Sects & Stats - Overturning the Conventional Wisdom about Cult Members - James R. Lewis
8 New Religious Movements and Gender – The Case of Scientology
Sects & Stats - Overturning the Conventional Wisdom about Cult Members - James R. Lewis
James R. Lewis [+]
Wuhan University
James R. Lewis is Professor of Philosophy in the School of Philosophy at Wuhan University. He is well-published in the field of new religious movements. His publications and edited volumes include The Oxford Handbook of New Religious Movements, Controversial New Religions (with Jesper Petersen), Scientology, Children of Jesus and Mary (with Nicholas Levine), and, most recently, Violence and New Religious Movements.
Description
As recently as the censuses that took place in 2006, Scientology seemed to be growing in all four of the Anglophone countries that record memberships in alternative religions. I initially analyzed this growth in a piece that appeared in 2009. However, more recent data from the Australian census and from the American Religious Identification Survey indicate a downturn in Scientology’s growth while other, comparable movements continue to grow. Why? Additionally, why should more men than women join Scientology while almost every other religious group imaginable recruits more women than men?