Bonner, Alexa

Dr. Alexa Blonner is a member of the Australian Association for the Study of Religion.  Her book on religious trends entitled Reimagining God and Resacralisation was published by Routledge in 2019. Dr. Blonner was a Unificationist during the 1960s. Ironically, the “cult controversy” that erupted a decade later brought her back in touch with the Unification movement to check things out for herself, and she has kept close tabs ever since. This expanded into an active interest in religion generally and the eventual study of it at an academic level

  • Book Review: Free Maree

    Journal of Unification Studies Vol. 20, 2019 - Pages 273 - 277

    Free Maree. By Maree Gauper

    In her book released this year entitled Free Maree, New Zealand-born Maree (Mah-ree) Gauper describes how in 1983 her family and friends, with the help of costly “deprogrammers” from the United States, forcibly attempted to de-convert her from the Unification faith. She had been a member for over six years.

    With deft use of dialogue, Gauper does a credible job of airing the opposing viewpoints surrounding the controversial “cult” era of the 1970s and 1980s. In fact, she gives the other side a more than decent hearing. With the occasional injection of wry “down under” humor into a quite un-unfunny situation, the reader’s desire to learn whether she succumbs or regains her freedom builds up well.