The study of New Religious Movements (NRMs) is one of the fastest-growing areas of religious studies, and since the release of the first edition of The Oxford Handbook of New Religious Movements in 2003, the field has continued to expand and break new ground. In this all-new volume, James R. Lewis and Inga B. T?llefsen bring together established and rising scholars to address an expanded range of topics, covering traditional religious studies topics such as "scripture," "charisma," and "ritual," while also applying new theoretical approaches to NRM topics. Other chapters cover understudied topics in the field, such as the developmental patterns of NRMs and subcultural considerations in the study of NRMs.The first part of this book examines NRMs from a social-scientific perspective, particularly that of sociology. In the second section, the primary factors that have put the study of NRMs on the map, controversy and conflict, are considered. The third section investigates common themes within the field of NRMs, while the fourth examines the approaches that religious studies researchers have taken to NRMs. As NRM Studies has grown, subfields such as Esotericism, New Age Studies, and neo-Pagan Studies have grown as distinct and individual areas of study, and the final section of the book investigates these emergent fields.

List of ContributorsIntroduction - James R. Lewis and Inga B. Tollefsen, Eds.PART I - Social-Scientific Approaches1. Categorizing Religious Organizations: In Search of a Theoretically Meaningful Strategy - David G. Bromley2. Conversion - George D. Chryssides3. Charisma and Authority in New Religious Movements - Erin Prophet, Rice University4. Disaffiliation and New Religious Movements - Sean Currie5. Seekers and Subcultures - James R. Lewis6. Quantitative Approaches to New Religions - Margrethe Loov7. Psychology and New Religious Movements - John A. Saliba8. As It Was in the Beginning: Developmental Moments in the Emergence of New Religions - David BromleyPART II - Controversy9. The North American Anti-Cult Movement - Anson Shupe10. The Christian Countercult Movement - Douglas E. Cowan11. Legal Dimensions of New Religions - James T. Richardson12. Brainwashing and "Cultic Mind Control" - James R. Lewis13. From Jonestown to 9/11 and Beyond: Mapping the Contours of Violence and New Religious Movements - Rebecca Moore14. Conspiracy Theories and New Religious Movements - Asbjorn Dyrendal15. Satanic Ritual Abuse - James R. Lewis16. Cult Journalism - Nicole S. Ruskell & James R. LewisPART III - Themes17. Invention in 'New New' Religions - Carole M. Cusack18. Children in New Religions - Sanja Nilsson19. Media, Technology, and New Religious Movements: A Review of the Field - Shannon Schorey20. New Religions and Science - Jeremy Rapport21. Gender and New Religions - Inga Tollefsen22. Sex and New Religions - Megan Goodwin23. Occulture and Everyday Enchantment - Chris PartridgePART IV - Religious Studies Approaches24. Rituals and Ritualization in New Religions - Mikael Rothstein25. The Mythic Dimensions of New Religious Movements: Function, Reality Construction, and Process - Diana Tumminia26. Religious Experiences in New Religious Movements - Olav Hammer27. New Religious Movements and Scripture - Eugene Gallagher28. Material Religion - Jessica Moberg29. Hagiography: A Note on the Narrative Exaltation of Sect Leaders and Heads of New Religions - Mikael Rothstein30. Millennialism: New Religious Movements and the Quest for a New Age - Jean-Francois MayerPART V - Subfields of Study31. What Does God need with a Starship? UFOs and Extraterrestrials in the Contemporary Religious Landscape - Erik Ostling32. Late Modern Shamanism in a Norwegian Context: Global Networks - Local Grounds - Trude Fonneland33. Modern Religious Satanism: A Negotiation of Tensions - Jesper Aagaard Petersen & Cimminnee Holt34. Western Esotericism and New Religious Movements - Henrik Bogdan35 The New Age - Liselotte Frisk, Ingvild Saelid Gilhus & Siv Ellen Kraft36. The Study of Paganism and Wicca: A Review Essay - Kaarina Aitamurto & Scott Simpson37. Native American Prophet Religions - James R. Lewis & Ellen DobrowolskiIndex