This article is an electronic version of an article originally published in Cultic Studies Journal, 1986, Volume 3, Number 1, pages 78-92. Please keep in mind that the pagination of this electronic reprint differs from that of the bound volume. This fact could affect how you enter bibliographic information in papers that you may write.

The Spiritual Crucible: A Critical Guide to America's Religious/Cultic Renaissance

David Christopher Lane

Abstract

Spiritual seekers are becoming critical of guru movements because many are being exposed for unethical and illegal practices. Seekers are not satisfied with the dogmatic perspectives which gurus frequently offer; critical intelligence is not, in fact, an obstacle to the soul's progress toward God and self-realization, but a beneficial and necessary step. A template of questions based on criteria suggested by both Eastern and Western spiritual traditions can help seekers judge contemporary gurus and movements. If the guru charges money, has an unethical lifestyle, proclaims his own mastership, encourages proselytizing, alleges that he is God incarnate, emphasizes pre-rational practices, and demands total obedience, assume that the path is wrong and that the guru is a charlatan. In the likely case that the guru/movement is neither all good nor all bad, a seeker should weigh the pros and cons in each case: if he stays, he should discard that which is not in his best interest; if he leaves, he should retain that which is beneficial.
 

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