The Order of the Solar Temple: The Temple of Death

In October 1994, fifty-three members of the Order of the Solar Temple in Switzerland and Québec were murdered or committed suicide. This incident and two later group suicides in subsequent years played a pivotal role in inflaming the cult controversy in Europe, influencing the public to support harsher actions against non-traditional religions. Despite the importance of the Order of the Solar Temple, there are relatively few studies published in English. This book brings together the best scholarship on the Solar Temple including newly commissioned pieces from leading scholars, a selection of Solar Temple documents, and important previously published articles newly edited for inclusion within this book. This is the first book-length study of the Order of the Solar Temple to be published in English.

James R. Lewis is Lecturer in Religious Studies at the University of Wisconsin, USA. He is a highly-published scholar of New Religions. He is the editor of The Oxford Handbook of New Religious Movements (2004), and also Controversial New Religions (co-edited with Jesper A. Petersen). In addition to writing a dozen other anthologies on new religions, James Lewis is the author of a textbook and a major encyclopedia in this field of study. His monographs include Legitimating New Religions (2003). He is a professional reference book author; his encyclopedias have won American Library Association, New York Public Library Association, and Choice book awards.