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TYPES OF RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATION Alignment may be described as locations along social and cultural continua that reflect the extent to which groups align their activity culturally and socially with the corresponding patterning in the dominant social order (institutions such as religion, family, economy, media, government, education, medical). Three conclusions follow: • For any specific group the extent of social and cultural alignment may or may not coincide.
In the comparisons below, the Dominant Tradition Groups are taken as the point of reference. For each item, the top group faces minor contestation and the bottom group major contestation. • Is the group socially and culturally recognized as legitimately religious?
• Is the group socially recognized as a legitimate representative of a dominant or alternative religious tradition?
• Are the core elements of the group’s myth and ritual system are compatible with the dominant cultural and social practices?
• Does the group accept established social institutions (education, economic, family, health, government) as possessing legitimacy and authority?
• How socially and culturally integrated is the group into mainstream society?
• What is the overall social status of the group?
FOUR TYPES OF RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATION Dominant Religious Tradition • The dominant tradition groups in mid-twentieth century America included many of the same mainline Protestant churches that had constituted the core religious groups for many decades (United Church of Christ, Episcopal, Unitarians, Methodists, Presbyterian, Evangelical Lutheran) and some of the Orthodox churches (Greek, Russian, Antioch) . • By 1950 the dominant churches expanded to include the Roman Catholic Church and the Reform and Conservative Jewish traditions. • New groups are primarily the product of merger and schism by already existing Dominant Tradition groups Example of New Groups: The United Methodist Church was formed in 1968 when the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren, churches which had historically been separated largely by different language traditions, merged. Humanistic Judaism broke with established Judaism by rejecting traditional accounts of Jewish history as well as all supernatural belief, asserting that individuals bear responsibility for their own ethical decisions.
Examples of New Groups: *Marian Apparition at Clearwater Branch Davidians Alternative Religious Tradition • These groups represent other cultural traditions, often major traditions in other societies. As representatives of established religious traditions elsewhere, they are socially aligned but not culturally aligned. Examples of New Groups: *Washington Buddhist Vihara Buddhist Churches of America *Fire Walking Examples of New Groups: *The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord *The Church of Scientology
****************************************************************************** Below I have listed a number of specific indices of social and cultural alignment. These are offered to illustrate how an assessment of alignment might be produced. This is supplemental information and will not be included on course examinations.
• The group mythic system is/is not consistent with dominant institution law and regulation
Group-State Relationship • The group is/is not granted formal recognition as a legitimate religious group by the state • The group accepts/does not accept the legitimacy and legal authority of the state • Group members serve in/decline service in the military • Group clergy are/are not recognized by the state (legislative, military, prison officiation) • The group endorses/does not endorse members’ participation in mainstream political and civic activity Group-Non-State Relationship • Group economic, medical/dietary, familial/sexual, and educational/socialization practices are/are not compatible with corresponding mainstream institutional practices • Group members are endogamous/exogamous • The group does/does not actively evangelize and proselytize members of other religious groups • Group does/does not participate in interfaith organizations and activities • Group is included in/excluded from membership in appropriate religious accrediting agencies • The group typically is/is not depicted in media coverage as a legitimate religious tradition • The group is/is not the target of organized oppositional groups that are granted legitimacy by dominant institutions • Dissident factions within the group are/are not in alliance with outside opponents Social Status • Group membership is drawn predominantly from higher/lower status social class, ethnic groups • Group members serve/do not serve in high-ranking political and economic positions Religious Group Organization • The group is organized in a priestly/prophetic mode • The group does/does not make charismatic claims on behalf of the leader that challenge the authority of dominant institutional leaders •The group integrates with/separates from mainstream social networks physically and socially • Group membership requires/does not require ritualized identity redefinition or transformation (baptism, conversion)
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