A 2018 Pew Research poll found 65 percent of Americans aged 18 to 29 believed in at least one of four beliefs that Pew called “New Age” - including the power of psychics, astrology and “that spiritual energy can be located in physical things.” The 2016 General Social Survey conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago found 44 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds said that astrology is “sort of” or “very” scientific, higher than older Americans.īennett discussed the self-exploration at the heart of witchcraft on a recent episode of Infernal Alchemy, the podcast they do with Christian Cuna, 23, a Florida pagan. The growth is dramatically outpacing the total nonfiction print market, NPD says.ĭata is thin specifically on teens and witchcraft, though research on younger Americans offers some context. RIGHT: Bennett is a witch influencer - albeit on a small scale.īook sales on the topic of witchcraft in the past year are up 43 percent over the previous year, according to NPD BookScan, which tracks publishing. LEFT: Bennett embraced witchcraft at the tail end of childhood, which they spent partly in Turkey, their mother’s native country, and in England, where their father is from and still lives. Shot in their bedroom, “Lunar Faery Witch” has 1,100 YouTube subscribers following their video explainers about different aspects of witchcraft. Teen witches today aren’t so much rebelling, but building on ties to traditional religions that have already weakened in many American families.īennett is a witch influencer - albeit on a small scale. Polls show Americans for decades have been loosening their connection to institutional monotheism. Many young Americans are spiritual seekers, it’s just that the places they look for awe and higher truths aren’t necessarily institutions or scriptures but increasingly in nature and in themselves.Ī key difference between today’s teens and earlier generations who explored witchcraft are their parents. But social media, commercial data and expert interviews show a deep interest and openness to the supernatural, varied forms of consciousness and the power of not just gods and goddesses of paganism but also saints, angels and demons of Christianity, Islam and other millennia-old faiths.
A very tiny witch free#
While Bennett identifies as nonbinary, they describe their spiritual practice as feminist and meant to be empowering to nonbinary people and those “who have ties to womanhood.”Ī recent Washington Post-Ipsos poll found that 54 percent of teens ages 14-18 said “living a religious life” is very important to them, compared to 95 percent who prioritized having enough free time and 93 percent who prioritized career success. Viv, 18, poses for a portrait at their home. Like Bennett, many other teens discussing witchcraft these days on social media - the hashtag #witchtok on the youth-oriented site TikTok has 19.4 billion views - are looking for a personalized practice that taps into their own spiritual power and identity and feels authentic. Young Americans in particular are revamping mystical language and ancient rituals for their gender-fluid, write-my-own-rules, insta-worthy world. There is also a slightly singed bundle of juniper, which Bennett burns to cleanse and protect the work area as they focus on connecting to various energies, gods and goddesses, and more deeply to themself.īennett practices witchcraft, part of a panoply of multiple nature-based spiritual practices whose growing popularity can be measured in book sales, social media activity and research. They call it their “working area.” Other items laid out on it include a labradorite crystal for mind-clearing and enhanced intuition, and a wand made of selenite for its protective quality.
Bennett, who identifies as nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns, starts by meditating and selecting a tarot card from a deck on a small wooden table.