Following the model of biology, sociologists of religion have from time to time attempted to delineate systems for classifying religious organizations according to their social structure and according to their relationship with the larger society. One of the most commonly used typologies applied to North American religious bodies is the cult-sect-denomination schema. In terms of this schema, "sect" is most often used to designate a group that schisms off from a larger denomination, often in the name of reforming and purifying the tradition. Unlike denominations, which, for the most part, coexist peace-fully with the social mainstream, sects tend to take a stance of antagonism toward certain elements of the society. This conflict can range from relatively mild, such as refusing to watch box office movies or refusing to wear make-up, to more radical kinds of distancing, such as refusing to serve in the military or refusing to send one's children to public schools.

The discussion in J. Milton Yinger's, Religion, Society, and the Individual, constitutes the starting point for all subsequent sociological discussions of schemas of religious classification. In this work, Yinger included a discussion of what he called "established sects," namely religious reform movements that, once they settled into society and into the routines of their own organizational life, retain certain sectarian characteristics while simultaneously achieving stability and persisting across several generations (e.g., the Quakers and the Latter-Day Saints Church). In North America, the word "sect" does not have particularly negative connotations. This is in sharp contrast to Europe, where sect is a highly pejorative designation, not unlike the term "cult" in the North American setting. "Cult" has several, related meanings. In sociological circles prior to the cult controversy of the 1970s, "cult" was a valueneutral term referring to small, informal religious groups, particularly transitory groups in the metaphysical-occult subculture that gathered around charismatic religious leaders. Many new religions, from Christianity to MSIA, originated as "cults" in the technical sense of that term.

Beyond their informality, cults are characterized as having mystical, esoteric doctrines. As a result of this esoteric orientation, cults tend not to be interested in making this world a better place in which to live, neither are they usually interested in entering into dialogue with other religions. They also typically appeal to only one age group and to only one economic class. For different reasons, sects tend to exhibit these same traits (otherworldly and nondialogue oriented) and the same kind of narrow demographic profile.

By the middle of the 1970s, "cult" had become a pejorative term, applied to any unpopular religious group. Because of its pejorative connotations, mainstream scholars working in the field now tend to avoid the term, preferring the label "new religion" or "new religious movement." It should also be noted that the groups that came to occupy center stage during the cult controversy of the mid-seventies had both cult-like characteristics (e.g., mystical doctrines) and sect-like characteristics (e.g., strict boundaries), making the older cult-sect distinction less applicable to many of the more recent new religions.

For a variety of reasons, sectarian religions - religions which, at the time of their founding, tend to set themselves apart from the surrounding culture - gradually accommodate themselves to society until they become mainstream denominations. H. Richard Neibuhr examined this dynamic process in his classic work, The Social Sources of Denominationalism. As one might anticipate, contemporary new religions are going through a similar transformation, in the sense that they are becoming progressively more denominational in their organizational and demographic profiles.

The present chapter reports demographic data on the Church of the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness from two sources. The first source is MSIA's internal statistical report on Discourse subscribers for September 1995. I was informed that these figures fluctuate from month to month, so that the monthly report represents a "snapshot" of a dynamic and constantly changing population. The second source is a survey mailed to a sampling of current and former members of the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness in early 1995. In the interests of simplicity, I restricted the sample to U.S. residents, feeling that MSIA's internal report would provide adequate data for non-U.S. residents. For current members, this was accomplished by mailing a simple, one-page questionnaire to a random sample of 800 current U.S. Discourse subscribers. Being "on Discourses," as subscribing to MSIA's monthly lessons is referred to by members, is the basic criterion for identifying people who are actively involved in the Movement.

I had hoped that enough people would respond to produce 150-200 completed surveys and had counted on the goodwill of members to give me a high enough return rate that we would not have to undertake a second mailing. I was totally unprepared to receive 447 questionnaires - a return rate of 56%! This must break some kind of record for surveys of this type.

While the return rate for Discourse subscribers surprised me, the return rate for ex-members amazed me. A two-page survey -containing the same items as the current member questionnaire plus an extra page to measure postinvolvement attitudes - was mailed to 200 former subscribers. As a random sample that incorporated people who had dropped out years prior to the mailing, I anticipated that many of the addresses would be out of date. I also wondered how many people would bother to fill out a rather boring form about a group in which they were no longer active. In my wildest dreams, I did not expect to receive more than 20 to 25 exmember questionnaires. Instead, I was sent 53, representing a return rate of 26.5%.

These two subsamples, current and former Discourse subscribers, were comparable in many ways. Thus in the following discussion of the survey's findings, I will collapse the statistics from current members and ex-members on items where the differences between the two subsamples are statistically insignificant. Where the differences are significant, the sample will be split and the differences discussed.

Sex Ratio and Total Membership

Examining MSIA's internal statistical report for September 1995, I found almost twice as many female (3,003) as opposed to male (1,605) Discourse subscribers. This accords well with informal observations of attendees at MSIA events, which always attract a marked predominance of women. The attribution of sex was based upon subscribers' first names. Because the sex of certain names could not be determined (particularly for African subscribers), I could not classify 232 members of the population. This adds up to a total of 4,840 active subscribers.

There are, however, large numbers of people whose subscriptions lapse for shorter or longer periods of time who later reactivate their subscriptions. MSIA's computer system quickly moves people into the "Lapsed" category whenever they forget to send in their yearly Discourse pledge of $100, which can be waived if someone cannot afford it. "Lapsed" members have been active some time within the preceding 17 months. After this time span has elapsed, they are reclassified as "Inactive." Because many "Lapsed" individuals eventually renew their subscriptions, a significant percentage should still be regarded as members. MSIA's September report notes a total of 1,897 "Lapsed." An accurate estimate of the group's membership would probably fall somewhere between five and six thousand.

International Distribution

As one would anticipate, the largest number of Discourse subscribers reside inside the United States. In September of 1995, active U.S. subscribers totaled 2,644. Of these, 48 were taking Spanish-language Discourses. In the same month, MSIA's internal report shows a total of 2,162 (close to half) of all Discourse subscribers residing outside the U.S. By language, non-U.S. Discourses totaled 1,065 English, 1,071 Spanish, and 26 French.

The organization has invested a great deal of energy into translating its various materials into Spanish, as many current MSIA members reside in Latin America and almost a hundred live in Spain. At the time of this study, only the first few years of Discourses had been translated into French. A beginning had also been made translating the Discourses into Japanese, but this task was never completed beyond the first couple of lessons. The same holds true for translating them into German.

The worldwide distribution of Discourses in September of 1995 was 403 in Australia (10 in New Zealand), 277 in Western Europe (97 Spanish-language and 26 French-language), 383 in Africa, 870 in South America, 2798 in North America (61 in Canada and 93 Spanish-language in Mexico), and 88 in other areas of the world. The great majority (101) of English language subscribers in Europe resides, as one would anticipate, in England. Sweden was the second largest European consumer of English-language Discourses, with 17 subscribers. South American subscribers were confined to five countries: Colombia (304), Argentina (203), Chile (191), Uruguay (90), and Venezuela (82). Of the 383 Discourse subscribers in Africa, the vast majority lives in Nigeria, with fewer than one dozen living in other African countries (e.g., Ghana and South Africa). The balance of the present chapter will examine data from the questionnaire mailed to U.S. residents.

Age

Charting age by decade of birth gives us a straightforward pattern in which the birthdays of almost three-fourths of the survey respondents fall within the baby boomer decades of the 1940s and the 1950s, and another fifth of the respondents in either the 1930s or the 1960s (Table 7.1). This finding corresponds with the impressionistic sense one has when attending MSIA events that the bulk of participants are baby-boomers, with a more-than-token smattering of older and younger members.

Thus, membership is simultaneously concentrated in the baby boom generation and yet distributed across all age categories. In the traditional sociological discussion of cults, sects, and denominations, cults tend to draw from a single age group, and denominations tend to draw from several generations. The age profile of MSIA members reflected in this survey places it somewhere between a denomination and a cult. (The technical, sociological category of cult should be carefully distinguished from the popular, pejorative use of this term.) My sense is that as MSIA moves into the future, the age distribution will continue to shift toward a denominational profile. It should be noted that Discourses are written for adults. Thus, 1980 was the latest birthday year of Discourse subscribers surveyed.

Table 7.1 - Decade of Birth Decade Count Percentage 1900 1 0.2 1900-1909 1 0.2 1910-19 18 1.6 1920-29 20 4.0 1930-39 51 10.2 1940-49 187 37.4 1950-59 185 37 1960-69 44 8.8 TOTAL 500 100.0

Nation of Birth

Because the questionnaire was sent only to U.S. residents, over 90% of respondents reported being born in the United States (Table 7.2). This statistic would have been significantly different, of course, had the sample been compiled from both U.S. and non-U.S. residents. Much of MSIA's recent growth has come from Mexico and South America, so that a significant number of members are now Latin American.

Table 7.2 - Birthplace Country Count Percent U.S. 461 92.2 Non-U.S. 36 7.2 No response 3 0.6 TOTAL 500 100.0

Citizenship

Given the nature of the sample, it was not surprising to find that over 95 % of respondents were United States citizens (Table 7.3).

Table 7.3 - Citizenship Country Count Percent U.S. 484 96.8 Non-U.S. 15 3.0 No response 1 0.2 TOTAL 500 100.0

Area of Residence

Respondents were also asked in which area of the country they currently resided. Consistent with expectations, because MSIA began and is still headquartered in Los Angeles, the largest subgrouping -almost 40% - resided in California. The second largest subgroup resided in the Northeast, and the third largest in the Southwest (Table 7.4).

Table 7.4 - Area of Residence Area Count Percent California 194 38.8 Northeast 100 20.0 Southwest 64 12.8 Northwest 36 7.2 Southeast 31 6.2 Plains 25 5.0 Florida 23 4.6 Non-U.S. 15 3.0 Alaska-Hawaii 7 1.4 No response 5 1.0 TOTAL 500 100.0

Marital Status

Marital status is one of the statistics for which there was a significant difference between current and ex-members of MSIA. Almost half (47%) of all Discourse subscribers are presently married in contrast to less than a third (28%) of all former subscribers (Tables 7.5 and 7.6).

Table 7.5 - Marital Status Status Count Percent Single 22 22.8 Married 210 47.0 Divorced/Separated 127 28.4 Widow 6 1.3 No Response 2 0.4 TOTAL 447 100.0

Table 7.6 - Formerly Involved: Marital Status Status Count Percent Single 18 34.0 Married 15 28.3 Divorced/Separated 19 35.8 Widow 1 1.9 TOTAL 53 100.0

What does this difference between the two subsamples indicate? Because there is no significant difference age-wise, the difference in percentage of single people cannot be explained away as a function of age. Another hypothesis might be that the greater number of divorced respondents among exmembers can be explained in terms of marital disputes resulting from the exit of one spouse from MSIA while the other spouse remained. This hypothesis was, however, not substantiated by answers on the questionnaires, which requested former members to describe their leaving MSIA. Furthermore, this type of explanation fails to explain the larger percentage of people who had never been married in the ex-member subsample.

This leaves two alternatives: Either (1) the kind of person who sticks with a commitment to a religious group also tends to be the kind of person who can commit to a marriage, or (2) there is something about belonging to MSIA that promotes and/or reinforces the married state. Initially, I favored the first explanation. MSIA's teachings, while not unfavorable toward marriage, simultaneously do not exalt the married state as an ideal. Also, John-Roger's status as a person who has never been married does not provide a model for married life, although John Morton, the spiritual director of MSIA and the current Mystical Traveler, has been married since 1990.

However, as I became more familiar with MSIA's teachings, I realized that J-R has consistently taught that difficulties including marital difficulties - should be regarded as opportunities for growth rather than as evils to be escaped. MSIA also teaches that it is important to take responsibility for one's own life, rather than blaming circumstances or other people. Discourse subscribers are regularly brought into contact with this type of thinking through their monthly Discourses, if not through MSIA tapes, lectures, and other readings. Thus, serious members trying to put what they are being taught into action would be prompted to keep working on their marriages in ways that nonmembers might not. As a consequence, it now appears to me that this second explanation is at least as significant - if not more so - for understanding the correlation between membership and marriage as the first explanation.



Children

Given the larger number of married people among current Discourse subscribers, I was surprised to find no statistically significant difference in number of children between current and ex-members. The pattern for both subsamples was almost exactly the same (Table 7.7).

Table 7.7 - Number of Children

Table 7.7 - Number of Children Number Count Percent None 227 45.4 1 Child 89 17.8 2 Children 115 23 3 or More 68 13.6 No Response 1 0.2 TOTAL 500 100.0

Once again, there is nothing in MSIA's teachings that would particularly encourage or discourage a couple from having children, since this, like marriage, is an area of life on the physical ("10%") level, and J-R teaches that each person needs to decide about these things for himself/herself. So why should there be more couples in MSIA having fewer children per marriage than among former members? My tentative hypothesis is that MSIA members' fewer-children-per-marriage is a result of the greater percentage of business and professional people (see discussion of Table 7.10 below) who are more likely to prioritize their careers over raising a family.

Education

Another point on which the two subsamples differed was education. Specifically, a significantly higher percentage of current Discourse subscribers had completed a master's degree than former subscribers. The ex-member subsample compensated for its lower percentage of master's degrees by a correspondingly higher number of respondents who had attended college but who had not received a bachelor's degree (Tables 7.8 and 7.9).

Table 7.8 - Currently Involved: Highest Degree Schooling Count Percent High School 49 11.0 Some College 60 13.4 Bachelor's 146 32.7 Master's 166 37.1 Ph.D. 21 4.7 Other 2 0.4 No Response 3 0.7 TOTAL 447 100.0

Table 7.9 - Formerly Involved: Highest Degree

Table 7.8 - Formerly Involved: Highest Degree Schooling Count Percent High School 5 9.4 Some College 11 20.8 Bachelor's 18 34.0 Master's 14 26.4 Ph.D. 4 7.5 No Response 3 0.7 TOTAL 53 100.0

A significant factor shaping this educational pattern is that over a decade ago John-Roger helped to give birth to the University of Santa Monica (USM), a graduate school offering master's degrees in psychology. Particularly in the early years of its institutional life, MSIA members were the mainstay of USM because it offered an approach to education they found unique and valuable - and which subsequently proved so to the educational community at large. As a consequence, a number of current members hold USM master's degrees.

Occupation

In the United States, the most important factor determining class status is one's occupation. On this item, there was once again a significant difference between current and former members, with more current members pursuing higher-status careers than ex-members (Tables 7.10 and 7.11).

Table 7.10 - Currently Involved: Occupation Occupation Count Percent Professional 100 22.4 Business, Manager 92 20.6 Technical, Skilled 64 14.3 Teacher, Research 40 8.9 Artist 32 7.2 Clerical, Manual 59 13.2 Unemp, Stud, Home, Ret. 56 12.5 No response 4 0.9 TOTAL 447 100.0

Table 7.11 - Formerly Involved: Occupation Occupation Count Percent Professional 9 17.0 Business, Manager 8 15.1 Technical, Skilled 8 15.1 Teacher, Research 3 5.7 Artist 5 9.4 Clerical, Manual 10 18.9 Unemp, Stud, Home, Ret. 10 18.9 TOTAL 53 100.0

Income

The difference in occupation was, unsurprisingly, reflected as a difference in income between current and former MSIA Discourse subscribers (Tables 7.12 and 7.13).

Table 7.12 - Currently Involved: Income Occupation Count Percent < $10,000 26 5.8 20-20,000 43 9.6 20-40,000 138 30.9 40-60,000 105 23.5 60-100,000 59 13.2 > $100,000 39 8.7 No Response 37 8.3 TOTAL 447 100.0

Table 7.13 - Formerly Involved: Income Occupation Count Percent < $10,000 5 9.4 20-20,000 11 20.8 20-40,000 14 26.4 40-60,000 10 18.9 60-100,000 2 3.8 > $100,000 6 11.3 No Response 5 9.4 TOTAL 53 100.0

MSIA's occupational and income patterns indicate a membership that has been comparatively successful in our society's economic arena. These findings fly in the face of the popular stereotype of cults - a stereotype that portrays members of minority religions as financially exploited drones who toil long hours at demeaning, low-skill jobs for the sole purpose of enlarging the leader's bank account.

The income differences between current and former members indicate either (1) that as a group, ex-member respondents had less financial potential to begin with, or (2) that remaining a member of MSIA tends to promote financial success. Like the marriage item, my first inclination for this item was to attribute the difference to the different personal tendencies of respondents. In other words, the same personality type that strives for economic success also tends to stay with their chosen spiritual path, and vice versa.

However, MSIA also encourages members to cultivate an attitude that attracts abundance. Although John-Roger's teachings on wealth are placed in a larger context of wellbeing (e.g., as presented in the books Wealth and Higher Consciousness and Wealth 101), they nevertheless encourage members to seek a state of healthy prosperity. People who remain in MSIA are regularly brought into contact with J-R's low-key prosperity teachings through tapes, lectures, and other readings, and they would thus be encouraged to become financially successful. As a consequence, it now appears to me that this influence is at least as significant for understanding the correlation between membership and career success as one's personality type.

Political Affiliation

Despite the economic differences between current and former Discourse subscribers, there was no significant difference between the pattern of their political affiliation, which was overwhelmingly (45.8%) Democratic (Table 7.14).

Table 7.14 - Political Party Affiliation Count Percent Republican 73 14.4 Democratic 229 45.8 Independent 53 10.6 Other 14 2.8 Nonpolitical 82 16.4 No Response 50 10.0 TOTAL 500 100.0

What little difference there was between current and former members pointed to exactly the opposite of what one might expect, given that, economic success tends to be correlated with affiliation with the Republican Party. Specifically, 14.3 % of current members are Republicans and 45.9% Democrats, in contrast to ex-members who are 15.1% Republicans and 45.3 % Democrats.

While the generally liberal political orientation of MSIA members is not a surprising finding, it contrasts sharply with the conservative political inclinations of certain other, comparable minority religions. The Unification Church and the Church Universal and Triumphant, for example, are socially conservative, and the great majority of their members are Republicans.

Race

There was no significant difference between current and former Discourse subscribers on race. Consistent with previous research on new religions, the overwhelming majority of MSIA members in the United States are non-Hispanic Caucasians (Table 7.15). Clearly this statistic would have been different had non-U.S. members been surveyed. For example, of the 383 African Discourse subscribers, all but a dozen or so live in Nigeria and are black.

Table 7.15 - Race Heritage Count Percent Caucasian 460 92.0 Black 5 1.0 Asian 2 0.4 Hispanic 13 2.6 Native American 3 0.6 TOTAL 500 100.0

The lack of a statistically significant difference between current and former members on this item indicates, among other things, that the economic differences between the two subsamples is not a function of respondents' race.

Religious Heritage

Yet another item on which there was no significant difference between current and ex-members was the religious tradition in which they were raised. Consistent with previous research on new religions, a disproportionate number - when compared with the general population -of MSIA respondents were from Jewish households (14%), though many families were clearly nonpracticing Jews. Also consistent with previous research, a disproportionate number of respondents were raised Catholic (27%), though the departure of this statistic from the general population was comparatively slight (Table 7.16). Clearly, the proportion of people from Catholic backgrounds would have been substantially larger had Latin American and Spanish members been surveyed.

Table 7.16 - Religious Heritage Heritage Count Percent Jewish 71 14.2 Catholic 135 27.0 Protestant 256 51.2 Other 12 2.4 None 23 4.6 No Response 3 0.6 TOTAL 500 100.0

In addition to religious heritage, the questionnaire also requested respondents to mention any other religious group with which they had been affiliated prior to joining MSIA. Although over 90% of respondents were brought up in traditional faiths, almost half of the respondents had been affiliated with one or more nontraditional religious groups after their childhood affiliation and prior to their membership in the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness. Groups mentioned by respondents ranged widely from metaphysical churches to Hindu yoga groups. This evidence of multiple memberships after childhood indicates a "seeker" mentality and a demonstrable quest for spiritual meaning before joining the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness.

Length of Membership

The questionnaire contained a number of items designed to measure the length and depth of respondents' membership. As one might anticipate, there were significant differences between current and former members on these items. The simplest measure was years of membership (Tables 7.17 and 7.18).

Table 7.17 - Currently Involved: Years of Membership Years Count Percent 0-5 94 21.0 6-10 103 23.0 11-15 87 19.5 16-20 79 17.7 21-25 76 17.0 No Response 8 1.8 TOTAL 447 100.0

Table 7.18 - Formerly Involved: Years of Membership Years Count Percent 0-5 25 47.2 6-10 13 24.5 11-15 3 5.7 16-20 7 13.2 21-25 1 1.9 No Response 4 7.5 TOTAL 53 100.0

While I was not surprised to find substantially shorter membership periods for ex-members, I did not expect to find that over half of those who had left MSIA did so after being involved for more than five years. Previous longitudinal studies, such as Saul Levine's work (reported in his book Radical Departures), have indicated that more than 90% of those who join an intensive religious group drop out after only two years or less of membership.

I believe that this unanticipated finding can best be explained in terms of the contrast between the nature of participation in MSIA and participation in most of the groups studied by Levine. Unlike such "high-demand" groups as the Hare Krishnas, membership in MSIA does not involve leaving mainstream society and taking up residence in a new, highly defined world strictly segregated from the mainstream. While one may participate in a wide range of MSIA activities that can, if one so desires, fill up most of one's free time, one may also simply read Discourses and practice one's spiritual exercises and still be regarded as a member in good standing. In other words, MSIA is not a high-demand group in the same sense as Levine's sample of movements were high-demand groups.

Another unanticipated finding was that the current membership had joined the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness at a wide variety of different times over the past twenty-five years, as the more or less even distribution of respondents within each five-year period indicates. Based on the predominance of baby boomers, I had expected that a larger number of members would have entered the Movement during the seventies. Once again, had a significant number of questionnaires been sent to nonresidents of the United States, I believe I would have seen a higher number of respondents in the more recent five-year intervals because of MSIA's relatively recent growth in Latin American countries.

Level of Initiation

Beyond simply the number of years one has spent in MSIA, there are other criteria for determining the depth of one's involvement. Chief among these is level of initiation attained. As indicated in earlier chapters, there are four formal initiations. Sequentially, these are the causal, mental, etheric, and soul initiations. As their longer involvement would lead one to expect, proportionally more current members had received the higher initiations than former members (Tables 7.19 and 7.20).

Table 7.19 - Currently Involved: Highest Initiation

Table 7.19 - Currently Involved: Highest Initiation Initiation Count Percent Non-Initiate 54 12.1 Casual 65 14.5 Mental 47 10.5 Etheric 110 24.6 Soul 127 28.4 No Response 44 9.8 TOTAL 447 100.0

Table 7.19 - Formerly Involved: Highest Initiation Initiation Count Percent Non-Initiate 19 35.8 Casual 12 22.6 Mental 4 7.5 Etheric 8 15.1 Soul 4 7.5 No Response 6 11.3 TOTAL 53 100.0

Another statistic indicating depth of involvement is whether one chooses to become an MSIA minister. Ordination in MSIA is seen as a spiritual calling and is not tied to formal academic training. Members can apply to become ordained after two years of study and after having received the causal (first) initiation. Given this, it is comparatively easy for even relatively new members to become ministers, and a large percentage of currently involved respondents (almost two-thirds: 66.4%) are ministers. By way of contrast, less than a third (32.1 %) of ex-members had been MSIA ministers.

MSIA's internal report for September 1995 notes 2,550 active ministers worldwide, with 1,644 in the U.S. - about 62% of the U.S. population of active subscribers. The difference between this figure and the 66.4% reported in the survey probably reflects the higher motivation of respondents, more of whom would be ministers, as opposed to nonordained Discourse subscribers who received the survey but who did not respond.

Affiliation

One final statistic I wish to examine is the initial point of contact through which people come to participate in MSIA. In contrast to the stereotype of wandering "cult" members making new recruits from amongst the strangers they meet on street corners, most people become involved with a religious group - whether traditional or nontraditional -through family and friendship networks. Thus, I was not surprised to find the same pattern among MSIA members, over half of whom (55.4 %) were introduced to the Movement by family or friends (Table 7.21). The second most often cited avenue by which people came into contact with MSIA was through Insight seminars (over a fourth: 28.4%).

Table 7.21 - Introduction to MSIA 1st Point of Contact Count Percent Impersonal/Media 18 3.6 Friends/Relatives 227 55.4 Insight Seminar 142 28.4 Other 49 9.8 No Response 14 2.8 TOTAL 500 100.0

I was a little surprised to find that there was no statistically significant difference between current and former members on this questionnaire item. I had anticipated that proportionally more people who left the Movement would have initially been introduced to MSIA via some avenue other than friends or family. There was, however, less than a 1% difference between the two subsamples on this item (current members 55.5% vs. former members - 54.7%). Thus, leaving MSIA has little or nothing to do with how one comes in.

Discussion

Given this demographic overview, as well as the Movement's beliefs and practices mentioned earlier in this chapter, the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness can be analyzed according to sociological "ideal types" of religious organizations, specifically the categories of cult, sect, and denomination. As in my earlier discussion, it should be borne in mind that I will be making use of the sociological meaning of the term "cult" as a form of social organization, rather than the popular, pejorative meaning of this term.

Ideologically, MSIA is consistent with the sociological definition of cult in that its themes tend to be mystical and esoteric. The centrality of John-Roger to the organization, his position as the primary source of the teachings, and his clear charismatic appeal are also cult-like characteristics (this despite the fact that J-R has consistently emphasized that the final authority for each person's life is himself/herself).

The Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness distinguishes itself from sects and their call to reform a religious tradition (which is the defining trait of sects in classical sociological analysis); there is no message of reforming a particular religious tradition in MSIA, but rather an appeal to an eclectic and novel synthesis of elements from many traditions.

More important than its similarities, MSIA is at variance with the sociological definition of a cult in several significant ways. First and foremost, members are actively engaged in the world and concerned with the betterment of society. Second, MSIA does not deliberately contrast itself with dominant religious groups, but rather incorporates beliefs and practices from a number of religious traditions.

In its claim not to be totally novel, it distances itself from cults, which almost invariably claim a completely new teaching. (J-R has explicitly stated that MSIA is a "new look at ancient teachings.") Third, members are clearly not disenchanted with and alienated from the larger world, a common characteristic of both cults and sects. On the contrary, they tend to be well-educated, demonstrate stable employment, and value family relationships. Fourth, the organization itself appears to be beyond the cult stage of development in that MSIA is not remaining small and informal, does not appear to be transitory, and has already successfully navigated the passing of charismatic authority from J-R to John Morton. It remains to be seen how the organization will be affected by the founder's passing.

MSIA is highly consistent with the sociological profile of a denomination for the following reasons: First, it is tolerant of other denominations and recognizes the value of religious pluralism. MSIA has always been ecumenical and the organization is recognized as a cooperative "one among equals" by other religious movements. Second, members follow a fairly routinized daily "ritual" that does not encourage spontaneous emotional expression (e.g., as in a Pentecostal church) as part of one's spiritual practices. This has been true since its beginning. Third, the group trains a clergy. The existence of Peace Theological Seminary and College of Philosophy further reinforces MSIA's status as a denomination. Fourth, the organization accepts less extensive personal involvement from members than do either sects or cults. One can be a full member of the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness without participating in Church programs or in any other group activity.

Fifth, in its appeal to middle-aged individuals and its disproportionate draw from the middle class, the Church exhibits more of a prototypical image of a denomination than a cult. Sixth, MSIA tolerates internal theological debate. J-R has so often admonished students, "Don't believe what I say, check it out for yourself," that the phrase "check it out" is rampant among Movement members. Seventh, the pivotal characteristic which separates denominations from sects in classical sociological theory is that significant additions to membership come through birth to parents who are members. MSIA includes in its membership a large number of families, including children. As more and more children are included in the membership because of their parents' membership, the organization will move ever closer toward denominational status.

Lastly, the demography of the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness is more consistent with sociological definitions of denominations than of cults. Age patterns demonstrate a membership of several generations. Current marital status reflects a value for familism and an engagement in stable family life. (With respect to familism, I should also mention in passing that I have an impressionistic sense that MSIA participants tend to be meaningfully engaged with their non-MSIA parents.) Employment, occupation, and income levels describe a mature membership well integrated into the social and economic institutions of the larger society. Further, joining MSIA is not accompanied by any loss of occupational prestige or withdrawal from the larger society. Finally, multiple memberships in religious groups between childhood and membership in the Movement of Spiritual Inner` Awareness indicate a serious lifelong search by most members for religious meaning and affiliation.

>>> Continue to Chapter 8 >>>