growth of movements

• marginality

  weber - sects tend to arise in groups who are marginalised in society, people who aren't benefiting economically or socially from the current system

  • sects offer their members a theodicy of disprivilege - a religious explanation for their suffering eg. stating it is a test of faith
  • the nation of islam successfully recruited disadvantaged black people in the usa
  • however recently world-rejecting nrms have focused more on affluent groups eg. the moonies
  • wallis - many of these were still marginalised eg. through being hippies or addicts so this doesn't contradict weber's view
• relative deprivation

  middle-class people often feel spiritually deprived, especially in a capitalist society that can be perceived as impersonal and lacking in morality

  • wallis - this promotes sects for their community and spirituality
  • stark + bainbridge - the relatively deprived break away from churches to form sects in response to churches compromising religious beliefs eg. the deprived trying to emphasise the bible's teaching on extreme wealth
  • world-rejecting sects offer compensators for the rewards they feel denied of
  • world-accepting churches express status and bring further success
• social change


  wilson - periods of rapid change undermine established norms and produce anomie

  • one response to this disruption is to turn to sects which are more constant as they reject changes to religious practice eg. the growth of methodism in response to industrial revolution insecurity
  • bruce - sects and cults are more popular due to the social change of modernisation and secularisation
  • people are less attracted to traditional church or strict sects because of the commitment and so prefer 'casual cultism' as it requires less sacrifice
• the growth of nrms

  • world rejecting - wallis - social change gave young people freedom from adult responsibility and led to the creation of a counter-culture, while radical movements created new ideas of the future. these movements offered an alternative way of life
  • bruce - the failure of counter-cultures leads to the disillusion that draws people to religion
  • worl affirming - bruce - grows as a response to modernity and the rationalisation of work which no longer provides a source of identity unlike the protestant work ethic. these movements provide a sense of identity
• middle ground movements

  wallis - 'movements of the middle ground' like the jesus freaks have grown since the 1970s and attracted disillusioned former members of world-rejecting movements because they provide a halfway house between the movement and a conventional lifestyle
• denomination or death

  niebuhr - sects are world-rejecting and come into existence as they split from an established church over a disagreement of religious doctrine (schism). they are short-lived and either die out or are compromised to develop into a denomination due to ~

  • second generation - born into the sect and lack their parents' commitment
  • protestant ethic effect - ascetic sects become upwardly mobile which makes members more likely to compromise with the world
  • death of the leader - sects with charismatic leaders collapse after their death or are transformed by a more formal leader
• the sectarian cycle

  stark + bainbridge - religious organisations move through a cycle (1-2 years)

  1. schism - tension between deprived and privileged church members, the former of whom break away to form world-rejecting sects
  2. initial fervour - charismatic leader and high tension between the beliefs of the sect and wider society
  3. denominationalism - the protestant ethic effect and disinterest of the second generation cause the fervour to disperse
  4. establishment - sect becomes more world-accepting and tension with society reduces

  then reverts back to the beginning in further schism from the sect
• established sects

  wilson - some sects have survived over many generations by becoming established sects as they have successfully socialised their children into a high level of commitment contrary to nieburh's theory eg. the amish

  • globalisation will make it harder for future sects to maintain separation from the outside world
  • however may make it easier to convert members in developing countries where the message is most attractive as shown by the popularity of pentecostalism
• the growth of the new age

  heelas - estimates that there are 2000 new age activities and 146000 practicioners in the uk, often in a loosely organised audience or client cult

  • extremely diverse and eclectic, including beliefs in ufos and aliens, tarot, alternative medicines and yoga
  • there are two common themes
  • self-spirituality - move away from traditional religions to find spirituality inside themselves
  • detraditionalisation - rejects the spiritual authority of external sources eg. priests and values personal experience
  • can hold world-affirming and world-rejecting, and most offer both
• what shall we do to be saved?

  wilson - not all sects follow stark + bainbridge's cycle and wheter they do depends on how they respond to it

  • conversionist - aim to convert large numbers of people and are likely to rapidly grow eg. evangelists
  • adventists - hold themselves separate from the corrupt world around them which prevents them from compromising and becoming a denomination eg. jehovah's witnesses
  • often succeed due to the promise of afterlife rewards or the idea that god is returning to earth
• postmodernity and the new age

  drane - the appeal of the new age is linked to a shift to postmodernity and the loss of faith in meta-narratives that claim to hold the truth

  • science has failed to provide progress and has instead created global warming and nuclear war
  • people have lost faith in experts and professionals and are disillusioned with the church's failure to meet their spiritual needs and so are turning to the new age to find their truth within themselves
• modernity and the new age

  bruce - the growth of new age is part of the stage of late modernity which emphasises individuality, as is a key principle of the new age

  • particularly important to 'expressive professionals' like community workers and artists, which the new age appeals to the most
  • new age beliefs are often softer versions of more demanding eastern religions like buddhism that have been watered down for the wester world
  • are often audience or client cults as they make few demands of followers
  • pick and mix nature mirrors consumerist modern society
• links between modernity and new age

  heelas - the two are linked in four ways ~

  1. source of identity - in modern society an individual has a fragmented identity as they hold so many roles with little overlap and the beliefs offer a source of authentic identity
  2. consumer culture - creates dissatisfaction because promised perfection is never delivered, so the new age offers an alternative route to perfection
  3. rapid social change - provides a sense of certainty and truth in the face of anomie and the disruption of norms and values
  4. decline of organised religion - secularisation removes oppositions