Information AboutApostasy |
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Many religious movements consider it a Vice ( Sin ), a corruption of the Virtue of Piety in the sense that when piety fails, apostasy is the result. However, most Convert s to a new religion can also be considered apostates from a previous belief. Several religious groups punish apostates. Apostates may be the apostate, and some may demand the Death Penalty . Conversely, some Atheists and Agnostics use the term "deconversion" to describe loss of faith in a religion. Self-described " Freethinkers " and those who may see traditional religion in less than positive terms may see it as gaining "rationality" and respect for the Scientific Method and not a loss. The reliability of the testimonies of apostates is an important and controversial issue in the study of apostasy in Cult s and New Religious Movement s. The difference between apostasy and Heresy is that the latter refers to rejection or corruption of certain doctrines, not to the complete abandonment of one's religion. The term is also used to refer to renunciation of belief in a cause other than religion, particularly in politics. SOCIOLOGICAL DEFINITIONS The American sociologist David G. Bromley defined the apostate role as follows and distinguished it from the Defector and Whistleblower roles.
Taking another viewpoint, the American sociologist Lewis A. Coser (following the German philosopher and sociologist Max Scheler ) holds an apostate to be not just a person who experienced a dramatic change in conviction but “''a man who, even in his new state of belief, is spiritually living not primarily in the content of that faith, in the pursuit of goals appropriate to it, but only in the struggle against the old faith and for the sake of its negation.''" . However, a contrarian argument holds that religious converts who never freely chose adherence to their former faith (e.g. if inducted as a child) possibly never developed strong convictions towards it, and may genuinely only be motivated by aspects of their new faith. IN INTERNATIONAL LAW The United Nations Commission On Human Rights , considers the recanting of a person's religion a Human Right legally protected by the International Covenant On Civil And Political Rights : "The Committee observes that the freedom to 'have or to adopt' a religion or belief necessarily entails the freedom to choose a religion or belief, including the right to replace one's current religion or belief with another or to adopt atheistic views {Link without Title} Article 18.2 bars coercion that would impair the right to have or adopt a religion or belief, including the use of threat of physical force or penal sanctions to compel believers or non-believers to adhere to their religious beliefs and congregations, to recant their religion or belief or to convert." (CCPR/C/21/Rev.1/Add.4, General Comment No. 22., 1993). See also Religious Conversion . IN CHRISTIANITY Christians often quote the prophecy in 2 Thessalonians about a coming apostasy: "Let no one in any way deceive you, for that day cannot come without the coming of the apostasy first, and the appearing of the man of sin, the son of perdition." Members of the Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) believe that this foretold apostasy, "The Great Apostasy," began with the death of the early apostles and continued into the early nineteenth century. The apostasy can alternatively be interpreted as the pre-tribulation Rapture of the Church. This is because apostasy means departure (translated so in the first seven English translations). Dr. Thomas Ice, Pre-Trib Perspective, March 2004, Vol.8, No.11. Signs of apostasy vary widely among many Christian denominations, the most common include: # Denial of the Trinity and the Deity of Christ; # Denial of the deity of the Holy Spirit ; # Denial of Moral Absolute s, as found in the Bible ; Some denominations quote Jude and Titus 3:10 saying that an apostate or heretic needs to be "rejected after the first and second admonition." In Roman Catholicism , apostasy is among the offences which bring automatic Excommunication . In the first centuries of the Christian era, apostasy was most commonly induced by persecution, and was indicated by some outward act, such as offering incense to a heathen deity or blaspheming the name of Christ. (The readmission of such apostates to the church was a matter that occasioned serious controversy.) The emperor Julian's "Apostasy" is discussed under Julian The Apostate . In the Roman Catholic Church the word is also applied to the renunciation of monastic vows (''apostasis a monachatu''), and to the abandonment of the clerical profession for the life of the world (''apostasis a clericatu''). Such defection was formerly often punished severely. See also Great Apostasy ; for an Arminian doctrine of individual apostasy, see Conditional Preservation Of The Saints . IN ISLAM The Quran is silent on the ''punishment'' for apostasy, though not the subject itself. The Quran speaks repeatedly of people going back to unbelief after believing, but never once does it say that they should be killed or punished. In Islam, apostasy is called "''ridda''" ("turning back") and it is considered by Muslims to be a profound insult to God. A person born of Muslim parents that rejects Islam is called a "''murtad fitri''" (natural apostate), and a person that converted to Islam and later rejects the religion is called a "''murtad milli''" (apostate from the community). The question of the penalties imposed in Islam (i.e. in the , Qatar , Yemen , Iran , Sudan , Afghanistan and Mauritania . In Pakistan blasphemy is also punishable by death. The hadith "''Whosoever changes his religion, Kill Him''", has been used both by supporters of the death penalty as well as critics of Islam. Islamic scholars point out it is important to understand the hadith in proper historical context. The order was at a time when the nascient muslim community in Medina was fighting for its very life, and there were many schemes, by which the muslim's enemies would try to entice rebellion and discord within the community. {Link without Title} . Clearly any defection would have serious consequences for the muslims, and the hadith may well be about Treason , rather than just apostasy. It must also be pointed out that under the terms of the Treaty Of Hudaibiyah , any muslim who returned to mecca was not to be returned, terms which the Prophet accepted. The Qur'an says:
The Hadith (the body of quotes attributed to Muhammad ) includes statements taken as supporting the death penalty for apostasy, such as:
and
IN JUDAISM See also: The term apostasy is also derived from Greek ἀποστάτης, meaning "political rebel," as applied to rebellion against God, its law and the faith of Israel (in Hebrew מרד) in the Hebrew Bible. Other expressions for apostate as used by rabbinical scholars are "mumar" (מומר, literally "the one that changes") and "poshea yisrael" (פושע ישראל, literally, "transgressor of Israel"), or simply "kofer" (כופר, literally "denier"). The Torah states: Deuteronomy 13:6-10 : If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers; [Namely , of the gods of the people which round about you, nigh unto thee, or far off from thee, from the [one end of the earth even unto the [other] end of the earth; Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; Paul the Apostle was accused of apostasy by the council of James and the elders, for teaching apostasy from the law given by Moses. Scholars consider this the reason by which some early Christians, such as the Ebionites , repudiated Paul for being an apostate. In the Talmud , Elishah Ben Abuyah (known as Aḥer) is singled out as an apostate and Epicurean by the Pharisees . During the Spanish Inquisition , a systematic conversion of Jews to Christianity took place, some of which under threats and force. These cases of apostasy provoked the indignation of the Jewish communities in Spain. Several notorious Inquisitors, such as Juan Torquemada , and Don Francisco the archbishop of Coria , were descendants of apostate Jews. Other apostates who made their mark in history by attempting the conversion of other Jews in the 1300s include Juan De Valladolid and Astruc Remoch . However, the issue of what qualifies as "apostasy" in Judaism can be complicated, since in many modern movements in Judaism, rabbis have generally considered the behavior of a Jew to be the determining factor in whether or not one is considered an adherent or an apostate of Judaism. Within these movements it is often recognized that it is possible for a Jew to strictly practise does not require any belief in a deity, and that certain popular Reform prayer books such as ''Gates of Prayer'' offer some services without mention of God. Abraham Isaac Kook {Link without Title} {Link without Title} , first Chief Rabbi of the Jewish community in pre-state Israel, held that atheists were not actually denying God: rather, they were denying one of man's many images of God. Since any man-made image of God can be considered an idol, Kook held that, in practice, one could consider atheists as helping true religion burn away false images of god, thus in the end serving the purpose of true monotheism. IN HINDUISM AND BUDDHISM There is no concept of an apostate in Hinduism or Buddhism as there is no concept of conversion. Converts to other religions from Hinduism or Buddhism are accepted in these communities, as there is no Hindu or Buddhist procedure that defines apostasy. However, fear of forced conversions is high in mostly Hindu India and has prompted legal restrictions on forced conversions in certain states. IN ALLEGED CULTS AND NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS (NRMS) Some scholars of new religious movements define as apostates specifically those individuals that leave new religious movements and become public opponents against their former faith to distinguish them from other former members who do not speak against their former faith, while others contest such a distinction. Former members of NRMs often see the use of "apostate" as an attempt to discredit them and their statements. Some scholars use the term Post-cult Trauma to describe the emotional and social problems that some members of cults and new religious movements experience after leaving the group, while other scholars assert that such traumas are either only applicable in rare cases or are more likely caused by deprogramming or pre-existing psychical problems, not by voluntary leavetaking. Some notable apostates are part of the secular , Hate and ill-will by these critics. Apostates of new religious movements usually make a number of allegations against their former affiliation and their leaders, including failed promises, Sexual Abuse by the leader who claimed to be pure and divine, false, Irrational and contradictory teachings, Deception , financial exploitation, demonizing of the outside world, long lasting emotional pain and depression upon disaffiliation, abuse of power and Hypocrisy of the leadership, discrimination, unnecessary secrecy, teaching platitudes, discouragement of Critical Thinking , Brainwashing , Mind Control , Exclusivism , Pedophilia , leadership that does not admit any mistakes, and more. Opinions about the reliability of apostates' testimony and their motivations The validity of testimony by former members of new religious movements, their motivations, and the roles they play in the opposition to cults and new religious movements are controversial subjects among scholars of religion, sociologists and psychologists:
:Introvigne argues that apostates professing ''type II'' narratives prevail among exiting members of controversial groups or organizations, while apostates that profess ''type III'' narratives are a vociferous minority.
OTHER USES OF THE TERM In popular usage, religious terminology like "apostasy" is often appropriated for use within other public spheres characterized by strongly-held beliefs, like Politics . Such usage typically carries a much less negative connotation than the religious usage does, and sometimes people will even describe themselves as apostates. Authors Kevin Phillips (a former Republican strategist turned harsh critic of the Bush administration) and Christopher Hitchens (a former Left-wing commentator turned enthusiastic supporter of the Iraq War ) are examples of people who are often described as political apostates. NOTED APOSTATES This is a list of some notable persons that have been labelled an apostate by a notable source, regardless whether they fit any of the mentioned definitions. Christianity
Islam
Judaism
Hinduism SEE ALSO
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