What Does It Take To Have An "Authentic" Religion?

What does it take to have an "authentic" religion? In Kumare, Vikram Ghandi tries to explore this question by creating a "fake" religion to see whether people would actually follow it or not. To much of his surprise, the experiment worked as Kumare got at least 14 followers as the movie progressed. In the end, Kumare's teachings and practices were so powerful that even after the truth came out, ten people still stayed loyal to him.

So how did Kumare's "fake" religion become "authentic"? First of all, Ghandi created a series of myths (about his identity and origins), rituals ("the blue light"), and symbols (the staff) that formed the basis of his teachings. Originally "fake" and meaningless, these elements become "authentic" and meaningful as the practice of Kumare's teachings evolves into a transcending experience for the followers. The teachings are "fake" at first but turn to be "authentic" because they answer the people's needs and guide them through their lives. By becoming an experience rather than an experiment, Kumare's religion becomes "authentic" as well since it represents a way of life rather than a simple routine. Therefore, a religion is authentic as long as it is a guiding experience, based on certain myths, rituals and symbols, that creates a meaningful environment for its followers.

A Festivus for the Rest of Us: Do Fake Religions Count?

"Faith begins as an experiment and ends as an experience." 

-William Ralph Inge

A staff, a pole, blue light yoga, and an airing of grievances. Combine these together and you get a fake guru, Kumaré, who created his own spiritual following as an experiment to disprove the importance of religious figures, and a father, Frank, who created his own "Festivus" because had had enough of Christmas. Two very inauthentic movements that took fake traditions and symbols and gave them real meaning for real people.  



At what point do these made-up belief systems move from the realm of cultish groups and quirky family traditions to the ranks of mainline religions? In order to achieve true religious authenticity and authority, do they simply need to gain more followers, create more symbols and traditions, and worship a higher power, or does any of that matter at all? 
 

The purpose of a religion isn’t simply to put faith in a higher power and feel something move within, even though that is important and happens within most religions, it is to give a community of people something to believe in and experience together. Even a fake religion can do that. 

What Makes a Religion "Legitimate?"

             While discussing the film Kumaré, our class explored the ways in which a religion becomes “legitimate.” We designated religious symbols, the leader’s physical appearance, a sizable following, and several other elements as legitimizing factors. Similarly, after our viewing of Seinfeld’s “Festivus” episode, we discussed how the aluminum pole and the airing of grievances seem to “make the festival real.” While all of these elements exist within legitimate, authentic religious institutions, they do not directly designate “legitimacy” or “authenticity.” I find that legitimacy has two sides: the ability to be recognized and the ability to perform. The elements we designated as “legitimizing” are all visual stimuli through which a religion can be recognized; they imply a religion’s successful performance, but do not, themselves, perform religious work. Authenticity does not pertain to a religion’s symbols or rituals or number of followers, but instead refers to the system’s ability to provide an individual with what mankind searches for in religion; a sense of community, identity, and purpose. Kumaré’s staff and the airing of grievances do not inspire a sense of community or belonging, but rather represent the values and beliefs that satisfy an individual’s religious cravings. Thus, legitimacy lies in the combination of the tangible and sensational elements of religion and the successful impact on an individual that these elements represent.