Sociology of Religion - Term Paper Example

?Final Reflection Paper When one first walks in on the Sociology of Religion he expects to learn about the concept of religion in relation to our society. Although it seems like two topics that cannot ever be related to each other, the lessons in class actually show the students something that is not quite obvious to most people. Religion is one of the foundations and building blocks of our society. It wields a power over people that was quite evident during ancient times but has become very subtle in our modern era due to the way religion has distracted its members from noticing the manipulation that religion expertly wields over their members. Thanks to my exposure to the history of religion and how our society has evolved to further include it in our lives, I have come to understand that these mega churches are part of the recruitment techniques of these cults and sects, hoping to turn themselves into the most massively popular and leading “religion” in the future. The mega church concept as discussed Johnston's book presents us with a unique look into the evolution of a cult into a sect and then finally, an officially recognized religion. It would seem that the first requirement for the creation of a sect is a man who has a vivid imagination, is a skilled story teller, and has an intense amount of the gift of gab. What actually helps a cult to flourish is the charisma of the sect leader and his ability to actually make people believe that he understands what he is going through, whether he truly does or not. In order to grow a cult into a mega church, the leader of the cult must have an almost hypnotic effect on people. It is important to understand that these cult leaders come into the business of religion with barely a cent to their names. Just like Jesus Christ did when he started preaching and building his cult of Christian followers. Johnston presents us with a clear path towards an understanding of the basis for the existence of the mega churches and how exactly it functions to help propagate the way of life that the cult believes in. With an impressive number of members, the cult moves from “religious” status to a part of the weekly entertainment of the group members. Yes, the gatherings have to do with religion, but the method by which the people are enticed to come to church and stay there for hours on end, opening up their wallets to the cause of the cult is what people should be truly aware of. Mega churches reach such a status because the leaders of the cult want to have a wide membership that can support their lifestyle, there is nothing about the mega church that exists in order to truly feed the spirit or soul of the cult member. The imposing structure is actually a part of the control mechanism that the cult leaders weld over members and future members of the cult. By creating mega churches housed within a shopping complex or adjacent to a shopping complex, the cult will have cornered the religious market in relation to the kind of people that frequent the mall. As such, the church will redefine itself and present itself in a light that they know will appeal to the crown of mall-shoppers and entice them to come to the church for services. They do this by disguising themselves as non-sectarian cults that very slyly disciples people who attend the church. What the mega church expects is that over time, they will have weaned the unsuspecting attendees from their original religious venues in favor of their own cult. It is because of this type of discipling that the mega churches require huge buildings of “worship” that can house around 2,000 people at any given service time. Nobody who wishes to attend the mega church is turned away. After all, an unsuspecting attendee is a future staunch mega church supporter if the cult plays their cards right. Johnston reminds us of the fact that these mega churches are all based upon small time cults that somehow manage to hit the big time. Their recruitment technique is simple. Aside from ensuring that their mega churches are located in high traffic areas, they also present each service in a similar manner as a Hollywood musicale. Their services are highly entertaining with their live bands, singers, skits, plays, testimonies, and finally, the preaching of the pastor. Events which are expected to last more than an hour since the singing part of the service alone can rival a mini-concert that lasts at least 30 minutes. It is this notion of high value entertainment alongside religious preaching that keeps the attendees of the mega churches glued to their seats. They are mesmerized by the sights and sounds before them, an act which can be considered to be almost hypnotic in effect. The brain is overtaken by the bombardment of sights, sounds, and sheer size of the venue that each service is similar to a rock concert for the attendees. But they get to attend this concert for free and it lasts longer than 2 hours when there is a special occasion being celebrated at the church. Like the birthday of the church leader. Having been raised by my parents in a single religion, which I do not actively practice at the moment, I never had an suspicion that there was a battle raging between the traditional churches and the new church movements. I also did not have any idea that the mega churches represent the new age religions that are more of a self-help and motivational group than a sect that bases its preachings and teachings on the life beliefs and same mindset concept of the traditional churches. Mega churches are a totally new concept when it comes to religion and has an even stricter membership concept than the traditional cults. Mega church members tend to view themselves as part of a more special, and chosen religious sect. One that should not mingle with people who are not part of their group. Even worse, is that the only way that they can see to expand their group membership is through the collection of fees from their base members which is then used to build, renovate, and modernize their mega churches so that it can compete with the other new emerging cults that have a direct chance of becoming a mega church in itself. Johnston makes a point of revealing that these churches stem from small town cults and sects that has one objective in mind. To grow their membership by recruiting members from adjacent cities and out of town. This is something that can only be done by creating something so eye catching that the people there will find themselves very interested in discovering what exactly goes on in that new place. They bank on this curiosity to get people into their doors and seats, hoping that they will come back for more of the show and throw a few dollars or so their way when they do come back because their interest has already been raised. I would have to say that this class has really opened my mind to understanding the underlying facts pertaining to religion and its relevance in our modern society. Religion is just what it is, a money making venture that some gifted people have managed to parlay into a lifelong, family inclusive money making scheme for themselves and their closest friends and relatives. The existence of the mega churches further proves this point. It was designed with one thing in mind, that of recruiting more members to the church through the use of modern gadgetry and gimmicks. By giving them a free show every week, they manage to indoctrinate enough people into their cult, thus keeping the cult alive financially and supplied with members to work for the progressive spread of the cult throughout the years to come. It is important to understand that although mega churches exist for a good reason, sometimes, the people behind the mega church have more devious reasons behind wanting to propagate their cult. That is why people must be very weary of the existence of mega churches and the people who entice them to attend services there. Religion should be something that people practice freely and sans the influence of other people. That is the lesson that I learned from our books. That is why I personally frown upon the recruitment techniques of these new religions and the showcase that they put on during their active recruitment days. The hypnotic technique that they use changes the psyche of a person and could have both a positive or negative effect on the person. In which case, his involvement with mega churches should always be looked into for its discipling influence upon the person in question. Read More