Evangelicals and other Christians often express concern and fear over "the occult," and the analysis can be very superficial. In this podcast noted scholar of new religions, Massimo Introvigne, provides an overview of the Western Esoteric tradition. Introvigne is an Italian sociologist of religions. He is the founder and managing director of the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR), an international network of scholars who study new religious movements. Introvigne is the author of some 70 books and more than 100 articles in the field of sociology of religion. He was the main author of the Enciclopedia delle religioni in Italia (Encyclopedia of Religions in Italy). He is a member of the editorial board for the Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion and of the executive board of University of California Press’ Nova Religio. From January 5 to December 31, 2011, he has served as the “Representative on combating racism, xenophobia and discrimination, with a special focus on discrimination against Christians and members of other religions” of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). From 2012 to 2015 he served as chairperson of the Observatory of Religious Liberty, instituted by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in order to monitor problems of religious liberty on a worldwide scale.

For more on Western Esotericism:

Western Esotericism: A Guide for the Perplexed by Wouter Hanegraaff

https://www.amazon.com/Western-Esotericism-Guide-Perplexed-Guides/dp/1441136460/

Access to Western Esotericism by Antoine Faivre

https://www.amazon.com/Access-Western-Esotericism-Esoteric-Traditions/dp/0791421783/

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Massimo Introvigne and the Western Esoteric Tradition