6135 University Ave, Rm 1128 Halifax, NS, B3H 4P9 | +1 (902) 494-6593
Christopher Helland
Assistant Dean, Academic Integrity Officer (FASS)
BA , MA (Concordia), PhD (Toronto)
Email Phone
CHelland@dal.ca (902) 494-6757
Location
FASS Building, 3124 Room
Profile
Christopher Helland’s research focuses upon religion in contemporary culture from a sociological perspective. His primary work examines the impact of the Internet and World Wide Web on a variety of religious traditions. In particular, his current project is investigating the effects of computer-mediated communications on diaspora religious groups. He has also done extensive research on contemporary premillennial and apocalyptic movements and studied a variety of UFO based new religious groups.
Homepage
http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/~chelland/index.html
Publications
Forthcoming. Internet Communion and Virtual Faith: The New Face of Religion in the Wired West. Oxford University Press: New York.
2008. "Canadian Religious Diversity Online: A Network of Possibilities." In: Peter Beyer and Lori Beaman (Eds.), Religion and Diversity in Canada. Brill Academic Publishers: Boston.
2007. "Hinduism on the Internet." Encyclopedia of Hinduism. Routledge Reference: New York.
2007. “The Raelian Creation Myth and the Art of Cloning: Reality or Rhetoric?" In: Diana Tumminia (Ed.), Alien Worlds: Social and Religious Dimensions of the UFO Phenomenon. Syracuse University Press.
2007. "Diaspora on the Electronic Frontier: Developing Virtual Connections with Sacred Homelands." Journal of Computer Mediated Communication. Special Issue on Religion and the Internet, Volume 12, Issue 3. http://jcmc.indiana.edu/vol12/issue3/
2006. "Using the Internet for Religious Studies Research." Religious Studies Review, November 32:4.
2006. "Websites for the Study of New Religious Movements." Religious Studies Review, November 32: 4.
2005. "Online Religion as Lived Religion: Methodological Issues in the Study of Religious Participation on the Internet." Online-Heidelberg Journal of Religions on the Internet. Vol. 1, Issue 1. Special Issue on Theory and Methodology. http://www.online.uni-hd.de/
2004. "Popular Religion and the World Wide Web: A Match Made in [Cyber]Heaven." In: Lorne Dawson and Douglas Cowan (Eds.), Religion Online: Finding Faith on the Internet. Routledge: New York.
2003. "From Extraterrestrials to Ultraterrestrials: the Evolution of the concept of Ashtar." In: Christopher Partridge (Ed), UFO Religions. Routledge: London.
2003. "The Ashtar Command." In: James R. Lewis (Ed.), The Encyclopedic Sourcebook of UFO Religions. Prometheus Books: New York.
2003. With Susan Palmer. "UFO Religions Online: Prophetic Failures and the Narrative Techniques of the Ground Crew." In: James R. Lewis (Ed.), The Encyclopedic Sourcebook of UFO Religions. Prometheus Books: New York.
2002. "Surfing for Salvation." Religion. Vol. 32, Issue 4, October.
2000. "The Big Bang and the Big Bomb: Examining the Role of Science and Technology in Apocalyptic Belief Systems." Journal for Millennial Studies. Vol. 2, Issue 2.
2000. "Online Religion/Religion Online and Virtual Communitas." In: Jeffery K. Hadden and Douglas E. Cowan (Eds.), Religion on the Internet: Research Prospects and Promises. JAI Press: New York.
2000. "The Ground Crew/Planetary Activation Organization." In: James R. Lewis (Ed.), UFOs and Popular Culture: An Encyclopedia of Contemporary Myth. ABC-Clio: Santa Barbara, California.
2000. "The Ashtar Command." In: James R. Lewis (Ed.), UFOs and Popular Culture: An Encyclopedia of Contemporary Myth. ABC-Clio: Santa Barbara, California.
1999. "Premillennialism, the Community of Conflict, and the Problems of Classification." Journal of Religion and Culture. Vol. 13, Fall.