Why a new generation is turning to tarot to explore spirituality and wellness

Adam Melvin was a student at Mercer University’s McAfee School of Theology when he attended his first tarot reading. He discovered that his evangelical faith and the tarot community shared many of the same values, including empathy and discernment. Melvin pursued tarot reading and other alternative practices while he finished seminary. In 2014, he founded Enlightened Collective, a nonprofit spiritual development group based out of the Little Five Points Community Center. With regular “Tarot Tuesday” pop-ups at Mama Lin’s Chicken Delight at Madison Yards in Reynoldstown, Melvin’s group is one of many bringing this once-fringe practice into the mainstream. Lauren Kelley has a tarot reading residency at Seventh House in Adair Park. (Photo by Lauren Kelley) Finding a new audience Popular with American New Age and counterculture groups in the 1970s, tarot is gaining traction with a new generation seeking screen-free activities and in-person wellness communities. “I do