THE CHARACTERISTICS OF PSEUDO-RELIGION
A Case Study of the Documentary Film In the Name of God - A Holy Betrayal
Abstract
The documentary film "In the Name of God: The Holy Betrayal" records interviews with former followers of four sects in South Korea, namely Jesus Morning Star/Jeong Myeong-seok, Five Oceans, Baby Garden, and Manmin Central Church. Through a case study, five similarities were found among these sects, namely individual cult (worshiping their leaders), religious fraud (misuse of money), religious abuse (exploitation to sexual harassment), isolation and exclusivism, and extreme mysticism. These five similarities are covered by a fanaticism that makes followers not question or criticize teachings, even if they are contrary to the law. Through a literature review of the cases in this documentary, this research concludes that these five similarities are part of the sect's character. This analysis has significance for introducing Christian movements and tendencies for teachings to become pseudo-religions.
Film dokumenter “In the Name of God: The Holy Betrayal” merekam wawancara dari mantan pengikut empat sekte di Korea Selatan, yakni Jesus Morning Star/ Jeong Myeong-seok, Five Oceans, Baby Garden dan Manmin Central Church. Melalui studi kasus yang dilakukan, ditemukan lima kesamaan sekte ini, yakni kultus individual (menuhankan pemimpinnya), religious fraud (penyalahgunaan uang), religious abuse (eksploitasi hingga pelecehan seksual), isolasi dan eksklusifisme serta mistisisme ekstrim. Kelima kesamaan ini ditambah dengan sikap fanatisme yang membuat pengikutnya tidak mempertanyakan atau melakukan kritik terhadap ajaran-ajaran, meskipun itu bertentangan dengan hukum. Melalui studi pustaka atas kasus-kasus dalam dokumenter ini, penelitian ini menyimpulkan bahwa kelima kesamaan tersebut adalah sebagian dari karakter sekte. Analisis ini memiliki signifikansi bagi pengenalan gerakan Kekristenan dan kecenderungan ajaran menjadi agama semu.
Downloads
References
Barker, Eileen. “The Not-So-New Religious Movements: Changes in ‘the Cult Scene’ over the Past Forty Years.” Temenos-Nordic Journal of Comparative Religion 50, no. 2 (2014): 235-56. https://journal.fi/temenos/article/view/48461/14189.
Becher, Jeanne. Perempuan, Agama dan Seksualitas. Jakarta: BPK Gunung Mulia: 2011.
Chawa, Anif F., Lutfi Amiruddin, dan A. Imron Rozuli, “Pendekatan Studi Kasus dalam Penelitian Kualitatif Sosiologi,” in Metodologi Penelitian Kualitatif - Berbagi Pengalaman dari Lapangan, ed. Siti Kholifah dan I Wayan Suyadnya, 1 ed. Depok: Rajawali Pers, 2018.
Dever, Mark. 9 Tanda Gereja yang Sehat. Surabaya: Penerbit Momentum: 2010.
Farley, Margaret A. A Framework for Christian Sexual Ethics. London, Bloomsbury Publishing: 2008.
Gwamna, Je’adayibe Dogara. Religion and Politics in Nigeria. Jos: ACTS, 2014.
Han-byeol, Jeong. “"내 가족도 피해자"…'나는 신이다' 조성현 PD의 고백 [종합],” Hankook Ilbo, 10 Maret 2023. https://www.hankookilbo.com/News/Read/A2023031010220005096.
Ikhsan, Muhamad N. Dasar Ilmu Akupresur dan Moksibasi. Cimahi: Bhimaristan Press, 2019.
Interpol. “View and search public Red Notices for wanted persons.” 16 Maret 2023, https://www.interpol.int/en/How-we-work/Notices/View-Red-Notices.
Iwe, N.S.S. Religious Fanaticism: Causes, Consequences and Remedies. Calabar: Saesprint, 2000.
Khalika, Nindias Nur, “Keseriusan Gereja Katolik Berantas Pelecehan Seksual Terus Diuji,” Tirto, 24 Oktober 2021. https://tirto.id/gkzbn
Leach, William, H. “Religious Fanaticism: Asset or Debit?,” The Biblical World 53, no. 3 (1919): 240-44, https://www.jstor.org/stable/3136306.
Reci Sydney Newsletter Vol. 88, “Kebahayaan Pemimpin-pemimpin Sekte.” October-November 2014. https://stage.recisydney.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Radix-Nov-2014.pdf
Renda, Martinus. dkk, “Penyalahgunaan Kuasa Imamat dalam Kasus Sexual Abuse,” Studia Philosophica et Theologica 22, no. 1 (2022): 114-37.
Sophie-Ha, “The producer of 'In the Name of God, A Holy Betrayal' says he's been carrying around a stun gun and baton for protection,” Allkpop, 11 Maret 2023. https://www.allkpop.com/article/2023/03/the-producer-of-in-the-name-of-god-a-holy-betrayal-says-hes-been-carrying-around-a-stun-gun-and-baton-for-protection.
Starr, Reginald H. “Christian Mysticism,” The Sewanee Review, 9, no. 1 (1901), 30-40.
Stevanus, Kalis. “Relasi Akal Budi dan Iman dalam Apologetika dan Pewartaan Injil.” Dunamis: Jurnal Teologi dan Pendidikan Kristiani, 6, no. 1 (2021): 87-105, https://doi.org/10.30648/dun.v6i1.442.
Tobias, Madeleine Landau Tobias & Janja Lalich. Captive Hearts, Captive Minds: Freedom and Recovery from Cults and Abusive Relationships. California, Hunter House: 1994.
Tretyakov, Ivan. “Destructive nature of manipulative content, created by leaders of totalitarian pseudoreligious cults,” E3S Web of Conferences: EMMFT-2020, no. 244 (2021): 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/202124411036.
Wibowo, Eka Adhi and Heru Kristanto. “Korupsi dalam Pelayanan Gereja: Analisis Potensi Penyimpangan dan Pengendalian Internal.” Integritas: Jurnal Anti Korupsi, 3, no. 2 (2017): 105–136.
Yonhap. “Religious group's request for court injunction to block release of Netflix documentary rejected.” The Korea Times, 2 Maret 2023. https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/art/2023/03/398_346417.html.
Zaluchu, Sonny Eli. “Metode Penelitian di dalam Manuskrip Jurnal Ilmiah Keagamaan,” Jurnal Teologi Berita Hidup, 3, no. 2 (2021): 249–66. https://doi.org/10.38189/jtbh.v3i2.93.
Copyright (c) 2023 Bonnarty Steven Silalahi
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
