The Politics of Religious Apostasy: The Role of Apostates in the Transformation of Religious Movements

(Hardback)

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The current controversy surrounding new religions has brought to the forefront the role of apostates. These individuals leave highly controversial movements and assume roles in other organizations as public opponents against their former movements. This volume examines the motivations of the apostates, how they are recruited and play out their roles, the kinds of narratives they construct to discredit their previous groups, and the impact of apostasy on the outcome of conflicts between movements and society.

Reviews

The book is a superb effort to examine in depth the complexity and significance of the apostate role, and to illuminate the processes through which subversive evil is socially constructed. Taken together, the authors contribute a diverse array of theory, data and substantive insights that add to our knowledge of the inner-workings of new religious movements....I recommend this book for classes in organizations, sociology of religion, psychology of religion, group dynamics and related subjects.-The Social Science Journal
This is a remarkably unified collection of high-quality essays by many leading sociologists of new religious movements.-American Journal of Sociology
This is a well-coordinated collection of essays in sociology.-Social History
"This is a remarkably unified collection of high-quality essays by many leading sociologists of new religious movements."-American Journal of Sociology
"This is a well-coordinated collection of essays in sociology."-Social History
"The book is a superb effort to examine in depth the complexity and significance of the apostate role, and to illuminate the processes through which subversive evil is socially constructed. Taken together, the authors contribute a diverse array of theory, data and substantive insights that add to our knowledge of the inner-workings of new religious movements....I recommend this book for classes in organizations, sociology of religion, psychology of religion, group dynamics and related subjects."-The Social Science Journal

Author Bio

DAVID G. BROMLEY is Professor of Sociology and Affiliate Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University. He is the past editor of the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. Among his recent books are The Satanism Scare (1991), edited with James Richardson and Joel Best, Handbook on Cults and Sects in America (1993), edited with Jeffrey K. Hadden, and Anticult Movements in Cross-Cultural Perspective (1994), edited with Anson Shupe.