In 2024, there were more arrests, more torture, and more extra-judicial killings. Refugees were systematically harassed abroad.
Massimo Introvigne
Japan: Then They Came for Perfect Liberty Kyodan
A ruling by a Japanese court confirms that viewing with suspicion large donations to religious organizations make hundreds of groups potential targets.
Ardhanarishvara: The Hindu Perfection of the Androgyne
An exquisite 11th-century sculpture in the Chennai Bronze Gallery epitomizes the universal aspiration to the restoration of an original androgynous status.
A Candid Look at Shincheonji. 4. Life in Shincheonji
The only religion one joins not through baptism but by passing an exam had to spend decades in confronting a furious opposition.
Who Is Xi Jinping? The Answer Is in a Comic Book
A graphic novel in French by Éric Meyer and Gianluca Costantini turns out to be one of Xi’s best biographies.
A Candid Look at Shincheonji. 3. An Original Reading of the Bible
The role of Chairman Lee as the “promised pastor” is at the heart of the movement’s millenarian theology.
New Zealand: “Useful Idiots” Against Shen Yun and Falun Gong
Anti-cultists call for boycotting Shen Yun performances—exactly what the Chinese Communist Party wants.
A Candid Look at Shincheonji. 2. The Making of a Church
Chairman Lee gathered some 300,000 followers and launched impressive international peace education campaigns. Accusations of having spread COVID-19 were recognized by the courts as false.
A Candid Look at Shincheonji. 1. The Story of Chairman Lee
Sensational accounts of the Korean new religious movement have been published in several countries. The reality is both different and much more interesting.
“Il diavolo fa le pentole ma non i coperchi”. La pubblicazione in Cina dei nomi dei rifugiati in Italia della Chiesa di Dio Onnipotente li aiuta a ottenere l’asilo politico
Una fedele della CDO, la cui domanda era stata inizialmente respinta, ha ottenuto l’asilo a gennaio dopo che il suo nome è apparso nella famigerata lista Da Ai Wang pubblicata in Cina.
Massimo Introvigne
Massimo Introvigne (born June 14, 1955 in Rome) is an Italian sociologist of religions. He is the founder and managing director of the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR), an international network of scholars who study new religious movements. Introvigne is the author of some 70 books and more than 100 articles in the field of sociology of religion. He was the main author of the Enciclopedia delle religioni in Italia (Encyclopedia of Religions in Italy). He is a member of the editorial board for the Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion and of the executive board of University of California Press' Nova Religio. From January 5 to December 31, 2011, he has served as the "Representative on combating racism, xenophobia and discrimination, with a special focus on discrimination against Christians and members of other religions" of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). From 2012 to 2015 he served as chairperson of the Observatory of Religious Liberty, instituted by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in order to monitor problems of religious liberty on a worldwide scale.