Eclectic and esoteric religions and belief systems

Within the past twenty years, contemporary Pagan leaders, progressive Christian and Goddess theologians, advocates for queer and BDSM communities, and therapeutic bodyworkers have all begun to speak forcefully about the sacredness of the body and of touch.

This book contains all three volumes of Edmund Goldsmid's "e;The History of the Devils of Loudun"e;, which deals with the purported demonic possession, sexual repression, religious fanaticism, and mass hysteria that occurred in the small town of Loudun in 17th-century France.

This book explores the inter-relationship between religious groups and wider society and examines the way religious groups change in relation to societal norms, potentially to the point of undergoing processes of 'internal secularisation' within secular and secularist cultures.

Although research on contemporary pilgrimage has expanded considerably since the early 1990s, the conversation has largely been dominated by Anglophone researchers in anthropology, ethnology, sociology, and religious studies from the United Kingdom, the United States, France and Northern Europe.

This comprehensive resource explores the intersection of religion, politics, and the supernatural that spawned the notorious witch hunts in Europe and the New World.

In 1966, Anton LaVey introduced to the world the Church of Satan, an atheistic religion devoted to the philosophy of individualism and pitilessness often associated with Satan.

No puede entenderse la teoría junguiana si no se comprende el lugar de la alquimia en la misma, porque la alquimia constituyó su orientación hermenéutica fundamental durante los últimos treinta años del desarrollo de su concepción.

Neither power nor morality but both.

Critical spirituality is a way of naming a desire to work with what is meaningful in the context of enabling a socially just, diverse and inclusive society.

This book, first published in 1974, shows how social class and origins in mid-nineteenth century Aberdeen were reflected in religious belief and observance, and how in turn this acted as a catalyst for change in society.

Demons, devils, spirits and vampires are present throughout popular Western culture in film, music and literature.

This multidisciplinary volume examines the ongoing effects of James G.

Was treibt Menschen an, Götter zu erschaffen und religiöse Systeme immer wieder neu zu erfinden?

The evil eye has received considerable attention in the literature of disciplines as diverse as anthropology and medicine.

This book delves into the critical question of how counseling can help individuals navigate and resolve these struggles.

Following the journey of Andre Breton, the leader of the Surrealist movement, into exile during the Second World War, the author of this book traces the trajectory of his thought and poetic output from 1941-1948.

What is Mormonism?

Learn to respond effectively and appropriately to spiritual needs in a health care setting Spirituality, Health, and Wholeness: An Introductory Guide for Health Care Professionals explores the principles of spiritual care as applied to clinical practice.

This comprehensive annotated bibliography, first published in 1990, guides the user helpfully through where to find information on various elements on alchemy when researching.

The essays in this Handbook, written by leading scholars working in the rapidly developing field of witchcraft studies, explore the historical literature regarding witch beliefs and witch trials in Europe and colonial America between the early fifteenth and early eighteenth centuries.

Strange Histories is an exploration of some of the most extraordinary beliefs that existed in the late Middle Ages through to the end of the seventeenth century.

The twentieth anniversary edition of The Spiral Dance celebrates the pivotal role the book has had in bringing Goddess worship to the religious forefront.

The Witchcraft Reader offers a wide range of historical perspectives on the subject of witchcraft in a single, accessible volume, exploring the enduring hold that it has on human imagination.

The Salem witch hunt of 1692 is among the most infamous events in early American history; however, it was not the only such episode to occur in New England that year.

This book analyzes the variety of ways through which Japanese religions (Buddhism, Shinto, and new religious movements) contribute to the dynamics of accelerated globalization in recent decades.

By reading "e;The Rosicrucian Quest for Universal Truth,"e; you will be able to learn about the fascinating combination of history and mysticism that surrounds the Rosicrucians.

This vintage classic gives invaluable insight into the mysterious depths of the mind of French author and ceremonial magician, Eliphas Levi.

Arguably no modern ideology has diffused as fast as Socialism.

Originally published in 1974 Intimacy and Ritual is a sympathetic study of spiritualist activities and their relation to the practitioners' secular lives.

Goddess as Nature makes a significant contribution to elucidating the meaning of a female and feminist deity at the beginning of the twenty-first century.

First published in 1999.

A leading figure in the Theosophical Society, Leadbeater was a prolific author, writing on subjects ranging from Buddhism, Masonic history and the origins of Christianity through to the power of thought and the fourth dimension.

This volume brings together for the first time case studies on secularists of the 19th and early 20th centuries in national and transnational perspectives including examples from all over Europe.

This book develops an ethnography of Kamba witchcraft and its contentious relationship with the state in colonial Kenya.

This fascinating book explores the concept of slow living, offering a philosophical and psychological exploration of the need for a slower pace of life.

First published in 1924, Memoirs of a Positivist is both an autobiography of the author and a history of the English Positivist movement in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

This title was first published in 2002.

Demons in the USA argues that the discourse on the demonic that developed in the nineteenth century continues to exert a powerful hold over the American spiritual imagination.

All Religion Is Inter-Religion analyses the ways inter-religious relations have contributed both historically and philosophically to the constructions of the category of religion as a distinct subject of study.

First published in 1978, Don Juan, Mescalito and Modern Magic begins with an analysis of the Castaneda material from the viewpoint of its inherently magical content.

Embracing the Witch and the Goddess is a detailed survey of present-day feminist witches in New Zealand.

From top hats to top secrets, this book is a celebration of illusion technology and mechanisms of trickery through a genre-crossing selection of films.