James A. Beckford

James Arthur Beckford (1 December 1942 – 10 May 2022) was a British sociologist of religion. He was professor emeritus of sociology at the University of Warwick and a Fellow of the British Academy. and from 1999 to 2003, as the president of the International Society for the Sociology of Religion.

Apart from general writings on the sociology of religion, Beckford has been a prolific author of books and articles on new religious movements and society's responses to them. He has also researched and written about religious issues affecting prison inmates.

Academic positions In his early career, Beckford held teaching posts at the Universities of Reading and Durham and at Loyola University Chicago.

In 2017, Beckford was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award for Contributions to the Sociology of Religion by the Association for the Sociology of Religion.

Research and publications Beckford's doctoral thesis was the first major sociological study of the Jehovah's Witnesses, The Trumpet of Prophecy (1975), which has remained an important reference work on the group. On the basis of his empirical studies of the anti-cult movement in Britain, France and Germany, Beckford contended that the responses to new religious movements reveal as much about a society as studies of the relevant movements themselves. He has also commented on the increasing importance that the internet has assumed for Muslim communities, saying it had become "a wonderful device (for linking) Muslims around the world, especially Muslims in diaspora. Something like (Facebook) can kind of light up or activate communities that are already in place."

In addition to his books, Beckford has authored around 150 articles and book chapters to date. A festschrift celebrating his contributions to the field, The Centrality of Religion in Social Life. Essays in Honour of James A. Beckford, edited by Eileen Barker, was published in 2008.

Publications Religious Organization (1974) The Trumpet of Prophecy. A Sociological Analysis of Jehovah's Witnesses (1975) Cult Controversies: The Societal Response to New Religious Movements (1985) New Religious Movements and Rapid Social Change (1986, editor), published by SAGE Publications and UNESCO, Religion and Advanced Industrial Society (1989) The Changing Face of Religion (1989, co-editor) Religion in Prison. Equal Rites in a Multi-Faith Society (1998, with Sophie Gilliat) Secularization, Rationalism and Sectarianism (1999, editor) Social Theory and Religion (2003) Challenging Religion (2003, editor) Muslims in Prison: Challenge and Change in Britain and France (2005) Theorising Religion: Classical and Contemporary Debates (2006, editor)

Articles "Why Britain doesn't go to church", BBC News, 2004-02-17 "Cults need vigilance, not alarmism", Church Times, 2008-06-20