Which comes first: belief or action? In Christian terms, the choice would be between faith and works. Is the essence of commitment a firmly-held ideology, or is it living and acting as if one had a commitment? These are some of the questions posed in The Believers, by Zoë Heller (HarperCollins 2008).
Most of the fiction about Peoples Temple and Jonestown is bad. It ranges from pulp novels featuring hard-boiled adventurers to didactic morality tales expounding upon the dangers of cults. Sex is usually involved as well.
Several readers asked what *good* fiction exists, and I have a couple of responses. First, is to direct readers to the listing on the Alternative Considerations website, which includes pretty much everything that’s out there that we know of: and if something is missing, let us know: http://jonestown.sdsu.edu/?page_id=18186. |
Author Rebecca Moore is Professor Emerita of Religious Studies at San Diego State University. She is currently Reviews Editor for Nova Religio: The Journal of Alternative and Emergent Religions and Co-Director of The Jonestown Institute. Archives
December 2021
CategoriesContact:
[email protected] |