Children in New Religious Movements, with Dr. Susan Palmer

What is a child? The answer may seem obvious—until we step inside the world of alternative spiritual communities, where children may be revered as enlightened masters, treated as spiritually unformed subordinates, or embraced as equal souls in small bodies.

Drawing on years of field research, this lecture explores how new religious movements (NRMs) understand childhood, and what those understandings mean for the children who grow up within them.

These patterns come to life through case studies of twelve movements, including the Children of God, Rajneeshpuram, the Twelve Tribes, ISKCON, the Raelian Movement, MOVE, and the Order of the Solar Temple. The lecture raises broader questions: And what can these movements teach us about our own culture’s assumptions about childhood? RSVP for your seat. Thank-you.

DR. SUSAN J. PALMER is a Canadian sociologist of religion whose primary research focus is new religious movements. She is an Affiliate Professor at Concordia University in Montreal and Principal Investigator of the SSHRC-funded research project “Children in Sectarian Religions and State Control” at McGill University’s School of Religious Studies, where she is also a member of the faculty. The author of twelve books on new religious movements, her notable works include "Moon Sisters, Krishna Mothers, Rajneesh Lovers" (Syracuse, 1994), "Aliens Adored: Raël’s UFO Religion" (Rutgers, 2004), "The New Heretics of France" (Oxford, 2011), and "Storming Zion: Government Raids on Religions" (Oxford, with Stuart Wright).

Room 10T at 91 Claremont Ave. (Riverside Church tower) is a Gothic-inspired room with spectacular views of the Hudson River and upper Manhattan and the Bronx.