@article{937244,
      recid = {937244},
      author = {Giordan, Giuseppe. and Possamai, Adam.},
      title = {The social scientific study of exorcism in Christianity /},
      publisher = {Springer,},
      address = {Cham :},
      pages = {1 online resource (247 pages).},
      year = {2020},
      note = {Includes index.},
      abstract = {This book presents an academic analysis of exorcism in  Christianity. It not only explores the crisis and drama of  a single individual in a fight against demonic possession  but also looks at the broader implications for the society  in which the possessed lives. In recognition of this,  coverage includes case studies from various geographical  areas in Europe, North and South America, and Oceania. The  contributors explore the growing significance of the rite  of exorcism, both in its more structured format within  traditional Christian religions as well as in the less  controlled and structured forms in the rites of deliverance  within Neopentecostal movements. They examine theories on  the interaction between religion, magic, and science to  present new and groundbreaking data on exorcism. The fight  against demonic possession underlines the way in which  changes within the religious field, such as the rediscovery  of typical practices of popular religiosity, challenge the  expectations of the theory of secularization. This book  argues that if possession is a threat to the individual and  to the equilibrium of the social order, the ritual of  exorcism is able to re-establish a balance and an order  through the power of the exorcist. This does not happen in  a social vacuum but in a consumer culture where religious  groups market themselves against other faiths. This book  appeals to researchers in the field.},
      url = {http://library.usi.edu/record/937244},
      doi = {https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43},
}