ABSTRACT

Paganistan is a community that, despite evidence and experiences supporting its vitality and success, is made up of people who still believe they can do better at maintaining it. Examining a polytheistic subculture would present an opportunity to delve more deeply into the theological and magical cultures in Paganistan and how they overlap and aid in forming community identity. Non-Pagan religions may actually be more diverse, polyaffilative and permeable in boundaries than researchers and theorists give the credit for. It is emic notions expressed by members of Paganistan that people believed that the Twin Cities were filled with witches and Pagans in the 1970s. It is this patterning that also challenges the existing model of many NRM formations like those theorized by Stark and Melton and explored through fieldwork over decades in communities like the Unification Church. Yet, there is an avenue here for intensive analysis to see if common theological themes emerge among the maintained difference in Paganistan.