Editing Sect (section)

==Sociological definitions and descriptions==
{{Main|Church-sect typology}}
Sociologists have developed various definitions and descriptions for the term "sect." Early scholars like [[Max Weber]] and [[Ernst Troeltsch]] (1912) were among the first to define sects within the church-sect typology, viewing them as voluntary associations of individuals who meet specific religious qualifications. Unlike churches, membership in a sect is not inherited at birth; rather, it arises from a person's voluntary acceptance of the sect's doctrines and disciplines, which requires ongoing validation from both the follower and the sect itself. Sects often attract individuals from marginalized or underprivileged social groups and typically form from schisms within established churches that align with the dominant social order.<ref name="Dawson2009">{{Cite book|last=Dawson|first=Lorne L.|url=|title=The Oxford Handbook of the Sociology of Religion|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2009|isbn=978-0199588961|editor-last=Clarke|editor-first=Peter B.|pages=|chapter=Church-sect-cult: Constructing Typologies of Religious Groups|doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199588961.013.0030}}</ref>

Sects frequently critique liberal trends within mainstream denominations, advocating for a return to what they view as authentic religious practices. Their beliefs and practices are usually more radical and ethically strict than those of mainstream churches, acting as a form of protest against the prevailing societal values.<ref name="Dawson2009" /> The American [[sociology|sociologists]] [[Rodney Stark]] and [[William Sims Bainbridge]] argue that sects present themselves as authentic, reformed versions of the faith they have separated from, maintaining a high degree of tension with the surrounding society.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Stark|first1=Rodney|author-link=Rodney Stark|last2=Bainbridge|first2=William Sims|author-link2=William Sims Bainbridge|date=1979|title=Of Churches, Sects, and Cults: Preliminary Concepts for a Theory of Religious Movements|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1385935|journal=Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion|volume=18|issue=2|at=125|doi=10.2307/1385935|jstor=1385935|issn=0021-8294}}</ref> They further assert that sects have, in contrast to churches, a high degree of tension with the surrounding society.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Stark|first1=Rodney|title=The Future of Religion: Secularization, Revival, and Cult Formation|last2=Bainbridge|first2=William Sims|publisher=University of California Press|year=1985|isbn=0520048547|location=Berkeley|author-link=Rodney Stark|author-link2=William Sims Bainbridge}}</ref> Other sociologists, like Fred Kniss, suggest that sectarianism is best understood through the lens of what the sect opposes. Some religious groups may be in tension primarily with other co-religious groups of different ethnic backgrounds, while others may conflict with society at large rather than the church they originally separated from.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Kniss|first1=Fred|title=Sacred Assemblies and Civic Engagement: How Religion Matters for America's Newest Immigrants|last2=Numrich|first2=Paul D.|publisher=Rutgers University Press|year=2007|isbn=9780813541709|location=New Brunswick, N.J.}}</ref>

[[Sectarianism]] in the [[sociology of religion]], is sometimes defined as a worldview that emphasizes the unique legitimacy of a sect's creed and practices, often heightening tension with broader society by maintaining strict boundaries.<ref>McGuire, Meredith B. "Religion: the Social Context" fifth edition (2002) {{ISBN|0-534-54126-7}} page 338</ref>

In his book ''[[The Road to Total Freedom]]'', the English sociologist [[Roy Wallis]]<ref>[[Eileen Barker|Barker, E]]. ''New Religious Movements: A Practical Introduction'' (1990), Bernan Press, {{ISBN|0-11-340927-3}}</ref> describes that a sect is characterized by "[[epistemology|epistemological]] authoritarianism": meaning it has an authoritative source for determining heresy. According to Wallis, sects claim to have unique and privileged access to truth or salvation, and their followers often view those outside the group as being in error. In contrast, Wallis describes cults as being marked by "epistemological individualism," <ref>{{Cite book|last=Wallis|first=Roy|url=https://archive.org/details/roadtototalfreed00wallrich/mode/2up|title=The Road to Total Freedom: A Sociological Analysis of Scientology|publisher=Columbia University Press|year=1977|isbn=0-231-04200-0|location=New York|author-link=Roy Wallis|archive-url=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Wallis|first=Roy|date=1975|title=Scientology: Therapeutic Cult to Religious Sect|url=https://doi.org/10.1177/003803857500900105|journal=Sociology|volume=9|issue=1|pages=89–100|doi=10.1177/003803857500900105|s2cid=144335265 |issn=0038-0385}}</ref>