Is Orthodox Judaism a Cult?

The following consists of excerpts from article arguing that Judaism is not a cult. My comments are included.

According to exit counselors (experts who help people trying to leave cults), someone who has joined a cult will usually show at least some of the following symptoms: a loss of free will; a loss of spontaneity; the loss of his sense of humor; an inability to form intimate relationships outside the cult; physical deterioration and/or signs of abuse; psychological deteriorations, sometimes including hallucinations; anxiety; paranoia; disorientation; disassociation; a development of dependancy and a return to childlike behavior. These are some of the standard effects seen in individuals involved in destructive cults. Do not, however, expect a cult member to show all those symptoms.

Ok, I’m entirely unconvinced so far. Judaism certainly restricts free will, spontaneity, and relationships with non-Jews.

Are Jews brainwashed? Brainwashed people would not be expected (or allowed) to ask questions. Cults never allow their members to ask questions. Judaism, on the other hand, thrives on questions. Judaism teaches that if you're not asking questions, you're not learning, and you're not growing. The entire purpose of having Rabbis is so that they can answer our questions. We even have a Seder on Passover whose entire purpose is get people (especially children) to ask questions! Brainwashing relies on keeping the subject ignorant. Judaism heavily stresses study and knowledge.

Judaism loves questions, but only kosher questions. Try asking about the documentary hypothesis, having a debate about archaeology and Tanakh, or arguing about the existence of God in a Yeshiva classroom. Judaism heavily stresses study and knowledge, but only study and knowledge of itself.

Brainwashed people lose their original personality. A major element of Judaism is self-improvement and self-development. A Jew becoming Orthodox should never lose his personality. Changes in personality for the better are a good sign.

So a BT should never lose his personality, only change it for the better. What is that supposed to mean?

Many cults depend on secrecy. They talk about a truth that no one else has.

We definitely talk about a truth that no one else has, although we aren’t very secretive about practices.

Dropout control is another element of most cults. However, Jewish groups are not so coherent or rigidly defined. There are no absolute rules that clearly delineate whether or not you are part of a Jewish group. If you feel at home, you belong. If you don't feel at home, you find another synagogue or another community to be a part of. Among Jewish groups people come and go all the time. People change groups, and sometimes even leave Orthodox Judaism entirely, unfortunately. We exercise no mind control over anyone, and we cannot prevent anyone from doing what they want. Of course, if we know someone is slipping in their observance, we will often try to befriend them and try to help them deal with their difficulties.

And then once they complete their “slippage” and leave Orthodox Judaism entirely we ostracize them. We have hotlines for kids at risk, and programs like Aish and Project Chazon. No, we don’t try and stop people from dropping out. Not a chance.

Because of dropout control, many cults refuse to let their members live at home. Judaism, however, fosters good family relationships, and insists that children respect their parents and the feelings of relatives and friends (well, everyone's feelings, actually). Most people joining Orthodox Judaism continue to live at home, though they often travel to Israel or elsewhere to study for some time in a proper yeshivah.

Right. They study for some time in a yeshiva and then move to an insular Orthodox community. The article is geared toward the parents of a BT. Of course they are leaving home. Home (and likely their whole neighborhood) doesn't fit their lifestyle.

Cults are generally created and/or led by charismatic leaders. These leaders almost always demand absolute fealty and loyalty. They usually have set themselves up as leaders, building a following. These leaders often teach their followers that the leader is divine, and he therefore demands worship. Cults are usually messianic, and consider their leader to be a sort of god-messiah. They follow him blindly, and they often spend most of their lives making money for the leader, who gets rich from their labor. The leader is seldom accountable to anyone for his behavior.

God is a pretty charismatic leader, right? (The Rebbe had one or two followers as well…)

Members of a cult have one primary purpose: to serve the leader or the group. Orthodox Judaism has no such concept.

Forgetting about God again?

Cults almost always teach the infallibility of the leader of the cult. Jews do not believe that Rabbis are infallible, but generally we follow only a Rabbi we believe to be righteous and wise.

So Rabbis lead us, not God. And what about those Jews who hold up every word of the Talmud as true? Are they referring to the Rabbis as infallible or God's word?

Another very common element in many cults is the manipulation by the leader of the bedroom lives of the members (in the interest of holiness, I'm using euphemisms). This does not exist in Judaism, and could not. Our lives are private and our own. They are influenced by Jewish Law, but not by the whims of anyone else at all.

Hilchot niddah? Arayot? Negiah?

Cults practice a severe form of censorship. This could not exist in Judaism. We are free people. We go where we please, we buy what we please, we read what we please.

Ban water! Ban strawberries! Ban books! Ban music! Ban denim skirts!

Cults are said to have an immutable dogma. Most religions have that. Judaism has it too. Judaism, however, is much more flexible than almost any other religious dogma. I often like to say that the answer to almost every question about Judaism is "It depends."

Halakhic questions, maybe. Ikkarim questions, no.

Most cults offer a newly invented doctrine, often a composite of other popular religions. Judaism teaches a way of life that has been a tradition for over three thousand years. If you are Jewish, then the overwhelming likelihood is that your great-grandparents were fully observant Jews, and their parents were, and their parents were, and so on back for many generations. Surely you cannot believe that your own grandparents were members of a cult.

Why not?

Source: http://www.beingjewish.com/family/nocult.html

That said, I'm still not convinced OJ is a cult. Cognitive dissonance?

*Hat-tip to commenter One More for the idea.