A fascinating scholarly look at witchcraft in American society! Why do some individuals in American society resort to the magical beliefs and practices of the occult while the majority do not? Contemporary witches say that witchcraft is a revival of a European Pre-Christian religion called Wicca. Practitioners of Wicca believe the world is alive, interconnected, and responsive to attempts to manipulate invisible, occult forces. These efforts constitute their magic, the �craft� of witchcraft. In the United States, Wicca has become the core of a collection of other pagan traditions, religions, and magical systems. This fascinating ethnography by an anthropologist explores contemporary witchcraft from the unusual perspective of self-identified witches and magicians. Readers have the opportunity to learn what kinds of individuals engage in radical thought movements such as this and view the ideas of witchcraft and magic from the vantage point of those who profess to be witches and practice magic. A description of the demographic characteristics of the group combined with an analysis of their complex belief system provides insight into the unusual behaviors shared by participants in this subculture within American society.

1. Introduction
2. Gerald Gardner and the Wiccan Revival
3. Wicca, a Way of Working
4. What Is a Witch?
5. What Kinds of Individuals Become Witches and Neopagans?
6. The Western Spiritual Tradition
7. Contemporary Western Magic
8. The Transforming Influence of American Gatherings
9. Growth of American Neopaganism from the Roots of British Wicca
10. The Witch Is the Opposite of the Physician
11. The Craft of Healing
12. Suffering as Opportunity to "Shape-Shift"
13. Never Again the Burning Times: Cultural Radicalism
14. Coming of Age
15. Growing Up or Just Getting Big?