URANTIA TIMELINE 1875 (June 24): William S. Sadler was born in Spencer, Indiana. 1911 (Summer): Sadler was introduced to the “sleeping subject” for the first time. 1924 (February 11): The Contact Commission was created. It asked questions to angels accessed through the “sleeping subject,” resulting in “The Urantia Papers.” 1934-1935: The Commission completed reception of the papers that will constitute The Urantia Book. 1942 (August): An angelic message was sent to the Commission informing it to copyright The Urantia Book. 1950 (January 11): The Urantia Foundation was created to preserve the text of The Urantia Book and distribute its teachings. 1955 (January 2): The Urantia Brotherhood was created to organize believers of the teachings of The Urantia Book into local fraternal societies. 1955 (October 12): The Urantia Book was first…
John Gordon Melton was born in Birmingham, Alabama in 1942. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Birmingham Southern College in 1964, the Master of Divinity degree at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in 1968, and his doctorate in the History and Literature of Religions with a specialty in American history from Northwestern University in 1975. He became an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church in 1968 and pastored several churches between 1974 and 1980. For several years in the 1980s he served as a research specialist with the department of religious studies at University of California at Santa Barbara. In 2011, Melton accepted a position as a Distinguished Professor of American Religious History at Baylor University's Institute for Studies in Religion. Melton retired from Baylor in 2022. Melton’s interest in new…
Aled Thomas is a Teaching Fellow at the University of Leeds and Associate Lecturer at the Open University. A specialist in Scientology, he completed his PhD on the movement at the Open University in 2019 and subsequently published his first monograph as Free Zone Scientology: Contesting the Boundaries of a New Religion (Bloomsbury, 2021). He is also a co-founder of Alt-Ac, a group promoting “alternative academia,” and is co-host of the Religion and Popular Culture Podcast.
T&L RESOURCES The resources listed in this section of the Teaching &Learning Project offer a variety of materials useful in preparing and delivering courses in the area of alternative and emerging religious and spiritual movements. Course Syllabi Authored Course Texts Edited Volumes Journals, Blogs, Websites, Academic Associations Individual Religious and Spiritual Traditions Donald Westbrook. 2022. L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology Studies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Documentaries Dereck Daschke and Michael Ashcraft. 2005. New Religious Movements: A Documentary Reader. New York: New York University Press. The Teaching Process In addition to the titles listed here, the American Academy of Religion sponsors a book series on Teaching Religious Studies W. Michael Ashcraft. 2019. A Historical Introduction to the Study of New Religious Movements. New York: Routledge. David G. Bromley, ed. 2007. Teaching…
COURSE RESOURCES The resources listed in this section of the Teaching &Learning Project represent the most recent available volumes are are intended primarily for academics organizing courses on alternative and emerging religious/spiritual movements. Recent Authored Course Texts Lorne. Dawson. 2017. Cults in Context: Readings in the Study of New Religious Movements. Toronto: Oxford University. Joseph Laycock. 2022. New Religious Movements: The Basics. New York: Routledge. Hugh Urban. 2015. New Age, Neopagan, and New Religious Movements: Alternative Spirituality in Contemporary America. Berkeley: University of California Press. Recent Edited Volumes Eileen Barker and Beth Singler, eds. 2021. Radical Transformations in Minority Religions. New York: Routledge. Henrik Bogdan and James R. Lewis, eds. 2016. Sexuality and New Religious Movements. London: Palgrave Macmillan. Emily Suzanne Clark and Brad Stoddard. 2019. Race and New…
DOREEN VIRTUE TIMELINE 1958 (April 29): Doreen Virtue was born as Doreen Hannan in southern California; her childhood was spent in North Hollywood. 1968: Virtue and her family moved to Escondido, San Diego County. 1977: Virtue married Larry Schenk with whom she had two sons, Charles and Grant. 1988: Virtue received her master’s degree in counseling psychology and published her first book, My Kids Don’t Live with Me Anymore. 1993: Virtue obtained a PhD in psychology from California Coast University. 1996: Hay House published “I’d Change My Life if I Had More Time,” Virtue’s first book reflecting a more spiritual or religious orientation. 1997: Hay House published Virtue’s first book on angelology, Angel Therapy. 2000: Virtue began offering her Angel Therapy Practitioner (ATP) Certification Course. 2009: Virtue established a YouTube…
Round Table on Identifying, Naming and Treating Harm in New Religious Movements 00:00-1:15:51 Part 1: Introduction of Panel and Opening Statements 01:46-14:48 Erin Prophet 14:49-34:36 Susan Palmer 34:37-48:34 Jeff Levin 48:35-1:01:08 Jessica Pratezina 1:01:09-1:16:02 Brett Merrill 1:16:03-1:42:43 Part 2: Panelist Questions What are the current methods of identifying harm in NRMs, and how can they be improved?; When should practices in NRMs be labeled abuse?; How can we promote greater accountability and transparency?; 1:42:46-1:57:22 Part 2A: What are appropriate therapeutic approaches for current and former members?; How can the therapeutic community interact with NRM scholars to create better resources? 1:57:23-2:43:14 Part 3: Audience Q&A (including J. Gordon Melton and Holly Folk) Identifying, Naming and Treating Harm in New Religious Movements. How can we prevent harm and abuse in “cults” and…
ASTRONISM TIMELINE 1998: Brandon Reece Taylor (Cometan) was born in Preston, United Kingdom. 2013: Cometan began receiving intense revelations. On, the Astronic calendar, this is known as the “Year of The Gift” when Cometan had the idea to create a fictional detective character (Jesse Millete), which eventually expanded and culminated in the creation of Astronism itself. 2014: Cometan completed his education from Brownedge St. Mary’s Roman Catholic High School in Bamber Bridge. He then studied for two years at Preston’s Cardinal Newman College, graduating with three A levels. 2016: Cometan commenced work on a Bachelor Degree in Business and Marketing at the University of Central Lancashire. Midnight on the first of July became known as the Dedication of Cometan or the Great Dedication; it was also the beginning of The Year…
CERCHIO DRUIDICO ITALIANO (ITALIAN DRUIDIC CIRCLE) TIMELINE 1970: Luigi “Ossian” D’Ambrosio was born in Nordhorn, Germany. 1980: D’Ambrosio moved to Biella, Italy, with his family. 1994: The Branco dell’Antica Quercia (The Ancient Oak Pack) was established and the website launched. 1996: The group celebrated its first Beltane Festival at Zumaglia Castle (Biella, Italy). 1998: The Branco dell’Antica Quercia became the Antica Quercia (The Ancient Oak). 2001: D’Ambrosio married and received his first initiation. 2002-2003: The festival location moved to Magnano (Biella, Italy) and then to Mottalciata (Biella, Italy). 2003: Antica Quercia joined the Circolo dei Trivi (the Wiccan group set in Milan) for the organization of the second National Convention on Wicca that took the name of “The Council of Druids and Witches.” The partnership between Antica Quercia and Circolo…
KENJA COMMUNICATIONS TIMELINE 1922 (July 14): Kenneth Emanuel Dyers was born (military records give 1920). 1941 (7 August): Ken Dyers enlisted in the Australian Army. 1943: Annette Stephens was born. 1944: Ken Dyers was court-martialed twice, January 24 and July 4. 1946: Ken Dyers was discharged from the Australian army on grounds of mental instability. He married Judith Scott Fox (divorced in 1950). 1948: Janice Rita Hamilton was born. 1950: Kenneth Emanuel Dyers copyrighted the work A Simple Accounting System. 1951: Ken Dyers married Marie O’Donnell with whom he had two children, Mike and Steve (divorced in 1973). 1974-1977: Jan Hamilton was in the United Kingdom on an Australia Council grant studying clowning. 1978: Ken Dyers and Jan Hamilton met and became romantically involved. 1982: Dyers and Hamilton founded Kenja…