Yet Another Unitarian Universalist

National Public Radio ran a pretty good series on "New Religions" from May 10 through May 13. If you missed it on the radio, as I did, you can listen to it on the NPR Web site. Why pay attention to new religions? Well, they're very much a part of our religious landscape. According to the NPR report, there are 800 to 1,000 new religions currently active in the US, and 15% of Americans join new religions at some point in their lives.

Part one of the series gives an overview of new religions. For this segment, NPR interviewed J. Gordon Melton, director of the Institute for the Study of American Religions. "American is fertile soil for new religions," says Melton. Later he adds, "This is an area that continually borns new religions, continually recieves new religions from other parts of the world."

Part two: "Toronto Blessing" looks at a huge, fast-growing Pentecostal church in Canada. Of particular interest to me are recordings of Pentecostal worship, including recordings of glossolalia, or speaking in tongues.

Part three: Soka Gokkai looks at a new religion based on Buddhism that has come to North America. Great recordings of Soka Gokkai chants, but the emphasis on interviewing celebrities was cloying.

Finally, Part four: teens and Wicca covers every orthodox Christian Baby Boomer parent's nightmare -- kids who become Wiccans. The NPR report claims, "Wicca is believed to be one of the fastest growing religions among high school and college students." (And did you know there is a Wicca Barbie? No, I'm not making this up.)

The series really only covers three new religions in any depth, tends to avoid the big controversies surrounding new religions (such as whether new religions are cults or legitimate religion), and doesn't include much serious analysis. Needless to say, they stayed away from the powerful Scientology church -- who wants to get sued? Still, these reports provide a nice introduction to the subject of new religions in North America -- and give you a feel for new religions that books or articles cannot.

Definitely worth listening to.

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