Religious Movements, New and Syncretic

New religious movements have become a feature of the global religious situation since the late 20th century, appearing in virtually every religious tradition in every part of the world. It is difficult, however, to define when a religious movement can be called “new.” When a religious movement emerges in any period, it is natural that people of the period call it a new religious movement. However, the movements that have developed around the world in the late 20th century have, as a group, been categorized as new religions along with traditional religions such as Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, and Shinto and other existing religions. They are considered to share many characteristics. The terms new religions and new religious movements have been used interchangeably with almost identical meaning.

In the religious world map of the 21st century, new religions are developing in all regions with strength. Jehovah's Witnesses, Bahaism, Soka Gakkai, the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, Hare Krishna movement, and Falun Dafa are new religions that originated, respectively, in the United States, Iran, Japan, Korea, India, and China, and their followers have globally expanded mainly to large cities in countries in which barriers to nontraditional religions are relatively low. Among emerging religious movements, those that are not considered to belong to the existing traditional religions are categorized as new religions.

Around when did contemporary new religions begin to spread? Religions not belonging to the existing traditional religions can continue to exist only where a tolerant system and climate for religions are present. A shared perception among the public that there is a value in a new religious and spiritual culture may also be necessary. This implies that doors are open not only to accept a religion of a different nature from different cultures but also a new religious or spiritual culture emerging within the society that is different from the existing traditional culture.

The Reformation in the West that began in the 16th century changed the status quo of the dominance by the Catholic Church. The Reformation opened paths for movements that denied the dominance of the established Church to organize their own religious groups and to continue and develop their activities. Groups with belief systems different from the dominant Christian system branched out to coexist with the mainstream churches; hence, the situation emerged in which many religious organizations with different standpoints exist together. The Anabaptist is a representative minority group that has continued to exist since that time. The Mennonite, which is known for its pacifism and one of its sects, the Amish, who still preserve their old lifestyle, also belong to these groups.

These organizations are not, however, outside the larger frame of Christianity as a cultural tradition. In the Protestant sphere, the term sect is used for groups, and many sects were established from the 16th to the 20th centuries and are still in existence. The Quakers (Friends) established in the 17th century, the Methodists in the 18th century, the Holiness in the 19th century, and the Pentecostals in the 20th century developed as sects that would later come to be considered by many Christians in major denominations to be part of mainstream Christianity. In the United States, for example, the Christian community has a structure of diversity in which the traditional churches of different parts of Europe and various sects developed in modern times coexist as denominations.

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