Cults and new religious movements : a reader / edited by Lorne L. Dawson.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Dawson, Lorne L., 1954-

Series:

Blackwell readings in religion

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Cults.

Physical Description:

viii, 297 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

Malden, MA : Blackwell Pub., 2003.

Summary:

What is a cult? Why do cults emerge? Who joins them? And why do tragedies such as the Solar Temple murder-suicides and Jonestown occur? This Reader brings together the voices of historians, sociologists, and psychologists of religion to address these key questions about new religious movements. The volume opens with an introductory essay by the editor, and each section is prefaced by a brief essay outlining the issues at stake, the state of current discussion, and the nature, value, and relevance of the selected readings. The readings themselves are wide-ranging and include coverage of topical questions, such as the "brainwashing" controversy, why some cults have become violent, and cults in cyberspace. This collection enables readers to gain a clear understanding of the phenomenon of new religious movements in modern culture and to replace prejudice and speculation with reliable insights into the nature of cult activity.

Contents:

I The Study of New Religious Movements 5

1 The Scientific Study of Religion? You Must Be Joking! / Eileen Barker 7

2 The Continuum Between "Cults" and "Normal" Religion / James A. Beckford 26

II The Nature of New Religious Movements 33

3 Three Types of New Religious Movement / Roy Wallis 36

4 Cult Formation: Three Compatible Models / William Sims Bainbridge, Rodney Stark 59

III New Religious Movements in Historical and Social Context 71

5 False Prophets and Deluded Subjects: The Nineteenth Century / Philip Jenkins 73

6 The New Spiritual Freedom / Robert Wuthnow 89

IV Joining New Religious Movements 113

7 Who Joins New Religious Movements and Why: Twenty Years of Research and What Have We Learned? / Lorne L. Dawson 116

8 The Joiners / Saul Levine 131

V The "Brainwashing" Controversy 143

9 The Process of Brainwashing, Psychological Coercion, and Thought Reform / Margaret Thaler Singer 147

10 A Critique of "Brainwashing" Claims About New Religious Movements / James T. Richardson 160

11 Constructing Cultist "Mind Control" / Thomas Robbins 167

VI Violence and New Religious Movements 181

12 The Apocalypse at Jonestown / John R. Hall 186

13 "Our Terrestrial Journey is Coming to an End": The Last Voyage of the Solar Temple / Jean-Francois Mayer 208

VII Sex and Gender Issues and New Religious Movements 227

14 Women in New Religious Movements / Elizabeth Puttick 230

15 Women's "Cocoon Work" in New Religious Movements: Sexual Experimentation and Feminine Rites of Passage / Susan J. Palmer 245

VIII New Religious Movements and the Future 257

16 Why Religious Movements Succeed or Fail: A Revised General Model / Rodney Stark 259

17 New Religions and the Internet: Recruiting in a New Public Space / Lorne L. Dawson, Jenna Hennebry 271.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

1405101814

OCLC:

50961029