Product Description: First Published in 1994. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

2015 Best Book Award from the Communal Studies Association   In March 1997, thirty-nine people in Rancho Santa Fe, California, ritually terminated their lives. To outsiders, it was a mass suicide. To insiders, it was a graduation. This act was the culmination of over two decades of spiritual and social development for the members of Heaven’s Gate, a religious group focused on transcending humanity and the Earth, and seeking salvation in the literal heavens on board a UFO.    In this fascinating overview, Benjamin Zeller not only explores the question of why the members of Heaven’s Gate committed ritual suicides, but interrogates the origin and evolution of the religion, its appeal, and its practices. By tracking the development of the history, social structure, and worldview of Heaven’s Gate, Zeller draws out the ways in which the movement was both a reflection and a microcosm of larger American culture.The group emerged out of engagement with Evangelical Christianity, the New Age movement, science fiction and UFOs, and conspiracy theories, and it evolved in response to the religious quests of baby boomers, new religions of the counterculture, and the narcissistic pessimism of the 1990s. Thus, Heaven’s Gate not only reflects the context of its environment, but also reveals how those forces interacted in the form of a single religious body.    In the only book-length study of Heaven’s Gate, Zeller traces the roots of the movement, examines its beliefs and practices, and tells the captivating story of the people of Heaven’s Gate.

Product Description: Representing many years of research, this impressive three-volume reference series explores the broad sweep of North American religions--19 families encompassing some 1,500 different religious bodies. Each volume features in-depth essays on the historical development of specific religions, descriptions of each group's membership, cross-references and other important data...read more

Product Description: Presents coverage of more than 2,500 North American religious groups in the U.S. and Canada, from Adventists to Zen Buddhists. Entries contain essays and directory listings that describe the historical development of religious families and give factual information about each group within those families, including, where available, headquarter location, membership figures, a listing of educational facilities and information on periodicals published by the group...read more

Describes more than thirty new and alternative religions practiced in America, covering their history, philosophy, leaders, religious practices, and the controversies that arise around them.

Explores the current Neo-Pagan movement in the United States through discussions with various groups whose rituals, festivals, beliefs, religious experiences, and lifestyles are inspired by ancient dieties, visions from science fiction, Wicca, or witchcraft. Reprint. 10,000 first printing.

A multifaceted study of religion in America journeys to the offbeat corners of the nation's spiritual life, ranging from Druidic ceremonies and dog-raising Orthodox monks to Christian wrestlers and Satanists, guided by the life and work of philosopher William James. 20,000 first printing.

Product Description: Were most cults and new religions simply passing fads of the late-twentieth century, or are some of them still growing today? What new sects have emerged, and what dangers do they present? How should Christians respond? Bible teacher and apologetics expert Ron Rhodes has cataloged 40 groups in this concise and easy-to-use handbook...read more

Product Description: A True Story: At 17, Elizabeth, plagued with migraines, attended an initial biofeedback session at the office of an Upper East Side psychologist. Certain of her naivete, the therapist regaled the idealistic Swarthmore College pre-med with prophetic visions of a glorious future, hers to claim alongside him...read more

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Provides information on religious and spiritual groups, including churches, denominations, sects, and cults

A definitive reference volume on cults, major fundamentalist religions, and non-Christian faiths includes coverage of the Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormonism, and Hinduism, outlining their major beliefs while offering advice on countercult ministry. (view table of contents)

A portrait of the cult-like inner circle of Carlos Castaneda, as presented by one of his disciples and lovers, reveals many of the mystical writer's spiritual rituals and magical instructions, the author's denial of her harem-like life, and her quest for the truth. 20,000 first printing.

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Product Description: Emphasizing the complex nature of new religions and the wide variety of "cult" phenomena, this encyclopedic study reviews the history and major tenets of many diverse religious sects across the whole spectrum of belief. With contributions from over three dozen specialists in the area of alternative religions, this is a uniquely authoritative source of information on one of the most important public issues of our time...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Offers a chronology of cults in America, profiles of major cults, accounts of court decisions, and information sources (view table of contents)

Book by Dawson, Lorne L.