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In Cyberhenge, Douglas E. Cowan brings together two fascinating and
virually unavoidable phenomena of the postmodern world - the
electronic environment of the Internet and the emerging world of
contemporary Neopaganism - Wiccans and other witches, Druids,
Goddess-worshipers and ceremonial magicians - the Internet provides
an environment alive with possibilities for invention, innovation
and imagination. Neopagans are not only using the Net to provide
information and as a vehicle to develop and expand the frontiers of
their religious experience. From online Sabbath rituals to an
algorithmic I Ching for which one pays with electronically banked
Karma Coins, from e-covens and cyber-groves where neophytes can
learn everything from the Wiccan Rede to spellworking, to arguments
over the validity of online ritual and the authenticity of one's
magical lineage, neopaganism on the Internet is an ongoing
experiment in the creation and recreation of postmodern religious
traditions.
In "Cyberhenge," Douglas E. Cowan brings together two fascinating
and virtually unavoidable phenomena of contemporary life--the
Internet and the new religious movement of Neopaganism. For growing
numbers of Neopagans-Wiccans, Druids, Goddess-worshippers, and
others--the Internet provides an environment alive with
possibilities for invention, innovation, and imagination.
From angel channeling, biorhythms, and numerology to e-covens and
cybergroves where neophytes can learn everything from the Wiccan
Rede to spellworking, Cowan illuminates how and why Neopaganism is
using Internet technology in fascinating new ways as a platform for
invention of new religious traditions and the imaginative
performance of ritual. This book is essential reading for students
and scholars of new religious movements, and for anyone interested
in the intersections of technology and faith.
From creature features to indie horror flicks, find out what
happens when sex, horror, and the religious imagination come
together Throughout history, religion has attempted to control
nothing so much as our bodies: what they are and what they mean;
what we do with them, with whom, and under what circumstances; how
they may be displayed—or, more commonly, how they must be hidden.
Yet, we remain fascinated, obsessed even, by bodies that have left,
or been forced out of, their “proper” place. The Forbidden Body
examines how horror culture treats these bodies, exploring the dark
spaces where sex and the sexual body come together with religious
belief and tales of terror. Taking a broad approach not limited to
horror cinema or popular fiction, but embracing also literary
horror, weird fiction, graphic storytelling, visual arts, and
participative culture, Douglas E. Cowan explores how fears of
bodies that are tainted, impure, or sexually deviant are made
visible and reinforced through popular horror tropes. The volume
challenges the reader to move beyond preconceived notions of
religion in order to decipher the “religious imagination” at
play in the scary stories we tell over and over again. Cowan argues
that stories of religious bodies “out of place” are so
compelling because they force us to consider questions that
religious belief cannot comfortably answer: Who are we? Where do we
come from? Why do we suffer? And above all, do we matter? As
illuminating as it is unsettling, The Forbidden Body offers a
fascinating look at how and why we imagine bodies in all the wrong
places.
After sex, religion is one of the most popular and pervasive topics
of interest online, with over three million Americans turning to
the internet each day for religious information and spiritual
guidance. Tens of thousands of elaborate websites are dedicated to
every manner of expression. "Religion Online" provides an
accessible and comprehensive introduction to this burgeoning new
religious reality, from cyberpilgrimages to neo-pagan chatroom
communities. A substantial introduction by the editors presenting
the main themes and issues is followed by sixteen chapters
addressing core issues of concern such as youth, religion and the
internet, new religious movements and recruitment, propaganda and
the countercult, and religious tradition and innovation. The volume
also includes the "Pew Internet and American Life Project"
"Executive" "Summary," the most comprehensive and widely cited
study on how Americans pursue religion online, and Steven O'Leary's
field-defining "Cyberspace as Sacred Space,"
Magic, Monsters, and Make-Believe Heroes looks at fantasy film,
television, and participative culture as evidence of our ongoing
need for a mythic vision-for stories larger than ourselves into
which we write ourselves and through which we can become the heroes
of our own story. Why do we tell and retell the same stories over
and over when we know they can't possibly be true? Contrary to
popular belief, it's not because pop culture has run out of good
ideas. Rather, it is precisely because these stories are so
fantastic, some resonating so deeply that we elevate them to the
status of religion. Illuminating everything from Buffy the Vampire
Slayer to Dungeons and Dragons, and from Drunken Master to Mad Max,
Douglas E. Cowan offers a modern manifesto for why and how
mythology remains a vital force today.
Many seemingly strange questions on yoga, salvation, religious
pluralism, and so forth have been actively debated among members of
a small but influential group of evangelical apologists known as
the Christian countercult movement. This Element explores the
history of this movement from its origins in the anti-heresy
writings of the early church to its modern development as a
reaction to religious pluralism in North America. It contrasts the
apologetic Christian countercult movement with its secular anticult
counterpart and explains how faith-based opposition both to new
religious movements and to non-Christian religions will only deepen
as religious pluralism increases. It provides a concise
understanding of the two principal goals of Christian countercult
apologetics: support for the evangelization of non-Christian
believers and maintenance for the perceived superiority of the
evangelical Christian worldview.
Religion on the Internet is the first systematic inquiry into the
nature, scope and content of religion in cyberspace. Contributors
to this volume include leading social scientists engaged in
systematic studies of how organizations and individuals are
presenting religion on the Internet. Their combined efforts provide
a conceptual mapping of religion in cyberspace at this moment. The
individual papers and collective insights found in this volume add
up to a valuable agenda of research that will enrich understanding
of this new phenomenon. Among the contributors are the founders of
three of the most important scholarly religion web sites on the
Internet: American Religion Data Archive, Religious Tolerance, and
Religious Movements Homepage.
Religion and the Internet is essential reading for all who seek to
understand how religion is being presented on the Internet and how
this topic is likely to unfold in the years ahead.
From creature features to indie horror flicks, find out what
happens when sex, horror, and the religious imagination come
together Throughout history, religion has attempted to control
nothing so much as our bodies: what they are and what they mean;
what we do with them, with whom, and under what circumstances; how
they may be displayed—or, more commonly, how they must be hidden.
Yet, we remain fascinated, obsessed even, by bodies that have left,
or been forced out of, their “proper” place. The Forbidden Body
examines how horror culture treats these bodies, exploring the dark
spaces where sex and the sexual body come together with religious
belief and tales of terror. Taking a broad approach not limited to
horror cinema or popular fiction, but embracing also literary
horror, weird fiction, graphic storytelling, visual arts, and
participative culture, Douglas E. Cowan explores how fears of
bodies that are tainted, impure, or sexually deviant are made
visible and reinforced through popular horror tropes. The volume
challenges the reader to move beyond preconceived notions of
religion in order to decipher the “religious imagination” at
play in the scary stories we tell over and over again. Cowan argues
that stories of religious bodies “out of place” are so
compelling because they force us to consider questions that
religious belief cannot comfortably answer: Who are we? Where do we
come from? Why do we suffer? And above all, do we matter? As
illuminating as it is unsettling, The Forbidden Body offers a
fascinating look at how and why we imagine bodies in all the wrong
places.
Illuminating the religious and existential themes in Stephen King's
horror stories Who are we? Why are we here? Where do we go when we
die? For answers to these questions, people often look to religion.
But religion is not the only place seekers turn. Myths, legends,
and other stories have given us alternative ways to address the
fundamental quandaries of existence. Horror stories, in particular,
with their focus on questions of violence and mortality, speak
urgently to the primal fears embedded in such existential
mysteries. With more than fifty novels to his name, and hundreds of
millions of copies sold, few writers have spent more time
contemplating those fears than Stephen King. Yet despite being one
of the most widely read authors of all time, King is woefully
understudied. America's Dark Theologian is the first in-depth
investigation into how King treats religion in his horror fiction.
Considering works such as Carrie, The Dead Zone, Misery, The
Shining, and many more, Douglas Cowan explores the religious
imagery, themes, characters, and, most importantly, questions that
haunt Stephen King's horror stories. Religion and its trappings are
found throughout King's fiction, but what Cowan reveals is a writer
skeptical of the certainty of religious belief. Describing himself
as a "fallen away" Methodist, King is less concerned with providing
answers to our questions, than constantly challenging both those
who claim to have answers and the answers they proclaim. Whether he
is pondering the existence of other worlds, exploring the origins
of religious belief and how it is passed on, probing the nature of
the religious experience, or contemplating the existence of God,
King invites us to question everything we think we know.
Magic, Monsters, and Make-Believe Heroes looks at fantasy film,
television, and participative culture as evidence of our ongoing
need for a mythic vision-for stories larger than ourselves into
which we write ourselves and through which we can become the heroes
of our own story. Why do we tell and retell the same stories over
and over when we know they can't possibly be true? Contrary to
popular belief, it's not because pop culture has run out of good
ideas. Rather, it is precisely because these stories are so
fantastic, some resonating so deeply that we elevate them to the
status of religion. Illuminating everything from Buffy the Vampire
Slayer to Dungeons and Dragons, and from Drunken Master to Mad Max,
Douglas E. Cowan offers a modern manifesto for why and how
mythology remains a vital force today.
As humans, it is our trust in something larger than ourselves that
invests our lives with meaning and value. We hope that outside the
boundaries of everyday living there lies something greater. As Doug
Cowan argues, science fiction is the genre of possibility and hope,
a principal canvas on which writers, artists, and filmmakers have
sketched their visions of this transcendent potential for
generations. In Sacred Space, he leads readers in a compelling
exploration of how this transcendence is manifested in
science-fiction cinema and television of today. From the millennial
dreams of a future bright with potential to the promise of
evolution from some as-yet-undreamed engine of creation, science
fiction's visions of transcendence animate the pages of Sacred
Space. Drawing on the most popular examples- Star Wars, Star Trek,
Battlestar Galactica, Babylon 5, and Stargate SG-1-as well as the
lesser known but no less important, Cowan reveals the multivalent
religious ideas present in this media. Why do these themes that
consistently appear in science fiction matter? What do they reveal
about the often ambivalent relationship between outer space and our
spirits? Cowan insightfully shows how these films and shows express
and reinforce culturally constructed conceptions of transcendent
hope, and along the way provides a provocative reflection on what
this ultimately says about our culture's worldviews, hopes, and
fears.
Scholars of religion have begun to explore horror and the
monstrous, not only within the confines of the biblical text or the
traditions of religion, but also as they proliferate into popular
culture. This exploration emerges from what has long been present
in horror: an engagement with the same questions that animate
religious thought - questions about the nature of the divine,
humanity's place in the universe, the distribution of justice, and
what it means to live a good life, among many others. Such
exploration often involves a theological conversation. Theology and
Horror: Explorations of the Dark Religious Imagination pursues
questions regarding non-physical realities, spaces where both
divinity and horror dwell. Through an exploration of theology and
horror, the contributors explore how questions of spirituality,
divinity, and religious structures are raised, complicated, and
even sometimes answered (at least partially) by works of horror.
Scholars of religion have begun to explore horror and the
monstrous, not simply within the confines of the biblical text or
the traditions of religion, but also as they proliferate into
popular culture. This exploration emerges from what has long been
present in horror: an engagement with the same questions that
animate religious thought - questions about the nature of the
divine, humanity's place in the universe, the distribution of
justice, and what it means to live a good life, among many others.
Such exploration often involves a theological conversation. This
volume pursues questions regarding non-physical realities, spaces
where both divinity and horror dwell. Through an exploration of
theology and horror, the contributors explore how questions of
spirituality, divinity, and religious structures are raised,
complicated, and even sometimes answered (at least partially) by
works of horror.
Religion, Culture, and the Monstrous: Of Gods and Monsters explores
the intersection of the emerging field of "monster theory" within
religious studies. With case studies from ancient Mesopotamia to
contemporary valleys of the Himalayas to ghost tours in Savannah,
Georgia, the volume examines the variegated nature of the monstrous
as well as the cultural functions of monsters in shaping how we see
the world and ourselves. In this, the authors constructively assess
the state of the two fields of monster theory and religious
studies, and propose new directions in how these fields can inform
each other. The case studies included illuminate the ways in which
monsters reinforce the categories through which a given culture
sees the world. At the same time, the volume points to how monsters
appear to question, disrupt, or challenge those categories,
creating an 'unsettling' or surplus of meaning.
Sacred Terror examines the religious elements lurking in horror
films. It answers a simple but profound question: When there are so
many other scary things around, why is religion so often used to
tell a scary story? In this lucid, provocative book, Douglas Cowan
argues that horror films are opportune vehicles for externalizing
the fears that lie inside our religious selves: of evil; of the
flesh; of sacred places; of a change in the sacred order; of the
supernatural gone out of control; of death, dying badly, or not
remaining dead; of fanaticism; and of the power - and the
powerlessness - of religion.
As humans, it is our trust in something larger than ourselves that
invests our lives with meaning and value. We hope that outside the
boundaries of everyday living there lies something greater. As Doug
Cowan argues, science fiction is the genre of possibility and hope,
a principal canvas on which writers, artists, and filmmakers have
sketched their visions of this transcendent potential for
generations. In Sacred Space, he leads readers in a compelling
exploration of how this transcendence is manifested in
science-fiction cinema and television of today. From the millennial
dreams of a future bright with potential to the promise of
evolution from some as-yet-undreamed engine of creation, science
fiction's visions of transcendence animate the pages of Sacred
Space. Drawing on the most popular examples - Star Wars, Star Trek,
Battlestar Galactica, Babylon 5, and Stargate SG-1 - as well as the
lesser known but no less important, Cowan reveals the multivalent
religious ideas present in this media. Why do these themes that
consistently appear in science fiction matter? What do they reveal
about the often ambivalent relationship between outer space and our
spirits? Cowan insightfully shows how these films and shows express
and reinforce culturally constructed conceptions of transcendent
hope, and along the way provides a provocative reflection on what
this ultimately says about our culture's worldviews, hopes, and
fears.
Over the past few decades, mainline Protestant denominations in
North America have been experiencing a significant decline in
membership, active participation, and financial contributions. In
the midst of this decline, these denominations have been caught up
in a variety of controversial religious, ecclesiastical, and social
issues--a shift from neo-orthodox to liberal theology, the advent
of inclusive liturgical and biblical language, denominational
support for often controversial social issues, and heated debates
around human sexuality, particularly the place of homosexuals in
the church. To address these issues and concerns, and to recapture
the traditionalism many feel their churches have abandoned, the
"remnant faithful," those who choose to stay in their churches,
have formed a number of reform and renewal movements. Cowan
examines these emergent social movements, providing anecdotal and
lively examples of their activities, their arguments, their
identities, and their approaches to strengthening their churches.
Rather than leave denominations which they regard as increasingly
hostile to theological and ecclesiastical traditionalism, many
mainline Protestants have chosen to stay and fight for their
churches, forming reform and renewal movements intended to address
hot-button issues in the way their churches function and practice.
These conservative reform movements, however, are often vilified by
their more liberal co-religionists, and not infrequently regarded
as theologically immature, doctrinally stagnant, and
ecclesiastically belligerent. The Remnant Spirit demonstrates that
these are simplistic and reductivist analyses that only serve to
avoid the very issues around whichreform movements emerge and
evolve. The author provides an in-depth examination of four major
North American denominations, and the various conservative reform
and renewal movements taking place in each, while acknowledging
that every mainline Protestant Church in the U.S. and Canada is
contending with similar issues and addressing them in similar
fashions. Here, the voices of the "remnant faithful," those that
contribute to denominational discussions as they are experienced by
ordinary church members and leaders alike, are presented and
discussed in a thoughtful and lively manner.
From Hare Krishna to the Latter-Day Saints, and from Jehovah's
Witnesses to the New Age, religious pluralism in North American
presents evangelical Protestantism with significant challenges.
Declaring newer religious groups "cults," "aberrant sects," and
"heretical religions," the Christian countercult movement has
warned that these groups represent a threat to society. In Bearing
False Witness? Cowan considers the Christian countercult as a
whole, locating it in sociological perspective as an entity
distinct from the secular anti-cult. Through his analysis, the
author argues that the primary purpose of the countercult movement
is to reinforce and repair the Christian worldview when it appears
threatened by the advent of alternative religious traditions. This
unique analysis of the Christian countercult helps explain why
conservative Christian responses to competing religious movements
have taken the form that they have in addition to how those
responses are carried out. Unlike the anti-cult movement, which is
concerned with removing individuals from cults and returning them
to their families, the Christian countercult movement, according to
the author, attempts not only to remove cultists from the negative
influences of the cults to which they belong, but also to insure
that they will join the particular version of Christianity adhered
to by the countercultists themselves. Beginning with the
countercult's early history, the author provides an historical
account of the movement and its present activities. Since the rise
of new religious movements, the growing interest in religions
imported from outside North America, and the broadening of the
religious marketplace continues to grow, understanding the
Christian countercult and its presence as a countervailing pressure
to these increasingly socioreligious dynamics becomes ever more
important.
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