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That’s drawing parallels with religion rather than a cult. Surely the author should understand the difference.
by mypastself 5y ago
That’s drawing parallels with religion rather than a cult. Surely the author should understand the difference.
- Barrin92 5y agoMany American Christian movements are de-facto cults. That there's so many of them that they have achieved mainstream recognition doesn't diminish that fact, it just speaks to the prevalence of cult-like thinking in the US. There's no need to engage in pedantic semantics to attempt to discredit the author.
- mypastself 5y agoCults have different connotations, usually involving secrecy, social isolation of its members from outside society, lack of accountability, and charismatic leaders. This is presumably the type of group the author usually reports on. The problem with applying the label so loosely is that it might lose its meaning, not to mention marginalize members of a group unfairly. Moreover, even without conflating religion and cults, the pastor’s quote might equally well be applied to most fandoms.
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]