Religious Conversion ISSUES IN CONTEMPORARY RELIGION Series editors: Christopher Lamb and M. Darrol Bryant The volumes in this series are interdisciplinary and present their subjects from global and cross-religious perspectives, examining issues that cut across traditions and emerge in distinctive ways in different religions and cultural settings. Based on sound scholarship, the books are intended for undergraduate courses and for professionals involved in inter-faith dialogue. Also available in the series: Dan Cohn-Sherbok, Understanding the Holocaust: An Introduction Religious Conversion Contemporary Practices and Controversies Edited by Christopher Lamb and M. Darrol Bryant CASSELL London and New York Cassell Wellington House, 125 Strand, London WC2R OBB 370 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10017-6550 First published 1999 r The editors and contributors 1999 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN 0 304 33842 7 Hardback 0 304 33843 5 Paperback Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Religious conversion : contemporary practices and controversies / edited by Christopher Lamb and M. Darrol Bryant. p. cm. — (Issues in contemporary religion) Includes biographical references and index. ISBN 0-304-33842-7. — ISBN 0-304-33843-5 (pbk.) 1. Conversion. I. Lamb, Christopher, 1937- . II. Bryant, M. Darrol. III. Series. BL639.R45 1999 291.4'2-dc21 99-10551 CIP Typeset by BookEns Ltd, Royston, Herts. Printed and bound in Great Britain by Biddies Ltd, Guildford and King's Lynn Contents The contributors vii A note on diacritics ix Introduction: Conversion: contours of controversy and commitment in a plural world 1 M. Darrol Bryant and Christopher Lamb Part I: Conversion: theoretical perspectives 1 Converting: stages of religious change 23 Lewis R. Rambo and Charles E. Farhadian 2 Conversion: inward, outward and awkward 35 Donald Taylor 3 Conversion: up from evangelicalism or the pentecostal and charismatic experience 51 Frank K. Flinn Part II: Conversion in the world's religions 4 Conversion as a process leading to enlightenment: the Buddhist perspective 75 Christopher Lamb 5 Conversion to Judaism: a tale of the good, the bad and the ungrateful 89 Rodney Mariner 6 Conversion from within and without in Chinese religion 102 Jordan Paper 7 Contra conversion: the case of the Zoroastrians of India 115 Homi B. Dhalla 8 Conversion: a Hindu/Gandhian perspective 136 K. L. Seshagiri Rao V CONTENTS 9 Conversion to Islam: the Qur'anic paradigm 151 Yasin Dutton 10 Conversion in the Sikh tradition 166 Doris R. Jakobsh Part III: Conversion in Christianity 11 Conversion in Christianity: from without and from within 177 M. Darrol Bryant 12 Conversion among charismatics 191 Karla Poewe 13 Charismatic conversion in the light of Augustine's Confessions 207 Irving Hexham 14 The Benedictine vow 'conversio morum' 220 Macrina Sitzia Part IV: Contemporary cases of conversion 15 Coming home and coming out Pagan (but not converting) 233 Graham Harvey 16 Continuing conversion: a personal journey 247 Tim Edgar 17 The story of Darshan Singh, a French convert 256 Darshan Singh Rudel 18 Belonging to a cult or new religious movement: act of freewill or form of mind control? 263 Martin Eggleton 19 Being Hindu in North America: the experience of a Western convert 278 Tamal Krishna Goswami 20 Cult conversions: controversy and clarification 287 Lome L. Dawson 21 Rediscovering Islam: a Muslim journey of faith 315 Sophie Gilliat-Ray Index 333 vi The Contributors Dr M. Darrol Bryant, Professor of Religion and Culture, Renison College, University of Waterloo, Ontario. Dr Lome L. Dawson, Department of Sociology, University of Waterloo, Ontario. Dr Homi B. Dhalla, Researcher in BJPC Institute, Bombay. Dr Yasin Dutton, Lecturer in Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Edinburgh. Father Tim Edgar, Assistant Director of Studies, Missionary Institute, London. Rev Dr Martin Eggleton, Ecumenical Chaplain, Middlesex Uni- versity, London. Charles E. Farhadian, PhD student, Boston University, Massachusetts. Dr Frank K. Flinn, Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies, Washington University, St Louis, Missouri. Dr Sophie Gilliat-Ray, Lecturer in Religious and Theological Studies, University of Wales, Cardiff. Dr Tamal Krishna Goswami, Governing Body of ISKON, Dallas, Texas. Dr Graham Harvey, Lecturer in Religious Studies, King Alfred's College, Winchester. Dr Irving Hexham, Professor of Religious Studies, University of Calgary, Alberta. Doris R. Jakobsh, PhD student, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia. vii CONTRIBUTORS Christopher Lamb, Head of the Centre for Inter-Faith Dialogue, Middlesex University, London. Rabbi Rodney Mariner, Convenor of the Court of the Reform Synagogues of Great Britain, London. Dr Jordan Paper, Professor of Religious Studies, York University, Ontario. Dr Karla Poewe, Professor of Anthropology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta. Dr Lewis R. Rambo, Professor of Psychology and Religion, San Francisco Theological Seminary, California. Dr K. L. Seshagiri Rao, Professor Emeritus, University of Virginia, Columbia, South Carolina. Darshan Singh Rudel, a French Sikh living in India. Rev Dame Macrina Sitzia OSB, Benedictine nun, Stanbrook Abbey, Callow End, Worcester. Dr Donald Taylor, formerly Head of Religious Studies, Middlesex University, London. viii A note on diacritics The editors have omitted diacritics in transliterated foreign language terms on the principle that scholars do not need them and they only make reading more difficult for others.