Is the Church of Christ a Cult?
I recently watched the PBS documentary about Jonestown. It was extremely disturbing and brought back a lot of equally disturbing memories. I was a kid when the mass suicide occurred and I remember being freaked out when I learned that it was the parents themselves who gave the cyanide-laced Kool-Aid to the children--many of whom were my own age. I also remember that it set off a wave of anti-cult hysteria and accompanying sermons at church. Preachers denounced Jim Jones as a false prophet and outlined mind-control techniques used by cults, so that we could recognize and avoid them. The funny thing is, when they would talk about the mind-control techniques, I remember thinking, "But our church does some of those same things!" I never voiced my doubts to anyone, of course.
Here are the ways in which I believe that the COC is like a cult:
1. The COC claims to be the only group in the world with The Truth and to have special, secret knowledge about it.
2. They try to get people so involved with the group that they don't have time for anything else. They schedule multiple church services, classes, groups, and potlucks each week and then make people feel guilty for not attending every one of them.
3. They encourage people to give their money exclusively to the church and not to other charities. For some reason, the United Way is particularly hated by some COC-ers. I've never gotten an adequate explanation as to why that is.
4. Any hint of dissent or doubt is quickly stifled, and those who persist in asking questions are asked to leave or are accused of spreading false doctrine.
5. Finally, the COC tries to convince people that if they leave, their lives will be ruined. They say that life in the "outside world" is shallow and meaningless and that no one will ever love you as much as your fellow COC members. If you do leave, they make it as difficult and painful as possible by withdrawing friendship and fellowship from you.
Here are some key differences between the COC and cults:
1. The COC does not encourage people to leave their families. In fact, the Ozzie-and-Harriet model of a stay-at-home wife and breadwinner husband with 2 or 3 kids is considered to be ideal.
2. If you have a family, then you have to have a job to support them, and so you have money to give to the church, so no one is ever encouraged to leave their secular jobs and devote their lives completely to the church or move to a compound in a remote location.
3. Physical abuse is not used in disciplining church members. There's plenty of browbeating and guilt-mongering, but no one ever fears for their physical safety.
4. No one will physically stop you from leaving the church. As I mentioned before, they'll make it as emotionally painful as possible, but you can walk away if you wish.
5. The COC's insistence that the Bible is their sole source of spiritual authority keeps it from veering into truly wacky territory. I've seen some strange preachers preach some strange things, but if they stray too far from what the Bible says, they get fired or pulled back into line by the elders and deacons. It would be hard for a COC preacher to start claiming absolute authority for himself, as Jim Jones did, given the COC's tradition of adhering to the Bible as closely as possible.
But to answer my own question in the title of this post, I don't believe that the COC is a cult, in the strictest sense of the term. It's a pseudo-Christian sect with cult-like tendencies. I call it pseudo-Christian because they claim to follow the Bible but deny that the Holy Spirit is directly active in the world today (they believe the Spirit is only indirectly active, through the Bible, a doctrine that pretty much every other church would consider blasphemy). The cult-like tendencies make the COC a very toxic place, one that stifles both personal and spiritual growth.
If you've come across this post because someone is trying to convert you to the COC and you are searching for information about the church, I strongly recommend that you politely tell that person you're not interested. There are lovely individuals in that church, just like in every other church, but their doctrines will only diminish your life, not enrich it. Feel free to ask me questions in the comments.
Here are the ways in which I believe that the COC is like a cult:
1. The COC claims to be the only group in the world with The Truth and to have special, secret knowledge about it.
2. They try to get people so involved with the group that they don't have time for anything else. They schedule multiple church services, classes, groups, and potlucks each week and then make people feel guilty for not attending every one of them.
3. They encourage people to give their money exclusively to the church and not to other charities. For some reason, the United Way is particularly hated by some COC-ers. I've never gotten an adequate explanation as to why that is.
4. Any hint of dissent or doubt is quickly stifled, and those who persist in asking questions are asked to leave or are accused of spreading false doctrine.
5. Finally, the COC tries to convince people that if they leave, their lives will be ruined. They say that life in the "outside world" is shallow and meaningless and that no one will ever love you as much as your fellow COC members. If you do leave, they make it as difficult and painful as possible by withdrawing friendship and fellowship from you.
Here are some key differences between the COC and cults:
1. The COC does not encourage people to leave their families. In fact, the Ozzie-and-Harriet model of a stay-at-home wife and breadwinner husband with 2 or 3 kids is considered to be ideal.
2. If you have a family, then you have to have a job to support them, and so you have money to give to the church, so no one is ever encouraged to leave their secular jobs and devote their lives completely to the church or move to a compound in a remote location.
3. Physical abuse is not used in disciplining church members. There's plenty of browbeating and guilt-mongering, but no one ever fears for their physical safety.
4. No one will physically stop you from leaving the church. As I mentioned before, they'll make it as emotionally painful as possible, but you can walk away if you wish.
5. The COC's insistence that the Bible is their sole source of spiritual authority keeps it from veering into truly wacky territory. I've seen some strange preachers preach some strange things, but if they stray too far from what the Bible says, they get fired or pulled back into line by the elders and deacons. It would be hard for a COC preacher to start claiming absolute authority for himself, as Jim Jones did, given the COC's tradition of adhering to the Bible as closely as possible.
But to answer my own question in the title of this post, I don't believe that the COC is a cult, in the strictest sense of the term. It's a pseudo-Christian sect with cult-like tendencies. I call it pseudo-Christian because they claim to follow the Bible but deny that the Holy Spirit is directly active in the world today (they believe the Spirit is only indirectly active, through the Bible, a doctrine that pretty much every other church would consider blasphemy). The cult-like tendencies make the COC a very toxic place, one that stifles both personal and spiritual growth.
If you've come across this post because someone is trying to convert you to the COC and you are searching for information about the church, I strongly recommend that you politely tell that person you're not interested. There are lovely individuals in that church, just like in every other church, but their doctrines will only diminish your life, not enrich it. Feel free to ask me questions in the comments.
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