THE NEW (AND OLD) RELIGIONS AROUND US Lay School of Religion Luther Seminary February 7 to March 14 Mark Granquist
February 7 - Schedule of Our Sessions Overview on American Religion Judaism February 14 - Islam February 28 - Buddhism March 7 - March 14 - Bahai Nation of Islam Hinduism Latter Day Saints (Mormons) Jehovah s Witnesses Christian Science New Religious Movements Krishna, Unification, Scientology, Children of God, etc
Rationale and Our Approach America has always been the home of many different faith traditions. By now there is a bewildering array of religions (new and old) about us. Some are world religions that have come to our shores (Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism). Others are religions developed in America and spread to the world (Mormonism, Jehovah s Witnesses, Scientology, and many others). We will try to understand these various religious groups in our midst, and a Christian reaction to them. Mark Granquist Associate Professor of Church History mgranquist001@luthersem.edu
March 14 Session 5 First hour - Eastern Authoritarian Religion Second hour - New Religious Movements If you want to read a good general resource on these topics, see Timothy Miller, ed., America s Alternative Religions Albany NY: State University of New York Press, 1995.
New Religions Twentieth Century Twentieth Century in the United States - even more new varieties of religion imported or made Major period of religious innovation/experimentation 1960s - youth culture and desire to do something new - Beatniks and Hippies drawing from Eastern religions - new ways to look at Creation and reality - visualization mind changes reality Terms: sect, cult, New Religious movement - how to define and sort out harmless from harmful
Eastern Religions and the 1960s Export versions of Eastern Religions Buddhism - Zen (since 1950s) - Soka Gakkai (Nichieren) - NSA - Tibetan Hinduism - ISKCON Hare Krishna - Self-Realization Fellowship - Spiritual Regeneration Movement Transcendental Meditation - TM 1960s Various Hindu Holy men come to America
Hinduism Most Export Hinduism aimed at middle-class European- Americans - not generally insistent on radical life-style changes - Transcendental Meditation - Forms of Yoga generally non-religious in nature Hare Krishnas major exception to this - International Society for Krishna Consciousness - attracted young Americans in 1960s-1970s - took on completely the ascetic lifestyle -vegetarianism, celibacy, robes, begging for funds
Unification Church the Moonies Korean pastor Sun Myung Moon founded in 1954 - vision of Jesus coming Lord of the Second Advent (Moon himself?) coming to complete Jesus s work - Divine Principle (1957) work of revelation Moon and followers came to America in the 1960s - began to gather in followers (30,000 by late 1970s) - many cloaked organizations and affiliates - attempts to influence public newspapers, etc Church (especially Moon) in tight control over followers
Cult Scare - the Nature of these Groups Deep public concern 1960s-1970s about the growth and influence of groups such as ISKCON and Unification Church - dramatic growth and public presence - wild over-estimates of their numbers and influence - (not to under-estimate their power) - question of brain-washing and mind control - controversy over de-programming Nature of Authoritarian religious groups - central religious leader Messiah or Guru group control - limit outside access, and determines all reality
Christian Authoritarian Groups Not all groups were derived from Eastern religions - probably more were variant forms of Christianity - most were attempts to live a more intense Christian life sought to be removed from the world (apocalyptic) - Some began to elevate leader to Messianic status Jesus People and the Hippies 1960s - renewed vision of Jesus as a rebel and an outsider - groups of young people gathered for radical renewal - communal living and radical discipleship -some became churches Vineyard movement, etc
Moses Berg Children of God David Berg Evangelical pastor who began an outreach to Hippies in 1967 in Southern California - gathered a small but intense group of young people - nomadic existence traveling around America Communal living and intense social control little individuality - periods of sexual excess flirty fishing and free love - alternating attempts at decentralization and re-control - shift outside of the US and back again Death of Moses Berg shift to the Family of Love
Jim Jones and the People s Temple Jim Jones Evangelical Christian pastor interracial ministry in Indianapolis in the 1960s - moved to California in 1965 then to San Francisco - outreach to the poor attempts at communal living - Jones was honored by the press and politicians Internal developments Jones as Messiah - Jones own paranoia feared government and Nuclear holocaust moved many followers to Guyana in 1977 - Reports of abuses Congressman Leo Ryan visits 1978 - Mass suicide of members (918) at Jones command
New Religious Movements Since the 1960s, the development of many new religious movements that have little direct relations with established religious traditions - some are repackaging of older movements - some have new elements deriving from the times 1970s the Cults controversy - seemed at this period USA was awash in cults - young people - being lured into them by millions - Jonestown and Children of God valid concerns - at times went from concern to near hysteria
New Age Spirituality Loosely organized cluster of religious ideas bookstore, speakers - ties to older Spiritualism and metaphysical traditions - expect changes in human consciousness to usher in social transformation and planetary healing Wide-ranging sector of beliefs and practices - yoga and physical transformations astrology healing power of crystals spiritual vortices alternative healing and nutrition reincarnation and psychic power - Takes widely from other religions, especially Hinduism, Buddhism, Jewish mysticism, and Native shamanism
Nature of Individualistic Religion Much of this religion is centered around the individual - even in a communal setting, individual is the key - differing level of involvement and concentration - some people dabble in these New Age areas while maintaining traditional religion others go all out Many of these ideas have filtered back into the general society - numbers who believe in reincarnation, healing, etc - people remain attached to traditional organized religion while practicing these other elements on the side Transformations: Visualize World Peace (bumpersticker)
Wicca (Witchcraft) and Satanism Neo-Paganism worship of Earth and the spirits New Age lin Wicca - Belief: the older religion of pre-christian Europe - Feminist, earth-friendly spirituality overturned - witchcraft thus not black magic but useful spells - Gardner and revival of this tradition England, 1930s - individuals and small groups anti-authoritarians - spells and earth-cycle rituals Satanism very small movement 1960s Church of Satan - evil is superior power - thus must be worshipped
Church of Scientology NOT to be confused with Christian Science! 2 different groups L. Ron Hubbard (1911-1986) Science Fiction writer - Dianetics: Modern Science of Mental Health (1950) Very strange cosmology idea that alien beings planted human beings on earth - reality: a therapy cult which has little to do with God - human unhappiness is keyed to subconscious memories (engrams) in the mind which lead to destructive actions - Auditing: intense individual counseling- become clear
Development of Sciencetology Auditing is an intensive and expensive project many levels and costs escalate dramatically the higher one goes - many afford this by offering others low-level auditing - need for recruitment of new people pyramid scheme? The Church of Scientology? In what sense a religion? - not recognized as such by many countries - IRS finally granted non-profit status in 1993 Scientology very controversial, and combative in response - very litigious very contemptuous of psychology
Heaven s Gate Neo Gnosticism Neo-Gnosticism revival of old idea of dualistic religion - Spiritual world is good, created matter is evil - seeks secret, saving wisdom (Gnosis) to awake the soul - soul freed from the (evil) body at death heaven Heaven s Gate: group founded in California by Marshall Applewhite and Bonnie Nettles - Neo-Gnostic group leaders were inspired prophets - lessen the influence of the flesh vegetarians celibate - belief in the immanent destruction of the world - 1997 - suicide: free souls to catch a spaceship trailing a comet
A Christian response All these new religions are generally not new at all - repackaging of much older ideas novel forms Often very secretive - only they know the truth for initiated - tight control over the group and its realities - dynamic leader who achieves god-like status - religious insiders good rest of the world is evil Christianity: Truth of God is available to all creation is good - no leader or prophet is god-like should have control - salvation comes through Jesus not through human actions or ideas