GARY STEFAN | PNS | 2061.05.11
In the heart of Alabama in the city of Montgomery, theres a new cult movement being born which to most observer's eyes seems to be an offshoot of the Christian faith. The cult movement has been present within the city for at least three years according to some of the members of the cult, and the leader behind the movement is one Academic Philosopher, George Harlem Solomon.
Solomon is an academic philosopher, specializing in religious philosophy, and from what the reporters from multiple news networks and some indepenent internet sources could gather, fought as a soldier on the side of the Federal Government in the Second Civil War over a decade ago, then attended university and underwent training to become a clergyman in the AME church, but dropped out and left the and toured Africa, Europe, and Asia for approximately three years. After that he attended university again for academic philosophy and finished his doctorate a year ago, becoming noteworthy for his thesis on the metaphysical and ethical implications of some syncretic religious beliefs.
The cult, itself, has had very little attention shone onto it, not because of any strict policy of secrecy, but because of it's members active choice to forgo communication on internet forums and social media websites. This could be for a number of political or theological reasons, some speculate, but without any serious analysis of the beliefs and the members its hard to say. Though we do have some basic idea of the beliefs of the members.
The beliefs at first glance seem familiar to any practicing Christian, except for one big detail: According to the members, they believe that Jesus was not the son of God. In fact, they don't place much emphasis on Jesus as a figure of even slight divinity, according to them, Jesus is on a short list of 5 Great Ancient Sages, that list including the Biblical Moses, The Buddah, a not-so-known figure in America called Zoroaster, Jesus of Nazereth, and The Prophet Mohhamed. Theres also a longer list of "Modern Sages" which are composed of a wide variety of philosophers and theologians up to the present day. Additionally thier conception of god is uncanny to the christian ear, painting god as effectively, everything that exists, and the very physical forces of the universe that hold everything together, implying that god is not a agent acting upon the world, which is different from the moralizing god painted in most sects of the Christian faith. Overall, the movement focuses emphasizes its ethics, advocating for ideas of social justice and social harmony above all else, according to it's advocates.
Critics tell a different story, many who have sat in for events in coffeehouses and in parks and other every day settings to hear Solomon, and his academic peer Jay Dexter, who rumors claim is a transgender man, claim that the faith is subtly spreading a mix of socialist propaganda and religious dogmatism, in an effort to draw in the destitute in society who might not know better (especially given the poverty present in the American South), in order to hail Solomon as a prophetic figure. Though these claims are becoming more common as the movement spreads outside of Montgomer, but as this cult is becoming more popular, especially with the large majority of Black Americans who were previously irreligious, there will be plenty of people with counterclaims.