Description
Book SynopsisInvestigates the varieties of New Age and Neopagan religions in the US from their origins in the nineteenth century to their reemergence in the 1960s counterculture. This book considers the differences and similarities between the New Age and Neopagan movements and observes the antagonistic relationship between these two practices in America.
Trade ReviewThis work offers general readers a scholarly assessment of Neopaganism and the New Age movement... Pike provides an overview of key themes of these movements and traces their beliefs back to 19th-century traditions of mesmerism, seances, Swedenborgianism, and Theosophy... her book provides a necessary complement to Margot Adler'sDrawing Down the Moon and Paul Heelas'sThe New Age Movement. Library Journal A view from the mountain...an admirable job of weaving together multiple strands of New Age practice into a single pattern. -- Michael F. Brown Natural History Pike's study is fascinating in all its detail. -- Dan Barnett Enterprise Record A superb introduction to the visions and practices of both neopagan and New Age movements... Highly recommended. -- W. L. Pitts Jr. Choice [A] lucid and interesting survey of esoteric and New-Age religions. -- Philip Jenkins Journal of American History Pike makes a substantial contribution to our understanding of New Age and Neopagan religions in America... -- David H. Vila, John Brown University Religious Studies Review [Pike] offers a succinct, thorough introduction to the wolrds of Neo-Pagan and New Age practices. -- Ed Cook Journal of Church and State This book works wonderfully to introduce readers to the fascinating and still developing religions... An excellent text for courses. -- Cynthia Eller Journal of Religion A clear and well-written primer for what is a bedazzling array of religious worldviews and practices. -- Guy Lancaster Mission Studies
Table of ContentsAncient Mysteries in Contemporary America Introduction to the Religious Worlds of Neopagans and New Agers Early Varieties of Alternative Spirituality in American Religious History The 1960s Watershed Years Healing and Techniques of the Self "All Acts of Love and Pleasure Are My Rituals": Sex, Gender, and the Sacred The Age of Aquarius
