Nova Religio

Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions is a quarterly peer-reviewed^[1] academic journal covering religious studies, focusing on the study of new religious movements. It was established in 1997 by Seven Bridges Press, initially published semi-annually, changing to tri-annually in 2003, and then quarterly in 2005.

History

Previously research focusing on new religious movements (NRMs; often referred to as cults) was mainly published in sociology journals, which lessened the ability for researchers to engage in more qualitative methodologies. Researchers who were not sociologists wanted a publication with a broader view in which to publish; in the 1990s, more debate emerged on how to define the term "new religious movement" itself.^[2] The journal was founded to give a broader and inclusive look at this topic in a period approaching the end of the millennium. With several apocalyptic groups gaining prominence, interest in the field increased.^[2]

The journal was established in 1997 by Seven Bridges Press,^[3][4] founded by Phillip Lucas and Catherine Wessinger.^[2] The journal came out of the American Academy of Religion NRM program unit.^[5] The name was chosen to include both historical "new religions" and modern ones, given the controversial nature of naming in the field itself.^[2] The team founding the journal believed that "it was not their place to judge whose religion is sane, good, or otherwise".^[2] As of 2001 it was one of only two English-language academic journals dedicated to NRMs and cults (the other being the Cultic Studies Journal).^[6] Jolyon Baraka Thomas described it as the "flagship journal" of NRM studies.^[3]

Topics covered in early issues included a debate on the concept of brainwashing between Benjamin Zablocki and David G. Bromley, coverage of the "Cult Wars" and academic neutrality, the relationship between violence and NRMs and law enforcement.^[7][5] It also provided an avenue for the publication of case studies on specific groups.^[5] Later, special issues were published focusing on a single theme, including topics like archaeology, food, Marian apparitions, and the legacy of Jonestown as they related to NRMs; other issues include shorter "Perspective Essays" not always based on empirical research.^[7] In the 2010s, its coverage began to cover more topics outside the North American context.^[7]

It was initially published semi-annually, changing to tri-annually in 2003, and then quarterly in 2005. It was initially owned by the co-general editors, before ownership was passed to the Association for the Academic Studies of New Religions.^[2] As of 2002 (volume 6), it was published by the University of California Press.^[8] In 2024 it moved to the University of Pennsylvania Press.^[9] The journal is associated with the AAR Program Unit, which holds conferences; much of the journal's content is sourced from the unit's conference papers.^[2]

Abstracting and indexing

The journal is abstracted and indexed in:

• Arts and Humanities Citation Index^[10]
• ATLA Religion Database^[11]
• EBSCO databases^[12]
• International Bibliography of Periodical Literature^[12]
• Modern Language Association Database^[12]
• Scopus^[13]

References

1. ^ "Submit". Nova Religio. University of California Press. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
2. ^ Ochoa, Cristina (2020-11-13). "Paying It Forward: The Interdisciplinary Mentorship Ethos of Nova Religio". American Theological Library Association. Retrieved 2024-10-09.
3. ^ Thomas, Jolyon Baraka (2019-03-25). Faking Liberties: Religious Freedom in American-Occupied Japan. University of Chicago Press. p. 235. ISBN 978-0-226-61882-1.
4. ^ Gallagher, Eugene V. (ed.) (2016). 'Cult Wars' in Historical Perspective: New and Minority Religions. Routledge. p. 4. ISBN 978-1-317-15667-3.
5. ^ Zeller, Benjamin E. (2016). "Writing and Researching on New Religious Movements: A View from the American Academy". 'Cult Wars' in Historical Perspective: New and Minority Religions. Gallagher, Eugene V. (ed.). Routledge. pp. 58–59. ISBN 978-1-317-15667-3.
6. ^ Zablocki, Benjamin & Robbins, Thomas (2001). Misunderstanding Cults: Searching for Objectivity in a Controversial Field. University of Toronto Press. p. 515. ISBN 978-1-4875-9844-0.
7. ^ Zeller, Benjamin E. (2020-04-17). "New Religious Movements: A Bibliographic Introduction". Theological Librarianship. 13 (1): 38–49. doi:10.31046/tl.v13i1.564. ISSN 1937-8904
8. ^ "Nova religio: NR: The journal of alternative and emergent religions". LC Catalog. Library of Congress
9. ^ "Penn Press to become publisher of Nova Religio". University of Pennsylvania Press. 2023-08-09. Retrieved 2024-07-17.
10. ^ "Master Journal List". Intellectual Property & Science. Clarivate Analytics. Retrieved 2019-11-23.
11. ^ "Title and Product Update Lists". ATLA Religion Database. American Theological Library Association. Retrieved 2019-11-23.
12. ^ "Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions". ISSN 1092-6690. Retrieved 2019-11-22.
13. ^ "Source details: Nova Religio". Scopus Preview. Elsevier. Retrieved 2019-11-23.

External links

• Official website