THE ORIGIN, DEVELOPMENT: AND DECLINE OF A YOUTH CULTURE RELIGION: AN APPLICATION OF SECTARIANIZATION THEORY.

In this paper Wallis' theory of sectarianization is applied to data collected on the Divine Light Mission, a contemporary cultic movement of the American youth culture. Its development is discussed in terms of intra-organizational changes with- in the social context of American pluralism. The movement's short history to date largely substantiates Wallis' writings concerning the effects of cultic fragility, sectarianizing strategies and organizational constraints on movement development. The paper contributes to recent conceptual. writings within the sociology of religion on youth culture movements in modern Western societies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]