Possession, Power and the New Age
Ambiguities of Authority in Neoliberal Societies
Seiten
2007
Routledge (Verlag)
978-0-7546-3339-6 (ISBN)
Routledge (Verlag)
978-0-7546-3339-6 (ISBN)
Provides a sociological account of contemporary religious phenomena such as channelling, holistic healing, meditation and divination, which are usually classed as part of a New Age Movement. This work criticises the view that such phenomena represent spirituality in which self-authority is paramount.
This book provides a new sociological account of contemporary religious phenomena such as channelling, holistic healing, meditation and divination, which are usually classed as part of a New Age Movement. Drawing on his extensive ethnography carried out in the UK, alongside comparative studies in America and Europe, Matthew Wood criticises the view that such phenomena represent spirituality in which self-authority is paramount. Instead, he emphasises the role of social authority and the centrality of spirit possession, linking these to participants' class positions and experiences of secularisation. Informed by sociological and anthropological approaches to social power and practice, especially the work of Pierre Bourdieu and Michel Foucault, Wood's study explores what he calls the nonformative regions of the religious field, and charts similarities and differences with pagan, spiritualist and Theosophical traditions.
This book provides a new sociological account of contemporary religious phenomena such as channelling, holistic healing, meditation and divination, which are usually classed as part of a New Age Movement. Drawing on his extensive ethnography carried out in the UK, alongside comparative studies in America and Europe, Matthew Wood criticises the view that such phenomena represent spirituality in which self-authority is paramount. Instead, he emphasises the role of social authority and the centrality of spirit possession, linking these to participants' class positions and experiences of secularisation. Informed by sociological and anthropological approaches to social power and practice, especially the work of Pierre Bourdieu and Michel Foucault, Wood's study explores what he calls the nonformative regions of the religious field, and charts similarities and differences with pagan, spiritualist and Theosophical traditions.
Matthew Wood is Lecturer in Sociology in the School of Sociology, Social Policy and Social Work at Queen's University Belfast, UK.
Chapter 1 Approaching New Age; Chapter 2 The field of New Age studies; Chapter 3 Power, self and practice; Chapter 4 The meditation group; Chapter 5 Channelling workshops; Chapter 6 The Nottinghamshire fair; Chapter 7 Spiritualism and paganism; Chapter 8 Nonformativeness, possession and class in neoliberal societies;
Erscheint lt. Verlag | 28.6.2007 |
---|---|
Reihe/Serie | Theology and Religion in Interdisciplinary Perspective Series |
Verlagsort | London |
Sprache | englisch |
Maße | 156 x 234 mm |
Gewicht | 550 g |
Themenwelt | Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Gesundheit / Leben / Psychologie ► Esoterik / Spiritualität |
Geisteswissenschaften ► Religion / Theologie ► Weitere Religionen | |
ISBN-10 | 0-7546-3339-X / 075463339X |
ISBN-13 | 978-0-7546-3339-6 / 9780754633396 |
Zustand | Neuware |
Haben Sie eine Frage zum Produkt? |
Mehr entdecken
aus dem Bereich
aus dem Bereich
Neue medizinische Fakten zur Nahtoderfahrung
Buch | Softcover (2024)
Patmos Verlag
CHF 34,90
mit einem Geleitwort von Elke Heidenreich
Buch | Hardcover (2024)
Kösel (Verlag)
CHF 41,95