The Future of Metaphysical Religion in America

Mark Silk (Ph.D., Harvard University), is professor of religion and public life and director of the Leonard E. Greenberg Center for the Study of Religion and Public Life. He was editor of the multi-volume Future of Religion in America series published by Columbia University Press, editor of the Religion by Region series, published by Alta Mira, and editor and a major contributor to the Greenberg Center’s magazine, Religion in the News. Christopher White (Ph.D., Harvard University) is professor and chair of religion at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. His most recent book is Other Worlds: Spirituality and the Search for Invisible Dimensions, published by Harvard University Press.

Introduction.- Metaphysical Religion and Spirituality: A Measured Approach.- The Place of Nature in Metaphysical Religion: A Brief History.- Mind, Body, and Spirit: Metaphysical Healing in America.- Architects of the Now, Gatekeepers of the Past: Transformational Festivals and Other Destinations of "Spiritual" Americans.- Spiritualizing the Other: Appropriating and Commodifying Practices in Metaphysical Religion.

"This book mainly focuses on the religious-social dynamics of the United States, the challenges related to defining metaphysical religion provide valuable insight outside of the United States, too. Therefore, this book can be recommended to graduate students and scholars of Religious Studies and Sociology." (Zsuzsanna Szugyiczki, Religious Studies Review, Vol. 50 (2), June, 2024)