Читать книгу Field Guide to the Wild World of Religion: 2011 Edition - Pamela J.D. Dewey - Страница 8

And then something happened to change this placid scene. Perhaps it was the unrest and uncertainty in society, with the Cold War giving way to a hot war in Vietnam. Perhaps it was a rising resistance to the traditions of the past in general. Perhaps it was an appetite for novelty in religion that matched the cravings for novelty in the secular parts of society. Perhaps it was even, in part, due to the advent of Cable TV. Perhaps it was all of these things, and more, coming together to convince both youths and many adults that the old answers of the Old Time Religions of America just weren’t adequate to the challenges of the second half of the 20^th century.

As the public began craving new answers to old questions, a whole new breed of religious leaders began to arise, offering assorted spiritual flavors to appeal to every type of spiritual palate. Many of the ideas and answers they offered weren’t really totally new. They were often just re-packaged, warmed-over strange ideas that had been tried in the past and found wanting. Clothing styles today often go through cycles of reincarnation of the styles of decades past. And it is becoming more and more common for producers to film remakes of hits of long ago (such as King Kong). In the same way, religious novelties of an earlier time can look brand new if they can be repackaged and promoted by just the right persuasive spokesperson.

Besides, the average American in the 1970s and later had grown up in that tame religious world described earlier. Most would never have been exposed to the more obscure and controversial ideas that had been part of the fringes of religion for a century before. Once these ideas began entering the mainstream of American society via television, shortwave radio stations, and popular religious books written by entertaining authors, few individuals looking for spiritual enlightenment recognized that many of these teachings were not fresh spiritual meat, but rather warmed-over leftovers.