Course Readings

(U.Va Students Only)

Also available in this site section:

  • Course Syllabus
  • Course Requirements
  • Course Goals
  • Course Lectures
  • Profile Page Web Development Resources
  • Why Study New Religious Movements?

?????? Below is a list of online readings available to students in Sociology 257: New Religious Movements. Copyright restrictions prohibit our making these readings available to the broader readership of this web site. We apologize for this inconvenience. A full bibliographical listing of these readings may be found in the Course Requirements. If you have difficulty locating a particular reading in your local library, drop us an e-mail message and we'll do our best to help you locate particular resources.

Readings are organized by lecture topic. When you click on one of the readings you will be asked to enter the appropriate password. Students enrolled in Soc 257 or other sociology of religion courses taught by Mr. Hadden may make individual copies for personal use. Any other use, including electronic forwarding, reproduction of multiple copies, forwarding electronically to other parties, or loading on another server is forbidden by copyright law. For the convenience of Soc 257 students, instructions on how to download to a floppy disk follow the bibliography.

Readings by Lecture Topics

  1. Paradigms in Conflict
    2.

    "Secularization: The Inherited Model?

    "Supply-Side Explanations for Religious Change"

    "Religion and the Quest for Meaning and Order."

  2. Concepts of our Inquiry

    3. "Religion and the Quest for Meaning Order" Reading:

    "Of Churches, Sects, and Cults"

    "Religious Movements"

  3. Paradigms in Conflict

    4. "Cult Formation...."

  4. Why People Join NRMs: The Brainwashing Thesis

    5. "Brainwashing and Totalitarian Influence"

  5. Why People Join NRMs: Social Science Models

    6. "On Conversion"

    "Conversion to New Religious Movements"

  6. Leaving Movements: The Deprogramming Thesis

    "Forcible Deprogramming"

    "Deprogramming and Religious Liberty"

"Deprogramming as a Mode of Exit from NRMs"

  • Leaving Movements: Rational Social Science Perspectives

    "Leaving New Religious Movements"

    "Deprogramming as a Mode of Exit"

  • Group Survival: Succession and Institutionalization

    • "Emergence and Viability of Religious Movements"

  • Anti-Cult and Counter-Cult Movements

    • "Organized Opposition to NRMs"

  • Late 19th & Early 20th Century Movements

    • "Nineteenth Century Cult Scares: Catholics"

    "Nineteenth Century Cult Scares: Mormons"

    "Religious Fundamentalism"

  • Contemporary NRMs:

    • Branch Davidians

    "The Social Construction of Evil in Waco"<

    "Law Enforcement Interaction with Branch Davidians"

    The Family

    "World Transforming Movements: The Family"

    "Our Family's Origins"

    Heaven's Gate

    "The Bo and Peep UFO Cult"

    "Heaven's Gate: An Application of Sociological Theory"

    ISKCON (International Society for Krishna Consciousness)

    "World Transforming Movements: ISKCON"

    Scientology

    "Quasi-Religious Therapies: Introduction to Scientology"

    Unification Church

    "World Transforming Movements: Introduction and Unification Chruch"

    Satanism

    "Satanism as the Social Construction of Subversion"

    How to download these files to a floppy disk:

      ?
    1. Select one of the readings listed above by clicking on it with your mouse.
    2. Click on the "File" option on the menu bar.
    3. Select the "Save as" option from the list.
    4. In the dialog box that appears, press the small arrow on the "Save File as Type" control in the lower left part of the box.

    5. Select the "Plain text (*.txt)" option.

    6. Enter a file name in the "File Name" control in the upper left part of the box. Make sure the name you give the file is eight or less characters long, followed by ".TXT".

    7. In the "Drives" control in the lower center of the box, click on the arrow and select the "a:" drive. You may have to use the scroll bar to move the list upward.

    8. Click on the "OK" button.

    9. The file is now saved on your floppy disk in Plain Text format.
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    Last updated: 02/02/2000

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