system
A chat on 4chan
human
Yes, you need charisma, but the organization is just as important!
To Create a new religion or 'sekrit' Society. You need :
1. A Mystery or several of them. 'The Pope is Jesus', the 'Dalai Lama is Buddha',
2. A grade system, ways to enter a grade, and a Mystery for each one to keep out the riff-raff.
3. A ritual for communicating to each grade their 'sekrit(s)'.
4. An Open-Door policy so that any member can talk frankly with the upper Level of the Hierarchy, with little punishment for doing it wrong or not completing it, but NO punishment for what they say to you! Sometimes (very rarely) a lower grade person has something to tell you. Since this is Heroism, there is a great reward for getting it right. (Mine was becoming the 'Inquisitor')
5. An 'Inquisition' to ferret out ne'er do wells, and erring members; and you need a 'justice' system to handle complaints.
6. A system of 'Ordination' and succession, and *Initiations*.
7. Sacred stories that are at the root of all of your rituals, which are used to communicate 'sacred' Truths that no one is allowed to say directly. Saying 'The Pope is Jesus' ruins the all the Mystery and the fun.
8. Two or more ways to do rituals: The Hierarchy does the rituals. A Member does the ritual and be graded by his 'betters', or a community effort.
9 You need a way to have a method for doing something in secret and having someone who was there be a witness that when asked can reveal the details of the secret rites to the members.
10. A 'Fast-track' to quickly advance exceptionally worthy members (rarely used).
11. Recurring holidays or rituals to commemorate past Events. Ex: Christmas, Hallowe'en, All Saint's Day, Walpurgis Night, Founder's Day...
12. Emblems for the grades. Robes and uniforms (optional), Ritual props...
13. Fees for the various Titles, Grades, and Offices.
14. Exemption from taxes (Religion), Land would be nice.
15. Subordinate groups for special projects and charity work.
16. A staff of priests or ministers.
gpt
>'sacred' Truths that no one is allowed to say directly. Saying 'The Emperor has no clothes' ruins the all the Mystery

Mystery religions are bullshit. If it can be destroyed by frank honest communication, then it deserves to be.
human
Is there a religion that doesn't do that? It most definitely applies to all the major religions as well as the minor ones, and only the minor ones are called cults. There are Mysteries that defy rational and honest discussion because they're a matter of belief, and they defy frank and honest communication which, bluntly, is considered to be heresy to these groups! Do you think (believe) you can have an honest discussion over whether the belief that 'The Donald' was sent by God to lead this nation through this time of crisis? That the Vaxx is the Mark of the Beast? Can you prove that these sincerely derivatively held beliefs like these are either true or false to the persons that hold them? Religion is a sincerely held belief - that's it! It's enough to qualify for tax-exempt status in the U.S. after the other requirements are met; and it's enough to split families and communities over it! It doesn't need positions on an afterlife or much else - not anymore. The government cannot say that this is a religion, and that belief is not.