Possession, power, and the New Age ambiguities of authority in neoliberal societies - Wood, Matthew 1970- (Ashgate, 2007)
Includes bibliographical references (pages 179-196) and index
Approaching New Age -- The field of New Age studies -- Power, self and practice -- The meditation group -- Channelling workshops -- The Nottinghamshire fair -- Spiritualism and paganism -- Nonformativeness, possession and class in neoliberal societies
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 secularis
Keywords: Authority; Spirit possession; SOCIAL SCIENCE / Sociology of Religion; Gesellschaft; Religion; New Age movement; Spirit possession -- Social aspects; Neoliberalism -- Religious aspects -- New Age movement; New Age