New Religious Movement — Definition and Use
This site addresses the definition and use of the term ‘New Religious Movement.’
The term is somewhat ambiguous since it is used in various ways, and applied for various reasons.
Many sociologists or religion use it to denote a religious movement that has been established (or has emerged) relatively recently, and that is either completely new or an offshoot of an established religion.
Some use the term New Religious Movement (NRM) as a euphemism for, or alternative to, the term ‘cult.’ Doing so is incorrect and disingenuous.
We’ll look at the term and track its usage in news reports.
