Queer Saints: A Radical Guide to Magic, Miracles, and Modern Intercession

Boldly redefining and broadening the meaning of sainthood, magic, and miracles.  

Everyone has patron saints, even the marginalized who may feel abandoned and removed from the tradition of saint veneration. Antonio Pagliarulo, author of The Evil Eye, grew up among Italian immigrants, practitioners of folk magic and saint veneration. A lifelong lover of saints, he seeks to bring their blessings to those who have long felt cut off from these traditions. Queer Saints is not only a compendium of queer people who have lived extraordinary lives, accomplished extraordinary feats, and who now dwell comfortably in the spirit realm; it is also a spiritual gateway that invites you to explore more deeply the power of folk magic and its practices, of co-creation, allyship, and mystical solidarity.

Saints derive from many spiritual and religious traditions, not just Roman Catholicism. No canonization process is required for folk saints, also known as unofficial saints. Pagliarulo offers readers a wide range of saints that includes the traditional, such as Mary Magdalene, Francis of Assisi, and Hildegard of Bingen, as well as re-envisioned saints specifically for a queer constituency. These include Saint David Bowie, Saint Freddie Mercury, Saint Alexander McQueen, Saint Moms Mabley, and Saint André Leon Talley. Pagliarulo offers practical information on how to venerate them―from building altars to making offerings. Whether queer themselves, or people whose allyship or achievements are embraced by the queer community, queer saints are a new and needed paradigm for those seeking new paths to meaning.

Both a primer on magical practice and a guide to radical transcendence and transformation, Queer Saints makes change and self-empowerment accessible to readers of all faiths and belief systems by spotlighting the transformative impact queer saints have had on our world and their burgeoning influence on our spiritual future.

Antonio Pagliarulo's work has been published by The Washington Post, NBC News, New York Daily News, The Wild Hunt, and Religion News Service. He is the author of Out Magazine’s article “The Catholic church named a millennial saint—when is it going to name a queer one?” He is the son of southern Italian immigrants and was raised in a home where the magical arts were commonplace. He lives in New York City.