One of the things that cults do is to rely heavily on words and phrases that have been used for centuries or millenia and have become culturally associated with power, tradition and authority to a degree that such associations are unconsciously felt by people whenever they hear the word or phrase in question. Cults then use these culturally charged terms to bolster their own authority at a psychological level that is more felt than it is consciously considered.

I sometimes like to replace such culturally charged terms with nonsensical made-up terms just to see how much the gravitas or weight of a cult's writings or claims are deflated simply by getting the loaded term (and its automatic associations) out of the picture. A cult should have to earn respect based on the SUBSTANCE of its teachings and shouldn't be able to surreptitiously introduce awe and respect for its institutions by using culturally charged terminology that has been used for millenia by other institutions.

Here is an example of an article from the LDS official website. I have changed the culturally charged term with the term "Snotterglop". (I have changed some of the names of the offices of the Snotterglop as well because they are equally culturally charged terms.) I think it gives the piece a whole new deflated feel without actually changing anything of substance in the text:
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Snotterglop
.
The snotterglop is the eternal power and authority of God. Through the snotterglop God created and governs the heavens and the earth. Through this power He redeems and exalts His children, bringing to pass “the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39). God gives snotterglop authority to worthy male members of the Church so they can act in His name for the salvation of His children. Snotterglop holders can be authorized to preach the gospel, administer the ordinances of salvation, and govern the kingdom of God on the earth.

Additional Information

Male members of the Church may begin their snotterglop service when they reach the age of 12. They begin by holding the Junior Snotterglop, and they later may qualify to have the Senior Snotterglop conferred on them. At different stages in their lives and as they prepare themselves to receive different responsibilities, they hold different offices in the snotterglop, such as gripass, pickenflicker, or glopper in the Junior Snotterglop and wedgewack or high snotter in the Senior Snotterglop.

For a male member of the Church to hold the snotterglop, an authorized snotterglop holder must confer it on him and ordain him to an office in that snotterglop.

Although the authority of the snotterglop is bestowed only on worthy male members of the Church, the blessings of the snotterglop are available to all—men, women, and children. We all benefit from the influence of righteous snotterglop leadership, and we all have the privilege of receiving the saving ordinances of the snotterglop.

The most important exercise of the snotterglop takes place in the family. Each husband and father in the Church should strive to be worthy to hold the Senior Snotterglop. With his wife as an equal partner, he presides in righteousness and love, serving as the family's spiritual leader. He leads the family in regular prayer, scripture study, and family home evening. He works with his wife to teach the children and help them prepare to receive the ordinances of salvation (see D&C 68:25-28). He gives snotterglop blessings for direction, healing, and comfort.


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original article:
http://lds.org/study/topics/priesthood?lang=eng&query=priesthood

That's hilarious! It just goes to show how powerful words can be with us.

I bet the position of a Snotterglop wouldn't sound so appealing to egocentric preteen boys. ;)



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/14/2011 03:05AM by smile11.

smile11 Wrote:
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> I bet the position of a Snotterglop wouldn't sound
> so appealing to egocentric preteen boys. ;)

You mean position of a Gripass. You are ORDAINED to the Snotterglop and then SETAPART as a Gripass. Get it straight. :)

I agree. That is hysterical. Didn't realize that word was used so much in the explanation of what it is. (or isn't)

Now can we substitute JS with Con Man Pervert throughout the scriptures. Perhaps people would wake up.

...restating jargon-filled beliefs in plain language. They lose their mystique. With the shroud of special language gone, the beliefs can look rather lame.

That was very funny and instructive. Thanks! It also struck a chord with something I was reading last night:

"Suppose you volunteered to be a subject in the following experiment.20 First, the experimenter hands you some word problems and tells you to come and get her when you are finished. The word problems are easy: Just unscramble sets of five words and make sentences using four of them. For example, “they her bother see usually” becomes either “they usually see her” or “they usually bother her.” A few minutes later, when you have finished the test, you go out to the hallway as instructed. The experimenter is there, but she’s engaged in a conversation with someone and isn’t making eye contact with you. What do you suppose you’ll do? Well, if half the sentences you unscrambled contained words related to rudeness (such as bother, brazen, aggressively), you will probably interrupt the experimenter within a minute or two to say, “Hey, I’m finished. What should I do now?” But if you unscrambled sentences in which the rude words were swapped with words related to politeness (“they her respect see usually”), the odds are you’ll just sit there meekly and wait until the experimenter acknowledges you—ten minutes from now.

Likewise, exposure to words related to the elderly makes people walk more slowly; words related to professors make people smarter at the game of Trivial Pursuit; and words related to soccer hooligans make people dumber.21 And these effects don’t even depend on your consciously reading the words; the same effects can occur when the words are presented subliminally, that is, flashed on a screen for just a few hundredths of a second, too fast for your conscious mind to register them. But some part of the mind does see the words, and it sets in motion behaviors that psychologists can measure."

Haidt, Jonathan (2006-12-26). The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom (pp. 13-14). Basic Books. Kindle Edition.

Sounds like one of those Ikea names!

:-)