‘Cult’ Rhetoric in the 21st Century

Aled Thomas is a Teaching Fellow in the Study of Religion at the University of Leeds, UK. He is the author of Free Zone Scientology: Contesting the Boundaries of a New Religion (Bloomsbury, 2021).Edward Graham-Hyde is an Associate Lecturer at the University of Central Lancashire, UK and Treasurer of the Information Network Focus on Religious Movements (Inform).

• Foreword: Introduction to the ‘Religion at the Boundaries’ Series – Suzanne Newcombe (Inform and the Open University, UK) and Sarah Harvey (Inform)Part I: Approaches to ‘Cult’ RhetoricChapter 1: ‘Cult’ Rhetoric in the 21st Century: The Disconnect Between Popular Discourse and the Ivory Tower, Aled Thomas (University of Leeds, UK) and Edward Graham-Hyde (University of Central Lancashire, UK)Chapter 2: Balancing Pragmatism and Precision: Inform’s Approach to Cult Rhetoric, Suzanne Newcombe (Inform and the Open University, UK) and Sarah Harvey (Inform)Chapter 3: A History of Anti-Cult Rhetoric, George D. Chryssides (York St John University, UK)Chapter 4: The Paradigm Shift from Sacred to Profane, William Sims Bainbridge (Independent Scholar)Chapter 5: The Dangerous Cult Exercise: Popular Culture and the Ongoing Construction of the New Religious Threat, Douglas E. Cowan (University of Waterloo, USA)Chapter 6: The Recognition of Cults, Roderick P. Dubrow-Marshall (University of Salford, UK)Part II: Contemporary ‘Cultic’ IssuesChapter 7: The Light of the World: La Luz del Mundo, Liminality, and NRM Studies, Donald A. Westbrook (San Jose State University, USA)Chapter 8: Cults of Conspiracy and the (On-Going) Satanic Panic, Bethan Juliet Oake (University of Leeds, UK)Chapter 9: ‘There is no QAnon’: Cult Accusations in Contemporary American Political and Online Discourse, Susannah Crockford (University of Exeter, UK)Chapter 10: Playing at Religion: Understanding Contemporary Spiritual Experiences in Popular Culture, Vivian Asimos (Independent Scholar)Chapter 11: Attempting to Educate Journalists about the Role of Cult Essentialism in the Branch Davidian-Federal Agents Conflict, Catherine Wessinger (Loyola University New Orleans, USA)Afterword: Critical Reflections and Conclusions, W. Michael Ashcraft (Truman State University, USA)BibliographyIndex

This is an important book because it charts a middle way between scholars of New Religious Movements (NRMs), ‘Cultic Studies’ scholars and ex-members of NRMs ... It establishes a course for a more inclusive and empathetic study of NRMs.