Email This StoryBU professor studies those drawn to unusual
Sept. 10, 2004By MINDY FERGUSON, reporter
Across the world, groups of people are looking to the strange and unusual to find answers for their futures. But here on campus, Dr. Chris Bader looks to these groups to find what the future holds for all of us.
Bader has served as an associate professor in Baylor's sociology department for two and a half years as a sociology of religion scholar. He is the main webmaster for the American Religion Data Archive, has been published in many credible journals and is a popular teacher. However, before his career in Waco began, Bader encountered some individuals who wouldn't fit in the Baylor bubble. Bader said he enjoys studying deviant religious groups from Bigfoot chasers to UFO abductees to victims of ritual abuse. "I don't care whether Bigfoot exists or not. I want to know about the people," said Bader.
Although he had been interested in science fiction since he was a child, Bader's studies on these deviant groups began during his graduate studies at the University of Washington in Seattle.
For a study in one of his sociology classes, Bader wanted to find an unusual subject, and he came across the UFO Contact Center International located in Washington. He studied the UFO support group for three years, making contacts and building trust relationships with the group. UFO abductees are often shy toward strangers because they are paranoid of ridicule. Bader said it was important for him to be honest and to let the group know that he was a sociologist studying them.
Through his relationships with the many UFO abductees groups, Bader was introduced into the scene of ritual abuse victims. Ritual abuse victims are people who have come to believe their lives have been dominated by an ongoing relationship with one of many underground satanic cults. Bader said he respects members of the cults he studies and rejects claims that they are crazy.
"What is crazy?" Bader said. "Does it necessarily mean that someone is crazy because they chase Bigfoot? You can believe what you want on whether or not this is an acceptable belief, but it is lazy to say that they are crazy."
In the early '90s, Bader met Datus Perry, a 79-year-old Bigfoot chaser in Washington. Perry is one of many Americans who dedicate years to chasing the mystical animal that was popularized in the late 1950s. Perry believes Bigfoot is a form of a nature spirit, can communicate with people and has psychic powers. Perry identifies with Bigfoot, sometimes attributing his own thoughts to the animal. There are different ideas on what the significance of that animal is, but the general consensus among these hunters is that Bigfoot is an undiscovered species. Perry claimed to have seen Bigfoot more than 20 times.
However, Bader has never seen convincing evidence of the animal's existence in his more than 10 visits with Perry. Perry has evidence of the animal's existence ranging from rabbit cages that had been broken into to tape-recorded sounds of the animal's cry.
Since moving to Waco two and a half years ago, Bader has been focusing more on Christian groups for his studies. Deviant religious groups are more prevalent on the West Coast where churchgoers are in the minority. His more recent studies have been focused on how different people's perceptions affect what they believe. He doesn't plan on diving back into studying deviant groups intensely anytime soon.
"I only write about things when there's something interesting to say," Bader said.
Bader's students and colleagues enjoy his abnormal areas of research. Bader is popular among his students, said Dr. Charles Tolbert, chairman of the sociology department. "They love him," he said, noting that his classes are always full. Tolbert said he feels honored to have Bader on the staff at Baylor.
"He's an accomplished scholar and really a rising star. He could have gone anywhere," Tolbert said.
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