Ha Ha… post twice… see it does work… however… that was an accident lol

And thanks… I am passionate about this subject!

God BLESS you!Kelly

So was Calvin, ktc. :)

However, I still think that these marks for cults reduce the term to a mere pejorative. I agree with David that a cult is marked more by its practices than its doctrines, particularly in terms of brainwashing, manipulation and isolation.

Applying the word indiscriminately to any religious group outside a particular radius of orthodoxy renders it meaningless. “Yeah, well… you’re… you’re a cult! So there!”

Kelly,

The pope did not say any such thing. The Catholic position is that it is *possible* that those who have never had a chance to accept Christ might be saved (note all the qualifications), and even that is only made possible through Christ’s passion and resurrection. No one can get to heaven apart from Christ.

Brian,

I see where Paul says that the righteous are justified by faith, but I have yet to find a translation that says by faith alone.

Not that I’m intending to present myself as a defender of the RCC, but I do think calling it a “cult” is a bit rash, and the hallmarks provided above are lacking at least one significant mark, i.e. that a true *cult* is very, very hard to leave.

When I decided to convert to the RCC when in my early 20’s I was surprised when the first response of the priest was “Why?”

I’d rather expected a choir of nuns singing the Agnus Dei to appear and a handy bishop pop out of the closet, instead of which I was given a copy of the catechism, advised to read it, then return if I’m still interested.

A dozen years later when I left the RCC, you know what happened?

Nothing. Not one thing. Though I’d been on church committees, room mother in the church’s school, etc. once we stopped attending we never heard from any priest. (Different parishes, BTW, and to be fair, there’d been turnover in the resident priests and I didn’t really know any of the new ones.)

Point being, the RCC doesn’t solicit new members in the way a true cult does, and one can leave anytime one wishes, unlike in a true cult.

So ISTM for all its faults, the tall and the small, the RCC should be acquitted of qualifying as a “cult”.

Gosh Brian, is that the best you could do? Bad Joke, good job.

Before someone cries James 2:24, it is pretty obvious that our faith is proven by the good works Christ has prepared for us to do (Ephesians 2:10) and not that our works pluss our faith equals salvation. Our faith, our salvation produces good works. Not the other way around.

James 2:18-26

18But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! 20Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? 21Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”— and he was called a friend of God. 24You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

Kelly,That sounds pretty solid.

Ther only thing I would add is that, from God’s vantage point, it’s ALL already been completed:

Check out the past tense in each of these actions…

For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.-Rom. 8:29-30

Joel said;

‘Heresy is a theological thing, but a cult isn’t. It seems to me that a cult is more marked by social or ecclesiastical signs, like the single charismatic leader and the extreme “us-and-them” mentality.’

And I tend to agree, and then think of a single Pope, and the Catholic ‘us-and-them’ doctrine that would say that as a person without the catholic sacraments, I am not a member of Christ’s Church.

The Danny Haszard Cult now has a few followers. Danny has adopted the universal cult-leader stance of presenting himself as both a victim, and a type of

savior showing the way to salvation. He is of course successful with only those who reject an honest

investigation and give themselves over to the control and teachings of someone who teaches hate.These traits, of being a victim and a leader intensely interested in saving others, are of course at the very

essence of Cults and their delusional leaders. Though offering a pretense of help, however, his offering lacks conciliatory and genuine assistance to

Jehovah’s Witnesses, fellow “victims” for whom surely he must hold some kind of good intent…. But, no,

he sadly and pathetically just tries to create separation and anger, tries to divide families, tries to destroy

happiness, and teaches a withdrawing from and a rejection of the accepted freedoms of speech of our

society. He suppresses the truth in favor of his own vitriolic hate. His efforts are reflective of a perception of

personal grandeur and a fixation on his own self-worth. Also a trait of Cult leaders, Danny lacks the fortitude and purpose in life to accomplish good for himself

and others without needing the adulation of others he can dupe. Cult leaders need to build their own self

-esteem and to feed their own personal aggrandisement, and to strengthen their own wobbly beliefs by

grasping for the approval of followers. Anger is so often a front for fear and weakness. It is the weak

person, usually accompanied by weak reasoning, who turns from truth and uses anger and fear as a

motivator. Those similarly inclined or susceptible become followers of cult leaders like Danny Haszard. He has actually made himself more of a slave to the Watchtower than he ever was as a member - he is

addicted to his fears and anger, addicted to attacking, delusional as to the success of his efforts to tear

down the faith of others, and uses hate as a tool to appeal to those similarly lacking in faith, or honesty, or

dignity, or self-worth, or personal esteem.Remarkably his entire purpose in life in now linked to a preoccupation with the Watchtower. This cultish behavior includes efforts to drawing off a following for himself….He has set himself up as an

authority figure who works hard to attract followers. This is the new Danny Haszard Cult.

NOTICE:SPAM COMMENT by ‘JAMES’ IS A JEHOVAH’S WITNESSES STALKER

Who’s Danny Haszard?

Stalking Jehovah’s Witnesses trolls just eaten up with jealousy over Danny HaszardTroll flamebaiters—Your notions though many are not worth a penny When it gets down to facts, the apologist does not respond back, everything about the Jehovah’s Witnesses troll is deception because you are a supremacist cult who feel no need to be truthful with unbelievers who are all,”gonna die at armageddon anyway”.

This is the Jehovah’s Witnesses troll IP addressjames(c-67-176-38-74.hsd1.co.comcast.net)JamesAurora, CO