Voices from the Pagan Census: A National Survey of Witches and Neo-Pagans in the United States (Studies in Comparative Religion) [Hardcover]

Helen A. Berger (Author), Evan A. Leach (Author), Leigh S. Shaffer (Author)

Book Description

Series: Studies in Comparative Religion | Publication Date: June 2003

Voices from the Pagan Census provides unprecedented insight into the expanding but largely unstudied religious movement of Neo-Paganism in the United States. Helen A. Berger, Evan A. Leach, and Leigh S. Shaffer present the findings of "The Pagan Census," which was created and distributed by Berger and Andras Corban Arthen of the Earthspirit Community. Analyzing the most comprehensive and largest-scale survey of Neo-Pagans to date, the authors offer a portrait of this emerging religious community, including an examination of Neo-Pagan political activism, educational achievements, family life, worship methods, experiences with the paranormal, and beliefs about such issues as life after death.

A collection of religious groups whose practices evolved from Great Britain's Wicca movement of the 1940s, Neo-Paganism spread to the United States in the 1960s. While the number of people who identify themselves with the religion has continued to rise, quantitative study of Neo-Paganism has been difficult given the movement’s lack of centralized leadership and doctrine and its development as scattered, independent groups and individuals. Endorsed by all major Neo-Pagan leaders, "The Pagan Census" generated a demographically diverse response. In contrast to most previous surveys, which were limited to Neo-Pagan festivals, this survey incorporates input from the large population of practitioners who do not participate in such events.

Keenly anticipated by the academic and Neo-Pagan communities, the results of the census provide the most in-depth information about the group yet assembled. Comparing Neo-Pagans with American society at large, Berger, Leach, and Shaffer show that although the two groups share certain statistical characteristics, there are differences as well. The scholars also identify variations within the Neo-Pagan population, including those related to geography and to the movement's multiple spiritual paths.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This wide-ranging, non-random survey and analysis encompasses a broad sample of the Neo-Pagan community, including Wiccans, Pagans, Goddess Worshippers, Druids, Shamans, Unitarian Universalist Pagans, and assorted Odinists and "magic workers." For all their diversity, a certain profile emerges. Typical Neo-Pagans are white, college-educated middle class women (men account for about a third of Neo-Pagans). They tend to hold liberal views and be politically active, especially on environmental issues. They are more likely than the average American to have had a paranormal or magical experience, and more likely to invoke quantum mechanics and string theory to explain it. They are broadly supportive of alternative lifestyles and sexualities, and tend to approve of group marriage, in theory if not in practice; but they split over the propriety of sex between spiritual teachers and students. The study also surveys participation in a variety of Neo-Pagan ritual practice and festivals and explores attitudes towards intra-pagan controversies: Neo-Pagans disdain New Agers as dilettantes and violently reject any association with Satanists, but embrace the title of "witch" with pride. The authors, professors of sociology (Berger and Shaffer) and management (Leach), break down the data by sex, geographical region and Neo-Pagan sect, and provide an even-handed, nuanced commentary on the development of Neo-Paganism and the relation of Neo-Pagan beliefs and opinions to the larger political and cultural landscape.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Inside Flap

"Because the Neo-Pagan movement is comprised of small, decentralized, non-doctrinaire groups, creating a representative profile of Neo-Paganism has presented a real challenge to social scientists. This breakthrough study moves beyond previous case studies of local groups and surveys of festival gatherings to provide a treasure trove of national survey data on six strands of the Neo-Pagan tradition: Wiccans, Pagans, Goddess Worshipers, Druids, Shamans, and Unitarian Universalist Pagans. Voices from the Pagan Census is a significant contribution to our understanding of Neo-Paganism."--David G. Bromley, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Virginia Commonwealth University

"To survey a 'hidden population' is an enormous methodological challenge, one that the authors have succeeded in meeting. Their material provides exciting new insights into the growing Neo-Pagan community of the United States that will stimulate other researchers, provide material for classroom discussion, and appeal to the general reader."-- Vivianne Crowley, Heythrop College, University of London

"Voices from the Pagan Census develops a reliable and fascinating social profile of the Neo-Pagan movement. It joins a small number of excellent studies documenting the changing face of religion in America. A unique resource, this book should be read by everyone interested in the study of new religious movements."--Lorne L. Dawson, Department of Religious Studies, University of Waterloo

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 232 pages
• Publisher: Univ of South Carolina Pr (June 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1570034885
• ISBN-13: 978-1570034886
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,620,610 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars AN INTERESTING SOURCE OF DATA ABOUT PAGAN/WICCAN TRADITIONS, July 28, 2011

By 

Steven H. Propp (Sacramento, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Voices from the Pagan Census: A National Survey of Witches and Neo-Pagans in the United States (Studies in Comparative Religion) (Hardcover)

Helen Berger is a professor of sociology at West Chester University, and also the author of A Community of Witches: Contemporary Neo-Paganism and Witchcraft in the United States (Studies in Comparative Religion), Witchcraft and Magic: Contemporary North America, Teenage Witches: Magical Youth and the Search for the Self, etc. Evan Leach is professor of management at West Chester, and Leigh Shaffer is a professor of sociology at West Chester.

They wrote in the Preface to this 2003 book, "(the book) is an analysis of the data collected in a national survey of Neo-Pagans titled The Pagan Census, conducted between 1993 and 1995. Our intent in writing this book is to provide scholars with data that may inform their research on Neo-Pagans, give Neo-Pagans some insights into their community, and provide the general reader with an overview of this new religion... This book provides a voice to the over two thousand individuals who answered this survey and through them a unique view into the Neo-Pagan community."

Here are some additional quotations from the book:

"Neo-Pagans also tend to be more politically liberal and more politically active than their neighbors." (Pg. xv)
"...it was impossible to do an accurate census... because Neo-Pagan organizations were unwilling to give us their membership lists, as they felt this would violate their members' privacy..." (Pg. 2)
"In our survey 50.9 percent of the respondents state that they are currently solitary practitioners." (Pg. 12)
"Starhawk, the most widely read Witch in the English language, serves as an important bridge between more traditional Wicca and Dianics because she incorporates both into her vision of the religion." (Pg. 14)
"Odinists tend to be more politically and socially conservative than other Neo-Pagans." (Pg. 17)
"...although Neo-Pagans see overlaps between their spiritual practices and those of the New Age, they also view these paths as distinct... Although negative notions of the New Age exist, these are not universal among the Neo-Pagans in our survey." (Pg. 25)
"The three most popular sects are Wicca, Pagans, and Goddess Worshipers... the term Neo-Pagan is used by far fewer individuals than Pagan is." (Pg. 91)
"Neo-Pagans on the whole are more politically active; those who attend festivals tend to be drawn from the more politically active subsection of the Neo-Pagan population---i.e., those who work in groups." (Pg. 215)

4.0 out of 5 stars Good source, February 6, 2010

By 

K. Sokol - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Voices from the Pagan Census: A National Survey of Witches and Neo-Pagans in the United States (Studies in Comparative Religion) (Hardcover)

I very much enjoyed this book. It was an excellent source for statistical data on a very little looked at group. The NORC and write-in format allowed for a lot of information to be conveyed.