Cults and New Religions: a Brief History

Cults and New Religions WILEY BLACKWELL BRIEF HISTORIES OF RELIGION SERIES This series offers brief, accessible, and lively accounts of key topics within theology and religion. Each volume presents both academic and general readers with a selected history of topics which have had a profound effect on religious and cultural life. The word “history” is, therefore, understood in its broadest cultural and social sense. The volumes are based on serious scholarship but they are written engagingly and in terms readily understood by general readers. Other topics in the series: Published Heaven Alister E. McGrath Heresy G. R. Evans Death Douglas J. Davies Saints Lawrence S. Cunningham Christianity Carter Lindberg Dante Peter S. Hawkins Love Carter Lindberg Christian Mission Dana L. Robert Christian Ethics Michael Banner Jesus W. Barnes Tatum Shinto John Breen and Mark Teeuwen Paul Robert Paul Seesengood Apocalypse Martha Himmelfarb Islam, 2nd edition Tamara Sonn The Reformation Kenneth G. Appold Utopias Howard P. Segal Spirituality, 2nd edition Philip Sheldrake Cults and New Religions, 2nd edition Douglas E. Cowan and David G. Bromley Cults and New Religions A Brief History Second Edition Douglas E. Cowan Renison College, University of Waterloo and David G. Bromley Virignia Commonwealth University This edition first published 2015 © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Edition history: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. (1e, 2008) Registered Office John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, UK Editorial Offices 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148‐5020, USA 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford, OX4 2DQ, UK The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, UK For details of our global editorial offices, for customer services, and for information about how to apply for permission to reuse the copyright material in this book please see our website at www.wiley.com/wiley‐blackwell. The right of Douglas E. Cowan and David G. Bromley to be identified as the authors of 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 a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, without the prior permission of the publisher. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks. All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, service marks, trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. The publisher is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: While the publisher and authors have used their best efforts in preparing this book, they make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this book and specifically disclaim any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. It is sold on the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering professional services and neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. Library of Congress Cataloging‐in‐Publication Data Cowan, Douglas E. [Cults and new religions] Cults and new religions : a brief history / Douglas E. Cowan, Renison College, University of Waterloo, David G. Bromley, Virginia Commonwealth University. – Second edition. pages cm. – (Wiley blackwell brief histories of religion) Revision of: Cults and new religions. – Malden, MA ; Oxford : Blackwell Pub., 2008. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-118-72210-7 (paperback) 1. Religions. 2. Cults. I. Bromley, David G. II. Title. BL80.3.C69 2015 200.9′04–dc23 2015005385 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Cover image: Moon over Lake Geneva © nagelestock.com / Alamy Set in 10/12.5pts Meridien by SPi Global, Pondicherry, India. 1 2015 For Joie and Donna, our soul mates Contents Preface to the Second Edition x List of Text Boxes xii 1 Cults and New Religions: A Primer 1 The Range of New Religious Movements 5 Controversy and the Popular Perception of New Religious Movements 11 Further Reading on New Religious Movements 17 2 The Church of Scientology: The Question of Religion 18 L. Ron Hubbard and the Origins of Scientology 20 Beliefs and Practices of the Church of Scientology 23 The Organizational Structure of the Church of Scientology 27 The Church of Scientology and the Question of Religion 31 Researching Scientology 35 Further Reading on the Church of Scientology 37 3 Transcendental Meditation: The Questions of Science and Therapy 38 Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and the Arrival of Transcendental Meditation 40 Beliefs and Practices of Transcendental Meditation 42 The Growth and Development of Transcendental Meditation 48 Transcendental Meditation: The Questions of Science and Therapy 52 Researching Transcendental Meditation 56 Further Reading on Transcendental Meditation 58 4 Ramtha and the New Age: The Question of “Dangerous Cult” 59 Who Is JZ Knight and Who Is Ramtha? 61 History and Development of Ramtha’s School of Enlightenment 65 viii Contents Beliefs and Practices of Ramtha’s School of Enlightenment 67 RSE and the Question of the ‘Dangerous Cult’ 70 Researching Ramtha 75 Further Reading on the New Age Movement 77 5 The Unification Church/The Family Federation: The Brainwashing/Deprogramming Controversy 78 Sun Myung Moon: Savior from the East 79 Doctrinal Beliefs and Ritual Practices of the Unification Church 84 The Growth and Organization of the Unification Church outside Korea 89 Brainwashing, Deprogramming, and the Unification Church 92 Researching the Unification Church 96 Further Reading on the Unification Church 98 6 The Children of God/The Family International: The Issue of Sexuality 99 Mo: David Berg and the Origins of the Children of God 101 Social Organization of the Children of God/The Family 105 Beliefs, Rituals, and Practices of the Children of God/ The Family 109 The Children of God/The Family and the Issue of Sexuality 113 Researching the Children of God/The Family 118 Further Reading on the Children of God/The Family 119 7 The Branch Davidians: The Question of Cults, Media, and Violence – Part I 120 The Historical Development of the Branch Davidians 121 Beliefs and Practices of the Branch Davidians under David Koresh 128 The Siege at Waco and the Problem of Mass Media 131 Researching the Branch Davidians 138 Further Reading on the Branch Davidians 139 8 Heaven’s Gate: The Question of Cults and Violence – Part II 141 Ti, Do, and the Origins of Heaven’s Gate 142 Beliefs and Practices of Heaven’s Gate 145 Recruitment and Social Organization in Heaven’s Gate 150 The Evolutionary Level Above Human: New Religions, Violence, and the Media 153 Researching Heaven’s Gate 157 Further Reading on UFO Groups 160 Contents ix 9 Wicca and Witchcraft: Confronting Age‐old Cultural Fears 161 Gerald Gardner and the Origins of Modern Witchcraft 162 Social Organization and Development of Modern Witchcraft and Wicca 166 Beliefs, Rituals, and Practices of Modern Witchcraft and Wicca 170 Satanic Panic: The Legacy of Religious Cult Fears 174 Researching Modern Paganism 177 Further Reading on Wicca and Witchcraft 180 10 Rethinking Cults: The Significance of New Religious Movements 181 Two Perspectives: Cults versus New Religious Movements 184 New Religions as Experimental Faiths 197 Further Reading on New Religious Movements 203 References 204 Index 225 Preface to the Second Edition We are very gratified by the reception of the first edition of this book. It has become a popular textbook in both Europe and North America for introductory courses on cults and new religions, and has been translated into German, Czech, and Japanese. We hope to see more translations in the future. We have tried to provide a detailed, yet accessible text for both students and instructors, something that will serve as much to inform their research as to spark their interest in further study. New religions continue to appear – some contested, others less so. The issues and questions with which we deal remain central to the study not only of new religious movements, but religion itself. Both of us regularly field media inquiries about this new movement or that. Reporters still want to know, for example, if the Church of Scientology is a “real” religion. Our response to all these inquiries remains the same: there is so much more to new religious movements than you can capture in your newspaper, television report, or blog post. Cults and New Religions: A Brief History is intended for instructors who have little formal preparation in the field and for students interested in the central questions that have defined new religions study for nearly half a century. We hope that it will encourage a broader and richer understanding of these movements, an apprecia- tion for their diversity and resilience that moves far beyond the stock and superficial descriptions so common in society. Much has happened since the first edition, some of which we were able to incor- porate, much more of which happened so fast that it was simply impossible to include. Sun Myung Moon, for example, the founder of the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity – known colloquially as the Moonies – passed away in 2012. As Max Weber, one of the founders of modern sociology, taught us, the death of a charismatic leader puts profound pressure on the organization, and we are seeing this in the Unificationist movement now.

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