Apocalypse Observed: Religious Movements and Violence in North America, Europe, and Japan [Paperback]

John R. Hall (Author), Philip D. Schuyler (Author), Sylvaine Trinh (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0415192773 | ISBN-13: 978-0415192774 | Publication Date: February 2000 | Edition: 1

Apocalypse Observed is about religious violence. By analyzing five of the most notorious cults of recent years, the authors present a fascinating and revealing account of religious sects and conflict. Cults covered include:

* the apocalypse at Jonestown
* the Branch Davidians at Waco
* the violent path of Aum Shinrikyo
* the mystical apocalypse of the Solar Temple
* the mass suicide of Heaven's Gate.

Through comparative case studies and in-depth analysis, the authors show how religious violence can erupt not simply from the beliefs of the cult followers or the personalities of their leaders, but also from the way in which society responds to the cults in its midst.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Required reading for anyone perplexed by the persistence of millenarian thought' - Michael F. Brown, Williams College

'This book takes an original and challenging view of a number of extremely controversial new religious movements.' - Journal of Contemporary Religion

About the Author

John R. Hall is Professor of sociology at the University of California, Davis. He has contributed to Millennium, Messiahs and Mayhem(Routledge 1998) and Sociology of Religious Movements (Routledge, 1998) and is the author of Culture: Sociological Perspectives (1997).

Philip Schuyleris lecturer in the department of music at the University of Maryland. Sylvaine Trinh is at Paris-Dauphine University in Paris.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (February 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415192773
• ISBN-13: 978-0415192774
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,262,854 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The details the media missed, September 18, 2010

By 

PJ Nelson (ontario, canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Apocalypse Observed: Religious Movements and Violence in North America, Europe and Japan (Hardcover)

If you are fascinated by the extreme measures that have characterized the "cults" that the media has highlighted for us, this book is a great corrective. It provides details about the events surrounding the violence you saw/heard on screen--for Jonestown, Waco, Aum Shinrikyo, Solar Temple and Heaven's Gate.

What could we have missed? For example, and this is a major premise of the book, the fact that the anti-cult coalitions, government agencies, and media played a huge role in the intensification of events leading to the climaxes of violence. In other words, all factors involved in "cult" violence are not only internal factors (eg. psychotic leaders brainwashing victims into compliance). Conflict is exacerbated, accelerated and even initiated often from the outside.

Whether this book "overcorrects" is debatable. But it certainly adds to understanding the complexities involved in new religious movements that go up in smoke.