A Historical Introduction to the Study of New Religious Movements – W. Michael Ashcraft Review PDF

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A Historical Introduction to the Study of New Religious Movements – W. Michael Ashcraft. London and New York: Routledge, 2018. ISBN 978- 1–138–05988-7. Raymond Radford University of Sydney. W. Michael Ashcraft states in the acknowledgements to this book that its gestation period was almost two decad...

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A Historical Introduction to the Study of New Religious Movements – W. Michael Ashcraft. London and New York: Routledge, 2018. ISBN 978- 1–138–05988-7. Raymond Radford University of Sydney. W. Michael Ashcraft states in the acknowledgements to this book that its gestation period was almost two decades, since 2002 after a conversation with noted scholar J. Gordon Melton. This conversation concerned the fact that many of the scholars that were at the burgeoning forefront and the beginning of New Religious Movement (NRM) studies were to aging fast, and that no one had thought to chronicle or chart their research and its impact. It This is what Ashcraft seeks to explore, and this book does a marvellous job of charting a relatively young area of study, while also discussing the social and historical elements that constituted the academic field that these currents stemmed from in the past. Each chapter focuses on scholars in the academy studying NRMs. The introductory chapter introduces the concepts and general field of NRM studies, mentioning that often groupings of academics would unintentionally be studying NRMs but calling it something else, given that the name and concept had yet to be formalised. Chapter 2 explores the early history of NRM study before the countercultural ‘revolution’ of the 1960s, with chapter 3 tracing the progress of this new sub-discipline to 1979. Chapters 3 and 4 chronicle the burgeoning body of research produced by scholars, their creation of new networks and collaborations, and the establishment of journals and conferences which aided academics to connect with each other. Chapter 5 focuses on efforts of the newly-established anticult and counter-cult networks to educate parents and families about the dangers of these new religious, and the new academic movement of ‘cultic studies’ that grew out of this church and community-based opposition. Chapter 6 continues the investigation into the cultic studies movement into the 1980s and 1990s. The final four chapters of Ashcraft’s work investigates different, yet concurrent, themes within religious studies today; violence, gender, fieldwork, and the future. These final chapters return to the previous decades, and work that was done over the fifty years covered in the book, to trace how issues were researched, interpreted, and re-interpreted across the decades. The final chapter deals pointedly with the fact this this is a growing field, one that can both expand and adapt in a changing world. At the start of each chapter, Ashcraft begins with a simple yet effective technique, outlining the story, history, and theories of particular scholars or persons of interest within the study of NRMs. For example, chapter 5 opens with the story of Andrew Wilson, a scholar of note on the Unification Church (popularly known as ‘Moonies’) who happened also to be a member. His family attempted to have him deprogrammed him to force his departure from the Unification Church, which they accused of having ‘brainwashed’ him. These added bits of information permit the following chapter to satisfy both the socio-political attitudes of the era it is set in, and to have an individual focus that engages the readers. Chapters focus on important themes; for Andrew Wilson’s story, this is the fear of and misinformation about ideas and identities that existed outside of the norms of the time. If Ashcraft wished to write or felt compelled to release a companion volume of long-form conversations with the scholars he interviewed for this book, I feel it would be both beneficial and of interest for readers who found as much of value in this book as this reader. Ultimately, Ashcraft shows how like all academic fields, the study of NRM is built on the bones and blocks of what has come before but is also influenced by a conflux of internal and external environmental factors. The study of NRMs is a constantly shifting and changing activity. For those like myself,

newly embarking upon a journey within the study of NRMs, or those who have experienced the vexed and at times controversial history of NRM studies yet continue to research this fascinating aspect of human nature and culture, this book is great. While it is not the definitive history of the academic study of NRMs, W. Michael Ashcraft’s A Historical Introduction to the Study of New Religious Movements does a solid job of acknowledging those that have come before, setting precedents and mapping a path for continued research in an ever-changing future. This book is highly recommended....