MODERN TRANSFORMATION OF NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS AND THE ISSUES OF ATTRACTING THEIR FOLLOWERS

In modern society, there is an increasing popularity of digital religious communities, which attract an increasing number of followers. In the 20th century, the issue of NRM (New Religious Movements) was deeply studied by such Russian authors as E. Balagushkin and I. Kanterov. Today, due to social and cultural transformations, the topicality of analysis of new forms of NRM becomes evident. The subject of this study are new digital communities that declare themselves as new centres of spirituality and the reasons why people choose them. New digital forms of NRM provide their followers with the simplicity of approach, easy accessibility of religious communication, psychological comfort and the sense of being the centre of the. It makes new digital NRMs widely spread in post-secular society fulfilling the need of spirituality of modern participants of mass culture, which brings us to a supposition that the number of digital NRMs will continue showing steady growth.