Unstructured Networking in a Charisma-based New Religious Movement: The ‘Baba Lovers’

The relatively unstructured beginnings of many charisma-based new religions, and their rapid transformation into structured institutions is a process that has attracted many studies since original forays into this field by Max Weber. Although several scholars - notably Luther Gerlach and Virginia H...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Kerkhove, Ray (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Published: Equinox Publ. 2007
In: Journal for the academic study of religion
Year: 2007, Volume: 20, Issue: 2, Pages: 159-174
Further subjects:B Baba lovers
B New Religious Movements
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)

MARC

LEADER 00000caa a22000002 4500
001 1846011906
003 DE-627
005 20230525090312.0
007 cr uuu---uuuuu
008 230523s2007 xx |||||o 00| ||eng c
024 7 |a 10.1558/arsr.v20i2.159  |2 doi 
035 |a (DE-627)1846011906 
035 |a (DE-599)KXP1846011906 
040 |a DE-627  |b ger  |c DE-627  |e rda 
041 |a eng 
084 |a 0  |2 ssgn 
100 1 |a Kerkhove, Ray  |e VerfasserIn  |4 aut 
245 1 0 |a Unstructured Networking in a Charisma-based New Religious Movement: The ‘Baba Lovers’ 
264 1 |c 2007 
336 |a Text  |b txt  |2 rdacontent 
337 |a Computermedien  |b c  |2 rdamedia 
338 |a Online-Ressource  |b cr  |2 rdacarrier 
520 |a The relatively unstructured beginnings of many charisma-based new religions, and their rapid transformation into structured institutions is a process that has attracted many studies since original forays into this field by Max Weber. Although several scholars - notably Luther Gerlach and Virginia Hine - have identified more diffuse modes of religious organization amongst new religions (usually ‘networks’ of one sort or another), there has been little investigation of why some groups begin with a charismatic leader yet never transform into a structured, hierarchical entity. The ‘Baba lovers’ movement is considered in this paper as a prime example of this occurrence. Despite its origins in the charismatic authority of its founder - Avatar Meher Baba (1894-1969) -it does not seem to have solidified into a structured, hierarchical form. It seems to have remained a loose network. This essay identifies various ways in which the Meher Baba movement exemplifies a SPIN-type network. The author seeks an explanation for this continued fluidity in Meher Baba’s dictates concerning organizational structures, and in Indic notions of "internal guidance from the Master." The author argues that for many "guru"-oriented groups past and present, belief in posthumous "internal guidance" minimized the need for complex organizational/ hierarchical structures. 
601 |a Network 
650 4 |a Baba lovers 
650 4 |a New Religious Movements 
773 0 8 |i Enthalten in  |t Journal for the academic study of religion  |d Sheffield : Equinox Publ., 2013  |g 20(2007), 2, Seite 159-174  |h Online-Ressource  |w (DE-627)769225217  |w (DE-600)2735270-5  |w (DE-576)39403581X  |x 2047-7058  |7 nnns 
773 1 8 |g volume:20  |g year:2007  |g number:2  |g pages:159-174 
856 4 0 |u https://doi.org/10.1558/arsr.v20i2.159  |x Resolving-System  |z lizenzpflichtig  |3 Volltext 
856 4 0 |u https://journal.equinoxpub.com/JASR/article/view/2521  |x Verlag  |z lizenzpflichtig  |3 Volltext 
951 |a AR 
ELC |a 1 
ITA |a 1  |t 1 
LOK |0 000 xxxxxcx a22 zn 4500 
LOK |0 001 4324749329 
LOK |0 003 DE-627 
LOK |0 004 1846011906 
LOK |0 005 20230523140255 
LOK |0 008 230523||||||||||||||||ger||||||| 
LOK |0 040   |a DE-Tue135  |c DE-627  |d DE-Tue135 
LOK |0 092   |o n 
LOK |0 852   |a DE-Tue135 
LOK |0 852 1  |9 00 
LOK |0 935   |a ixzs  |a ixzo  |a rwrk 
ORI |a SA-MARC-ixtheoa001.raw 
REL |a 1 
SUB |a REL