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>
> Rael Religion?
> ‘Cultist’ Cloning Advocates Test Definitions of Faith
>
> By Geraldine Sealey
> Jan. 3
>
> — If Claude Vorilhon is right, Dec. 13, 1973, was a big day for
> the planet Earth.
>
> That's when 4-foot, dark-haired, olive-skinned extraterrestrials
> appeared to Vorilhon at a volcano in France and told him they created
> human life in their image using DNA, he says.
>
> The scientifically advanced visitors, known as Elohim,
> supposedly stayed in contact with humans through the years via
> prophets such as Buddha, Moses, Jesus and Mohammed, says
> Vorilhon, now 56 and a former car-racing journalist.
>
> Now known as Rael, Vorilhon seeks to spread a message of science and
> spirituality and build an embassy for the extraterrestrials in
> Jerusalem. Last week, much of the world was introduced to the
> Quebec-based Raelian movement when the group claimed to have created
> the first human clone — a step toward achieving eternal life, they
> believe.
>
> Since then, Raelians have been widely ridiculed as cultists.
> Indeed, many practices and beliefs of this sect stray far from
> the mainstream: the UFO theme park, the emphasis on open
> sexuality, and the leader himself, who wears his hair in a bun
> perched on his balding head.
>
> But just how much more far-fetched is Raelianism from other
> faiths? Just the thought of comparing Raelian beliefs to
> Christianity, Judaism or Islam surely raises sacrilegious flags
> for many, despite the freedom of religion encoded in the
> Constitution.
>
> Many religious scholars, though, see a broader definition of
> religion — and the Raelians fit it, they say, just as
> Scientologists, Jehovah's Witnesses and Mormons do.
>
> Instead of the word "cult," considered by religious scholars to
> be the most derogatory term of their field, modern sects are
> known as "new religious movements" in academic lingo. Just
> because a belief system is young does not make it wrong,
> scholars say.
>
> After all, the Romans once considered Christians superstitious
> for not worshipping the emperor, said Frank K. Flinn, religion
> professor at Washington University in St. Louis. "Yesterday's
> cult is tomorrow's religion," he said.
>
> People Who Believe Weird Things
>
> Flinn, who several times has appeared as an expert trial witness to
> present a legal definition of religion, says he identifies three
> essential characteristics of a religion. It must possess a system of
> beliefs that explain the ultimate meaning of life, must teach
> religious practices and norms for behavior and conduct rites and
> ceremonies, and must unite a body of believers.
>
> The Raelian movement fits this definition, he said. According to their
> Web site, Raelians claim 55,000 worldwide followers, although this
> number has not been independently verified.
>
> Not everyone, of course, is so generous to the Raelians.
>
> "This is from this one guy Rael's one hallucinogenic experience. It's
> a cult of personality. He's a pretty dynamic, persuasive fellow," said
> Michael Shermer, director of the Skeptics Society and author of  Why
> People Believe Weird Things . "I've never seen any verification of his
> 55,000 members."
>
> The Raelians are just the latest fringe religious group to make
> headlines in recent years and raise questions about what
> constitutes religion and what makes a cult.
>
> Scientologists have caused a stir with celebrity believers such
> as Tom Cruise and John Travolta, bitter legal battles and
> accusations of abuse and corruption. The Hare Krishnas defended
> themselves against brainwashing allegations and gained a
> reputation for soliciting new members in airport terminals.
>
> While many religious scholars are accepting of new sects,
> apocalyptic groups often garner criticism. Heaven's Gate, whose
> members committed mass suicide and made the sect extinct in
> 1997, believed a spaceship riding behind the comet Hale-Bopp
> would take them to heaven, for example.
>
> "With groups like Heaven's Gate you might be able to use that
> term [cult]; they wreaked a great deal of harm," said J. Gordon
> Melton, director of the Institute for the Study of American
> Religions and author of  Why Cults Succeed Where the Church
> Fails .
>
>  From UFO Sect to Mainstream Religion?
>
> To many Americans, though, Heaven's Gate equals Hare Krishna
> equals Moonies. New beliefs don't win widespread popularity here and
> are even less welcome than a century ago, Melton said.
>
> Early in the 20th century, 30 percent of Americans were
> affiliated with a religion. Now, 80 percent claim to be members
> of a particular church. "The chances of [a new sect's] success
> are less because the pool of unaffiliated is less," Melton said.
>
> A century ago, Americans considered Mormons cultists, in part
> because of their polygamous ways. But now, many prominent
> Americans belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day
> Saints and Mormons (who no longer advocate polygamy) are
> officially mainstream.
>
> Is such acceptance possible for Raelians?
>
> Usually, successful new religious groups are evangelistic and
> aggressive about recruiting members, and maintain a fairly low
> level of tension with mainstream society, Melton said.
>
> Success for the Raelians may mean dropping their affiliation
> with UFO-style beliefs. "Mormons as polygamists couldn't do it.
> Mormons not as polygamists could do it," Melton said.
>
> While some observers say the recent publicity about Rael's
> cloning claims may boost the sect's profile, some scholars say
> the foray into science may prove calamitous for the movement.
>
> Cloning Failure Could Test Faith
>
> Clonaid, the Raelians' scientific arm, claims to have cloned the first
> human, but so far the company has not provided scientific proof. And
> even if it did create a clone, costly mistakes in the process could
> test Raelians' faith and further ostracize the group.
>
> "In terms of their own belief system, what they're doing
> [cloning] is ethical, but not in terms of broader society,"
> Flinn said. To illustrate his point of just what can go wrong,
> Flinn pointed to the first cloned mammal, Dolly the sheep, who
> has experienced premature aging and arthritis.
>
> For others though, greater costs of Raelians' faith could come
> to science itself, whether or not their cloning efforts were
> successful.
>
> "This could be an important development for medical technology
> that's now tainted," Shermer said. "The real guys are worried
> Congress will panic and pass restrictive laws [on cloning]
> because some UFO nut says he did it."
>
>
>
> ===============================================================
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