Issues in Contemporary Religion – serie

An objective, well-researched history of contemporary new religions and cults.New religious movements - popularly known as cults - arouse strong public opinion and most books on the subject are polemical, giving hostile reaction rather than informed exploration. Exploring New Religions provides an account of a wide variety of new religions, focusing on their origins, beliefs and practices, which are set out in a dispassionate way, leaving readers to form their own value judgements. George Chryssides provides important analysis of the killer cults-the Jonestown People's Temple, Waco, the Solar Temple and Heaven's Gate-examining the factors that made their followers willing to die for their cause. Older groups like the Jehovah's Witnesses and Latter-day Saints (Mormons) are discussed, and Chryssides traces the development of a variety of strands of spirituality, ranging from New Thought, Spiritualism and Theosophy. Subsequent chapters include the Baha'i, the Family (formerly Children of God), the Hare Krishna movement (ISKCON), the Jesus Army, the Rastafarians, the Church of Scientology, Transcendental Meditation (TM) and the Unification Church ('the Moonies'). Lower profile groups are also discussed including: EST (Erhard Seminar Training), the New Kadampa Tradition, Brahma Kumaris, Sai Baba, Subud and the Western Buddhist Order. A study of the New Age phenomenon, and an account of societal responses to new religions at religious, societal and political levels is also included.

Spirituality can be understood within both a religious and secular context. Fuelled by the controversy that surrounds different understandings of human identity and notions of progress, knowledge and truth in modernist and postmodernist contexts, the concept of spirituality is a hotly contested topic of debate as to its relevance within contemporary culture and its meaning within religious traditions. This book aims to inform readers on this debate and contextualize it within these different frames of reference. It approaches the topic of spirituality with an identification of the major influences on contemporary thinking and presents a coherent framework of understanding that links divergent thinking into a common goal. Writings range across different thinkers and practitioners within established religious tradition, contemporary movements and those who operate within psychological and 'secular' understandings. Focusing on the question 'what does it mean to be human?' this engaging study attempts to overcome the divide between secular and religious understandings of spirituality.

Spirituality is most often understood as a religious term remote from the social interactions of everyday life and from political motivations. This volume seeks to show that this is an erroneous view and that, unless we attend to the spiritual as a motivating force in the lives of individuals and communities, we shall misconceive the nature of social change and political complexity and lack awareness of the value of writing and thinking on the subject in relation to contemporary issues. In a world dominated by globalization and late-capitalist free-market economics we face a situation of increasing complexity in human affairs. In this context, diverse notions of the spiritual in relation to culture and identity are critical forces that require careful attention. Contemporary Spiritualities is an innovative study based on research into the significance of influential writers and thinkers and diverse communities. It seeks to map influences on the notion of the spiritual in relation to the cultural and religious plurality of contemporary society. It also promotes the importance of attending to spirituality in both academic and a socio-politcal context.Clive Erricker is Reader in the Study of Religions at University College Chichester.Jane Erricker is Principal Lecturer and Director of Research in the School of Education at King Alfred's College, Winchester.

What is the Holocaust? Were Hitlet and his executioners sadistic psychopaths? Were ordinary Germans morally culpable for murdering millions of innocent victims? This volume seeks to explore these and other ethical, cultural and religious questions within a historical context. Beginning with the origin and growth of anti-Semitism, this historical survey continues with a consideration of the legacy of the Holocaust in the modern world. Designed as a book for students in colleges and universities, as well as for the general reader, Understanding the Holocaust details the key themes and events of the Holocaust and discusses their implications. Unlike other books on the subject it contains both a history of the Holocaust and extensive reflections on the social, religious and moral issues raised by the emergence of the Third Reich and its impact on subsequent history. The book also contains maps and illustrations related to the growth and development of Nazism and a lengthy biography. Rabbi Professor Dan Cihn-Sherbok received a doctorate in philosophy from Cambridge University and an honorary doctorate in divinity from the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.He is Professor of Judaism at the University of Wales at Lampeter.His previous books include The Crucified Jew: Twenty Centuries of Christian Anti-Semitism (1992) and God and the Holocaust (1996).

New religious movements - popularly know as 'cults'- arouse strong public opinion and most books on the subject are polemical, giving hostile reaction rather than informed exploration. Exploring New Religions provides an account of a wide variety of new religions, focusing on their origins, beliefs and practices, which are set out in a compelling but dispassionate way, leaving readers to form their own judgements. Chryssides provides important analysis of the 'killer cults' - the Jonestown Peoples Temple, Waco, the Solar Temple and Heaven's Gate - and examines the factors that made their followers willing to die for their cause. Older groups like Jehovah's Witnesses and the Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) are discussed, and the author traces the development of a variety of strands of spirituality, ranging from New Thought to Transcendentalism and Theosophy. Subsequent chapters include: the Baha'i, The Family (formerly Children of God), the Hare Krishna Movement (ISKCON), The jesus Army, the Rastafarians, the Church of Scientology , Transcendental Meditation (TM) and the Unification Church ('the Moonies').Some less well-known groups are also featured: est (Erhard Seminar Training), the new Kadampa Tradition, Brahma Kumaris, Sai Baba, Subud and the Western Buddhist Order.Also included is a study of the New Age phenomenon, and an account of responses to new religions, at religious, societal and political levels. This is an important new study of new religious movements, which should prove invaluable to scholars,students and clergy as well ak to those whose lives have been affected by new religions. George D. Chryssides is Senior Lecturer in Religious Studies at the University of Wolverhampton. He has had many years of direct acquaintance with new religions, and has written extensively on the subject. His definitive work on the Unification Church, The Advent of Sun Myung Moon, was published in 1991.

Spirituality can be understood within both a religious and secular context. Fuelled by the controversy that surrounds different understandings of human identity and notions of progress, knowledge and truth in modernist and postmodernist contexts, the concept of spirituality is a hotly contested topic of debate as to its relevance within contemporary culture and its meaning within religious traditions. This book aims to inform readers on this debate and contextualize it within these different frames of reference. It approaches the topic of spirituality with an identification of the major influences on contemporary thinking and presents a coherent framework of understanding that links divergent thinking into a common goal. Writings range across different thinkers and practitioners within established religious tradition, contemporary movements and those who operate within psychological and 'secular' understandings. Focusing on the question 'what does it mean to be human?' this engaging study attempts to overcome the divide between secular and religious understandings of spirituality.