Brahmo and Brahmo Samaj
Brahmo Samaj refers to the wider socio-religious community either following the principles for Brahmo worship or subscribing to membership of a Brahmo Samaj, or to a Samaj, an association established for maintaining premises for assembly and Brahmo worship. A follower or Subscriber Member of this community is referred to as Brahmo Samajist.
- When is a Brahmo not a Brahmo Samajist?
One aspect of Brahmoism is recognition that not only explicit faith and worship makes for a Brahmo, but also genealogy, which is implicit. People with even a single Brahmo parent or other Brahmo guardian are treated as Brahmos until they absolutely renounce the Brahmo faith. This often causes tension within the Samaj, for example, when an offspring of a Brahmo follows communism or atheism or another belief without renouncing Brahmoism formally. There are differing views between the Theist and Deist streams of Brahmoism on the retention of such people within the fold. Additionally, a Brahmo who opts not to subscribe to membership of a Brahmo Samaj remains a Brahmo but ceases to be a Brahmo Samajist.
- Co-faith and conversion
Brahmoism does not forbid its followers from retaining other faiths like Hinduism, Islam or Christianity. Neither is formal conversion to Brahmoism required nowadays, thereby affirming the now very well settled legal controversy that a non-Brahmo Brahmo Samajist does not cease to be (say) a Hindu or Sikh by following the Samaj.
Read more about this topic: Brahmo