Paganistan: Contemporary Pagan Community in Minnesota's Twin Cities

Murphy Pizza

May 2016 · Routledge

About this ebook

Paganistan - a moniker adapted by the Twin Cities Contemporary Pagan community - is the title of a history and ethnography of a regionally unique, urban, and vibrant community in Minnesota. The story of the community traces the formation of some of the earliest organizations and churches in the US, the influence of publication houses and bookstores, the marketplace, and the local University, on the growth and sustenance of a distinct Pagan community identity, as well as discussions of the patterns of diversifying and cohesion that occur as a result of societal pressure, politics, and generational growth within it. As the first ever study of this long-lived community, this book sets out to document Paganistan as another aspect of the increasing prevalence of Paganism in the US and contributes to the discussion of the formation of new American religious communities. Revealing how canonical theories about community formation in anthropology do not always fit comfortably nor accurately describe how a vibrant Pagan community creates and sustains itself, this book will be of interest to scholars of religion and new religious movements worldwide, and offers a valuable contribution to discussions within both urban anthropology and sociology.

About the author

Murphy Pizza is an anthropologist specializing in religious studies, visual culture, and ethnic studies. She received her doctorate in anthropology from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2009, and currently teaches courses in liberal arts and sciences at MCAD, St. Catherine University, and Minnesota School of Business. She co-edited The Brill Handbook of Contemporary Paganism (2009) with James R. Lewis, and has contributed to many other book and journal publications in the fields of New Religions and Contemporary Paganism. She lives and works in the Twin Cities.