How to win friends, baptist style

[Iormlund]

You say that like there's any difference between a religion and a cult.

Cults are almost always personality centered.

While mainstream religions are obviously not centered in certain figures like Jesus, Buddha or Mohammed. My bad.

[LaCroix]

Sure, but olde skool cults are supposed to fall apart when the leader dies.  Scientology managed to bureaucratize and institutionalize itself.

you ever read up on how scientology regards hubbard, like.. in their official histories? honest question. it's amusing, reminds me a bit of the north koreans consider kim il-sung

[Admiral Yi]

My reading of Scientology official histories is woefully inadequate. 

[HVC]

Mart is too busy trying to shove his internet finger into HVC's chest to notice.

shoving the who in the what now?

*edit* oh, i see now. didn't notice marti's comment after the quote. it's ok, he'll go over it. i'll get one of my believing friends to pray for his soul

[LaCroix]

My reading of Scientology official histories is woefully inadequate. 

wiki it when you have the chance for a brief intro, if you've the time 

[Ed Anger]

Mart is too busy trying to shove his internet finger into HVC's chest to notice.

shoving the who in the what now?

*edit* oh, i see now. didn't notice marti's comment after the quote. it's ok, he'll go over it. i'll get one of my believing friends to pray for his soul

If you want, I'll have my wife's church pray for all the doomed faggots in Poland. 

I'll even say it like that to the preacherman. DOOMED FAGGOTS.

[PDH]

While mainstream religions are obviously not centered in certain figures like Jesus, Buddha or Mohammed. My bad.

That is the institutionalization Yippee talked about.  One of the easier (if a bit crass) ways to look at it is that a cult is a potential religion given good accountants and an ability to survive whatever apocalypse they predict.

[Razgovory]

Nope, Scientology has nothing to do with L. Ron Hubbard's personality.

Sure, but olde skool cults are supposed to fall apart when the leader dies.  Scientology managed to bureaucratize and institutionalize itself.

What do you mean by "Olde Skool" cults?

[Admiral Yi]

What do you mean by "Olde Skool" cults?

Jonestown, Koresh, that Indian dude who fucked Meeuh Farrow.

[Iormlund]

While mainstream religions are obviously not centered in certain figures like Jesus, Buddha or Mohammed. My bad.

That is the institutionalization Yippee talked about.  One of the easier (if a bit crass) ways to look at it is that a cult is a potential religion given good accountants and an ability to survive whatever apocalypse they predict.

Like I said, no meaningful difference.

[Razgovory]

To be fair, the Westboro types are not really Baptists.  Cultists is a better term.

You say that like there's any difference between a religion and a cult.

A bit of of an issue of scale.  This is two families in a compound.  Also he said "Baptists" not "religion".  I wouldn't even qualify it as a church.  More of a bible study group with an interesting way justifying their desire to tour the US.

[Razgovory]

What do you mean by "Olde Skool" cults?

Jonestown, Koresh, that Indian dude who fucked Meeuh Farrow.

Koresh didn't found the Branch Davidian cult.  I have no idea who the Indian dude is.

[PDH]

Like I said, no meaningful difference.

If you take the scale out far enough there never is.

[Neil]

While mainstream religions are obviously not centered in certain figures like Jesus, Buddha or Mohammed. My bad.

That is the institutionalization Yippee talked about.  One of the easier (if a bit crass) ways to look at it is that a cult is a potential religion given good accountants and an ability to survive whatever apocalypse they predict.

Like I said, no meaningful difference.

I suppose, if you abstract it to the point where there's no meaningful difference between any kind of human endeavour.