A Republic of Mind and Spirit : A Cultural History of American Metaphysical Religion

"This path-breaking book tells the story of American metaphysical religion more fully than it has ever been told before, along the way significantly revising the panorama of American religious history. Catherine L. Albanese follows metaphysical traditions from Renaissance Europe to England and then America, where they have flourished from colonial days to the twenty-first century, blending often with African, Native American, and other cultural elements. The book follows evolving versions of metaphysical religion, including Freemasonry, early Mormonism, Universalism, and Transcendentalism--and such further incarnations as Spiritualism, Theosophy, New Thought, Christian Science, and reinvented versions of Asian ideas and practices. Continuing into the twentieth century and after, the book shows how the metaphysical mix has broadened to encompass UFO activity, channeling, and chakras in the New Age movement--and a much broader new spirituality in the present. In its own way, Albanese argues, American metaphysical religion has been as vigorous, persuasive, and influential as the evangelical tradition that is more often the focus of religious scholars' attention. She makes the case that because of its combinative nature--its ability to incorporate differing beliefs and practices--metaphysical religion offers key insights into the history of all American religions."-- Provided by publisher In The Nineteenth And Early Twentieth Centuries, Mexicans And Americans Joined Together To Transform The U.s.-mexico Borderlands Into A Crossroads Of Modern Economic Development. This Book Reveals The Forgotten Story Of Their Ambitious Dreams And Their Ultimate Failure To Control This Fugitive Terrain. Focusing On A Mining Region That Spilled Across The Arizona-sonora Border, This Book Shows How Entrepreneurs, Corporations, And Statesmen Tried To Domesticate Nature And Society Within A Transnational Context. Efforts To Tame A 'wild' Frontier Were Stymied By Labour Struggles, Social Conflict, And Revolution. Fugitive Landscapes Explores The Making And Unmaking Of The U.s.-mexico Border, Telling How Ordinary People Resisted The Domination Of Empires, Nations, And Corporations To Shape Transnational History On Their Own Terms. By Moving Beyond Traditional National Narratives, It Offers New Lessons For Our Own Border-crossing Age. "This path-breaking book tells the story of American metaphysical religion more fully than it has ever been told before, along the way significantly revising the panorama of American religious history. Catherine L. Albanese follows metaphysical traditions from Renaissance Europe to England and then America, where they have flourished from colonial days to the twenty-first century, blending often with African, Native American, and other cultural elements."--Jacket Contents 7 Acknowledgments 9 Introduction 13 Part One. Beginnings 33 1. European Legacies 33 2. Atlantic Journeys, Native Grounds 78 Part Two. Transitions 133 3. Revolutions and Enlightenments 133 4. Communion of Spirits 189 Part Three. Arrivals 269 5. Spirits Reformed and Reconstituted 269 6. Metaphysical Asia 342 7. New Ages for All 406 Coda :The New New Age 508 Notes 529 Index 613 "The book follows evolving versions of metaphysical religion, including Freemasonry [Free masonry], early Mormonism, Universalism and Transcendentalism -- and such incarnations as Spiritualism, Theosophy, New Thought, Christian Science and reinvented ideas of Asia ideas and practices."--Jacket