The Nature, Incidence and Significant of New Religious Movements in the West

Do we allow some scholars to wear beards or cover their heads as prescribed by their religions and if so how far does this tolerance extend? May Rastafarians then be allowed to wear dreadlocks and smoke marijuana at school? There are a multitude of questions and not too many answers at present. Reaching consensus is not going to be an easy task.
Eric Hoffer writes in his 'The True Believer': "true believers of various hues ....view each other with mortal hatred and are ready to fly at each other's throat..."
CONCLUSION
The many NRM's that have come into being have been the source of interest for those seeking the spirituality that suits them, fear from those who have a skewed view of what a NRM is due to negative publicity of some groups, and controversy around tolerance and control of NRM's.
There are many new NRM's, but the numbers involved are not nearly as large as the reactions to them would suggest. I believe that ignorance is a major factor involved and that education and a more unbiased stance on the side of the media are necessary for us to move forward and resolve the challenges facing us.
…