FREIMAUREREI, NEUOFFENBARUNGEN UND DIE MODERNE ESOTERIK. RELIGIÖS‐WELTANSCHAULICHE GEGENWARTSKULTUREN [FREEMASONRY, NEW REVELATIONS, AND MODERN ESOTERICISM: RELIGIOUS AND WORLDVIEW CULTURES OF THE PRESENT DAY]. By MatthiasPöhlmann. Media and Religion, 10. Nomos, 2025. Pp. 351. Hardback, €89.00; e‐book, open‐access.

Pöhlmann is a theologian and church representative for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria on issues related to “cults” and worldviews. He is also a lecturer in the Study of Religions and the History of Religions at the University of Munich. This volume represents his cumulative habilitation thesis in the Study of Religions and brings together rather loosely related older articles from the last two decades on “contemporary religious and worldview cultures.” It is noteworthy that they were in part composed as part of his outreach work for the Protestant Church in Germany. A general introduction is followed by three main chapters: the first deals with Freemasonry; the second addresses neo-revelationism, and the third engages with contemporary esotericism in general. Somewhat surprisingly, categories that are at least worthy of discussion are occasionally used relatively uncritically. For example, Freemasonry is often referred to as a “Männerbund,” a term that denotes an all-male secret society but with a ridiculing undertone. Unfortunately, the age of the contributions is often noticeable in the selection and presentation of secondary literature, and the format also leads to some duplication of content. Still, the articles collected here are, in part, of interest, although they alternate between a more theological perspective and more descriptive and analytical approaches rooted in the Study of Religions. His discussion of topics that are more marginal, such as the Catholic musician and recipient of an extensive revelation from Jesus Christ, Jakob Lorber (1800–1864), and the Franconian prophet Gabriele Wittek (1933–2024) and her group “Universelles Leben” (Universal Life), is particularly informative. However, the original contributions' orientation towards a broad audience is often salient.