Abstract EN:

This research, a socio-historical investigation of the French "War on Cults", examines how cults became a major public and political issue in France, as well as a focal point of international controversy. Drawing upon extensive, multi-method fieldwork (interviews, ethnography, archives and statistics), this research revisits the classical views on the topic - namely that the intensity of the anti-cult movement in France is primarily a consequence of its national religious culture. The sociology of the State, the sociology of collective action and the study of international relations pave the way for a nuanced approch on this topic. The analysis emphasizes the structuring power of public authorities on this cause. It demonstrates the material and the symbolic support lent by the State to the movement in France. Anatomizing the controversies that emerged about the French policy, it establishes the role of transnational mobilization in the internationalization of the controversy. A contribution to the social history of post 1968 France, this dissertation takes part in contemporary debates relative to the role of public policies in the structuring of private causes, the recourse to the international arbitrage for adjudicating local conflicts, as well as some recent trends in collective action.