About the project

Spiritual Sixties is a collaborative college research project developed in Flint, Michigan. Our mission is to examine how faith, spiritual exploration, and religious transformation reshaped American culture during one of the most turbulent decades in modern history.

Reimagining faith in the 1960s

The 1960s witnessed an unprecedented upheaval in traditional religious practices. From institutional modernizations such as the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II) to radical countercultural seekers turning toward Eastern mysticism, American spirituality splintered in countless directions. Our project investigates both mainstream reforms and alternative belief systems that defined the era.

New religious movements, cults, and counterculture

A central focus of our study is the rise of experimental and extremist spiritual groups. We investigate movements such as the Jesus People, the international growth of the Hare Krishna movement, and communal groups like the Children of God. Alongside these, we dissect the dark fringes of the counterculture, including the Manson Family and the emergence of modern Satanism as a cultural phenomenon.

A multimodal historical approach

As a student-led academic initiative, this website combines thoughts from student-authored essays, curated archival photographs, video analyses, and detailed timelines. We designed this multimodal platform so readers and students alike can engage with primary sources and gain a clear, nuanced understanding of the 1960s spiritual revolution.

"By examining both the institutional renewals and the fringe movements of the 1960s, we uncover how deeply spirituality influenced the social revolution of the twentieth century."

Spiritual Sixties research group