Contents -- Preface -- Introduction Religion, Popular Culture and Baudrillard -- Yoda goes to Glastonbury: An Introduction to Hyper-Real Religions -- Hyper-Real Religion Performing in Baudrillard's Integral Reality -- Part One 20th Century Case Studies of Hyper-Real Religions -- Occultural Bricolage and Popular Culture: Remix and Art in Discordianism, the Church of the SubGenius, and the Temple of Psychick Youth -- Heaven's Gate, Science Fiction Religions, and Popular American Culture -- Brain, Biological Robots and Androids: Prophecies in the Realm of Science Fiction and Religion -- Part Two 21st Century Case Studies of Hyper-Real Religions -- "A World Without Rules and Controls, Without Borders or Boundaries": Matrixism, New Mythologies, and Symbolic Pilgrimages -- Alternative Worlds: Metaphysical Questing and Virtual Community Amongst the Otherkin -- Real Vampires as an Identity Group: Analysing Causes and Effects of an Introspective Survey by the Vampire Community -- The Sanctification of Star Wars: From Fans to Followers -- The Spiritual Milieu Based on J. R. R. Tolkien's Literary Mythology -- Part Three The Internet, Computer Games and Casual Dealings with the Hyper-Real Religious Phenomenon -- The Road to Hell is Paved with D20s: Evangelical Christianity and Role-Playing Gaming -- "An Infinity of Experiences." Hyper-Real Paganism and Real Enchantment in World of Warcraft -- Dealing a New Religion: Material Culture, Divination, and Hyper-Religious Innovation -- Who Is Irma Plavatsky? Theosophy, Rosicrucianism, and the Internationalisation of Popular Culture from the Dime Novel to The Da Vinci Code -- The Gods on Television: Ramanand Sagar's Ramayan, Politics and Popular Piety in Late Twentieth-Century India -- Hinduism and Hyper-Reality -- Part Four Reacting to the Hyper-Real Religious Phenomenon.

Poetic Jihadis: Muslim Youth, Hip-hop and the Homological Imagination -- Playing for Christ: Christians and Computer Games -- Some Angel Some Devil: Harry Potter vs. The Roman Catholic Church in Poland -- Contemporary Atheism as Hyper-Real Irreligion: The Enchantment of Science and Atheism in This Cosmos -- Conclusion Anomie, Alienation and the Future of Hyper-Real Religions -- Fantasy, Conspiracy and the Romantic Legacy: Max Weber and the Spirit of Contemporary Popular Culture -- Conclusion: The Future of Hyper-Real Religions? -- Contributors' Biographies -- Index.