Conference hydra::dejavu

                  CATALOG OF THE CULTS

Ahmadiyya Movement - Founder: Hazat Mirza
   "Jesus was not a partner in the Godhead, as was not Jacob. Both of
them were beloved prophets of God" (True Christianity and How it Leads 
to Islam).

American Atheist Center - Founder: Madalyn Murray O'Hair
   "There is no God, thus Jesus is not the Son of God."

Ananda Marga Yoga - Leader: Shrii Shrii Anandamurti
   Jesus is considered God, but there is no Trinity. "Be constantly
absorbed in the thought of God and you too will become God." (Baba's
Grace-Discourses of Shrii Shrii Anandamurti).

Anthroposophical Society - Leader: Rudolf Steiner
   "According to Steiner, Jesus of Nazareth was just an ordinary man
until, at the age of thirty, he received the Christ- Essence during
his baptism at the Jordan." (Spiritual Counterfeits Project in
Berkeley, CA : Letter, Feb, 1977) Steiner was an occult medium who
interpreted the Bible through clairvoyance.

Arica - Leader: Oscar Ichazo
   "The point of Arica is enlightenment, man's transcending from the
state of ego into what's known as the void. This is a state of
consciousness ... Its not God. It's God Consciousness." Aricans blend
physical exercise and meditation. God is formless, thus Christ cannot
be God (Awakening Ways to Psycho-Spiritual Growth, C. William
Henderson).

Assemblies of Yahweh -
   "John 2:19) is sometimes presented as evidence that Yahshua is the
Almighty, that He is co-equal with His Father, and that He had the
power to resurrect Himself. This, of course, is a false, trinitarian
concept" (The Sacred Name Broadcaster, Lincoln Frost). "We find the
trinitarian doctrine to be foreign to the Inspired Scriptures."
(Doctrine #5).

Baha'i World Faith -
   Baha'i, an independent world religion based on "a unique revelation
of God," traces its roots to an early division within Islam. God,
called by different names, is one but unknowable. Christ was a
"manifestation" of God and a way to God, but not the ONLY way to God.

Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship - Leader: Bawa Muhaiyaddeen
   "God is a secret and a mystery, but man is also a mystery. Only God
can see God. So if man is to see God, he must become God. Man becomes
God, and God becomes man. It's no big deal," says Bawa. (Psychology,
April,1976).

Black Muslim - Leader: Wallace D. Fard's prophet)
   Also called "The Nation of Islam." Elijah Muhammad said that Jesus
was "only a prophet and not the equal of Moses and Muhammad, and His
religion was Islam, not the Christianity of the Pope of Rome."
(Pittsburgh Courier, 1959).

Buddhism (Hinayana Buddhism and Mahayanna Buddhism) -
   "In Hinayana Buddhism there is no god as we conceive of God ... The
followers of Mahayanna Buddhism tend to deify Buddha. Their idea of
God; However, has no such comprehensive attributes as has the
Christian God" (Religions in a changing World, Howard F. Vos) This
eliminates the possibility of Jesus as a deity.

Cabala (Kabbalah) -
   Cabala is a system of Jewish Mystical thought which originated in
Southern France and Spain in the 12th and 13th centuries. The Cabala
doctrine of deity recognizes only two deities - the hidden god, the
infinite great divine Nothing; and the dynamic god of religious
experience (Spiritual Counterfeits Project).

Center for Spiritual Awareness - Leader: Roy Eugene Davis
   Also called: Christian Spiritual Alliance. Buddha, Sri Krishna, and
Jesus were enlightened souls. "The second coming of Jesus is a
fanciful hope. The awakening of individuals to the realization of
their own Christ-nature is what will liberate man and transform
society" (Darshan: The vision of Light, Roy E. Davis). Jesus was a man
who reached Christ-consciousness and was on earth to share the truth
of this consciousness.

Children of God - Leader: David Brandt Berg (Moses David)
   Started as a fundamentalist counter-culture ministry, but
degenerated into belief in the occult, reincarnation, and sexual
permissiveness. The COG believes that Berg is the ONLY end-time
prophet; that the COG IS the remnant church of the last days; that its
authority is absolute; and in the use of blasphemy, profanity,
vulgarity, and pornography. (Moody Monthly July/August 1977).

Christian Scientist - Founder: Mary Baker Eddy
   Jesus was a mere man who demonstrated the Christ (i.e. a divine
idea). It doesn't matter whether Christ ever existed, and His blood
doesn't cleanse from sin. (Science and Health with Key to the
Scriptures, The First of Christ Scientist and Miscellany, both by Mary
baker Eddy).

CATALOG OF THE CULTS (cont'd)

Church of the Living Word - Leader: John Robert Stevens
   Also called: THE WALK. "Jesus Christ came to participate in
humanity and make the bridge of communication so that God could
communicate himself into our very beings. What He is, we become" (The
Word Became Flesh, a Living Word Publication). According to Stevens,
this begins with contemporary revelations which make the the Living
Word (Christ) to the World. Although some acknowledgement is made of
the inspiration and authority of the Scripture, in practice the source
of teaching is current revelation, not the Bible. Stevens considers
himself God's chief intercessor.

Church Universal and Triumphant - Leader: Elizabeth Claire Prophet
   Also called: Summit International or Summit Lighthouse. The Church
Universal and Triumphant is a mixture of eastern religions, Theosophy,
Christianity, and many other things. Elizabeth is recognized as one of
the two witnesses of Revelation 11. Her late husband and founder,
Mark, is considered a man that had the Christ Consciousness within
him. He was one of many who achieved the "God self" witness.

Dhyana-Mandiram - Leader: Pandit Usharbudh
   "God is essentially formless ... God may manifest Himself-
Herself-Itself in any form, at any time, at any place, on any planet
... Jesus may be accepted as one of the many incarnations of God."
(Hinduism: An Introduction, Pandit Usharbudh and Yorke Crompton).

Divine Light Mission - Leader: Guru Maharaj Ji
   Guru Ji is the Living Perfect Master. Jesus was the Perfect Master
of His time, but Ji has replaced Him. Ji claims the world needs the
knowledge of Reality, and he claims to be the source of that knowledge
and of peace in the world, according to David J. Hesselgrave, Trinity
Evangelical Divinity School.

ECKANKAR - Leader: Sri Darwin Gross
   ECKANKAR says it is the wellspring and essence of all religions,
philosophies, and sacred doctrines. It claims to be the way to
God-realization via the "ancient science of soul travel." ECKANKAR
makes the biblical God into a demon who as creator is responsible for
the evil in the world and defines Christ as "god as all men are god"
("Eck World News, December, 1978, page 13).

Findhorn Foundation University of Light - Leaders: Peter and Eileen
Caddy
   "The Devic (Deva is a being of light) would emphasize that man has
to do one thing to reverse the trend of events on the planet: he has
to recognize within himself the Divinity and wholeness of which he is
a part" (The Magic of Findhorn, Paul Hawken). They separate Jesus and
Christ and appear to be panthiestic. The group, a form of spiritism,
became famous because the Findhorn community in Scotland has a
producing garden near the Arctic Circle which is supposedly taken care
of by plant spirits.

Freemasonry -
   "... We tell the sincere Christian that Jesus of Nazareth was but a
man like us" ("Morals and Dogmas" by Albert Pike in How to Respond to
the Lodge).
           
Hare Krishna - Founder: Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
   Also called: International Society of Krishna Consciousness
(ISKCON). To the Krishnaite, the world is not real; it's illusion.
Salvation comes by chanting the name of their god, Hare Krishna, at
least 1,728 times daily. They believe in the literal interpretation of
the Hindu scriptures, but they also accept the Bible as one of the
scriptures. They consider Jesus one of their gurus.

"I AM" MOVEMENT - Leader: Guy Ballard (Pen Name: Godfrey Ray King)
   Jesus, a man, developed the I AM/GOD SELF within himself. This
almighty I Am presence is a pure reservoir of energy stationed over
the head which can be drawn on at will. Jesus is seen as one of the
many Ascended Masters. They do not recognize the Trinity. This cult is
an off-shoot of the Theosophical Society. Its modern form is called
the Summit Lighthouse or Church Universal and Triumphant. However, the
"I Am" movement still exist as an independent organization (The 'I Am'
Discourses, Saint Germain Press).

Iglesia Ni Cristo - Leader: Felix Manalo
   "We believe in Jesus Christ, but we do not believe that He is True
God. We believe in only one true god, the god of creation. Jesus
Christ is a great savior and was commissioned by God to be the
savior." ("Research Center Bulletin," Far East Broadcasting).

Inner Peace Movement - Leader: Rev. Francisco Coll, DD
   A form of spiritualism and spiritism combining ESP, astro-
projection, psychic phenomena, etc., they introduce seven levels of
consciousness. Christ consciousness is the highest. Jesus had reached
Christ Consciousness and taught this while on earth. Jesus was a man.
They separate Jesus and Christ. God is impersonal and spoken of as The
All, The Cosmos, and The Universe (Every Wind of Doctrine, Hobart
Freeman).

Integral Yoga Institute - Founder: Swami Satchidananda
   "There are not many gods; there is only One. And that One has no
name, no form, no place. (Thus Christ is not God.) He is everywhere -
in actuality, neither he, nor she, nor it ... The two sides are
positive and negative, light and shade. Evil is also God." says the
Swami (The Youth Nappers, James C. Hefley).                               

CATALOG OF THE CULTS (cont'd)

Islam -
   Christ was a prophet of Allah, but was superseded by Muhammad's
teachings and authority.

Jainism - Founder: Mahavira
   "Jainism begins by denying the existence of an external supreme
being, creator, or Lord, who is the mainstay of the universe. (Thus,
no Christ.) For these non-theistic humanist, there is no need to
assume a First cause." (Religions in a Changing World, Howard F. Vos)

Jehovah's Witnesses -
   Jesus is a created being, Michael, the first creation of Jehovah
and the "Son of God."

Laymen's Home Missionary Movement - Leader: Raymond J. Jolly
   Similar to the Jehovah's Witnesses, they deny the physical
resurrection of Jesus Christ. "John 4:24 - God is a Spirit. Luke 24:39
- A Spirit hath not flesh and bones ... In the first place, God
directly tells us that Jesus is now a spirit being" (Epiphany Studies
in the Scriptures). "Trinitarians have grossly mistranslated and
miscapitalized this passage to read their trinitarianism into it, as
they have done in other cases. The proper translation shows that
Christ is not Jehovah ... He is Jehovah's appointed Savior for the
world, not Jehovah Himself." (Epiphany Studies in the
Scriptures-Series 1).

Liberal Catholic Church - Leaders: Charles W. Leadbeater and Vincent
M. Matthews
   "Obviously, God is not and cannot be a person. (Thus, no divine
Christ.) The persons of the Holy Trinity are representatives or masks
for the One God who is beyond individuality; is unlimited; eminent;
and transcendent" (The One Existence, E.M. Matthews). The LCC is
independent of the Roman Catholic Church and blends elements of
theosophy and pantheism (These Also Believe, Charles Samuel Braden).

Megiddo Mission - Founder: Rev. L.T. Nichols
   "Christ, Emmanuel, 'God with us,' is not the eternal God but the
Son of God, conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of a virgin, but wholly
human in his nature - Matthew 1:23, Hebrews 2:16,17 .. "(History of
the Megiddo Mission, published by Megiddo Mission Church).

Mormons - Founder: Joseph Smith, Jr.
   Also Called: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Jesus is
a pre-existent spirit, also the Father, one of many gods. Christ was
God-man, and men can be just like him (Mormon Doctrine, Bruce
McConkie).

Nichiren Shoshu Soka Gakkai -
   Soka Gakkai substitutes Gautama Buddha and Nichiren for the True
God and replaces the Bible with the Lotus Sutra, a false scripture.
Soka Gakkai translates to "Value Recreation Society" ("Views on
Christ," John Weldon).
Peace Mission Movement - Leader: Father Divine (George Baker)
   Baker distinguishes between Jesus and Christ. "I say B.J. not B.C.
because it was before Jesus yet, in my opinion, it was not before
Christ" (The New Day, September 1,1945). "Jesus, he (Baker) seems at
times to regard as merely the temporal and physical embodiment of the
Christ" (These Also Believe, Charles Samuel Braden). Baker has claimed
to be God and the Holy Spirit. There are also references in Baker's
writings to indicate that Jesus is God (Kingdom of the Cults, Walter
Martin).

Psychiana - Leader: Frank B. Robinson
   "At no time has God, nor will God, manifest Himself on this earth
or anywhere as a person ... Jesus was no more than a human acting out
the God-power" (They Have Found a Faith, Marcus Bach).

Radha Soami Society - Leader: Charan Singh
   God is seen as attributeless, formless, and impersonal without
personality and name, although they give "him" the qualities of love,
grace, wisdom and power. The Society asserts that there are countless
gods and goddesses, lords, rulers and governors in the universe (The
World of Gurus, Vishal Mangalwadi), thus Jesus Christ is not Lord of
Lords.

Rajneesh Meditation Centers - Leader: Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh
   "But God (thus, Christ) is not a person. God is the process ...
Existence is without cause ... In the beginning, there is no cause so
in the end there can be no purpose" (Beyond and Beyond, Acharya
Rajneesh).

Rosicrucianism -
   Jesus was a reincarnated man, the highest luminary possible. The
Christ spirit in Him was a manifestation of the cosmic Christ ("Rays
from the Rose Cross," December, 1978).

Ruhani Satsang - Leader: Kirpal Singh
   "Jesus Christ was essentially a man of the East, and his teachings
are imbued with oriental mysticism. It is even speculated that he
spent many of his early years in india and learned from the Yogins and
Buddhist monks" (The Crown of Life, Kirpal Singh).

CATALOG OF THE CULTS (cont'd)

Sacred Mushroom of the Cross - Leader: John Allegro
   Christ was a mushroom (Sacred Mushroom of the Cross, John Allegro).

Sanatana Dharma Foundation - Leader: Yogeshwar Muni
   (also called Kayavarohan). Jesus is a man who achieved a divine
state through meditation. Sanatana Dharma is considered the eternal
path to truth leading to fulfillment and divinity. "Thus men, for the
first time on Earth, could achieve the God level not only in concept,
but in physical manifestations as well" (Vishvamitra Newsletter).

Satanism -
   The introduction to the satanic bible says, "What amuses us most is
that you indicate that a mere command to Satan in Jesus' name is
sufficient to dismiss him. The Prince of Darkness regards both God and
Jesus Christ a figments of man's more infantile imagination, at least
insofar as their supposed power is concerned. God is dead, and Christ
was but a man" (Every Wind of Doctrine, Dr. Hobart Freeman).

Scientology - Founder: L. Ron Hubbard
   Hubbard claims to have found the spiritual technology to dispense
the one "true way" to man. It is a process working through levels of
self-knowledge and knowledge of past lives to awaken the primordial
deity within until a person is able to regain total godhood. Christ is
a man "who achieved a 'state of clear' but not the higher state of
'Operating Thetan" ("Certainty" magazine, Vol 5, No 10).

Self-Realization Fellowship - Leader: Paramahansa Yogananda
   Group also called "Yogoda Satsanga Society." Separates Jesus and
Christ. Jesus was indwelt by the Christ Consciousness. "Let the
omniscient Christ Consciousness come to Earth a second time and be
born in you, even as it was manifested in the mind of Jesus"
(Metaphysical Meditations, SRF Publishers).

Shintoism -
   "Deity is spirit, without form, unknowable ... changeless, eternal,
existing from the beginning of Heaven and Earth up to the present,
unfathomable, infinite ..." (Source of Japanese Tradition, Vol 1,
editor William Theodore De Bary).

Shree Guru Dev Siddha Yoga Ashram - Leader: Swami Muktananda
Paramahansa
   Also called: "Sidha Yoga Dham." This is a self realization group
whose leader claims to be god. "This is the praise of the
all-pervasive, formless, unmanifest, Absolute Being who manifest
Himself in a thousand forms ... Above all, you will receive Divine
Grace and finally realize your own divinity." Rejects God manifesting
Himself in Jesus Christ (Songs of God, Guru, Self - Kabiraj).

Sikhism - Founder: Nanak
   Sikhism developed an abstract and mystical monotheism. God is
formless, sovereign, unknowable and absolute. However, a righteous
person can call upon the grace of Sat Nam - God. If a person reaches
salvation, which is by works, he absorbs into God. Rejects the idea
that God revealed in the Person of Jesus Christ (Cults, World
Religions and You, Kenneth Boa).

Sivananda Yoga Vedenta Centers - Leader: Swami Sivananda
   Also called "International Sivananda Yoga Society." God (or Christ)
is not a person or spirit, but Consciousness. He is sometimes reborn
as a man, other times as an animal, plant, or even inanimate object.
(The World of Gurus, Vishal Mangalwadi).

Spiritual Advancement of the Individual Foundation. - Leader: Sri
Satya Sai Baba
   Jesus Christ is seen as an "Avatar," a deity descended to earth in
bodily form. Sai Baba is Jesus Christ who was returned. Man, according
to Baba, is Atman - Self or God. Man is under an illusion so that he
forgets that he is God. Baba also teaches that God is ultimately
without attributes (The World of Gurus, Vishal Mangalwadi).

Spiritual Frontiers Fellowship - Founder: Arthur Ford and others
   "There was no Christ 2,000 ago. There was a man 2,000 ago through
whom the Annointed One was able to manifest. The man died, Christ
lived, and as the Holy Spirit has been helping ... The Divine Mind or
the Concept of God has within himself all the faculties or qualities
of both male and female. There can be no creative expression, there
can be no life without these two qualities. So God is neither man nor
woman." Ford, a former Christian minister, made these comments during
a seance March 18, 1965 (Unknown but Known, Arthur Ford).

Spiritualist -
   Jesus was an outstanding Jewish medium (Kingdom of the Cults
- Walter Martin).

Sri Chinmoy Centers - Leader: Sri Chinmoy
   God is seen as Consciousness and Light. Realize the divinity within
you. "It is not because of his (Jesus') miracles that he is
worshipped, but because he brought down the eternal Consciousness, the
infinite Consciousness" (Kundalini: The Mother Power, Sri Chinmoy).

Still Point Institute - Leader: Sujata
   Christ is an evolutive god, a cosmic Christ. A heavy influence of
Zen Buddhism negates the personal God (The Still Point, William
Johnson).

CATALOG OF THE CULTS (cont'd)

ubud - Leader: Muhammad Subuh (Bapak)
   God is a "Great Life Force that flows through everything and
everyone. It is impersonal." (Thus no divine Christ.) God is felt
through "latihan" which is an inner vibration. The objective in Subud
is to become passive so that you can experience and feel latihan (New
Gods in America, Peter Rowley).

Sufism - Leader: Pir-O-Murshid Hazrat Inayat Khan
   God is an "Abstract Sound" which is the creative life principle in
all of nature. "The goal of Sufism is union with God in this life."
Because of its link with Islamic philosophy, it would not consider
Jesus as God (Awakening Ways to Psycho-Spiritual Growth, C. William
Henderson).

Swedenborgism - Founder: E. Swedenborg
   A form of spiritism which also denies the person of the Holy
Spirit. He is called an efficiency or sanctifying influence. "We ought
to have faith in God the Savior Jesus Christ, because that is faith in
the visible God in Whom is the Invisible; and faith in the visible
God, Who is at once Man and God, who enters Man" (True Christian
Religion, E. Swedenborg).

Taoism - Greatest philosopher: Chuang Tzu
   "There is no personal Creator-God" (Cults, World Religions and You,
Kenneth Boa).

Tarotology -
   The most serious form of cartomancy (divination by cards). It has
been linked with magic, numerology, astrology and other cults. For all
the languages about God, Spirit and the Truth of God, the God and
Truth of Tarot are in no way those of Jesus Christ. It is an
idolatrous system (Dennis Hesslegrave, Trinity Evangelical Divinity
School).

The Farm - Leader: Stephen
   An eastern mysticism commune in Summertown, TN. Jesus, a teacher,
was a good man indwelt with Christ Consciousness. "In the telepathic
medium of the Holy Spirit, Christ consciousness, Buddha consciousness,
call it what you will, exist all the time. ... You don't have to call
it Jesus or Buddha or Krishna, it's 'the consciousness'" (Hey Beatnik!
1974).

The Foundation Church of the Millennium - leader: Father John
   Denies the deity of Jesus Christ. It is an off-shoot of or the
front for the Process Church of the Final Judgement (below) although
they deny affiliation. They were both founded in September, 1966;
began in Xtul, Mexico; listed their midwest address as 1529 N. Wells
Street, Chicago, IL; and have both since moved.

The Holy Order of MANS - Leader: Earl Blighton
   Holds the occult-eastern view that Jesus was a great teacher, but
merely a man who attained an impersonal kind of "Christ
Consciousness." They separate Jesus and Christ. They believe all can
attain Christ-Consciousness (Spiritual Counterfeit Project, Berkeley,
CA).

The Himalayan International Institute of Yoga Science and Philosophy.

- Founder: Swami Rama
   "In order to become true members of the Church of Christ, a person
must know not who Jesus was, but what Christ is. Christ, Ishvara, is
the very personal force pervading the universe that guides and
illuminates every aspirant ... It is not an embodied person, but
rather a force in which all individual beings are divine sparks
..."(Meditation in Christianity, Dr. Pandit Arya). Swami Rama has
said, "Jesus Christ was perhaps the greatest of all Yogis."

The Process Church of the Final Judgement - Founder: Robert De
Grimston
   Jesus is a mere man. "The Processeans believe in three gods:
Jehohvah, Lucifer, and Satan" (Sata's Devices, Kurt Koch).

The 3 HO Foundation - Leaders: Yogi Bhajan and Guru Ram Dass
   The 3 HO means Happy, Health and Holy. "What is God? ... He is
cosmic energy ... He is yin-yang; He is positive an negative. He is
male, female ... When you say cosmic consciousness, you mean God ...
You are God ... God is you. Man has never realized he is God ... God
is a stick ... God is a cup ... God is a woman" (The Teachings of Yogi
Bhajan, Bhajan).

CATALOG OF CULTS - Cont'd

Unification Church - Leader/Fonder: Sun Myung Moon
   Moon states that God has dual qualities - spirit and energy. God is
a personal being with consciousness, intelligence, love and purpose.
Salvation can come only through the Messiah who achieves perfection,
marries, and has perfect offspring. Christ, Moon says, was to do this,
but He failed because he died before he could marry. Because He was
resurrected, Moon says, Jesus did redeem man spiritually. The physical
redemption of man will happen through a second Messiah, but not
Christ. The implication is that Moon is the second Messiah. (Moody
Monthly, July 1977).

The Way International - Leader: Victor Paul Wierwile
   A very close counterfeit of Christianity. They believe in God, the
Bible, Jesus Christ, salvation, and eternal life, but not the Trinity.
Jesus is NOT God, and the Holy Spirit is a synonym for God (Jesus
Christ is Not God, Victor Paul Wierwille).

Theosophist -
   Christ took the body Jesus, a man, to become a teacher. Eventually
all men become Christ.

Transcendental Meditation - Leader: Maharishi Mahesh Yogi
   Also called "Spiritual Generation Movement," "Student's
International Meditation Society," "TM." Maharishi says the reason for
creation and individual life is the expansion of happiness. This is
done by expanding one's consciousness through seven levels of
consciousness. Jesus is considered an Enlightened One. Leaders have
attempted to claim that TM is not a religion, but courts have ruled
that it is, and the nature of its initiation rites prove that it is a
Hindu derivative. (Meditations, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi).

Unitarians -
   Jesus was a man who believed in One God, not the Trinity.

Unity School of Christianity -
   Jesus was a perfect man, indwelt by the Christ Consciousness,
present in every human being.

Vedanta Society - Founder: Swami Vivekananda
   Also known as "Ramakrishna Order." "They (gods) are human beings
with extraordinary, original powers and entrusted with a Divine
commission. Being heirs of Divine power and glories, they form a class
of their own. To this class belong the incarnations of God, like
Christ, Krishna, Buddha, and Chaitanya and their devotees of the
highest order" (Hindu View of Christ. Swami Akhilananda).

Witchcraft -
   "Down through the centuries, many witches and sorcerers consider
God and Satan as merely symbols of power, with no real existence as
personalities" (Kingdom of Darkness, F.W. Thomas). Some witches may
see Jesus as a wizard who was able to master natural and occult
forces.

Worldwide Church of God - Leader: Hurbert W. Armstrong
   Jesus is a part of the godhead (God is a family) and men can become
like Jesus and part of the God family - Sons of God. They do not
believe in a closed godhead (TRINITY). The Holy Spirit is not
considered a person, but the Father and the Son work through it.
(Derivate cult - International Church of God. Leader: Son of Herbert,
George, was disowned by his father and started this group that
believes the same but claims that the Worldwide Church lost its
authority when Herbert divorced his wife.)


Zen Buddhism -
   "Since Zen does not affirm the existence of the living God, it is
not only absolutely destitute of the special revelation of God in His
Word, but is wholly alien to the God of revelation." says
Lit-Sen-Chang (The Kingdom of the Cults, Walter Martin).


Zoroastrianism - Founder: Spitoma Zoroaster
   This is one of the first monothesistic religions in the world, and
adherents of this religion are thought to have been the originators of
the Wise Men from the East who searched out Jesus when He was born.
This cult doesn't recognize a personal God. Their god, Ahura Mazda, is
impersonal and has no physical nature (Cults, World Religions and You,
Kenneth Boa).

    From what I've heard as a common sociological definition of 'cult',
    (as a relatively small religious group outside of mainstream churches,
    usually based on an ideology foreign to the surrounding culture),
    there would have to be literally thousands of them, maybe hundreds of 
    thousands, in the U.S. alone.   What's supposed to be unique about
    the ones in this catalog ?  
    
    Are these supposed to be the biggest, or the best known or just the
    ones most abhorrent to the folks who compiled the list ?
    
    								todd

I had the same question. Looks to be a list of things they don't want
their own followers to get too interested in (while still being
"politically correct" -- I notice that Buddhism is a cult, while
Judaism is "ok", though they didn't fail to spot Cabala as one of the
"baddies").

Conspicuously absent (in addition to Judaism) were:

Roman Catholicism
various Orthodox Christian churches
the Anglican church
the "mainstream" Protestant sects

Any of these are obviously "ok", the Catholics, Jews, and Orthodox
being "ok" only because it would be considered "intolerant" to say
otherwise. And we wouldn't want to appear to be intolerant, would we?

I wonder how they missed "scientists" or "physicists"? Or, to quote a
friend of mine, those who "aren't persuaded"?

    Cult has come, in large part, to be a synonym for "religion" with
    pejorative overtones.  (Those pejorative overtones comes from
    definitions of "cult" which emphasizes the control of a single leader,
    and a "totalatarian" relationship between the organization and the
    member).  The compliers of this list have played word games -- a "cult"
    is apparently any religious group whose doctrins they disagree with.
    This simply appears to be a complilation of religious groups for which
    they could find a statement -- not necessarily by a spokesperson for
    that religion -- antithetical to their concept of the divinity of
    Christ.  By no stretch of the imagination can Islam or Budhism be
    considered cults in the modern world, for example.

    In other words -- they are using the word "cult" in a specialized way,
    which bears no particular relationship to its use in a more general
    context.  This document represents a piece of religious doctrine rather
    than a catalog of cults as the term is generally applied.  Interesting
    list, though.

				    Topher

    Having come from a Judeo-Christian upbringing, I am nevertheless
    disgusted by the subjective categorization of the various belief
    systems described in the previous notes. It seems that any religion
    which does not recognize Jesus as God, nor the Trinity is relegated to
    the "cult" status.
    
    The basenote title asks, "what is a cult". In my opinion, the questions
    is yet to be answered. 
    
    Marilyn

  It's nice to see a concensus in this conference occasionally :-). So
  we see that there really is something very strong which is common to
  participants who might otherwise be at each other's throats: a taste
  for non-traditional personal philosophies. I think this reflects a
  healthy desire to learn even at the risk of "embarrassment" by having
  one's beliefs challenged or ridiculed.

  I'll bet you would get a more varied reaction if you were to post this
  list in one of the more conventional religious valuing differences
  conferences, where I've observed a slightly more conservative approach
  to which differences get valued. Even Teilhard de Chardin would be
  hard-pressed to feel welcome in some of those conferences. No doubt
  his followers would find themselves on this list, if they went by a
  name.

    I realize that most people are probably not interested in the technical
    meaning of cult, they probably want to discuss the popular meaning and its
    implications. But I thought this might help give some background
    from another perspective, the folks who systematically study social
    trends.
    
    Ok, so we know that cult as used popularly is not the same as its
    technical meaning, and that when seen in most media, it is basically
    a rhetorical tool making an implicit evaluation of a group, rather
    than a neutral categorization of religious organizations.
    
    I dug up a fairly recent sociology text by Ian Robinson at home to try to 
    get at his definition, just for grins.  He categorizes religious
    organizations into Ecclesia, Churches (Denominations), Sects,
    and Cults.    I'll supply a summary of the categories, which I found
    pertinent and interesting, and capitalize the sociological term Cult to 
    distinguish it from the popular term cult, to lessen confusion.
    
    The Robinson text uses Cult to mean the most
    informal, and generally most temporary form of religious organization,
    with few coherent doctrines and imposing minimal demands on believers.
    They tend to center around personal benefit and personal experience
    of the followers rather than the extreme emphasis on moral purity
    found in other some types of groups.  Examples given include
    some loose Spiritualist groups, and loose groups of believers in
    Astrology.   
    
    The groups that some of us commonly think of as 'cults' in the pejorative
    sense, such as the Unification Church and the Church of Scientology,
    are more accurately considered within the category of *Sects* than Cults.   
    
    	Sect = segment of a Church in search of moral purity
    
    The common characteristics of *Sects*, to compare with Cults, include
    being a smaller and less formal organization than a Church, 
    (but more formal than a Cult) having
    split off from a Church in search of greater moral purity, 
    requiring tests of faith, recruitment largely by conversion of 
    some sort (rather than automatically or easily becoming a member),
    members generally coming from low socioecoonomic status, 
    and a dogmatic and often literal interpretation of holy writings.
    Sects are also commonly hostile or indifferent to political
    authority, unlike the larger and more structurally formallized 
    Churches, which often rely on support from the state in some way or
    other.  
    
    Rituals of worship in Sects tend to differ from those in
    Churches in that they emphasize emotion, spontaneity, and extensive
    participation by the congregation.  Usually, there is no speciallized
    trained clergy in a Sect.  Sects commonly either wither in a
    generation or so, or evolve into more staid Churches, which then have 
    their own Sects break off from them, in a continuing social process.
    Interestingly, Sects tend to have the least tolerance for each other.
    Cults tend not to take too much notice of each other, and Denominations
    are generally fairly tolerant of each other.  Examples of Sects given
    include many of the Pentecostal and Evangelical movements, and most
    of the groups many people commonly think of as 'cults,' like the Unification
    Church ('Moonies').
    
    	Church = Denomination = Established Mainstream Religion
    
    Churches/Denominations are described bascially as mainstream
    religions, like the large Protestant Churches (Methodist,
    Episcopalian), and mainstream Judaism.
    
    Ecclesia = Official State Religion
    
    The largest and most rigidly structured category is the Ecclesia,
    which is pretty much an official State religion that claims an
    entire society or set of societies, and everyone born on those
    societies is automatically a member.  The author of the book I
    got this information from says that there are no real examples of
    Ecclesia in the modern world, but that some of the closest examples would
    be the Anglican Church in England, and Islam in Iran.  
    
    Beyond a shadow of a doubt, there is a very great discrepancy between
    what the catalog of cults posted here considers a cult and what
    sociologists consider a Cult, and even what the population at large
    would consider a cult, I think.  
    
    							kind regards,
    
    							todd

    i cant define what is a cult, but i know one when i see it ;-)
    

    I've hung around with or been involved with 5, no, 6 of these evil
    influences
    
    Unitarians
    Self Realization Fellowship
    Islam
    Ahmadiyya Movement
    Sufi Order USA
    .. and one they missed ;-)
    
    karl

    You should ask Jamie about these, after all, Scotsmen wear them ;^)
    
    Laurie.

And then we stand at the top of hulls and sing with one (usually right) arm
outstretched about the bonnie purple mountains and the roamin' in the gloamin'.
Quite what the left hand is doing during all this is best left to the reader's
imagination.

Dougie

    Cindy, I have to confess, I know not.
    
    Laurie.

>    Cindy, I have to confess, I know not.
>    
>    Laurie.

When I was giving my Grooms Speech during my wedding reception, I heard childish
giggles from underneath the Top Table. My 3 year old nephew had crawled 
under it and had discovered that this particular Scot like nothing better than
to wear his favourite Dennis the Menace and Gnasher boxer shorts.

Dougie

    All religions seem like cults to me... of course, I use the word wrong.

    
    All firmly held convictions seem like cults to me....including
    this one...;-)
    
    
    guy

    How do you hold something as slippery as a conviction firmly? :-)

    I can assure the assembled masses that there is nothing worn under my
    kilt.
    
    It is all in perfect workin' order!

    Jamie.

    
    I've heard of courts upholding convictions.....:-)
    
    (but not kilts)
    
    
    guy

    To be serious...

    My understanding of the classic definition of a Cult, is any religious 
    organization which attacks any part of the Holy Trinity- Defined in both 
    Testaments as God in three Persons.  Typically, this attack will be on
    the person and/or the works of Jesus as Christ.  Since both Jews and
    Catholics take the Bible (how ever much of the Bible they believe
    to be Divinely Inspired) to be literal, they are not defined as a Cult.
    Jews believe in the Second person of the Trinity, but not that He was
    Jesus.
    
    Some Cults have a dominant central figure as their Head other than
    God or Christ, which would also qualify as an attack on the authority of
    the Godhead.

    A Sect would be an offshoot of a dominant religion which share the same
    fundamental beliefs, with somewhat minor doctrinal differences. 
    Catholicism and Protestantism could be seen as very extreme sects of one 
    another for instance.

    -thank you doctor science.
          

>    My understanding of the classic definition of a Cult, is any religious 
>    organization which attacks any part of the Holy Trinity- Defined in 
>both 
>    Testaments as God in three Persons.  Typically, this attack will be on
>    the person and/or the works of Jesus as Christ.  Since both Jews and
>    Catholics take the Bible (how ever much of the Bible they believe
>    to be Divinely Inspired) to be literal, they are not defined as a Cult.
>    Jews believe in the Second person of the Trinity, but not that He was
>    Jesus.
 
This is serious????? Anyone who doesn't believe Judeo-Christian stuff is 
wrong and is a cult? According to who? Pat Buchanan?

Sam 
   

    It does seem to be a remarkably biased opinion to me too.

    Jamie.

re: 1759.27 by COMET::TROYER "an alien and stranger on Earth" 
    
    Thank you very much for that explanation.  This is the first
    exposure I've had to that viewpoint.  I thought this was some
    very minority view until I browsed a copy of 'Kingdom of the Cults'
    this weekend in the bookstore, and noticed that this oft-quoted
    work uses the same framework; comparing religious philosophies to the 
    (mainstream ?) Christian viewpoint, and critiquing each based on
    its ideological differences to Christianity.  
    
    They don't seem to base the 'cult' concept on group behavior at all,
    but on characteristics of belief systems.   Turns the whole concept
    over on its head, different from both the original meaning and the
    popular meaning.  What's the rationale for doing this ?  Do they
    equate ideology with group behavior, or do they downplay the issue of
    the distinctive characteristics of 'cults' as popularly used, like
    the social cohesiveness, charismatic group leader, us/them 
    boundary control tendencies, and so on.  
    
    						todd

    
    re: .27 (::TROYER)
    
    >To be serious....
    
       I was, actually....
    
    
    
    guy

    I don't know how people can just believe in things they haven't
    experienced for themselves.  Seems sort of strange to me.

    ... but I've watched it on tv? :-)

    re:
>    ... but I've watched it on tv? :-)
    
    	If we 'personally experience' everything we've seen on TV,
    	be very afraid of anyone who's rented a copy of 'Eraserhead.'
    
    							todd

    Sorry... I've never seen it.. :-)

    But it's true that experience is not all the same....
    
    I just don't know how anyone can explain an experience to another
    person who has never shared in the experience and doesn't believe that
    it's possible in the first place.  They'll laugh and jeer and they'll
    deny it and you'll just end up wasting your time and stressing yourself
    out.

    
    	Try explaning the color blue (or any other color)
    	to a person who has been blind from birth.
    

    
    
>    I just don't know how anyone can explain an experience to another
>    person who has never shared in the experience and doesn't believe that
>    it's possible in the first place.  They'll laugh and jeer and they'll
>    deny it and you'll just end up wasting your time and stressing yourself
>    out.
    
    I'm not sure we can really explain our experiences at all, Mary, or do 
    much more than *describe* them.  And trying to convince someone to 
    interpret it the same way, or come to the same conclusions is still harder.
    
    Consider even the simplest cases that we often take for granted.
    I was reading something recently where the author muses how hard it would
    be to tell if we all see the same thing when we look at a 'red' light.
    We know the rule about responding to a red traffic light by stopping,
    but we don't know that the person next to us has a completely 
    different 'experience' of red when that top light goes on.  Some other
    information seems to imply that the experience is very similar, but
    if you had to prove it yourself with a brief discussion, it would be
    quite a challenge.  Similar to the classic problem of describing a color 
    to someone colorblind.

    re: .38,
    	That was an interesting notes collision.  Demonstrates
    	very nicely how wordy I am.  :-)

    So that's why I don't think it's worthwhile to keep trying to explain
    psychic things to people who aren't psychic.  It's like trying to
    explain skating to some one who lives in the tropics and never really
    believed that the weather could be any different anywhere.  It just
    doesn't seem to be very productive and every discussion ends up turning
    into an argument over whether ice exists or not.  

    
    	RE: .40
    
    	Maybe we were reading each other's minds...
    
    	No.., that would complicate matters,
    	and it might require 20 pages to explain,
    	let's keep it simple...  it was pure chance !!.
    

    	re: .42,
    	I'll buy that ... for now. :-)

    ... at least they didn't try to worship a snowman... :-)

>    just goes to prove....
    
    ... that miraculous events inspire religious feelings ...
    
    ... and that New Yorkers will laugh at anything, so long as it's
    	happening to someone else, and they don't have to jog in Central
    	Park at night to discover it.  

Re describing blueness to a blind person ...

The analogy to describing spiritual phenomena to a skeptic is flawed so
seriously as to be almost useless.

A person who is blind may not have any experience of sight, but they do
have experience. Most of human experience, in fact, and some aspects of
human experience which are generally unavailable to sighted people. The
idea that it's difficult to discuss blueness with such a person is a
sad mistake. For one thing, blind people know perfectly well that
blueness exists. And they have other senses with which analogies
(imperfect, of course) can be drawn. Such as "blue is to orange as
middle C is to A above middle C". And "this apple possesses a taste, a
temperature, a weight, a color, a quantum wavelength, and many other
characteristics, some of which are sensed, some not, some detectable
with instruments, and possibly some which are not".

At the same time, while a blind person has almost a full range of human
experience, they have *no* external visual experience. Contrast this
with the skeptic:

A physicalist skeptic does not even accept the possibility of a
spiritual nature in the first place. However, they may (or may not) be
otherwise receptive to the phenomenon itself. Discussion with such a
person must be based on this possibility: that they have experienced
the dimension, but are not aware of it. The work of the teacher is then
to maneuver around the roadblocks of disbelief which are erected by the
skeptic, and "tickle" into awareness the sensation of spiritual experience.

This is not very much like discussing color with a blind person, is it?

ENABLE::glantz 
    
>The idea that it's difficult to discuss blueness with such a person is a
>sad mistake. 
    
    How can you say that, Mike?  Of course it's difficult.
    
>A physicalist skeptic does not even accept the possibility of a
>spiritual nature in the first place. However, they may (or may not) be
>otherwise receptive to the phenomenon itself. Discussion with such a
>person must be based on this possibility: that they have experienced
>the dimension, but are not aware of it. The work of the teacher is then
>to maneuver around the roadblocks of disbelief which are erected by the
>skeptic, and "tickle" into awareness the sensation of spiritual experience.

    But.... who is the "teacher"?  And what is the *point* of trying to teach
    such a thing to such a person.... what is the *objective*, I mean?  
    I don't know.... can you enjoy a symphony without being personally able
    to play all of the various instruments that together compose the music?
    
    Seems to me that the physicalist skeptic can laugh at or be receptive
    to phenomenon even if he isn't able to actually do it himself.
    
    I guess I just don't understand what people want from each other...
    it's a gray and murky area, I guess.

    There's this sect who has as their symbol a tortured man with spikes
    through his flesh, and which has rituals in which they symbolically 
    commit cannabilism on his corporal body in a misguided attempt at
    union.  Further, this is mostly paternalistic; their symbology 
    includes a distant, semi-hostile father deity who must be placated,
    the already-mentioned martyred man and an unexplained (but male) spirit 
    figure.  In a throwback to the older goddess religions, the earthly mother 
    of the martyred man has become deified as well.  They periodically will 
    declare certain persons 'saints' and will actually expect the saint 
    to intercede with the fearsome father deity.  Likenesses of the mother
    and son and the saints are found everywhere in their places of worship.
    
    karl

    re: .47,
    
    You're right, Mike.  The proper analogy in your example, with
    your assumptions, would be to consider trying to convince a blind person 
    that blue exists when they not only had never seen light, but had firmly 
    decided that it was impossible that it could exist.  Good luck.
    
    I'm not sure that there are many people on earth that fit 
    the description of your straw man skeptic, though I don't doubt there
    are a few.  Certainly many people have similar experiences that they 
    outright refuse to call 'spiritual,' though ?

> How can you say that, Mike?  Of course it's difficult.

Have you tried?

Believe me, it's not as difficult as getting Jamie to change his
position. Or getting many people to stop feeling sorry for themselves.

> But.... who is the "teacher"? And what is the *point* of trying to teach
> such a thing to such a person.... what is the *objective*, I mean?

The "teacher" is one who has a purpose, and the knowledge to bring
about the education. Not necessarily anyone who writes in this
notesfile. If you're not a teacher, you're right to ask what the point
of butting heads with Jamie is, and why one would do it, just as one
might ask Jamie why he attempts to teach anyone else. If you're a
teacher, you don't butt heads, you teach.

> I guess I just don't understand what people want from each other...
> it's a gray and murky area, I guess.

It's not inherently that way. It's only grey and murky if you choose to
live in fog and shadow (to quote the title of the Woody Allen film).
Are you looking for someone to tell you? There are people who can
(though not me). They will not be easy to find.

DWOVAX::STARK 
    
    >Certainly many people have similar experiences that they 
    >outright refuse to call 'spiritual,' though ?
    
    Once you put a label on them... you pick up all kinds of excess baggage
    that comes with the label.  Better to avoid that... don't you think?

ENABLE::glantz 

>Have you tried?

    no..
    
    >Believe me, it's not as difficult as getting Jamie to change his
    >position. 
    
    Why do you want Jamie to change his position?  He's right a lot of
    the time.
    
    >Or getting many people to stop feeling sorry for themselves.

    I suppose...
    
>The "teacher" is one who has a purpose, and the knowledge to bring
>about the education. Not necessarily anyone who writes in this
>notesfile. 
    
    That's true, I guess.  
    
    >If you're not a teacher, you're right to ask what the point
    >of butting heads with Jamie is, and why one would do it, just as one
    >might ask Jamie why he attempts to teach anyone else. If you're a
    >teacher, you don't butt heads, you teach.

    I don't know enough to teach anybody anything.... far as I can tell
    anyway.
    
>It's not inherently that way. It's only grey and murky if you choose to
>live in fog and shadow (to quote the title of the Woody Allen film).
    
    Well it sure seems that way sometimes.
    
>Are you looking for someone to tell you? There are people who can
>(though not me). They will not be easy to find.
    
    I don't know.  I guess I am.  I'm still trying to convince myself that
    there *are* people who know.. I'm not sure that there are... then
    again, I'm not sure that there aren't.  
    
    Everybody seems to have all the answers, every one is so sure that
    their way is the one and only true right way... and yet none of them
    are the paragons of virtue and perfection that they seem to claim to
    be.  Is it a waste of time searching for some mythical figures that
    don't really exist?  Do I spend my life tilting at windmills... or do
    I go back inside to that same source that brought me to where I am
    today?  
    
    I don't know... how does one find answers when one is still caught up
    in formulating questions.... eternal questions... ever changing..
    omnipresent questions..

    ... and knowing what one wants is so important and so very difficult...
    so complex.. simple but hard.. so much to consider all the time..
    
    What do you guys want?  Do you know?

   Note 1759.52 by "what a long strange trip it's been" 
    
>    >Certainly many people have similar experiences that they 
>    >outright refuse to call 'spiritual,' though ?
>    
>    Once you put a label on them... you pick up all kinds of excess baggage
>    that comes with the label.  Better to avoid that... don't you think?
    
    At a time when a lot of the most forward thinking people on the planet
    thought it was all very clear what was 'natural law' and what 
    'superstition,' I think it made a lot more sense to talk about
    the supernatural as a separate distinct category or realm from the
    natural.   I'm referring to hundreds of years ago.
    
    Now that we know more about the complexity of patterns in nature,
    I think the term _supernatural_ has less and less clear meaning.  
    Superstition is still meaningful, and I think mostly to be avoided, but 
    with all the interesting ideas in both science and general philosophical 
    inquiry, there is much more latitude to see the Divine as something 
    wholly _natural_ in essence, and to look more realistically (in some ways) 
    at the meaning of things in human life.
    
    I'd like to think that that would be at least a part of what would
    come out of the 'Aquarian Age' trends.
    
    								todd

    Well it is natural... I agree with you.
    
    BUT there are many people who would put a label on it and try to use
    it for their own ends.  Call it supernatural or call it satanic...
    either label carries an agenda... don't you think?
    
    Few people see it for what it really is... another aspect of nature...
    
    Understandable though, for a species who spent 300 hundred years
    seeking out their psychics, healers and clairvoyants and torturing them 
    to death.
    
    I don't know...

RE: .53 (Mary)

>    Why do you want Jamie to change his position?  He's right a lot of
>    the time.

    So's a stopped clock -- twice a day to be precise.  Sorry, Jamie,
    couldn't resist. :-)

					Topher

    Maybe Q will show up and take us to the Q Continium to learn how to
    be a proper Q.

    Going back to the blind and colors.  Some have worked with this
    and have found (not scientifically but sort of) that blind 
    people can often pick up the vibrations of the colors without
    seeing them.  Some work has been done with cats too.  Certain
    cats like certain colors (I guess they don't see in color) and
    will find their favorite color in a group of colors and sit on
    it.
    
    Labels do come with agenda's and it's wise to avoid them if at
    all possible.  Labels are like filters, parts get through and
    the rest remains on the other side/out of touch.  
    
    Joanne

>    Why do you want Jamie to change his position?  He's right a lot of
>    the time.

  One might guess that you don't believe this as much as your statement
  implies.

  In any case, you're right. Jamie is right a lot of the time. He and
  many others are "skeptics", but are highly articulate and generally
  motivated toward objectivity, if not always perfect in its pursuit
  (who is?). Not all skeptics are so objective. We're after truth, here,
  not dogma.

  The reason to get him to change his position is that we need a
  "revival" of true spirituality. This can only come about if people
  like Jamie, who are so articulate and persuasive, and who, in fact,
  represent a powerful sentiment in mainstream Western thinking, are
  "converted". Such people will not be converted until they have direct,
  personal experience. They will not be persuaded by words and cajoling.
  But, as words are all we have in this particular medium, they might be
  useful in helping to plant the seeds of possibility.

  Actually, to continue the analogy (another lousy one), the seeds are
  already there. What we can do is provide a modest supply of "water"
  and "fertilizer". If the light should ever shine enough to cause the
  seed to germinate, enough water and fertilizer will be there to get it
  going. The rest is up to the individual.

    I like to consider myself alongside Jamie in .60
    
    Laurie.

.... up to your neck in fertilizer ? :-)

    I think it's time for you to go on holiday again Jamie. We all want to
    talk about you. bye.
    
    Dougie
    

SALSA::MOELLER 
Note 1759.49   
    
>                           -< it'll never catch on >-
    
    Karl,
    
    I have to tell you that your note really cracked me up.  That's exactly
    how I see it too.
    
    mary

    re: .49,.64,
    	See, I told you that Karl's a clever fellow.  Like Dougie, he
    	sees right through the bat guano every time.  :-)

    It always looked that way to me too.... so strange ... I've
    never heard anyone else ever say that they saw it like that too though.
    
    Karl is a very clever fellow indeed. 

    Re .65

    And there was me thinking that guano was exclusively the excretions of
    sea birds. You learn something new every day in here.

    Jamie.

    Yes... yes you do... always take an umbrella while spellunking.

    Technically, Jamie, I think 'guano' *is* the dung of seabirds,
    and a bat, with few exceptions, isn't a seabird.
    
    However, it has a popular usage associated with bats, related
    to its incorporation in the popular early computer role playing
    game of Dungeon, written at MIT, where one of the hazards was
    spellunking in the wrong place at the wrong time without a
    shovel and getting buried in 'bat guano.'  I take that as sufficient
    precedent to use the term in this manner.

    I don't know, Tod.  There was a PBS special on some newly discovered
    cave in New Mexico just last night.  I distictly remember them
    referring to the dangers of "bat guano."  Apparently if enough of it is
    present, it emits toxic, potentially lethal fumes.  And god help the
    poor sick or injured bat that falls into a pile of guano.  It gets
    eaten alive over the course of 3 hours by some disgusting looking wormy
    things that live in the guano.  However, I digress...

    gua-no n.- A substance composed chiefly of sea bird or bat dung,
    accumulated in certain coastal regions or in caves and used as
    fertilizer.
    
    cult n. - 1. A community or system of religious worship and ritual.
    2.a. A religion or or religious sect generally regarded as bogus or
    extremist. b. Followers of such a religion or sect. 3.a. Obsessive
    devotion to a principle, person, or ideal. b. The object of such
    devotion. 4. An exclusive group of persons sharing an esoteric
    interest. 
    
    Reprinted from Webster's II New Riverside University Dictionary without
    permission.
    
    Karl
    

    cult n. - "Your" religion or system of beliefs
    
    Karl

    oh my heaven's, Mary... that's disgusting...

    It's perfectly appropriate that a discussion of cults should
    wind up in a detailed description of the perils of immersion
    in bat turds.  
    
    In my opinion.

    To answer the question of the base note:  a cult is a baby hoarse.
    
    *<(8*} ***
    
    Richard