Editing Cult (section)

== Definition and usage ==
The word "cult" is derived from the Latin term {{Lang|la|cultus}}, which means worship.{{sfn|Chryssides|Zeller|2014|p=321}} In modern English the term ''cult'' is  generally a [[pejorative]], carrying derogatory connotations.{{sfn|Dubrow-Marshall|2024|p=103}} The term is variously applied to abusive or coercive groups of many categories, including gangs, organized crime, and terrorist organizations.{{sfn|Dubrow-Marshall|2024|p=96}}

An older sense of the word cult, which is not pejorative, indicates [[Cult (religious practice)|a set of religious devotional practices]] that is conventional within its culture, is related to a particular figure, and is frequently associated with a particular place, or generally the collective participation in rites of religion.<ref>{{oed|cult}} – "2.a. A particular form or system of religious worship or veneration, esp. as expressed in ceremonies or rituals which are directed towards a specified figure or object. Chiefly in historical, archaeological, or anthropological contexts."</ref>{{sfn|Chryssides|Zeller|2014|p=321}} References to the [[Roman imperial cult|imperial cult of ancient Rome]], for example, use the word in this sense. A derived sense of "excessive devotion" arose in the 19th century, and usage is not always strictly religious.{{efn|Compare the ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'' note for usage in 1875: "cult:...b. A relatively small group of people having (esp. religious) beliefs or practices regarded by others as strange or sinister, or as exercising excessive control over members.… 1875 ''Brit. Mail 30'' Jan. 13/1 Buffaloism is, it would seem, a cult, a creed, a secret community, the members of which are bound together by strange and weird vows, and listen in hidden conclave to mysterious lore." {{Cite OED|cult}}}}{{sfn|Chryssides|Zeller|2014|p=321}}

[[Sociological classifications of religious movements]] may identify a cult as a social group with [[Deviance (sociology)|socially deviant]] or novel beliefs and practices,{{sfn|Stark|Bainbridge|1996|p=124}} although this is often unclear.{{sfn|Stark|Bainbridge|1980|p=1377}}{{sfn|Olson|2006}} Other researchers present a less-organized picture of cults, saying that they arise spontaneously around novel beliefs and practices.{{sfn|Stark|Bainbridge|1987}} Cults have been compared to miniature [[totalitarian]] political systems.{{sfn|Stein|2016}} Such groups are typically described as being led by a [[charismatic]] leader who tightly controls its members.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bell |first=Kenton |date=2013 |title=cult |url=https://sociologydictionary.org/cult/ |access-date=March 17, 2023 |website=Open Education Sociology Dictionary.}}</ref> 

In its pejorative sense, the term is often used for [[new religious movement]]s and other [[social group]]s defined by their unusual [[Religion|religious]], [[Spirituality|spiritual]], or [[Philosophy|philosophical]] beliefs and [[ritual]]s,<ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|cult}}</ref> or their [[Followership|group belief]] in a particular person, object, or goal. This sense of the term is weakly defined, having divergent definitions both in [[popular culture]] and in academia, where it has been an ongoing source of contention among scholars across several fields of study.{{sfn|Rubin|2001|p=473}}{{sfn|Richardson|1993|pp=348–356}} According to Susannah Crockford, "[t]he word 'cult' is a shapeshifter, semantically morphing with the intentions of whoever uses it. As an analytical term, it resists rigorous definition." She argues that the least subjective definition of cult refers to a religion or religion-like group "self-consciously building a new form of society", but that the rest of society rejects as unacceptable.{{sfn|Crockford|2024|p=172}} 

The term cult has been criticized as lacking "scholarly rigour"; Benjamin E. Zeller stated "[l]abelling any group with which one disagrees and considers deviant as a cult may be a common occurrence, but it is not scholarship".{{sfn|Thomas|Graham-Hyde|2024a|p=4}} Religious scholar [[Catherine Wessinger]] argued the term was dehumanizing of the people within the group, as well as their children; following the [[Waco siege]], it was argued by some scholars that the defining of the [[Branch Davidians]] as a cult by the media, government and former members is a significant factor as to what lead to the deaths.{{sfn|Olson|2006|p=97}} However, it has also been viewed as ''empowering'' for ex-members of groups who have had traumatic experiences.{{sfn|Thomas|Graham-Hyde|2024a|p=4}} The term was noted to carry "considerable cultural legitimacy".{{sfn|Bromley|Melton|2002|p=231}}

In the 1970s, with the rise of [[Secularity|secular]] [[anti-cult movement]]s, scholars (though not the general public) began to abandon the use of the term ''cult'', regarding it as pejorative. By the end of the 1970s, the term cult was largely replaced in academia with the term "new religion" or "[[new religious movement]]".{{sfn|Chryssides|Zeller|2014|p=322}}{{sfn|Lewis|2004}} Other proposed alternative terms that have been used were "emergent religion", "alternative religious movement", or "marginal religious movement", though new religious movement is the most popular term.{{sfn|Olson|2006|p=97}} The anti-cult movement mostly regards the term "new religious movement" as a [[euphemism]] for "cult" that loses the implication that they are harmful.{{sfn|Chryssides|Zeller|2014|p=322}}