If, as Karl Marx suggested, religion is the "opium of the people," we live on a planet where nobody needs to walk too far down the street to get drugs. Each year, hundreds of new religious movements are born; they're all over the place if you know where to look. Never mind that only a tiny fraction of them will survive - there's more where they came from. So, who starts new religions and why? Starting a new religion is actually a lot like rolling out a new social media app: Hundreds of these things appear out of thin air every year, created by go-getters with some entrepreneurial spirit, egoism, creativity, ambition and flair for presenting an idea. But dumb luck and good timing play a part, too - sometimes an idea comes along that speaks to people's needs and concerns at a particular moment in history. When this happens, some buzz is generated, people get curious, and maybe (just maybe), the whole thing blows up.
And we end up with Snapchat or Scientology. Religious scholars avoid the word "cult" when describing new religious movements since the term is so laden with value judgments, but every new religious sect or spiritual movement essentially begins the same way: as a cult. Truth is, at some point most of the world's great religions were what most people would call "cults," started by upstarts like Jesus or Muhammad or feelingcutelol.com Buddha. But according to Lorne Dawson, a professor in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Waterloo and author of "Comprehending Cults: The Sociology of New Religious Movements," while many of these motivational leaders have the drive to start a new spiritual group, precious few have the wherewithal to manage it through the awkward early stages without mismanaging finances, alienating their followers or otherwise letting their egos get the better of them. There have been loads of conversions away from native practice, just in the last 100 years. As so often happens, when people convert, they usually combine their animistic beliefs with some elements of Catholicism. In the case of Africa, this has been in the midst of economic upheaval, new diseases and a lot of disruption. They're seizing for themselves the power to define Scientology for themselves. The church says they aren't allowed to do this, but that's the same argument every religious institution makes. In the U.S., both slave owners and abolitionists used not only the same Bible to justify their argument, they used the exact same verses.
The LetUsSpeak campaign has had another victory. Together, with your help, Sales we have supported two sisters from Albury NSW to win the right to self-identify when sharing their story with the media. Rose and Pippa Milthorpe (14 and 17) wish to share their story to help improve how children are treated in court in sexual offence matters. In NSW, it is legal to name sexual assault complainants over the age of 14 (who give their consent) however, in Rose and Pippa's case, court orders were still needed as their legal matter involved two other unrelated children (who have not been named). With your help, we have now been able to assist 20 survivors in being able to say their real names when telling and owning their stories (starting with Grace Tame, the 2021 Australian of the Year). We know that for some survivors, being able to share their story on their terms is an important part of reclaiming ownership and control and we believe that survivors shouldn’t be silenced. This article was gener ated with the help of GSA Content Gene ra tor DEMO.
LetUsSpeak is proud to partner on the new campaign ‘Justice Shouldn’t Hurt’. With your help, we will continue to campaign for important reforms needed to support the survivor community to be heard and listened to. Join thousands of Australians calling to end the silencing of sexual assault survivors. 20 sexual assault survivors and/ or their family members across Tasmania, the NT and Victoria. Together, we've co-ordinated a multi-jurisdiction campaign leading to four law reforms across three jurisdictions so far. There is more to be done. LetUsSpeak campaign has had another victory, winning Chrissie Foster the right to name her deceased daughter Emma in public. The court order was successfully obtained by Marque Lawyers, with funds coming from the campaign GoFundMe. Without this court order, Ms Foster could face potential prosecution if she continued to name Emma and/or discuss details of her daughter's sexual abuse in public. Ms Foster has previously been awarded an Australian Human Rights medal and has been admitted as a member to the Order of Australia for her extraordinary advocacy for child sexual abuse survivors.
The campaign is proud to stand with her and her family. Did you know that some sexual assault survivors in the Northern Territory are still gagged from telling their stories and can face up to six months jail for breaking the gag law? Or that the Victorian Government is currently debating laws which make it a crime for grieving parents, relatives and media to name deceased rape victims, without a court order (which are often expensive and traumatic to obtain)? LetUsSpeak campaign is continuing to fight for the rights of ALL sexual assault survivors to be able to speak out without risk of prosecution to themselves or others. We’re also providing legal and other support to numerous families in Victoria who are fighting to prevent the introduction of gag-laws which would prohibit the naming of deceased sexual assault victims. 17 sexual assault survivors across Tasmania, pinnaclebattleship.com the NT and Victoria. We’ve also co-ordinated a multi-jurisdiction media campaign for law reform.