New religious movement

A new religious movement (NRM) is a religious community or spiritual group of modern origins, which has a peripheral place within a state's dominant religious culture. NRMs may be novel in origin or they may be part of a wider religion, in which case they will be distinct from pre-existing denominations. Quotes Alphabetized by author thumb|Perhaps one should start by asking 'what is a new religion?' I believe that too precise a definition is constraining and unnecessary for our present purposes. ~ Eileen Barker A …new religious movements often grow not through dramatic revelations but through the quiet fatigue of every day. A. Sahara Alexander (pseudonym), "The Unexpected Disciple: From Jerusalem to the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light", Bitter Winter (January 9, 2026) B Perhaps one should start by asking 'what is a new religion?' I believe that too precise a definition is constraining and unnecessary for our present purposes; several of the movements about which we shall be talking are not obviously new or religions. … many associated with the New Age or the so-called Human Potential movement, who deny that they are in any way religious. These may, however, be included in so far as they help their followers to search for, discover and develop 'the god within' or to get in contact with cosmic forces, or explore 'the spiritual'; indeed, any movement that offers in some way to provide answers to some of the ultimate questions about 'meaning' and 'the purpose of life' that have traditionally been addressed by mainstream religions would be included in this broad understanding of the term 'NRM'.") Barker Eileen Eileen Barker Dinesh Bhugra w:Dinesh Bhugra Psychiatry and Religion: Context, Consensus and Controversies 1996 Routledge London and New York 0415089557 126 New Religions and Mental Health 126-127 The majority of NRMs are, however, not indigenous to Europe. Several of the movements came from Asia, mainly India (Rajneesh; ISKCON; Brahma Kumaris; Divine Light Mission [later called Élan Vital]; Sathya Sai Baba, Transcendental Meditation; Sahaja Yoga; Ananda Marga; and various practices associated with Tantra, kundalini, and other types of yoga), but also from Japan (Soka Gakkai; Rissho Kosei Kai; Agon Shu; Mahikari; Tenrikyo); Korea (the Unification Church); and other parts of Asia (Caodaism from Vietnam; Fo Guang Shan Fo Guang from Taiwan; Falun Gong from China). There are also groups from the Caribbean (Rastafarianism) and Africa (Cherubim and Seraphim; the Brotherhood of the Cross and Star), most of these finding their home among the black populations residing in Europe. Another development has been the growth of a number of Islamic groups (Hizb ut-Tahrir; the Nation of Islam; Al-Muhajiroun; Murabitun). Barker Eileen Lindsay Jones Encyclopedia of Religion Macmillan Reference Detroit 2005 9780028657431 New Religious Movements in Europe 6568 C While the contribution of traditional religions to earthquake relief is generally acknowledged, social prejudice makes it more difficult to recognize the good work of new religious movements. Stefania Cerruti, "Earthquakes, Love, and Tai Ji Men", Bitter Winter (October 2023) H 'New religious movement' is a maddeningly vague designation, of course, and definable in infinite ways... a helpful definition comes from the British sociologist George D. Chryssides. According to Chryssides, a new religious movement is one that is 'recent' (which for him means something from the nineteenth century or later), falls outside the 'mainstream', and primarily attracts converts from within the broader culture. David F. Holland (2017) David Hempton (ed.), Hugh McLeod (ed.) Secularization and Religious Innovation in the North Atlantic World. Oxford University Press. I China seems to have been very much similar to the West, both in the production of new religious movements and in attracting to them figures from the political left who were officially promoting the struggle against “superstition.” Reconstructions of “Chinese traditional culture” as “non-religious,” and of the rich Chinese religious pluralism as mere “folk religion” should be viewed as propaganda rather than history. Massimo Introvigne, "New Religious Movements in China: They Were Always There", Bitter Winter (June 27, 2020) J Even, or especially, when it initially is successful, internal conflicts over basic goals and beliefs, leadership, and organizational forms commonly threaten the very existence of a new religious movement. These internal conflicts frequently result in schisms (organizational splinters) that severely weaken the new movement, resulting in a loss of basic resources and significant decline. Danny L. Jorgensen (2009). Jacob Neusner (ed.) World Religions in America: An Introduction. p. 335. K In both countries, Taiwan and Poland, the newly established democratic systems resulted in the development of associations and other civic initiatives, but also in the emergence of new religious and spiritual groups. In both countries religious liberty was officially proclaimed in late 1980s. Yet, in Poland, the initial thaw and ease of registering new religious communities significantly slowed down over the years, and currently—for various reasons—registering a new group is more challenging than three decades ago. Previously, the political climate made similar activities difficult, various groups operated unregistered, and everything was monitored by the secret security services. Karolina Maria Kotkowska, "Poland and Taiwan: Bumpy Roads to Freedom of Religion or Belief", Bitter Winter (2024) L These two opposing strategies of new religious movements for delivering compensators I will term 'compensation delivery systems' (CDS). The gradual CDS can best be described as religion as a multi-level marketing (MLM) tactic - a term I take from the business world. 187 The Encyclopedic Sourcebook of New Age Religions James R. Lewis w:James R. Lewis (scholar) 2004 Prometheus Books 1591020409 P New religions are like weeds in our garden. Society’s gardeners will attempt to pull out weeds to make room for cultured plants and familiar religions. However, some weeds may be cherished flowers in other lands, and those deemed “invasive” might be edible or have healing properties. Susan J. Palmer, "How Media Defame “Cults”: The Case of the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light. 1. Inventing a “Cult”", Bitter Winter (July 28, 2025) In their analyses of conflicts and controversies involving children in new religious movements (NRMs), scholars have identified anti-cult activists as the “moral entrepreneurs” behind the action. And what about the overwhelming majority of NRMs that are unresearched and hold uneventful track records—groups whose ex-members and second-generation adults have not yet complained? Is it fair or appropriate that members of NRMs must suffer being framed as child abusers, negligent parents, or “pedophiles,” or find their community dubbed as “the next Waco” in the morning newspapers, despite no evidence of any wrongdoing? Is it fair for religious parents to lose custody of their beloved children just because some obscure anti-cult group, or self-made podcaster, or estranged husband or wife in the throes of a custody battle has branded their religion as a “cult”? Susan J. Palmer, "The 2026 Raid on the Children of the Twelve Tribes in Hamburg, NY. 3. The Trial", Bitter Winter (August 24, 2026) R The largest group of New Religious Movements – both in numbers of individual groups within it and in the diffused range of its overall influence within modern British life – is that clustered around the richly varied collection of 'self-religions', psychotherapies and New Age mysticism and alternative spiritualities. This large group may be broadly divided into two sub-groups, each of which is simply a clustering of often quite diverse movements around a similar overall theme. The first group consists of the 'self-religions' and religiously 'flavoured' psycho-therapies which have increasingly fluorished in the last twenty or thirty years. The self-religions have been characterized as 'movements which exemplify the conjunction of the exploration of the self and the search for significance'. Gerald Parsons The Growth of Religious Diversity: Britain from 1945: Volume 1 Traditions Routledge London 1993 0415083265 Expanding the religious spectrum: New Religious Movements in Modern Britain 283 S Many of the new religions attract individuals by the promise of peace of mind, spiritual well-being, gratifying experiences, and material success. In doing so they stress their concern for the individual and highlight one's personal worth and self-development. Understanding New Religious Movements John A. Saliba w:John A. Saliba 88 2003 AltaMira Press 0759103569 thumb|When using these terms, it is important to recognize that they are often loaded with powerful assumptions and implications. ~ Stephen J. Stein Some of these terms, including "cult" and "sect," have long traditions of use, stretching back to the centuries when Latin was the official language of scholars. But the meanings of words often change over time; and terms that once were neutral or simply descriptive sometimes take on harshly negative implications and potentially lose their original usefulness, including the two just mentioned. Other terms have been coined more recently to circumvent the stereotypes associated with older categories. Among this newer terminology are "outsider groups" and "New Religious Movements." Sometimes the newer nomenclature is useful despite certain limitations. "Marginal religious communities," for example, is a positional designation — not a qualitative judgment — implying a location on the margin or edge of mainstream religious groups. When using these terms, it is important to recognize that they are often loaded with powerful assumptions and implications. Stephen J. Stein (2003). Communities of Dissent: A History of Alternative Religions in America. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. p. xi. W A second variety of new religion that began to flourish during the 1960s consisted of the various groups, techniques and spiritual disciplines which came to be known collectively as the 'human potential movement'. In some ways, the human potential movement was an offshoot of the encounter group movement which flourished on college campuses during the 1960s (Back, 1972) and of popular psychology which had blossomed in a good many minds since the heyday of Fulton Sheen and Norman Vincent Peale in the 1950s. Wuthnow Robert James A. Beckford New Religious Movements and Rapid Social Change Sage/UNESCO London 1986 92-3-102-402-7 Religious movements in North America 6 See also Pages that link to this entry Belief Cult Religion Pluralism Sect Sectarianism Self religion Spirituality External links New religious movement Category:New religious movements Category:New religious movements Category:New religious movements new religious movement "Joining and Leaving New Religious Movements: A New Book by Raffaella Di Marzio" by Massimo Introvigne Category:Psychology Category:Sociology