Legal cases, new religious movements, and minority faiths

New religious movements (NRMs) and other minority faiths have regularly been the focus of legal cases around the world in recent decades.

This is the first book to focus on important aspects of the relationship of smaller faiths to the societies in which they function by using specific legal cases to examine social control efforts.

The legal cases involve group leaders, a groups? practices or alleged abuses against members and children in the group, legal actions brought by former members or third parties, attacks against such groups by outsiders including even governments, and libel and slander actions brought by religious groups as they seek to defend themselves.

These cases are sometimes milestones in the relation between state authorities and religious groups.