Editing Modern paganism (section)

===Pagan studies===
{{Main|Pagan studies}}
The earliest academic studies of contemporary paganism were published in the late 1970s and 1980s by scholars like [[Margot Adler]], [[Marcello Truzzi]] and [[Tanya Luhrmann]], although it was not until the 1990s that the actual academic field of pagan studies properly developed, pioneered by academics such as Graham Harvey and [[Chas S. Clifton]]. Increasing academic interest in paganism has been attributed to the new religious movement's increasing public visibility, as it began interacting with the [[interfaith dialogue|interfaith movement]] and holding large public celebrations at sites like [[Stonehenge]].{{Sfn|Clifton|Harvey|2004|p=7}}

The first international academic conference on the subject of pagan studies was held at the [[Newcastle University|University of Newcastle upon Tyne]], North-East England in 1993. It was organised by two British religious studies scholars, Graham Harvey and Charlotte Hardman.{{Sfn|Clifton|Harvey|2004|p=8}} In April 1996 a larger conference dealing with contemporary paganism took place at [[Ambleside]] in the [[Lake District]]. Organised by the Department of Religious Studies at the [[University of Lancaster]], North-West England, it was entitled "Nature Religion Today: Western Paganism, Shamanism and Esotericism in the 1990s", and led to the publication of an academic anthology, entitled ''[[Nature Religion Today]]: Paganism in the Modern World''.{{Sfn|Clifton|Harvey|2004|p=8}} In 2004, the first [[peer-review]]ed, [[academic journal]] devoted to pagan studies began publication. ''[[The Pomegranate (journal)|The Pomegranate: The International Journal of Pagan Studies]]'' was edited by Clifton, while the academic publishers AltaMira Press began release of the Pagan Studies Series.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.csulb.edu/~wgriffin/paganstudies/|title=Pagan Studies / AltaMira Press|publisher=csulb.edu|access-date=26 May 2008|archive-date=13 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141213132417/http://www.csulb.edu/~wgriffin/paganstudies/|url-status=live}}</ref> From 2008 onward, conferences have been held bringing together scholars specialising in the study of paganism in Central and Eastern Europe.{{sfn|Aitamurto|Simpson|2013|p=4}}

The relationship between pagan studies scholars and some practising pagans has at times been strained. The Australian academic and practising pagan Caroline Jane Tully argues that many pagans can react negatively to new scholarship regarding historical pre-Christian societies, believing that it is a threat to the structure of their beliefs and to their "sense of identity". She furthermore argues that some of those dissatisfied pagans lashed out against academics as a result, particularly on the Internet.{{Sfn|Tully|2011|pp=98–99}}