Star Wars Meta: Jedi Cult?

I like to joke about how the Jedi are actually just a messed up space cult, but let’s take a look at that claim, shall we? The International Cult Studies Association defines a cult as “an ideological organization held together by charismatic relations and demanding total commitment.” Sounds like the Jedi to me. Cults can vary widely in terms of the degree of control they exert over their members. The greater the degree of internal control, the higher the risk of physical or psychological harm to members. The Advanced Bonewits’ Cult Danger Evaluation Frame is a handy 18-factor frame work for identifying just how controlling, and thus how potentially dangerous, any cult-like group is. Each factor is evaluated on a sliding scale with 1 as low and 10 as high. Groups which score highly in five or more factors can be classified as potentially dangerous cults.

( How do the Jedi rate? )