anyway. Wallis identified three main kinds of new religious movements. These are world affirming, world accommodating and world rejecting groups. Sociologists have argued the one that is short lived than the rest is the world rejecting. This group is usually classed as a sect or cult in which they are always highly critical of the outside world and demand significant commitment from their members. An Example of one of these is the Unification church (the Moonies) founded in Korea. They reject the mundane the secular...
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...that cults and sects have taken the place of established churches as the most important religious and spiritual movements on today’s society Churches are large organisations often with millions of members. Sects are usually a break away from a church usually because of disagreement and cults are new religions such as Scientology. The view that sects and cults are more important than the church may be due to the fact there are many of these new religious movements gaining status and becoming well known in certain societies. The reason they may be seen as more important than the church may be due to the fact the church is losing members and attendance is low whereas new religious movements are gaining more members and are becoming more socially accepted. People these days are now more individualistic due to modernity. They do things that benefit themselves rather than society for example young people believe in spirituality as it aims to improve the individual. Stark and Bainbridge say sects offer other worldly benefits such as a place in heaven and cults offer worldly benefits in this life. This could be a reason that they seem to be more important than church as people rather follow the new religious movements as opposed to the church because they are fulfilling the individuals need to feel they may have a better life now and after death . This could also be showing that people feel so oppressed in this life that they need to follow a new religious movement like a sect as...
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...Assess the view that sects and cults are only fringe organisations that are inevitably short lived and of little influence in wider society Troeltsch believed that a sect was “the opposite of a church”. He defines this type of religious organisation as a small, tightly-knit group of individuals that often oppose mainstream values and attempt to change society in some way. Cults on the other hand, are loosely knit and lack any concrete beliefs. Stark and Bainbridge suggest that cults often have “clients” rather than members. There are therefore some significant differences between these two organisations, although it is widely accepted that they are similar, in that they are usually short lived and have little influence on society as a whole. Supporting the notion that sects and cults are short lived; Niebuhr offers a number of explanations as to why this is so. He proposes that sects cannot survive beyond one generation, as they are often led and “held together” by one charismatic individual who claims to have some kind of “divine power/connection”. Following the death of this leader, the sect usually disappears. Furthermore, second generation members that are born into sects may not maintain the traditions of the movement with the same fervour as the founding generation. As a result, it is difficult for sects to maintain their extreme values, and they may accommodate/compromise their theology and become denominations. This can be seen in the example of early Methodism, which...
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...Assess the view that sects and cults are only fringe organisations that are inevitably short lived and of little influence in wider society Troeltsch believed that a sect was “the opposite of a church”. He defines this type of religious organisation as a small, tightly-knit group of individuals that often oppose mainstream values and attempt to change society in some way. Cults on the other hand, are loosely knit and lack any concrete beliefs. Stark and Bainbridge suggest that cults often have “clients” rather than members. There are therefore some significant differences between these two organisations, although it is widely accepted that they are similar, in that they are usually short lived and have little influence on society as a whole. Supporting the notion that sects and cults are short lived; Niebuhr offers a number of explanations as to why this is so. He proposes that sects cannot survive beyond one generation, as they are often led and “held together” by one charismatic individual who claims to have some kind of “divine power/connection”. Following the death of this leader, the sect usually disappears. Furthermore, second generation members that are born into sects may not maintain the traditions of the movement with the same fervour as the founding generation. As a result, it is difficult for sects to maintain their extreme values, and they may accommodate/compromise their theology and become denominations. This can be seen in the example of early Methodism, which...
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...– the church and the sect. Churches are large organisations with millions of members, run by a bureaucratic hierarchy of priests, who claim a monopoly of the truth. Churches are universalistic aiming to include the whole of society as they place few demands on their members. However people of the higher class tend to be more attracted as they are ideologically conservative and are often close linked to the state. Sects are small exclusive groups opposed to wider society, expecting a high level of commitment from its members. Sects tend to draw their members from the poor and oppressed, many of the sects are led by charismatic leaders. The only similarity between churches and sects is that they both believe they have a monopoly of religious truth. Sects are often short lived organisations only lasting a single generation or less. As well as churches and sects. Sociologists have identified other types of religious organisations such as denominations and cults. Niebuhr describes denominations as lying midway between churches and sects. Membership for denominations is less exclusive compared to sects however they don’t appeal to the whole of society like churches. Denominations largely accept society’s values, and they impose minor restrictions on members, like forbidding alcohol. Cults are small groups who share the same interests and themes without a sharply defined belief system. Practitioners or therapists who claim special knowledge usually lead cults, they don’t demand strong...
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