Pagan family values : childhood and the religious imagination in contemporary American paganism / S. Zohreh Kermani.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kermani, S. Zohreh.

Series:

New and Alternative Religions

New and alternative religions series

North American Religions ; 3

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Neopaganism--United States.

Neopaganism.

Families--Religious life.

Families.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (252 p.)

Place of Publication:

New York : NYU Press, 2013.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

For most of its history, contemporary Paganism has been a religion of converts. Yet as it enters its fifth decade, it is incorporating growing numbers of second-generation Pagans for whom Paganism is a family tradition, not a religious worldview arrived at via a spiritual quest. In Pagan Family Values, S. Zohreh Kermani explores the ways in which North American Pagan families pass on their beliefs to their children, and how the effort to socialize children influences this new religious movement. The first ethnographic study of the everyday lives of contemporary Pagan families, this volume brings their experiences into conversation with contemporary issues in American religion. Through formal interviews with Pagan families, participant observation at various pagan events, and data collected via online surveys, Kermani traces the ways in which Pagan parents transmit their religious values to their children. Rather than seeking to pass along specific religious beliefs, Pagan parents tend to seek to instill values, such as religious tolerance and spiritual independence, that will remain with their children throughout their lives, regardless of these children's ultimate religious identifications. Pagan parents tend to construct an idealized, magical childhood for their children that mirrors their ideal childhoods. The socialization of children thus becomes a means by which adults construct and make meaningful their own identities as Pagans. Kermani’s meticulous fieldwork and clear, engaging writing provide an illuminating look at parenting and religious expression in Pagan households and at how new religions pass on their beliefs to a new generation.

Contents:

Crafting history

Old souls: pagan childhood

Parenting in Neverland

Don't eat the incense: children in ritual

A room full of fireflies

My dream come true

Building fairy houses

American pagan families & family values, online survey

Second-generation pagans: experiences and opinions, online survey.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on online resource; title from PDF title page (publisher's Web site, viewed 08. Jun 2020)

ISBN:

9780814744987

0814744982

OCLC:

852389107