What Is New Age Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

What Is New Age - Research Paper Example The practices of the New Age are individual journeys that can sometimes constitute an organized church or movement. New Age and/or New Religious Movements (NRM’s), also popularly known as cults, can have a great impact on the family. Oftentimes these cults rely on community organization, seeking recruits, and creating a new reality for participants that can be detrimental to the structure of the family. A new religious movement is basically defined as a movement which is spiritual or faith-based in nature. New religious movements may also have a basis in ethics, theology, philosophy, or religion to some extent. Cults need not be destructive in nature, however. Many people who study social psychology have adopted the term â€Å"new religious movement† as a way of describing cults or New Age-y organizations in neutral language. New religious movements may be communitarian, or they may be specifically spiritual or religious in nature. Usually what separates new religious movements from other religious movements in society is their unique ability to isolate people from other social networks. New religious movements had connotations of brainwashing. Several people are still wont to call new religious movements â€Å"cults† because that term is still more popular than the term â€Å"new religious movement.† There is still no formal criteria for what a new religious movement constitutes. However, in general, the group which is a new religious movement is somewhat new (obviously), and it is set apart or distinct from other religions. There is much controversy over what constitutes a â€Å"new† religious movement. Some people use certain dates as benchmarks for saying religion is new—for example, a religious movement that has occurred within the last 20 years or so.