Nature & Supernature— Harmony & Mastery: Irony and Evolution in Contemporary Nature Religion

Abstract

Nature religion devotees … seek harmony with nature through preservation of the natural world, but they simultaneously attempt to bend nature to their will, whether through physical, mental, or magical technique. Albanese shows how the mastery impulse supports repressive ideologies, spotlighting how notions of “natural law” and “rights” deployed nature as a religious symbol serving racist nationalism and ... manifest destiny.