Controversial New Religions

by James R. Lewis (Editor), Jesper Aagaard Petersen (Editor)

This book complements Lewis's O xford Handbook of New Religious Movements . The former provides an overview of the state of the field. This volume collects papers on those specific New Religious Movements (NRMs) that have generated the most scholarly attention. With few exceptions, these
organizations are also the controversial groups that have attracted the attention of the mass media, often because they have been involved in, or accused of, violent or anti-social activities. Among the movements to be profiled are such groups as the Branch Davidians, Heaven's Gate, Aum Shinrikyo,
Solar Temple, Scientology, Falun Gong and many more. The book will function as a reference for scholars, as a text for courses in NRMs, and will also appeal to non-specialists including reporters, law enforcement, public policy makers, and others.

Genres: Religion, Nonfiction, Cults

483 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2004

About the author

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Reviews

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a study of the kinds of religions which the media and the public often chooses to label as “cults” and considers questions related to their place in modern culture. It is presented as a series of essays, each about a particular religion or religious body, mostly written by sociologists and religious studies PhDs. The introduction, unfortunately, does not spell out a common methodological approach or research question for the entire collection, choosing rather to give a brief history of the development and eventual rejection of the term “cult” as a category of analysis by scholars, contrasted with the simultaneous rise in influence of the “anticult movement” in the US and internationally. In short, the editors tell us what the book is not, rather than what it is or aspires to be.

The essays are broken down into four categories, relating to the groups under study, rather than commonalities in approach of the authors, making for rather uneven reading. These categories are “Groups in the Christian Tradition,” “Asian and Asian-Inspired Groups,” “Esoteric and New Age Groups,” and “Other Groups and Movements.” It should be obvious that a certain amount of overlap in these categories is inevitable, and it is sometimes unclear why a given essay was placed in a certain category (for example, the Unification Church is placed with Christian groups, although it is centered in Korea and clearly influenced by Asian traditions). The rest of this review will discuss each of the four categories individually.

The first category, on Christian Groups, is confined to fairly centralized, well-organized religious bodies, and does not consider more diffuse movements. The essays cover the Children of God (now know as the Family, alternately “Family of Love”), the Unification Church (“Moonies”), the People’s Temple (“Jonestown”), and the Branch Davidians (of David Koresh and Waco fame). Of these, the most useful is James Chancellor’s discussion of the development of the Children of God from a politicized hippy sect to a sexually libertine organization to an increasingly normalized multi-generational apocalyptic church. Rebecca Moore’s discussion of Jonestown is interesting, because rather than discussing the well-known historical events, she instead analyzes the growth of conspiracy theories surrounding the mass suicide (or murder/suicide, as the case may be), and the psychological needs served by these theories. By contrast, Stuart A. Wright’s essay on Waco does simply plow old ground with a repetition of the already-available facts of that tragedy.

The Asian and Asian-inspired groups will introduce most Western readers to less-familiar subject matter, and includes both organized hierarchical groups as well as more democratic or decentralized movements. These essays cover the Hare Krishna movement (“ISKCON”), the Osho Rajneesh movement (“Friends of Osho”), Soka Gakkai (a pacifist Nichiren Buddhist sect active in Japan), Aum Shinrikyo (known for the subway gas attacks), the Falun Gong (a Chinese alternative yoga-practice facing persecution from the government), and the “Aumist religion” (a French yoga organization). David Ownby’s article on the Falun Gong is the standout here, as he takes into account far more of the cultural context of the growth of this group (the largest discussed in the book in numbers) than previous accounts have, although Martin Repp’s even-handed discussion of Aum Shinrikyo is also refreshing. The most disappointing is Pier Luidi Zoccatelli’s essay on Aumism, if only because of its tantalizingly brief length.

The section on esoteric and new age groups includes mostly groups which are organized with some degree of secrecy or at least security, and in some cases groups which have splintered or changed structure during the period of study. There are essays on Scientology (“Dianetics”), the Theosophical Society (of Helena Blavatsky, and it’s many successors), The Solar Temple (“Ordaire du Temple Solare,” a recent French “suicide-cult”), J.Z. Knight (a “channaler, in the tradition of Jane Roberts and Blavatsky), and the Movement of Spiritual Inner Awareness (MSIA, a New Age self-improvement group with pricey seminars). Dorthe Refslund Christensen’s Weberian analysis of the constantly-recreated hagiography of L. Ron Hubbard is of particular interest here, as are some of the observations regarding charisma and channeling offered by Gail M. Harley. James Santucci’s retelling of the various schisms and scandals of Theosophy is the least useful article in this section.

The final section is on groups which could not easily fit the other categories, and, not surprisingly, covers the least centralized movements in the volume. These include Heaven’s Gate (who committed suicide and murder of members in connection with the arrival of the Hale-Bopp comet in 1997), the Räelian movement (a libertine UFO cult whose female members have posed for Playboy), white racist religions (including Identity Christianity, and racist Norse paganism), and modern Satanism (including the Church of Satan, the Temple of Set, and various internet satanic discussion groups such as the “Satanic Reds”). Susan Palmer’s discussion of the Räelians manipulation of hostile media is a particularly interesting study of the delicate relationship between a small religion and its public image. Petersen’s section on Satanism has little new for those familiar with the subject, but nevertheless includes some good material on the decentralized Satanic internet.

Overall, this volume has much to recommend it, in terms of individual essays of merit. What it lacks is a cohesive theme or method of analysis to tie the essays together and give them the opportunity to speak to one another. Particularly since there are several essays regarding religious groups that have engaged in violence or suicide, it would be valuable to see the development of a unified theory regarding such movements. It is nonetheless refreshing to see that quality work is being done in the area of “fringe” religions, particularly those of a controversial nature, and the reviewer hopes that more such works will follow.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though this book was academic, it certainly wasn't boring. I read this book for fun. The authors have done a good job of collecting the histories and beliefs of various different New Age Religions from the around the world. They write about them from a neutral perspective without trying to put the adherents of the beliefs down.
The highlights for me were the chapters on Falun Gong, AUM Shinrikyo, The Children of God, and Scientology.
I definitely recommend this book if you want an insight into some of the interesting religions around the world.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is comprised of essays written by scholar experts in new religions. They don’t like the term cult. It has been sensationalized by the media.

The gist of the articles:
New religions may be likened to old religions at their beginnings.
Should be examined in context.
Keep an open mind when considering new religions.
Most are not deadly or violent (those get the media’s disproportionate attention).
We have done a terrible disservice to new religions when confronting them, raiding their compounds.
Law enforcement should consult with experts before inquiring into a new religion, especially before any kind of assault.
Previous attempts at examining new religions focused on their similarities while academics focus on their differences.

Akerback’s essential new religion differences:
“Ideology of opposition” (People’s Temple)
“A temporary ideology” (Order of the Solar Temple)
“Ideology of metamorphosis” (Heaven’s Gate)

Essential characteristics of a suicidal groups according to James Lewis:
“Absolute intolerance of dissenting views.
Members must be totally committed.
Exaggerated paranoia about external threats.
Leader isolate him/herself or the entire group from the non-believing world.
Leader’s health is failing…
There is no successor…
The groups is either stagnant or dying.”

So IMO, MAGAs form a cult but nothing like a suicidal group.

Satanism is about realizing “one’s self interest” rather than worshiping Satan. More of a hedonistic, find your true self, iconoclastic, loosely affiliated group. Still seem largely misunderstood. They shouldn’t be studied through a Christian lens.

[Gypsysoul_ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent scholarly accounts of various NRM, specifically the chapter on Satanism, which I used as reference in my research paper.

[Stephen Cranney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Always hard to rate an edited volume. I particularly enjoyed the chapters on Satanism, L. Ron Hubbard's hagiography, the Children of God movement, and the Aumist nerve gas attacks. For some of these subjects it's hard to get a non-polemical academic treatment, and some of these chapters met that need.

[Martine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Though interesting, in my opinion most of the chapters are too long to keep that interest. Shorter and more to the point would make this book a lot easier and better to read.