Those Curious New Cults in the 80's

by William J. Petersen

Those Curious New Cults in the 80's

Paperback

First published January 1, 1973

Reviews

[Mariah]

During a university course on the study of religions I once heard the quote, “A cult is any religion stranger than your own,” and I could not agree more. As a Zen Buddhist and a student of Religious studies, I find this book absolutely amusing and intriguing. Not only does it perfectly capture a beautiful image of the 1960s Christian perspective on other religions, it also paints of a picture of America when non-Abrahamic religions were just beginning to come into focus.

There are certain chapters, such as the ones on Astrology and I Ching, that do not belong in the book —neither of these are commonly considered to be religions. But they were interesting reads! As a non-Christian, I was able to enjoy this book because Peterson did not twist the facts of the belief systems he laid out, but simply expressed his own distaste and presented how un-Christian they were. His writing is very polemical. Which is perfectly fine by me because Zen is not supposed to be Christianity!

I found the chapter on Zen to be quite hilarious and it often hit the nail on the head. There were of course some errors, such as when he spoke about the intentions of zazen being to develop one’s intuitive nature (p.152) —this is false—and his generalization of the koan being for all of Zen; the koan is utilized within the Rinzai sect, but not the Sōtō sect. Also, Peterson states that “...Zen is not only detached from a search for truth, it is also detached from concern for one’s fellow man...” (p.157) this is a ridiculous statement because for many dedicated practitioners the Bodhisattva vow “To save all beings” is a core component of their practice which is expressed through acts of compassion.

So I am assuming there are quite a few elements of each religion that Peterson missed or generalized, but for an introduction to lesser known sects this is a good book (Of course ignoring the Christian conversion agenda!). Overall, I found it quite hilarious, informative, and a reflection of the time period that it was written in. I would not recommend this book for an in-depth (or completely accurate) understanding of “cults” or religion; opinion definitely intermingles with fact and fiction.

[Sarah Rigg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think it's interesting that, as a 14-year-old, I read this right after reading "The Jesus People." Be aware that this book is a) outdated and b) skewed toward the Evangelical Christian agenda. Yet, at the time, it did contain good information and obviously a lot of research about a variety of cultish groups and practices, ranging from astrology to Scientology.

[Mike Edwards · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is outdated, and it is clearly written as a warning to good christian (read: evangelical protestant) parents about the dangers present in that big bad world out there. If you can get past the tone, the book does provide an introduction to a number of small religious, quasi-religious, and quasi-spiritual groups and trends--although perhaps these days the same information can be found cheaper and more easily by simply surfing around Wikipedia.

[Scott W. Vincent · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting look at several cults. Lots of good factual information, a fair amount of opinion, and some facts that should be taken with a grain of salt. The inclusion of Zen Buddhism struck me as a poor choice, I don't see it fitting any definition of a cult. Despite its biased position and some flaws it was still and interesting and enjoyable read.

[Reese Lightning · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not realize this is simply conservative Christian propaganda, dissecting each of these so-called "cults" and how exactly each goes against God.