A Test of Simmel on the Secret Society: The Doukhobors of British Columbia

The Sons of Freedom sect of the Doukhobors of British Columbia serves as a test case for some of Simmel's statements of the operation of a secret religious society. The recent collapse of the organization indicates the need for setting some limits and making some extensions to his hypotheses. Extension are: the transmission of secret aspects of culture through the generations may contribute to a general dissociation from reality, as may the contradiction between the picture of reality taught to the child within and outside the group; individual and social disorganization may arise from lack of a clearly recognized enemy or from the continuation of secrecy as a goal after the original purpose has been fulfilled; these dangers increase with the intensity of secrecy. Limits are: the tolerance for contradictions in belief within a secret society is smaller than Simmel indicated; the outer circle of the partially initiated can serve to break down rather than to protect the inner circle.