Talk:Totalitarian religious group

Why isn't this just a redirect to Cult? Morwen 09:12, 27 Nov 2003 (UTC)

Dear Morwen, thank you for the question. As I see it, this is a neat helpful article that deserves extra space. It is also because in other countries the term "cult" has not caught on yet but "totalitarian" has everywhere. So why shouldn't the English Wiki take over a good idea from the German one? ;-) ly 17:01, 28 Nov 2003 (UTC)

I'm afraid that's not an answer. Morwen

Actually, since the article on "Cult" is very long already, it is for practical reasons that such a basic question is dealt with separately, I believe. That is why there is a link at the end of the Cult article. (ly)

Ok. But it still doesnt' explain the difference between the two terms anywhere, and I'm not convinced there is any. Except of course Cult can be used in a more specific sense to mean, for example, the cult of [insert saint]. Morwen 07:12, 1 Dec 2003 (UTC)

I tend to agree with Morwen. The expression totaliarian religious group was used in German probably because there is no good equivalent for cult in German. 'Sekte' has too many different meanings, just like in Dutch and French ('Secte')Andries 21:32, 13 Feb 2004 (UTC)

Whatever the origins, the subject of this article is the same as the subject of Cult. They should be one article. DJ Clayworth 21:43, 13 Feb 2004 (UTC)

Easily misapplied

This reads almost word-for-word like the kind of "cult warning" propaganda that was directed against the Unification Church in the 1970s and 1980s. Especially the section marked How can I find out whether a group is totalitarian? They just changed the word cult to totalitarian -- as if nobody would notice. Ha!

This article is sheer advocacy and should either be deleted, or re-written so that its points of view are clearly attributed to their proponents. Also, would someone please look up the references? I've seen that checklist somewhere else, but since I'm "on vacation" I must leave it to others to find it. Try googling for "cult characteristics". --Uncle Ed 19:43, 9 Mar 2004 (UTC)

Ed, yes, this article should be merged with cults but DO NOT DELETE its contents but instead improve it. I had already listed this article as such wikipedia duplicate articles I have to agree with your removal of the link about bigotry though.Andries 13:19, 10 Mar 2004 (UTC)

Lots of big cuts

I deleted everything that was unattributed POV. With a few minutes of on-line searching, anyone could easily trace which organizations or individuals advocates these points of view. Please do so, then put the info back in properly attributed.

Also this external link is about bigotry, not cults:

• THE NATURE OF RELIGIOUS BIGOTRY

--Uncle Ed 20:18, 9 Mar 2004 (UTC)