@article{Roseman:2026:10.3390/rel17070756,
author = {Roseman, L},
doi = {10.3390/rel17070756},
journal = {Religions},
title = {Micro-Messiahs and the Revolutionary Dynamics of Psychedelic Diffusion},
url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel17070756},
volume = {17},
year = {2026}
}

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TY  - JOUR
AB  - Prophetic or messianic states of consciousness are charged with moral urgency and are active, historical, political, and sometimes infused with ego. In this paper, I inquire into psychedelic micro-messianic phenomenology and revolutionary dynamics through the historical case studies of Allen Ginsberg, Master Irineu, and John Wilson (Moonhead)—figures associated with the diffusion of LSD, Daime (ayahuasca), and peyote, respectively. I propose that, in moments of tension and uncertainty, psychedelics can catalyse micro-messianic movements through which these substances diffuse into new situations. A revelatory event motivates the subject, in fidelity to the event, to spread the substance and practice. Through the innovation, a movement emerges until it is routinised or inverted. A new status quo then stabilises, from which another revelatory event may arise. Through these historical cases, I offer a detailed analysis of such revolutionary dynamics, drawing on various theoretical perspectives (Weber, Wallace, Kuhn, Taves, Whitehouse, Rogers, Badiou, and others). In doing so, I demonstrate how psychedelic insights and actions are intertwined, and how psychedelic revelations seek to ripple outward into movements.
AU  - Roseman,L
DO  - 10.3390/rel17070756
PY  - 2026///
TI  - Micro-Messiahs and the Revolutionary Dynamics of Psychedelic Diffusion
T2  - Religions
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel17070756
VL  - 17
ER  - 

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