- Sep 6, 2000
- 25,383
- 1,013
- 126
Good article, well worth the read...
Article Link
Toby Lester, the author of "Oh, Gods!" in the February Atlantic, talks about the Darwinian way in which religions evolve and mutate.
When Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses upon the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, in 1517, he could hardly have imagined that he would succeed in spawning a new, Protestant branch of the Christian Church. He would also no doubt be surprised if he could see the direction Protestantism has taken in the past 500 years. What would Luther think if he were somehow to visit the state of Utah, essentially a homeland for the Mormon church?a movement born out of American Protestantism which is now one of the fastest growing movements in the country, with 5 million adherents in the U.S. alone and estimated assets of around 30 billion dollars? Or if he were to attend a service of the evangelist Toronto Blessing movement based in Canada, in which "a move of the Holy spirit" can lead to congregants barking like dogs, roaring like lions, and laughing uncontrollably?
The evolution of Protestantism is but a tiny example of the constant churning change taking place in the world of religion. And not only are established religions always mutating, but new ones are constantly being born. According to the World Christian Encyclopedia, an 800-page volume that attempts to track every religion practiced around the world, there are 9,900 distinct religions and two or three new religions created every day. A growing number of scholars are studying these new religious movements, or NRMs, concentrating on such questions as, What social conditions lead to the creation of new religions? How, exactly, do religions mutate? What was it about early Christianity or Islam or Buddhism that made those movements survive, when most new religions fail? In "Oh, Gods!" (February Atlantic), Toby Lester surveys these questions and others by looking at the study of NRMs.
One of the debates that continually roils the field of NRM scholarship is whether a distinction can really be made between cults and new religions?after all, many of today's established religious movements began on the fringes of society. Does this mean that the Hare Krishnas or the Wiccans could be the next big religion? It's unlikely, but stranger things have happened. One thing is clear, though?a hundred years from now, our religious landscape will look radically different than it does now. "What new religious movements will come to light in the twenty-first century?" Lester asks.
Who knows? Will that raving, disheveled lunatic you ignored on a street corner last week turn out to be an authentic prophet of the new world faith? All sorts of developments are possible. Catholicism might evolve into a distinctly Charismatic movement rooted primarily in China and headed by an African pope.... Membership of the Mormon Church might become predominantly Latin American or Asian. Scientology might become the informal state religion of California.... None of these possibilities is as unlikely as it may sound.
(Interview follows)
Article Link
Toby Lester, the author of "Oh, Gods!" in the February Atlantic, talks about the Darwinian way in which religions evolve and mutate.
When Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses upon the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, in 1517, he could hardly have imagined that he would succeed in spawning a new, Protestant branch of the Christian Church. He would also no doubt be surprised if he could see the direction Protestantism has taken in the past 500 years. What would Luther think if he were somehow to visit the state of Utah, essentially a homeland for the Mormon church?a movement born out of American Protestantism which is now one of the fastest growing movements in the country, with 5 million adherents in the U.S. alone and estimated assets of around 30 billion dollars? Or if he were to attend a service of the evangelist Toronto Blessing movement based in Canada, in which "a move of the Holy spirit" can lead to congregants barking like dogs, roaring like lions, and laughing uncontrollably?
The evolution of Protestantism is but a tiny example of the constant churning change taking place in the world of religion. And not only are established religions always mutating, but new ones are constantly being born. According to the World Christian Encyclopedia, an 800-page volume that attempts to track every religion practiced around the world, there are 9,900 distinct religions and two or three new religions created every day. A growing number of scholars are studying these new religious movements, or NRMs, concentrating on such questions as, What social conditions lead to the creation of new religions? How, exactly, do religions mutate? What was it about early Christianity or Islam or Buddhism that made those movements survive, when most new religions fail? In "Oh, Gods!" (February Atlantic), Toby Lester surveys these questions and others by looking at the study of NRMs.
One of the debates that continually roils the field of NRM scholarship is whether a distinction can really be made between cults and new religions?after all, many of today's established religious movements began on the fringes of society. Does this mean that the Hare Krishnas or the Wiccans could be the next big religion? It's unlikely, but stranger things have happened. One thing is clear, though?a hundred years from now, our religious landscape will look radically different than it does now. "What new religious movements will come to light in the twenty-first century?" Lester asks.
Who knows? Will that raving, disheveled lunatic you ignored on a street corner last week turn out to be an authentic prophet of the new world faith? All sorts of developments are possible. Catholicism might evolve into a distinctly Charismatic movement rooted primarily in China and headed by an African pope.... Membership of the Mormon Church might become predominantly Latin American or Asian. Scientology might become the informal state religion of California.... None of these possibilities is as unlikely as it may sound.
(Interview follows)
Facebook
Twitter