Present Day Vs Reformation Essay

Fascinatingly enough, whether we like to think about it or not, history has a tendency to draw overarching parallels to the present day (or the past, whichever way one would prefer). Today, in particular, one of those parallels is the relation between present-day theological campaigns versus during the “age of Reform”, or in other words, the Reformation. Contrary to what one would typically believe, the tetrarchy of major religions today aren’t exactly the factions using the same tactics as back then. In fact, the subsect of one in particular is generating plenty of noise behind the scenes, as well as in the public eye. “International Christian Churches,” or more appropriately, Christian cults, have been for the most part mimicking/mirroring

The first few times you happen to be baited into meeting with them is when everything appears wholesome. Only after they gather you and other unsuspecting people en masse is when the façade is removed. Once the blindfold falls, you are struck at the core and torn down during the congregation (or with the congregation, it depends), reality shatters for the individual as this group claims that the only true path to salvation is through them. Although it may not be a full similarity, it is a similarity nonetheless to what the Catholic church had done (not to that extreme of course). That aspect of the church is part of what the Protestants (namely Martin Luther) had aimed to fix, after all, he had believed that “as long as you believe in Christ as the savior, you would find your way to heaven” (Kleyn). At the same time, since the cults tweak the church’s doctrine at their benefit, that alone is a parallel between the Christian cults and the protestant movements as

Regarding membership, obviously the ICC’s are much more restrictive and demanding. The recruitment tactics alone would spoil this aspect of their organizations. The ICC’s demand absolute allegiance from their members, including an “interventionist policy in their member’s love interests” (Slick). Of course, you will not exactly see the same heavy hand from Christian, Catholic, or any Protestant churches, but they still expect you to marry within their respective churches/beliefs. International Christian Churches also demand a large percentage of your salary, ranging anywhere between the thirty to sixty percentiles, their justification typically being that “you will live a more wholesome life” or “your support of our church will not go unanswered by God.” Both phrases have been encountered by myself over the last four years, prior to that, it was hard to even imagine that these “Christian Cult” movements even existed. As far as the exclusivity aspect of it goes, it varies by individual churches nowadays, however the ICC’s are the only modern movements that compare to those from the past. Back then, a majority of theological institutions, not just churches, were extremely exclusive, if an individual failed to conform to the institution’s beliefs, then an