A major, perhaps the major, focus of early research on New Religious Movements (NRMs) was on the people who joined. Most of the field's pioneer researchers were sociologists. However, the profile of NRM members had changed substantially by the twenty-first century - changes largely missed because the great majority of current NRM specialists are not quantitatively oriented. Sects & Stats aims to overturn the conventional wisdom by drawing on current quantitative data from two sources: questionnaire research on select NRMs and relevant national census data collected by Anglophone countries. Sects & Stats also makes a strong argument for the use of longitudinal methods in studying alternative religions. Additionally, through case studies drawn from the author's own research projects over the years, readers will be brought into a conversation about some of the issues involved in how to conduct such research.

With an endless supply of "Mermaid Hair" tutorials to surf through on the internet, and fancy fins being sold for several thousand sand dollars, it is no secret that women everywhere are going to great depths to embody these legendary goddesses. But take it from a professional, mermaid life requires a lot more work than watching a couple of YouTube videos and swimming around like a pro in a high-priced silicone tail. It goes far beyond how fabulous your hair is or how big your seashells are because being a Mermaid isn't about how you look; it's about how you live! In her debut book, Certified Wellness Coach and Professional Mermaid, Gennah Nicole teaches women all the tricks of her mermaid trade. With the wit and wisdom found inside of these pages, eager souls will learn how to master their mindset, care for their body, and unleash their true spirit. Not only does Gennah guide women through their own personal transformation, she also shares endless motivation, honest advice and intimate stories that inspire women to take action and begin experiencing their own happily ever after. So, if you believe you could have been a mermaid in a past life or yearn to be a mermaid in your next life, then take a deep breath and get ready to dive in deep sea sister because it is time to become the mermaid you were born to be in this life!

In a remote corner of the Arctic in 1941, a meteor shower flashed across the sky for an unusually long time. Taking this to be a sign, one of the local Inuit proclaimed himself Jesus Christ. Another proclaimed himself God. Anyone who didn’t believe in them was Satan. Violence ensued. At the End of the World isn’t just the remarkable story of a series of murders that occurred on the Belcher Islands, a group of wind-blasted rocks in Canada’s Hudson Bay. It’s also a starting place for a deeper cultural exploration. Against the backdrop of the murders, which highlight the fact that senseless violence in the name of religion is not a contemporary phenomenon and that a even people as seemingly peaceful as the Inuit can turn to chaos at the hands of one person’s delusion, Millman addresses the burgeoning dawn of the digital era, following the murders’ trail to show how our obsession with screens is not unlike a cult and offering a warning cry against the erosion of humanity and the destruction of the environment. The story becomes a confluence of the consequences of generational trauma, outside religious evangelism, systemic racism against indigenous people, the perilous passage from the natural to the digital world, and what it means to be human in a time of technological dominance and climate disasters. At the End of the World, available for the first time in paperback, is not a straightforward tale of true crime but an examination of many of the issues that have become dominant in the global conversation. In snippets of reflection, Millman asks us to look north for answers to many of the questions we all hold, literally, in our hands.

The Sathya Sai global civil religious movement incorporates Hindu and Muslim practices, Buddhist, Christian, and Zoroastrian influences, and "New Age"-style rituals and beliefs. Shri Sathya Sai Baba, its charismatic and controversial leader, attracts several million adherents from various national, ethnic, and religious backgrounds. In a dynamic account of the Sathya Sai movement's explosive growth, "Winged Faith" argues for a rethinking of globalization and the politics of identity in a religiously plural world.

This study considers a new kind of cosmopolitanism located in an alternate understanding of difference and contestation. It considers how acts of "sacred spectating" and illusion, "moral stakeholding" and the problems of community are debated and experienced. A thrilling study of a transcultural and transurban phenomenon that questions narratives of self and being, circuits of sacred mobility, and the politics of affect, "Winged Faith" suggests new methods for discussing religion in a globalizing world and introduces readers to an easily critiqued yet not fully understood community.

John Henry Newman (1801-90) described writing this account of his religious development as 'one of the most terrible trials that I have had'. Having inspired and led the Oxford or Tractarian Movement before he abandoned Anglicanism for the Church of Rome, Newman regularly found himself the target of virulent anti-Catholic prejudice in Victorian England. The Apologia was his autobiographical response to a public attack by the novelist Charles Kingsley on his personal integrity. With it he not only convinced a suspicious public of the sincerity of his beliefs, but he also produced a literary masterpiece which has often been compared with St Augustine's Confessions.

Have you ever sensed that your life has a deeper, more meaningful purpose, but you don't know what it is? If so, you're not alone. To help you and the millions like you, psychic Ainslie MacLeod's spirit guides have given him a systematic approach to uncovering who you really are and the life your soul has planned for. They call it The Instruction. Now, for the first time, this unique teaching is offered as a step-by-step program for realizing personal fulfillment. The Instruction will take you through 10 doorways to unveil the life plan your soul created before you were even born, including:

• Your Soul Age Determining how it shapes your beliefs and behaviors
• Your Soul Type Are you a Hunter? Thinker? Creator? What your Soul Type reveals about your true self
• Your Powers Connecting fully and permanently with your spirit guides to create your destiny
• Your Talents Using your past lives to enhance the present

Jenna Miscavige Hill was born into the Church of Scientology. The niece of its current director, David Miscavige, she grew up at the center of this highly controversial organization, strictly adhering to its beliefs and practices. But at twenty-two, Jenna made a daring break. Now, for the first time, this insider with unprecedented first-hand knowledge pierces the veil of secrecy that has shrouded this religion that has been the subject of fierce debate and speculation worldwide, speaking out about her life, the organization, and her harrowing escape. In this fast-paced memoir that reads like suspense, Jenna reveals the strange and disturbing details of her childhood, including her disconnection from her parents, and unmasks the inner workings of Scientology's celebrity culture, drawing on her own experiences and those of her husband, a former employee of the famous Scientology Celebrity Centre. From its creation by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard in 1952 to its roster of celebrity acolytes, disturbing questions have swirled around the religion and the organization behind it. Jenna sheds light on some of the most troubling issues surrounding the organization: its infamous disconnection policy and the dissolution of families, alleged forced and child labor practices and reports of exploitative fundraising. With her unparalleled insight into the inner world of Scientology's highest order, Hill addresses all this and shares true stories that are beyond the wildest imagination.

In der Tradition der Bl tenessenzen sind die Wild Earth Tieressenzen die neueste Entwicklung der Schwingungsmittel. Sie unterst tzen uns mit der Kraft und Weisheit wilder Tiere. Die Essenzen werden in einem rituellen Prozess der Einstimmung in der Wildnis hergestellt und es werden daf r weder Tiere gefangen noch verletzt. Diese Kurzreferenz enth lt alle aktuell verf gbaren Tieressenzen und Mischungen, die Healing Path Essenzen und die Sharing Love Essenzen. Sie soll Ihnen als Nachschlagewerk dienen, um kurz und b ndig eine Idee davon zu bekommen, was die Wirkungen der einzelnen Essenzen sind. Zus tzlich ist sie ein hilfreiches Werkzeug f r Kinesiologen und alle, die die M glichkeit haben, Essenzen auszutesten - per Muskeltest, Pendel, Biotensor oder jede andere Methode.

Book Five of The Law of One is comprised of the 56 fragments of personal material that were originally omitted from the first four books of this series. Both Jim, the scribe, and Carla, the instrument for the Ra contact, have added their comments to these fragments to give the reader an idea of what it was like to be part of this contact and to show how every persons experience can be used for personal growth and service to others. A wide variety of topics is covered, from Eisenhowers meeting with extraterrestrials in 1954 to UFO/government conspiracies, Wanderers, sexual energy transfers, anger, balancing, Aleister Crowley, the Tunguska crater in Russia, pre-incarnative choices, psychic greetings, alternate and orthodox healing modalities, the ball lightning phenomenon, and the many facets of the spiritual journey in general.

In this meditative memoir-a compelling fusion of Barbarian Days and the journals of Thomas Merton-the author of Saltwater Buddha reflects on his "failing toward enlightenment," his continued search to find meaning and a greater understanding of grace in the world's oceans as well as everyday life. Born to a family of seekers, Jaimal Yogis left home at sixteen to surf in Hawaii and join a monastery-an adventure he chronicled in Saltwater Buddha. Now, in his early twenties, his heart is broken and he's lost his way. Hitting the road again, he lands in a monastery in Dharamsala, where he meets Sonam, a displaced Tibetan. To help his friend, Jaimal makes a cockamamie attempt to reunite him with his family in Tibet by way of America. Though he does not succeed, witnessing Sonam's spirit in the face of failure offers Jaimal a deeper understanding of faith. When the two friends part, he cannot fathom the unlikely circumstances that will reunite them. All Our Waves Are Water follows Jaimal's trek from the Himalayas to Indonesia; to a Franciscan Friary in New York City to the dusty streets of Jerusalem; and finally to San Francisco's Ocean Beach. Along his journey, Jaimal prays and surfs; mourning a lost love and seeking something that keeps eluding him. The poet Rumi wrote, "We are not a drop in the ocean. We are the ocean in a drop." All Our Waves Are Water is Jaimal's "attempt to understand the ocean in a drop, to find that one moon shining in the water everywhere"-to find the mystery that unites us.