Dr Stephen J. Hunt
Reader in Sociology
BA (Hons), MA, PhD
email: Stephen3.Hunt@uwe.ac.uk
tel: +44 (0) 117 32 82219
Fax: +44 (0) 117 344 2295
I took up my post at the University of the West of England in 2001 (being promoted to Reader in 2004) after teaching in the Sociology Department at the University of Reading for thirteen years. I also taught in the Religious Studies Department at the University of Surrey, Roehampton. On receiving my doctorate on healing in American Pentecostal movements in 1995, I have developed research activities in the Sociology of Religion, particularly the areas of contemporary Christianity and retain more than a passing interest in New Religious Movements and ‘cult’ controversies. In respect of the former I have published in areas including Christianity and culture, Pentecostalism and charismatic movements, Christianity and non-heterosexualities and, more broadly, the interface between Sociology and Theology. In these subjects and others I have produced over two hundred publications (selected recent publications are listed below) and have presented over one hundred twenty and international conference papers. I am particularly keen on attracting Ph.D students wishing to study in these areas.
Teaching: Undergraduate Modules: The Individual and Society: The Life Course; The Sociology of Religion; Religion, Deviance and Human Rights; Madness and Mental Disorders; Self, Identity and Stigma.
At present I am Director of the Unit for the Study of Religion and Spirituality. This research confederation builds on the interdisciplinary interests of a number of scholars across the University of the West of England and responds to the revival of interest in religion and spirituality in recent years. The specialisms of members include religious fundamentalism, new religious movements, the New Age, paganism, magic, occultism and esotericism. The USRS exists as a forum for invited speakers and to organise national conferences. It has links at the national and international levels including the Centre for the Study of New Religious Movements (South-West-University, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria) and GlobPente (Vrije University of Amsterdam).
Editorial Boards
Journal of Religious History, University of Sydney
PentecoStudies, Vrije University of Amsterdam
Australian Religious Studies Review (past)
The Open Area Studies Journal
Journal of Politics and Religion
International Journal of Sociology and Anthropology
Conferences Organised: One Day Conference of the British Sociological Association Study of Religion Group, 1997, The Charismatic Movement (leading to guest editorial in the journal Religion); One Day Conference of the British Sociological Association Study of Religion Group, 2007, Religion, Spirituality and Gay Sexualities.
Advisory Capacity: The Churches Council for Health and Healing; The Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement; PR Connections (on anti-cult movements); Academic adviser, the Department of Religious Studies, Vilnius University, Lithuania; Consultant for the Centre for the Study of New Religious Movements (South-West-University, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria); Consultant for ‘Ekklesia’ - a think tank which seeks to promote and propose transformative theological ideas into the public sphere.
Academic Group Membership: GlobPent network UK; Millennial Studies Group
A History of the Charismatic Movement in Britain and the United States of America: The Pentecostal Transformation of Christianity
(Edwin Mellen)
Recently published by Edwin Mellen, and to critical acclaim, this substantial two volume, 850-page, work presents a comparative historical overview and sociological analysis of the fastest growing religious phenomena in the world through the context of Britain and the USA. The publication is built upon detailed archival work, as well as my ethnographic studies conducted over a number of years. The book commences by exploring the Charismatic movement’s roots in the earlier Pentecostal movement and proceeds to trace its impact through the mainline denominations in Britain and the USA. The cultural changes that have shaped the charismatics’ various ‘strands’ are explored before detailing those such as the Jesus movement of the 1960s, the prosperity gospel, and the ‘Third Wave’. Other chapters in the volume are given over to the themes of the prophetic and revivalist movements in the 1990s and early twenty-first century, the Charismatic movement and the Christian Right, and black expressions of charismatic Christianity.
‘This is an extraordinarily comprehensive book that fills a real gap…. (and) will set a standard for years to come.’ (Allan Anderson, Professor of Global Pentecostal Studies, University of Birmingham, UK)
‘Every serious student of Pentecostalism should have it on his/her bookshelf. It is a rich resource for scholars and general readers alike. I highly recommend it.’ (Vinson Synan, Professor of Church History, Regent University/School of Divinity, USA)
‘[This] work in the field of Revivalism offers a compelling range of studies – fieldwork, reflective studies, ethnographic sketches and sociological analysis – that illuminates the varieties and vagaries of an intensely interesting and demanding subject. It will be a vital companion for all those who want to gain some understanding of how an emerging and fresh religious “tradition” is faring within the twenty-first century’(Professor Martyn Percy, Ripon College, Oxford, UK).
‘Stephen Hunt’s substantial study of contemporary revivalism within Pentecostalists,
Fundamentalist and Charismatic movements is a remarkable piece of scholarship both in terms of breadth of mission and the comprehensive detail which it encompasses. ….’ (anon, reviewer, Edwin Mellen)
Contemporary Christianity and LGBT Sexualities (Ashgate).
My aim in editing this volume was to bring together rich empirical material presented by a team of experts in the first comprehensive sociological study of ‘non-hetero’ sexualities in relation to contemporary Christianity. Besides appealing to sociologists, it will have an attraction to the fields of religious studies and theology. Foreworded by Sally Munt, contributors include Andrew Yip, Richard O’Leary and Kristin Aune.
‘….this book raises important issues about the construction of identity – sexual and Christian – and adds a refreshing dimension to the discussions.’ (Elizabeth Stuart, Winchester College)
‘(This book) represents the whole range of LGBT sexualities (and) considers how both sides in the “war” frame their arguments and shape their strategies, and discuses what this means for those whose lives have become the focus of such controversy’ (Linda Woodhead, Lancaster University
Other Publications
Volumes
A History of the Charismatic Movement in Britain and the United States of America: The Pentecostal Transformation of Christianity, Edwin Mellen, 2009.Contemporary Christianity and LGBT Sexualities (edited) Ashgate.
Sociology and Law: The 150th Anniversary of Emile Durkheim - 1858-1917) (edited with M. Marinov and M. Serafimova) Cambridge Scholars, 2009.
Religion in Everyday Life, Routledge, 2005.
The Life Course: A Sociological Introduction, Palgrave, 2005.
The Alpha Enterprise: Evangelism in the Post-Christian Era, Ashgate, 2004.
Alternative Religion: A Sociological Introduction, Ashgate, 2003.
Christian Millenarianism (edited), New York University Press & Hurst Publishing, 2002.
Religion in the West: A Sociological Perspective, MacMillan & the British Sociological Association, 2001.
Anyone for Alpha? Inside a Leading Evangelising Initiative, Darton, Longman & Todd, 2000.
Charismatic Christianity: Sociological Perspectives, (edited with M. Hamilton & T. Walter) MacMillan, 1997.
Forthcoming
Religion and Sexuality: A Research Companion, (edited with A. Yip), Ashgate.
Reference Series on Religion and Sexuality, volume 1, Christianity, (Ashgate)
Reference Series on Religion and Sexuality, volume 2, Islam and Judaism (Ashgate)
Reference Series on Religion and Sexuality, volume 3, The Religions of the East (Ashgate)
Reference Series on Religion and Sexuality, volume 4, The New Religions and Spiritualities (Ashgate)
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Selected Recent Refereed Articles
‘The Emerging Church and its Discontents’, Journal of Beliefs and Values, 23 (9): 287-96, 2009.
‘Charismatic Revival and Precarious Charisma: The Case of the Florida Healing “Outpouring”’, Australian Religious Studies Review, 22 (1), 2009.
‘Betwixt’n Between: The Political Disposition of Roman Catholic Charismatics in the USA’, Politics and Religion, 2 (2): 27-53, 2008.
‘Pentecostal Political Activism in the USA and the UK: A Comparative Analysis’, Politics and Religion, 2 (1): 58-72, 2008.
‘Were the Jesus People Pentecostals?: A Review of the Evidence’, PentecoStudies, 7 (1).
‘“But We're Men Aren't We!”: “Living History” as a “Site” of Masculine Identity Construction’, Men and Masculinities, 10 (4), June: 460-83, 2008.
‘Alpha and the Gay Issue: A Lesson in Homophobia?’, The Journal of Beliefs and Values, 26 (3): 34-40, 2005.
“‘God’s Appointed Time’: The Significance of Signs and Wonders in the Charismatic Movement”, Khthonios, Journal of Australia Society for the Scientific Study of Religion Autumn: 27-35, 2005.
‘The Alpha Programme: Research into a Contemporary Evangelical Initiative’, Journal of Religious Research 1 (1): 56-76, 2005.
‘Alpha: The Theological Debate’, Pentecostudies, casnws.scw.vu.nl/Pentecostudies, 2005.
‘The Alpha Programme: Charismatic Evangelism for the Contemporary Age, Pneuma, Journal of the Society for Pentecostal Studies, Spring, 17 (1): 105-18, 2005.
'Acting the Part: Living History - Who Joins and Why?, Leisure Studies, 23 (4): 387-403, 2004.
'Saints and Sinners: The Role of Conservative Christian Pressure Groups in the Christian Gay Debate in the UK', Religion-on-Line, November, 2003.
‘The Alpha Programme: Some Tentative Observations’, Journal of Contemporary Religion, 18 (1): 77-93, 2003.
'The Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement in Britain: Mobilization and Opposition', Journal of Religion and Society, 4: 1-18, 2002.
'Deprivation and Western Pentecostalism Revisited: The Case of "Classical" Pentecostalism', Pentecostudies, July, casnws.scw.vu.nl/Pentecostudies, 2002.
'Deprivation and Western Pentecostalism Revisited: The Case of Neo-Pentecostalism', Pentecostudies, July, casnws.scw.vu.nl/Pentecostudies, 2002.
‘The “Health and Wealth” Gospel in the UK: Variations on a Theme’, Culture and Religion, 3 (1): 89-104, 2002.
‘The Redeemed Christian Church of God. Black Church Revival in the UK', Pneuma, Journal of the Society for Pentecostal Studies, 24 (1): 62-74, 2002.
"Neither Here Nor There": The Construction of Identities and Boundary Maintenance of West African Pentecostals', Sociology, 36 (1): 147-69, 2002.
'The "Health and Wealth" Gospel in the UK: Variations on a Theme', Culture and Religion, 3 (1): 89-104, 2001.
'The British Black Pentecostal "Revival": Identity and Belief in the "New" Nigerian Churches', Ethnic and Racial Studies, 24 (1) 2001: 104-24, 2001.
'Dramatising the "Health and Wealth Gospel": Belief and Practice of a Neo-Pentecostal "Faith" Ministry', The Journal of Beliefs and Values, 4 (2): 12-23, 2000.
Religion, guest editor (with T.Walter), special edition on the Charismatic Movement, July, 28 (3): 219-22, 1998.
Recent Chapters in Edited Books
‘Sociology’s Contribution to An Understanding of Pentecostalism’, in A. Anderson and A. Droogers (eds.), Handbook of Pentecostalism, Berkeley, CAL: University of California Press, 2010.
‘Durkheimien Approaches to “Implicit’ and ‘Quasi’ Religiosity”: Some Implications for an Analysis of World-Affirming New Religious Movements,’ in S. Hunt, M. Marinov and M. Serafimova (eds.)) Sociology and Law: The 50th Anniversary of Emile Durkheim (1858-1917), Cambridge Scholars, 2009.
‘Death in Everyday Life’, in Religion in the Practice of Everyday Life, Richard D. Hecht and Vincent F. Biondo (eds.), San Francisco, 2009.
‘Introduction: LGBT Sexualities - Thorns in the Flesh?’, in S. Hunt (ed.) Contemporary Christianity and LGBT Sexualities, Ashgate, 2009.
‘Human Rights and Moral Wrongs: The Christian ‘Gay Debate’ and the Secular Sphere’ in S. Hunt (ed.) Contemporary Christianity and LGBT Sexualities, Ashgate, 2009.
'The Toronto Blessing Outside of Canada', in M. Wilkingson (ed.) Penecostal and Charismatic Christianity in Canada, Ottowa University Press, 2008.
‘“Packing Them in the Ailes”: Is Alpha Working?’ in L. Nelstrop, L. and M. Percy (eds.) Evaluating Fresh Expressions: Explorations in Emerging Church, SPCK-Canterbury Press, 2008.
'Religion as a Factor in Life and Death through the Life Course' in J. Beckford and J. Demerath (eds.) A Handbook of the Sociology of Religion, Sage, 2007.
“Forty Years of Millenarian Thought in the Charismatic Movement”, in K. Newport and C. Gibbon (eds.), Expecting the End: Millennialism in Social and Historical Context, Baylor Press, 2006.
‘“Reversed Mission” and the “New’ Black Pentecostal Churches, in D. Kirov (ed.) Religion and Politics, ‘Neofot Rilski’, 2005.
'The Rise and Fall of Post-Millenarianism', in S.Hunt (ed.) Christian Millenarianism, Hurst Publishers, 2002.
'The Tai'ping Rebellion' in S.Hunt (ed.) Christian Millenarianism, Hurst Publishers, 2002.
‘The Devils Advocates’ in M. Percy and I. Jones (eds.) Fundamentalism, Church and Society, SPCK, 2001.
‘Considering the Alternatives: The Prospects of "Fringe" Medicine’ in A. Giddens (ed.) Sociology, Polity Press. 2001.
'At the Cutting Edge of What God is Doing': Millenarianism Aspects of British Neo-Pentecostalism', in S. Porter (eds.) Faith in the Millenium, Sheffield Academic Press, 2001.
'Encountering the "Third Wave". Sociological Methodologies and the Changing Nature of Contemporary Fundamentalism', in L. Francis (ed.) Sociology and Theology, Cassell, 2000.
Recent Encyclopedia Contributions
‘Structure/ Social Systems’, Encyclopedia of Human Development and the Life Course, Gale Cengage, 2008.
‘Charisma’, The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, G. Ritzer (ed.) New York: Routledge, 2007.
‘Class Conflict’, The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, G. Ritzer (ed.) New York: Routledge, 2007.
‘Master Status’, The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, G.Ritzer (ed.) New York: Routledge, 2007.
‘Nozic, Robert’, The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, G.Ritzer (ed.) New York: Routledg, 2007.
‘Organizations’, The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, G.Ritzer (ed.) New York: Routledge, 2007.
‘Sacred’, The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, G.Ritzer (ed.) New York: Routledge, 2007.
‘Social Systems’, The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology, G.Ritzer (ed.) New York: Routledge, 2007.
'Charismatic Movements', Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements, New York: Routledge, 2006.
'Word of Faith Movement', Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements, New York: Routledge, 2006.
'Winner's Gospel', Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements, New York: Routledge, 2004.
'Open Episcopal Church', Encyclopedia of New Religious Movements, New York: Routledge, 2004.
'Protestantism and Human Rights', Encyclopedia of Protestantism, New York: Routledge, 2002.
Recent Selected Reviews
Horse and Buggy Mennonites: Hoofbeats of Humility in a Postmodern World (D. Kraybill, Penn State Press) Journal of Religious History, 33 (1), 2009.
God Seekers: Twenty Centuries of Christian Spiritualities,(Schmidt, R. H., Eerdmans, 2008) Theological Books Review, 21 (2), 2008.
Gathering to His Name: The Story of the Open Brethren in Britain and Ireland (T. Grass, Paternoster) Journal of Religious History, 32 (4), 2008.
American Religions and the Family: How Faith Traditions Cope with Modernizatiom and Democracy (S. Browning and D. Clairmont, Columbia University Press), Journal of Religious History, 32 (1), 2008.
Human Evolution and Christian Ethics,(Pope, S. J.,Cambridge University Press, 2007), Theological Books Review, 20 (1):109-11, 2008.
Leadership in the Salvation Army: A Case Study in Clericalisation, (Hill, H., Paternoster Press, 2006), Theological Books Review, 20 (1):147-9, 2008.
UFO Religion: Inside Flying Saucer Cults and Culture, (Reece, G. L., I B Tauris,) 2007,
Theological Books Review, 20 (1): 3-4, 2008
Religion in the Contemporary World (A. Aldridge, Polity, second edition), Sociological Review, 2007.
Redefining Christian Britain: Post 1945 Perspectives (J. Garnett et al, SCM), Sociological Review, 2007.
Thinking About Religion: An Historical Introduction to Theories of Religion (I. Strenski ed., Blackwell Publishing, Theological Books Review, 19 (1): 6-8, 2007.
Ghost Dances and Identity: Prophetic Religion and American Indian Ethnogenesis in the Nineteenth Century, (Smoak, G. E., University of California Press, 2006), Theological Books Review, 19 (2):123-6, 2007.
A Pentecostal Hermeneutic for the Twenty First century: Spirit, Scripture and Community, (K. Archer: T&T Clark, 2004), Theological Books Review. 18 (1): 86-8, 2007 .
All Abraham's Children: Changing Mormon Conceptions of Race and Lineage (A.L. Mauss, Univerity of Illinois Press), Journal of Religious History, 29 (2), 2006.
Acts of Faith: Explaining the Human Side of Religion (R.Stark & R.Finke, University of California Press), Journal of Religion, 83 (2): 341-42, 2005.
Fundamentalism (S. Bruce) Journal of Contemporary Religion, 17 (1):107-08, 2002.
Dread and Pentecostal. A Political Theology for the Black Church in Britain, (R. Beckford, London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge), Journal of Contemporary Religion, 16 (2): 260-62, 2001.
Religion in the Contemporary World: A Sociological Introduction (A. Aldridge, London: Polity Press,) British Journal of Sociology, 52 (3): 547-48, 2001.
Why Waco?: Cults and the Battle for Religious Freedom in America, (J.Tabor & E. Gallagher, Univ. of California Press) Review of Sociology, 10 (3), 1997.
Selected Recent International Conference Papers
Testing Chaplaincy Reforms: The Case of the UK, paper given to ISSR/ISA conference, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.27th-31st July, 2009.
The Secular Rhetoric of the UK Christian Anti-Gay Lobby, paper given at the Religion and the Politics of the Body Conference, The Nordic Society for the Philosophy of Religion, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, 26-28th June, 2009.
The Secularized Discourse of the UK Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement, paper given to the conference on Changements Familiaux, Changements Religieux, Ecole des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales, EHESS, Paris, 6th June, 2009.
The Emerging Church: Characteristics and Typology, paper given to the Australian Association for the Study of Religion Annual Conference, SBL Regional Conference, Auckland, New Zealand 6th-11th July, 2008.
‘The Right Not to Be Offended’: The Secularized Discourse of the Anti-Gay Christian Movements, paper given to the Australian Association for the Study of Religion Annual Conference, SBL Regional Conference, Auckland, New Zealand 6th-11th July, 2008.
The ‘New’ Black Pentecostal Churches in the UK: Aspects of Boundary Maintenance, paper given to the International Sociological Association, 23rd-26th January, University of Santo Tomas, Manila, Philippines, 2008.
Respondent to Birgit Meyer’s paper ‘Pentecostalism and Globalisation’, conference on Pentecostalism, University of Heildleberg, Heildleberg, Germany, 31st January – 1st February, 2008.
Durkheimien Approaches to ‘Implicit’ and ‘Quasi’ Religiosity – Some Implications for an Analysis of World-Affirming New Religious Movements, The Elementary Forms of New Religious Life, paper given to the Conference Sociology and Law: New Religious Movements, South-West-University, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria, 29th-31st May, 2008.
The Health and Wealth Gospel in Britain: The Contribution of Australia Ministries, paper given to the ‘The end of the world as we know it? New directions in Australian spirituality’ conference, Australian Association for the Study of Religion Annual Conference, Australian Catholic University, Melbourne, Australia, 6th-8th July, 2007.
Sociology’s Contribution to An Understanding of Pentecostalism, paper given to the GloPent conference, Vrije University, Amsterdam, 27th-28th April, 2007.
Discussant and Workshop participant, Making Sense in the City conference, Aula University, Ghent, Belgium, 16th-21st December, 2007.
Respondent to P. Bacchetta’s paper ‘Producing the Hindu Nationalist City: The RSS and its Women’s Wing: Hindu Nationalism in Ahmedabad, Gujarat’, Making Sense in the City conference, Aula University, Ghent, Belgium, 16th-21st December, 2006.
The New Age, Science and Rationalism: Resistance and Accommodation, paper given to the conference of New Spirituality in Monocultural and Pluralistic Societies, Faculty of Applied Social Sciences of AGH University of Science and Technology, and The Institute of Religious Studies of Jagiellonian University, Cracow, Poland, 9th-10th June, 2006.
Gender Roles in the British House Church Movement, paper given to the Gender, Religion and Society Conference, Bar-Ilan University, Israel, 21st May, 2006.
Response to the paper presented by J. Everet Powers and Rachel Schuttle Blair ‘Phoebe Palmer and Her Pentecostal Protogees, 35th Annual meeting of the Society for Pentecostal Studies, Pasadena, USA, March, 2006.
The ‘New’ Black Pentecostal Chuches of Africa, paper given to the ‘Out of Africa’ Conference, Washington, 19th-20th, June,
Black Pentecostal Churches and ‘Reversed Mission’, paper given to the Conference on Religion and Politics, South-West-University, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria, June, 2005.
The Gay Christian Movement: Motivation and Mobilisation, paper given to the Hawaii International Conference on Arts and Humanities, Honolulu, USA, 13-16th January, 2005.
From Renewal to the Toronto Blessing. Forty Years of Millenarian Thought in the Charismatic Movement, paper given to the Millennial Studies Group, Trinity College, Dublin, 14-16th September, 2004.
Religious Freedoms and the Christian Gay Movement in the UK, paper given to the 8th Congress of CESNUR, Waco, Texas, USA, 19th June, 2004.
The Global Impact of American Ministries at the Beginning of the 21st Century, paper given to the 36th World Congress of the International Institute of Sociology, Beijing, China, 11th July., 2004.
The Alpha Course: UK Evangelism in an East European Setting, paper given to the Challenges of Religious Plurality for Eastern and Central Europe, 5thInternational Study of Religion in Central and Eastern Europe Association (ISORECEA) Ivan Franko Lviv National University, Lviv, The Ukraine, 12th December, 2003.
The Alpha Evangelising Initiative, paper given to the 17th Congress of CESNUR, Vilnius University, Lithuania, 23rd April, 2003.
The Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement in the UK: A Study in Homophobia, paper given to the International Sociological Association, Brisbane, Australia, 12th July, 2002.
The Gay Christian Movement in the UK: Mobilisation and Resistance, paper given to the 16th Congress of CESNUR, Salt Lake City, USA, 23rd June, 2002.
MultiReligiosity: The Challenge of the Gay Christian Movement, paper given to the Conference on MultiReligiosity, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark, 16th May, 2002.
Tail-enders
When not working I indulge my passion for travelling (by every conceivable means!). In recent years I have done so widely in North and southern Africa, the Middle East, South East Asia, Australia, the India sub-continent and South America.
