Lorne L. Dawson

New religions and the internet: Recruiting in a new public space

Abstract The mass suicide of 39 members of Heavens Gate in March of 1997 led to public fears about the presence of ‘spiritual predators’ on the world wide web. This paper describes and examines the nature of these fears, as reported in the media. It then sets these fears against what we know about the use of the Internet by new religions, about who joins new religious movements and why, and the social profile of Internet users. It is argued that the emergence of the Internet has yet to significantly change the nature of religious recruitment in contemporary society. The Internet as a medium of communication, however, may be having other largely unanticipated effects on the form and functioning of religion, both old and new, in the future. Some of the potential perils of the Internet are discussed with reference to the impact of this new medium on questions of religious freedom, community, social pluralism, and social control.

Anti-Modernism, Modernism, and Postmodernism: Struggling with the Cultural Significance of New Religious Movements

Is the emergence of new forms of religious life in North America indicative of significant changes in the nature and role of religion in our society or changes in the character of our culture as a whole ? Calling on a divergent array of theoretical frameworks sociologists have recurrently sought to explain the broader implications of the study of NRMs (New Religious Movements) by aligning them, in whole or in part, with various perceived anti-modernist, modernist, and post-modernist tendencies in our society. In a critical overview of some of this disparate literature, this paper argues that certain unnoticed convergences in the positions taken, point to a reading of the cultural significance of NRMs that transcends the inaccurate tendency to identify NRMs too exclusively with one side of various essentially invidious dichotomies (e.g., pre-modem and modern, anti-modern and modern, conservative and liberal, modern and post-modern)

The Study of New Religious Movements and the Radicalization of Home-Grown Terrorists: Opening a Dialogue

This article examines: (1) the obvious reasons for, and curious absence of, a dialogue between scholars studying new religious movements (NRMs), particularly those responsible for acts of mass violence, and those studying processes of radicalization in home-grown terrorist groups; (2) the substantial parallels between established understandings of who joins NRMs, how, and why and recent findings about who joins terrorist groups in a Western context, how, and why; and (3) the ways in which explanations of the causes of violent behaviour in NRMs are pertinent to securing a more systematic and complete grasp of the process of radicalization in terrorist cells. The latter discussion focuses on the role of apocalyptic belief systems and charismatic forms of authority, highlighting the behavioural consequences of this dangerous combination and their possible strategic significance. Recommendations are made for further research, integrating insights from the two fields of study.

Self-Affirmation, Freedom, and Rationality: Theoretically Elaborating "Active" Conversions

In recent years a number of sociologists have suggested that some conversions to new religious movements should be understood as active accomplishments and not as passive occurrences. The experience of some converts, it has been proposed, might be profitably treated as acts of creative role-play. This paper develops the notion of distinguishing between active and passive conversions by elaborating a role-theoretical approach to the study of conversions which is grounded in the theoretical identification of free and rational actions. Active conversions are demarcated through reference to the ideal limiting case of rational conversions, based on the principle that rational actions are their own explanation. Under the argument advanced for a broadened conception of rationality, a conversion is deemed more rational the more it is reflectively monitored. The notion of a reflectively monitored conversion is then recast as a reflexive role-enactment, entailing role-person merger, with awareness of the conditions of merger.

Who joins new religious movements and why : Twenty years of research and what have we learned ?

Surprisingly, perhaps, controversy about the nature and dangers of cults or new religious movements remains a topic of considerable public concern and significant misunderstanding. Scholarship in the study of new religious movements, however, has reached a certain obvious maturity. This article summarizes and integrates the empirical data available in dispersed sources to provide a sociological profile of what reliably can be said about how people become interested in new religions, who tends to become interested in new religions, and some insights into why people join such religions.

The cultural significance of new religious movements and globalization : A theoretical prolegomenon

Sociologists of religion interested in the possible cultural significance of contemporary new religious movements have tended to focus their analyses on whether these new forms of religious life are or are not agents of modernization and/or secularization. In recent years talk of globalization has been added to these complex concerns. This article outlines the existing debate over the cultural significance of new religious movements (NRMs), and summarizes and criticizes the contribution of globalization theory, as framed by Roland Robertson. Robertsons theory, it is argued, helps to undermine the questionable tendency to identify new religions as either modern or antimodern, secularizing or desecularizing. But it tends to erroneously limit the attribution of cultural significance to movements of religious fundamentalism or renewed orthodoxy. Logically, however, the theory also suggests new ways of attributing cultural significance to more privatized modes of new religious life like Scientology or the New Age Movement.

Cults in Context Readings in the Study of New Religious Movements

In the face of the increasingly variegated ideological landscape of contemporary America, cults have become the focus of public controversy. The growth of new religions has been matched by the development of an organized and vocal opposition, the anti-cult movement. This in turn has prompted an extensive investigation of new religious movements (NRMs) by sociologists and psychologists of religion, as well as historians and religious studies scholars. The readings collected here contribute to the debate about cults by sampling some of the best and most accessible publications from the academic study of NRMs. The contributors address the questions most commonly asked about cults, such as: What brought about the emergence of new religious movements? What is a cult or new religious movement? Who joins new religious movements and why? Are converts to new religious movements brainwashed? Why did the Jonestown and Waco tragedies happen? Are cults inclined to be violent? What does the emergence of so many new religious movements say about our society? What does it say about the future of religion? Cults in Context surveys the descriptive typologies, theories, and data accumulated by sociologists and psychologists studying new religious movements over the last twenty years. It serves to defuse many popular fears and misconceptions about cults, allowing the reader to develop a more reasonable and tolerant understanding of the people who join new religious movements and the functions of these movements in contemporary society.

The Neglected Role of Charismatic Authority in the Study of Terrorist Groups and Radicalization

Recent scholarship has called for additional research into the role of charismatic authority in terrorist groups and the process of radicalization. However, the sociological concepts of charisma and charismatic authority are being widely misused in terrorism studies. Current radicalization research often indirectly flirts with core concepts of charismatic authority, but fails to properly tap into its analytical utility. This article proposes to begin addressing this gap in knowledge in three ways, with: (1) a synthesis of social scientific research on charismatic authority, (2) a critical analysis of how charismatic authority is being misused and overlooked in the terrorist radicalization literature, and (3) an exploration of challenges and opportunities for future research concerning charismatic authority and terrorist radicalization.

The ‘Scandal’ of the Lubavitch Rebbe: Messianism as a Response to Failed Prophecy

In June 1994, the Lubavitch Rebbe, believed to be the Mosiach (the Messiah) died. Counter-intuitively, this failure of prophecy gave birth to an extreme messianic movement within the group, dividing it into two antagonistic factions (messianists and anti-messianists). This article examines the Beis Menachem, a messianic group whose members believe that the Rebbe is not dead; some even believe that he is God. We argue that this strong messianic response was predictable, given the influence of four factors that prior analyses suggest are important in determining whether a group will survive the failure of a significant prophecy: (1) the ways in which the prophetic milieu is prepared, (2) the nature and extent of the preparatory activities people engaged in, (3) the nature, speed, and thoroughness of the response of group leaders to a failed prophecy, and (4) the level of social support available for those who remain faithful to a prophecy. Emphasis in this study is given to the first and fourth factor; it is argued that the diachronic study of groups like the Lubavitch provides new insights into the ideological, organisational, and situational conditions that facilitate the successful management of dissonance and thus the persistence of unusual beliefs.

Creating ‘cult’ typologies: Some strategic considerations

Abstract A great number of quite different typologies for cults (or new religious movements) have been fashioned over the last 30 years. This paper provides an assessment of these efforts by means of a formal analysis of the nature and limitations of church‐sect‐cult typologizing in general and the strategic options available for creating cult typologies in particular. An argument is advanced for developing cult typologies with a simplicity of substantive focus and maximum flexibility, that can be integrated into a broader nested framework of types of religious organizations. This is best achieved by using Webers original criterion of mode of membership, with its consequent implications for forms of organization and patterns of commitment.