After my post on Monday went a little bit viral, I received quite a bit of feedback along the lines of, “Be careful about using the ‘cult’ word – that’s a big accusation.”
And I get it. Those outside the church who have interest in dogging the church have been prone to promiscuously throw “cult” at any expression they don’t particularly like or understand. If it’s a new church that looks or feels different from traditional churches – cult! If people meet in a home instead of a historic church building – cult! If folks seem to be super-dedicated to their faith and their church, to the point that they sacrifice other things to be a part of it – cult! If there’s a charismatic leader - cult! Heck, if there’s any kind of leadership structure or hierarchy at all – cult, cult, cult!
Read Full Article »