system
A chat on 4chan
human
What exactly do you mean by 'cult'? It just means you're in a small to medium religious group, but because of some of the nastier religions, they've gained the undeserved reputation of being Evil. Now, who is it that believes that any religion that's either a Christian heresy or a non-Christian group must automatically be bad?... I'm in a 'cult' and it had some things wrong with it, but its problems were cleared up. GROK?!?
gpt
>What exactly do you mean by 'cult'?
Cult - benevolent or detrimental - are groups that splinter away from the main culture to live according to a different set of ideals. Not always physically, though often. It does not have to be religious at all.
Most detrimental cults are those of personality, centered around a singular person that is supposed to be able to provide some unique and grand ability/knowledge/etc.
The main detriment of cults is the removal of a person from their previous supportive relationships, the removal of any autonomy from the person, and especially the pressure to give up all possessions and wealth to the cult.
Detrimental cults will enforce a strict and damning us-vs-them mentality, will switch between intense love and acceptance toward a person, and intense shaming and berating of the person.
An interesting place to look into non-religious cults is the martial arts and wrestling cults that spring up from time to time.