CULTS AND NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENTS
CULTS ANDNEW RELIGIOUSMOVEMENTS
BLACKWELL READINGSINRELIGIONThe Blackwell Readings in Religion series brings together the knowledgeof leading international scholars, and each volume provides an authoritative overview of both the historical development and the contemporaryissues of its subject. Titles are presented in a style which is accessible toundergraduate students, as well as scholars and the interested generalreader.PublishedThe Blackwell Reader in JudaismEdited by Jacob Neusner and Alan J. Avery-PeckCults and New Religious MovementsA ReaderEdited by Lorne L. Dawson
CULTS ANDNEW RELIGIOUSMOVEMENTSA READEREdited by Lorne L. Dawson
Editorial material and organization 2003 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148-5018, USA108 Cowley Road, Oxford OX4 1JF, UK550 Swanston Street, Carlton South, Melbourne, Victoria 3053, AustraliaKurfürstendamm 57, 10707 Berlin, GermanyThe right of Lorne L. Dawson to be identified as the Author of the EditorialMaterial in this Work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright,Designs, and Patents Act 1988.All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in aretrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic,mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by theUK Copyright, Designs, and Patents Act 1988, without the prior permission ofthe publisher.First published 2003 by Blackwell Publishing LtdLibrary of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication DataCults and new religious movements : a reader / edited by Lorne L. Dawson.p. cm. – (Blackwell readings in religion)Includes bibliographical references and index.ISBN 1-4051-0180-6 (alk. paper) – ISBN 1-4051-0181-4 (pbk. : alk. paper)1. Cults. I. Dawson, Lorne L., 1954– II. Series.BP603 .C86 2003291–dc212002038285A catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.Set in 9.5 on 11.5 pt Galliardby SNP Best-set Typesetter Ltd., Hong KongPrinted and bound in the United Kingdomby MPG Books Ltd, Bodmin, CornwallFor further information onBlackwell Publishing, visit our website:http://www.blackwellpublishing.com
ContentsAcknowledgmentsviiIntroduction: The Book and the Subject1IThe Study of New Religious Movements517The Scientific Study of Religion? You Must Be Joking!Eileen Barker2The Continuum Between “Cults” and “Normal” Religion26James A. BeckfordIIThe Nature of New Religious Movements33336Three Types of New Religious MovementRoy Wallis4Cult Formation: Three Compatible Models59William Sims Bainbridge and Rodney StarkIIINew Religious Movements in Historical and Social Context71573False Prophets and Deluded Subjects: The Nineteenth CenturyPhilip Jenkins6The New Spiritual Freedom89Robert WuthnowIVJoining New Religious Movements7Who Joins New Religious Movements and Why: Twenty Yearsof Research and What Have We Learned?113116Lorne L. Dawson8The Joiners131Saul Levinev
CONTENTSVThe “Brainwashing” Controversy9The Process of Brainwashing, Psychological Coercion, andThought Reform143147Margaret Thaler Singer10 A Critique of “Brainwashing” Claims About NewReligious Movements160James T. Richardson11 Constructing Cultist “Mind Control”167Thomas RobbinsVIViolence and New Religious Movements18112 The Apocalypse at Jonestown186John R. Hall13 “Our Terrestrial Journey is Coming to an End”: The LastVoyage of the Solar Temple208Jean-François MayerVIISex and Gender Issues and New Religious Movements22714230Women in New Religious MovementsElizabeth Puttick15 Women’s “Cocoon Work” in New Religious Movements:Sexual Experimentation and Feminine Rites of Passage245Susan J. PalmerVIIINew Religious Movements and the Future16Why Religious Movements Succeed or Fail: A RevisedGeneral Model257259Rodney Stark17 New Religions and the Internet: Recruiting in a New Public Space271Lorne L. Dawson and Jenna HennebryIndex292vi
AcknowledgmentsBerkeley: University of California Press,1998: 52–84; copyright 1998 theRegents of the University of California.Lorne L. Dawson, “Who Joins New ReligiousMovements and Why: Twenty Years ofResearch and What Have We Learned?”Studies in Religion/Sciences Religieuses 25,1996: 141–61.Saul Levine, “The Joiners.” In Saul Levine,Radical Departures: Desperate Detours toGrowing Up, New York: Harcourt Braceand Company, 1984; copyright 1994 bySaul V. Levine, reprinted by permission ofHarcourt, Inc.Margaret Thaler Singer, “The Process ofBrainwashing, Psychological Coercion, andThought Reform.” In Margaret ThalerSinger, Cults in Our Midst, Jossey-Bass,1995: 52–82.James T. Richardson, “A Critique of ‘Brainwashing’ Claims About New ReligiousMovements.” Australian Religious StudiesReview 7, 1994: 48–56.Thomas Robbins, “Constructing Cultist‘Mind Control’.” Sociological Analysis 45,1984: 241–56.John R. Hall, “The Apocalypse at Jonestown.”In John R. Hall, with Philip D. Schuyler andSylvaine Trinh, Apocalypse Observed: Religious Movements and Violence in NorthAmerica, Europe, and Japan, Routledge,2000: 15– 43; reprinted by permission ofTaylor and Francis Ltd.The editor and publishers gratefully acknowledge the following for permission to reproduce copyright material:Eileen Barker, “The Scientific Study of Religion? You Must Be Joking!” Journal forthe Scientific Study of Religion 34, 1995:287–310.James A. Beckford, “The Continuum Between‘Cults’ and ‘Normal’ Religion.” In PaulineCote (ed.) Chercheurs de dieux dans l’espacepublic, University of Ottawa Press, 2001:11–20; reprinted by permission of thepublisher.Roy Wallis, “Three Types of New ReligiousMovement.” In Roy Wallis, The ElementaryForms of New Religious Life, Routledge andKegan Paul, 1984: 9–39; reprinted by permission of Mrs Veronica Wallis.William Sims Bainbridge and Rodney Stark,“Cult Formation: Three CompatibleModels.” Sociological Analysis 40, 1979:283–95.Philip Jenkins, “False Prophets and DeludedSubjects: The Nineteenth Century.” InPhilip Jenkins, Mystics and Messiahs: Cultsand New Religions in American History,Oxford University Press, 2000: 25–45;copyright 2000 by Philip Jenkins; used bypermission of Oxford University Press, Inc.Robert Wuthnow, “The New Spiritual Freedom.” In Robert Wuthnow, After Heaven:Spirituality in America Since the 1950s,vii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTSLorne L. Dawson and Jenna Hennebry, “NewReligions and the Internet: Recruiting in aNew Public Space.” Journal of Contemporary Religion 14, 1999: 17–39; reprintedby permission of Taylor and Francis Ltd;journal website http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals.Jean-François Mayer, “ ‘Our Terrestrial Journey is Coming to an End’: The Last Voyageof the Solar Temple.” Nova Religio 2, 1999:172–96.Elizabeth Puttick, “Women in New ReligiousMovements.” In Bryan Wilson and JamieCresswell (eds.) New Religious Movements:Challenge and Response, Routledge, 1999:143–62; reprinted by permission of Taylorand Francis Ltd and the author.Susan J. Palmer, “Women’s ‘Cocoon Work’ inNew Religious Movements: Sexual Experimentation and Feminine Rites of Passage.”Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion32, 1993: 343–55.Rodney Stark, “Why Religious MovementsSucceed or Fail: A Revised General Model.”Journal of Contemporary Religion 11, 1996:133–46; reprinted by permission of Taylorand Francis Ltd; journal website http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals.“CHURCH OF THE POISON MIND”Words and Music by George O’Dowd, JonMoss, Michael Craig and Roy Hay 1983, Reproduced by permission of EMIVirgin Music Ltd, London WC2H 0QY.The publishers apologize for any errors oromissions in the above list and would be grateful to be notified of any corrections thatshould be incorporated in the next edition orreprint of this book.viii
Introduction:The Book and the Subjectreligions we often hear distinct echoes of thehigher values and sentiments, the spiritualinsights, of the great religious figures ofthe past. Surely there is more to life we allsense at times, and the teachings of Jesus,Mohammed, the Buddha and others, mayseem to be more genuinely present in thediscourses of these still largely unknown oralready scorned men and women than in thesermons and pronouncements of the acceptedreligious leaders around us. But fear holds usback from exploring these possibilities furtherand the “cults” in our midst remain just acuriosity. This fear of the unknown and thedifferent is natural and understandable, but itis also exaggerated and in the long run detrimental to both our own spiritual developmentand that of our societies.We know about “cults” largely by what themedia tells us, and their views have beenoverwhelmingly negative (see Van Driel andRichardson 1988; Pfeifer 1992). Mirroringthe norms of conventional society, and theinterests of the powers behind it, the mediahave preferred to be sensationalistic intheir treatment of new religious movements,earning dollars by exploiting our fascinationand stoking our fears (see Beckford 1999, andthe first chapter of this book). Much of thisbook is dedicated to correcting this misperception – not from a desire to prejudge thespecific merits or faults of any new religiousmovements, but from a belief in letting theMost people in North America or Europe havenever met anyone who is a member of a“cult,” or what scholars prefer to call “newreligious movements.” Thousands of suchgroups exist in our societies, but they tend tobe so small or last for so short a time that theyattract little or no attention. Yet almost everyone has read articles or watched televisionshows about these groups. In our increasinglysecularized and supposedly rational societiesour curiosity is peaked by the intense andseemingly peculiar beliefs and practices of theminority of people who choose such alternative worldviews and their accompanyinglifestyles. We are often simultaneously drawnto and repelled by their sense of commitmentand purpose in life. As social and ideologicaldeviants they are fascinating yet threatening.Their religiosity may seem strangely morereal and compelling than the anemic variety ofmainstream religion so many of us experienceas children and young adults in the churches,synagogues, and temples of our parents. Butthe beliefs espoused are often subversive of thevalues and goals to which we have been socialized by the dominant social institutions of oursociety. Where so often we have been conditioned to the pursuit of happiness through theacquisition of the right job or through romantic love, part of us suspects, as many of the newreligions declare, that these ambitions areillusory. Real happiness lies elsewhere. In thewords spoken by the leaders of these new1
INTRODUCTIONrecord of reliable research speak for itself.Others will disagree with my choice ofreadings (see Beit-Hallahmi 2001; Zablocki2001), and hence my conclusions. The sweeping public stigmatization and often outrightcondemnation of new religions is based largelyon ignorance, and more often than not thisignorance poses a greater threat to our socialwell-being. I have tried as a social scientist toselect the best literature available on the topicfrom many of the most knowledgeable anddistinguished scholars in the field. This selection is limited by the need to use materials thatare well written and readily understood bystudents and non-specialists. Some of thereadings have been edited as well, to shortenthem and make them even more accessible(the omitted material is indicated by ellipses).Likewise, I have tried to select readings thataddress most of the major issues raised by thesocial scientific study of new religious movements: their nature, how they come intobeing, the social and historical context of theirinterpretation, the processes by which peopleconvert to them, the rewards and dangers ofjoining them, and some sense of their futureas social organizations as well as the factorsthat may determine their relative success orfailure. This has meant that more space thanperhaps is fair is dedicated to debates over controversial issues, most specifically the accusation that converts to new religious movementsare “brainwashed,” the perplexing incidentsof mass violence in which a few groups havebeen involved, and the occurrence of sexualdeviance and abuse in some situations. Butthese issues have been the focal points ofpublic awareness of “cults,” and hence muchof the scholarly activity as well.The study of new religious movements hasbeen conditioned by the problematic character of the subject matter. Soon after the spreadof numerous new and unusual religions in theUnited States in the late 1960s, groups ofunhappy parents of young adults who hadconverted to various “cults” joined forceswith some professionals (e.g., lawyers, psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers),disgruntled ex-members of new religions,and some representatives of other religions(ministers, priests, and rabbis) to create anorganized opposition to new religious movements. This “anti-cult movement” tried tohave the authorities impose various formalpublic sanctions on new religions, but theyfailed. They did succeed, however, in winningthe propaganda war that was waged for publicopinion, creating a staunch distrust of thesegroups in the general populace (see Bromleyand Shupe 1993, 1994). In the process, thevery word “cult” took on a pejorative connotation, leaving social scientists looking for aless prejudicial alternative. From the manysuggestions offered, the phrase “new religiousmovements” has stuck. But it is far from ideal,since some new religious movements are nolonger so new, some never were movements,and the religious status of some is a matter ofdispute (see Wilson 1992; Richardson 1993;Bednarowski 1995; Dawson 1998: 1–12).The label “cult” is still a technical term inthe scholarship on religion, like the terms“church” or “sect.” But when used in thisbook it will be accompanied by scare quotes(i.e., “cults”) in acknowledgment of its recentproblematic history. In most instances theterm new religious movements will be used,and in line with current academic practice itwill be abbreviated to NRMs.The significance of the social scientific studyof “cults,” however, transcends the publicstruggles over their legitimacy. Scholars of religion have shown a disproportionate interest inanalyzing NRMs because they offer a specialopportunity to witness the very birth pangs,growth struggles, and often death throws ofreligions. They provide immediate access todata about the most basic aspects of religiouslife that may be instrumental to understanding the rise and spread of the great religioustraditions of the past (see Stark 1996). Mostnotably, as the chapters in this reader display,the study of NRMs has vastly improvedour grasp of the nature and complexity ofthe processes of recruitment and conversion(see chapters 7, 8, 9, 10, 11), as well as theprocesses of religious innovation and groupformation, religious change, and the structureand development of religious institutions (seechapters 4, 6, 16). Likewise it has prompted2
INTRODUCTIONstartling advances in our appreciation of newerconcerns, like the gendered character ofreligious preferences and experiences (seechapters 14, 15) and the origins and nature ofreligious violence (see chapters 12, 13).NRMs make the investigation of these basicissues easier for a number of reasons: (1) theyoffer researchers smaller and more manageable forums for research; (2) they provide anopportunity to acquire a first-hand familiaritywith the earliest implementation of religiousideas, plans, and policies, free of the interpretive impact of tradition; and (3), they are likelyto present researchers with more extremetypes of behavior that are easier to detect andmeasure, and then extrapolate to less extremeinstances (as psychiatrists do, for example, inseeking to understand the inner workings ofthe mind).Of course, it is difficult to appreciate anyof this or properly understand the readings inthis book without some additional knowledgeof various actual NRMs Those lacking insome background knowledge of at least a fewgroups should read this book in conjunctionwith some of the many fine descriptive studiesavailable on the history, beliefs, and practicesof such NRMs as the Church of Scientology,the Unification Church, the InternationalSociety for Krishna Consciousness, SokaGakkai, neo-paganism, the New Age movement, and the Children of God/The Family(e.g., Wallis 1977; Barker 1984; Rochford1985; Wilson and Dobbelaere 1994; Brown1997; Berger 1999; Bainbridge 2002). Alternatively, one should at least turn to one ofthe good collections of descriptive essays onthese and many other groups (e.g., Ellwoodand Partin 1988; Miller 1995; or Chryssides1999). For a more comprehensive and systematic overview of the results of the socialscientific study of NRMs readers may also wishto consult books like Thomas Robbins’s Cults,Converts and Charisma (1988) or Lorne L.Dawson’s Comprehending Cults: The Sociologyof New Religious Movements (1998).ReferencesBainbridge, William Sims 2002: The EndtimeFamily: Children of God. Albany: State Universityof New York Press.Barker, Eileen 1984: The Making of a Moonie:Choice or Brainwashing? Oxford: Blackwell.Beckford, James A. 1999: The Mass Media andNew Religious Movements. In B. Wilson and J.Cresswell (eds.), New Religious Movements: Challenge and Response. London: Routledge, 103–19.Bednarowski, Mary Farrell 1995: The Church ofScientology: Lightning Rod for Cultural Boundary Conflicts. In T. Miller (ed.), America’s Alternative Religions. Albany: State University of NewYork Press, 385–92.Beit-Hallahmi, Benjamin 2001: ‘O Truant Muse’:Collaborationism and Research Integrity. In B.Zablocki and T. Robbins (eds.), Misunderstanding Cults: Searching for Objectivity in a Controversial Field. Toronto: University of TorontoPress, 35–70.Berger, Helen A. 1999: A Community of Witches:Contemporary Neo-Paganism and Witchcraft inthe United States. Columbia: University of SouthCarolina Press.Bromley, David G. and Anson D. Shupe, Jr. 1993:Organized Opposition to New Religious Movements. In D. G. Bromley and J. K. Hadden(eds.), The Handbook on Cults and Sects inAmerica, Part A (Religion and the Social Order,vol. 3). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press, 177–98.Bromley, David G. and Anson D. Shupe, Jr. 1994:The Modern North American Anti-Cult Movement, 1971–1991: A Twenty Year Retrospective.In A. Shupe and D. G. Bromley (eds.), Anti-CultMovements in Cross Cultural Perspective. NewYork: Garland, 3–31.Brown, Michael F. 1997: The Channeling Zone:American Spirituality in an Anxious Age.Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.Chryssides, George D. 1999: Exploring NewReligions. London: Cassell.Dawson, Lorne L. 1998: Comprehending Cults: TheSociology of New Religious Movements. Toronto:Oxford University Press.Ellwood, Robert S. and Harry B. Partin 1988: Religious and Spiritual Groups in Modern America,2nd edn. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.Miller, Timothy (ed.) 1995: America’s AlternativeReligions. Albany: State University of New YorkPress.Pfeifer, Jeffrey E. 1992: The Psychological Framingof Cults: Schematic Representations and Cult3
INTRODUCTIONEvaluations. Journal of Applied Social Psychology22 (7): 513–44.Richardson, James T. 1993: Definitions of Cult:From Sociological–Technical to Popular–Negative. Review of Religious Research 34 (4): 348–56.Robbins, Thomas 1988: Cults, Converts andCharisma. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.Rochford, E. Burke, Jr. 1985: Hare Krishna inAmerica. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.Stark, Rodney 1996: The Rise of Christianity: ASociologist Reconsiders History. Princeton, NJ:Princeton University Press.Van Driel, Barend and James T. Richardson 1988:Print Media Coverage of New ReligiousMovements: A Longitudinal Study. Journal ofCommunication 38 (3): 37–61.Wallis, Roy 1977: The Road to Total Freedom: ASociological Analysis of Scientology. New York:Columbia University Press.Wilson, Bryan R. 1992: Scientology: A SecularizedReligion. In B. R. Wilson, The Social Dimensionsof Sectarianism: Sects and New ReligiousMovements in Contemporary Society. Oxf
Voyage of the Solar Temple 208 Jean-François Mayer VII Sex and Gender Issues and New Religious Movements 227 14 Women in New Religious Movements 230 Elizabeth Puttick 15 Women’s “Cocoon Work” in New Religious Movements: Sexual Experimentation and Feminine Rites of Passage 245 Susan
1.6.1 A religious knowledge curriculum 26 1.6.2 A religious studies curriculum 27 1.6.3 A religious education curriculum 27 1.7 Religious knowledge and the national curriculum 29 1.8 Religious knowledge and the humanities 31 1.9 Conclusion 35 CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF THE RELIGIOUS KNOWLEDGE CURRICULUM IN NIGERIA 36 2.1 The development of the religious knowledge curriculum in 36 2.1.1 The .
CHARACTERISTICS OF SPIRITUALLY ABUSIVE SYSTEMS TOXIC FAITH CHECKLIST (www.CultRecover.com under Good Reading, Cult Evaluation Tools) WHY WOULD PEOPLE CURRENTLY IN CULTS COME TO THERPY? Because cults tend to be elitist and distrustful of the outside world, current cultists will rarely consult a clinician.
The Hong Kong Institute for Culture, Commerce and Religion edirons@aol.com ABSTRACT: In China, departments under the central government h ave published lists of banned and . Cults, Anti-Cult Movement, Chinese New Religions, SARA. Over the past quarter century, China has sporadically published lists of banned religious groups. These lists as .
Contemporary The religious landscape from 1945 to present in relation to: changing patterns of religious adherence the current religious landscape Religious dialogue in multi-faith Australia Ecumenical movements within Christianity Interfaith dialogue The relationship between Aboriginal spiritualities and religious traditions in the process of reconciliation.
Social movements and the state 2 Old and new social movements 4 Demand making and the language of rights 5 Institutional engagement 6 Democratic Transition 7 Cycles of protest 7 The projection of grassroots movements into political society 8 Transition, neoliberalism and the decline of grassroots movements 8 The Democratic Regimes 9
Keywords: religion, religious, religiosity, spirituality, religious fundamentalism, religious affiliation. 1. INTRODUCTION The psychology of religion comprises the use of scientific methods to understand the effects of religious traditions, practices, and beliefs on religious and non-religious
Danger of Sects and Cults for Children and Youngsters O.Univ.Prof.e. Dr. Brigitte Rollett and Mag. Martin Felinger Gesellschaft gegen Sekten- und Kultgefahren Introduction To the serious threats of our democratic
The handbook Architectural Graphic Standards was first published in 1932, the same year and in the same city that the exhibition The International Style opened at The Museum of Modern Art in New York. The coincidence of these two events underscores the bifur cation in modern architectural practice between appearance and function. While the show emphasized formal composi tional principles to .
