Are Conservative Jews and Orthodox Jews Members of the Same Religion? Plus, What is the Difference Between Cults and Religions?
My mom and I are on different sides of this question. I am of the view that she and the rest of my family converted to a new religion when they became orthodox several years ago. She views it as they simply became more religious. In her eyes, a jew is a jew.

Or is a jew a jew? Reform and Conservative conversions are not honored by the orthodox. A child of a jewish father but a non-jewish mother is a jew according to the reform, but not the orthodox or the conservative. As an additional point that the religions are seperate, they cannot even agree on something as fundamental on what their most sacred work, the Torah, is. The Orthodox view the Torah as the word of god and unalterable. The reform (and maybe the conservative?) view it as merely inspired by god, so certain rules go by the wayside. If I am not mistaken, I think there is even a dispute on the validity of non-Orthodox weddings.

I think there is a strong argument that the Conservative and Orthodox Jews are members of very similiar, but different faiths, most of whose members are interchangeable if they so choose (the rest have to formally convert). What makes two different strands of thought sects of the same religion, and others different religions? Or is this just semantics, or actually an important distinction?

On a related question, here is something my dad is pondering with me - what separates a cult from a religion? Cults are accused of mind control through changing world views in highly pressurized situations, separating their members from loved ones, being organized aroudn a charasmatic head, and being motivated by money. However, this isn't true for all cults, and it applies to quite a few religions as well.