Religion, Theory, Critique

Religion, Theory, Critique

Author: Richard King

Publisher: Columbia University Press

Published: 2017-07-18

Total Pages: 558

ISBN-13: 0231518242

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Religion, Theory, Critique is an essential tool for learning about theory and method in the study of religion. Leading experts engage with contemporary and classical theories as well as non-Western cultural contexts. Unlike other collections, this anthology emphasizes the dynamic relationship between "religion" as an object of study and different methodological approaches and openly addresses the question of the manifold ways in which "religion," "secular," and "culture" are imagined within different disciplinary horizons. This volume is the first textbook which seeks to engage discussion of classical approaches with contemporary cultural and critical theories. Contributors write on the influence of the natural sciences in the study of religion; the role of European Christianity in modeling theories of religion; religious experience and the interface with cognitive science; the structure and function of religious language; the social-scientific study of religion; ritual in religion; the phenomenology of religion; critical theory and religion; embodiment and religion; the impact of colonialism and modernity; theorizing religion in terms of race and ethnicity; links among religion, nationalism, and globalization; the interplay of gender, sex, and religion; and religion and the environment. Each chapter introduces the topic, identifies key theorists and issues, and respects the pluralistic nature of the scholarship in the field. Altogether, this collection scrutinizes the explicit and implicit assumptions theorists make about religion as an object of analysis.


Book Synopsis Religion, Theory, Critique by : Richard King

Download or read book Religion, Theory, Critique written by Richard King and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2017-07-18 with total page 558 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Religion, Theory, Critique is an essential tool for learning about theory and method in the study of religion. Leading experts engage with contemporary and classical theories as well as non-Western cultural contexts. Unlike other collections, this anthology emphasizes the dynamic relationship between "religion" as an object of study and different methodological approaches and openly addresses the question of the manifold ways in which "religion," "secular," and "culture" are imagined within different disciplinary horizons. This volume is the first textbook which seeks to engage discussion of classical approaches with contemporary cultural and critical theories. Contributors write on the influence of the natural sciences in the study of religion; the role of European Christianity in modeling theories of religion; religious experience and the interface with cognitive science; the structure and function of religious language; the social-scientific study of religion; ritual in religion; the phenomenology of religion; critical theory and religion; embodiment and religion; the impact of colonialism and modernity; theorizing religion in terms of race and ethnicity; links among religion, nationalism, and globalization; the interplay of gender, sex, and religion; and religion and the environment. Each chapter introduces the topic, identifies key theorists and issues, and respects the pluralistic nature of the scholarship in the field. Altogether, this collection scrutinizes the explicit and implicit assumptions theorists make about religion as an object of analysis.


Marx, Critical Theory, and Religion

Marx, Critical Theory, and Religion

Author:

Publisher: BRILL

Published: 2006-08-01

Total Pages: 419

ISBN-13: 9047410181

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This collection of essays brings together scholars who use frameworks provided by Marx and Critical Theory in analyzing religion. Its goal is to establish a critical theory of religion within sociology of religion as an alternative to rational choice.


Book Synopsis Marx, Critical Theory, and Religion by :

Download or read book Marx, Critical Theory, and Religion written by and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2006-08-01 with total page 419 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection of essays brings together scholars who use frameworks provided by Marx and Critical Theory in analyzing religion. Its goal is to establish a critical theory of religion within sociology of religion as an alternative to rational choice.


Choice and Religion

Choice and Religion

Author: Steve Bruce

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 9780198295846

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"Choice and Religion provides a detailed critique of 'rational choice' to demonstrate that industrialisation has secularised the western world and that diversity, far from making religion more popular by allowing individuals to maximize their returns, undermines it. The claim that competition promotes religion is refuted with evidence from a wide variety of western societies. Bruce also examines the Nordic countries and the ex-communist states of eastern Europe to explore the consequences of different sorts of state regulation, and to show that ethnicity is a more powerful determinate of religious change than market structures. Where religion matters, it is not because individuals are maximising their returns but because it defines group identity and is deeply implicated in social conflict."--BOOK JACKET.


Book Synopsis Choice and Religion by : Steve Bruce

Download or read book Choice and Religion written by Steve Bruce and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 1999 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Choice and Religion provides a detailed critique of 'rational choice' to demonstrate that industrialisation has secularised the western world and that diversity, far from making religion more popular by allowing individuals to maximize their returns, undermines it. The claim that competition promotes religion is refuted with evidence from a wide variety of western societies. Bruce also examines the Nordic countries and the ex-communist states of eastern Europe to explore the consequences of different sorts of state regulation, and to show that ethnicity is a more powerful determinate of religious change than market structures. Where religion matters, it is not because individuals are maximising their returns but because it defines group identity and is deeply implicated in social conflict."--BOOK JACKET.


Eight Theories of Religion

Eight Theories of Religion

Author: Daniel L. Pals

Publisher:

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 360

ISBN-13:

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Why do human beings believe in divinities? Why do some seek eternal life, while others seek escape from recurring lives? Why do the beliefs and behaviors we typically call "religious" so deeply affect the human personality and so subtly weave their way through human society? Revised and updated in this second edition, Eight Theories of Religion considers how these fundamental questions have engaged the most important thinkers of the modern era. Accessible, systematic, and succinct, the text examines the classic interpretations of religion advanced by theorists who have left a major imprint on the intellectual culture of the twentieth century. The second edition features a new chapter on Max Weber, a revised introduction, and a revised, expanded conclusion that traces the paths of further inquiry and interpretation traveled by theorists in the most recent decades. Eight Theories of Religion, Second Edition, begins with Edward Burnett Tylor and James Frazer--two Victorian pioneers in anthropology and the comparative study of religion. It then considers the great "reductionist" approaches of Sigmund Freud, Emile Durkheim, and Karl Marx, all of whom have exercised wide influence up to the present day. The discussion goes on to examine the leading challenges to reductionism as articulated by sociologist Max Weber (new to this edition) and Romanian-American comparativist Mircea Eliade. Finally, it explores the newer methods and ideas arising from the African field studies of ethnographer E. E. Evans-Pritchard and the interpretive anthropology of Clifford Geertz. Each chapter offers biographical background, theoretical exposition, conceptual analysis, and critical assessment. This common format allows for close comparison and careful evaluation throughout. Ideal for use as a supplementary text in introductory religion courses or as the central text in sociology of religion and courses centered on the explanation and interpretation of religion, Eight Theories of Religion, Second Edition, offers an illuminating treatment of this controversial and fascinating subject.


Book Synopsis Eight Theories of Religion by : Daniel L. Pals

Download or read book Eight Theories of Religion written by Daniel L. Pals and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 360 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Why do human beings believe in divinities? Why do some seek eternal life, while others seek escape from recurring lives? Why do the beliefs and behaviors we typically call "religious" so deeply affect the human personality and so subtly weave their way through human society? Revised and updated in this second edition, Eight Theories of Religion considers how these fundamental questions have engaged the most important thinkers of the modern era. Accessible, systematic, and succinct, the text examines the classic interpretations of religion advanced by theorists who have left a major imprint on the intellectual culture of the twentieth century. The second edition features a new chapter on Max Weber, a revised introduction, and a revised, expanded conclusion that traces the paths of further inquiry and interpretation traveled by theorists in the most recent decades. Eight Theories of Religion, Second Edition, begins with Edward Burnett Tylor and James Frazer--two Victorian pioneers in anthropology and the comparative study of religion. It then considers the great "reductionist" approaches of Sigmund Freud, Emile Durkheim, and Karl Marx, all of whom have exercised wide influence up to the present day. The discussion goes on to examine the leading challenges to reductionism as articulated by sociologist Max Weber (new to this edition) and Romanian-American comparativist Mircea Eliade. Finally, it explores the newer methods and ideas arising from the African field studies of ethnographer E. E. Evans-Pritchard and the interpretive anthropology of Clifford Geertz. Each chapter offers biographical background, theoretical exposition, conceptual analysis, and critical assessment. This common format allows for close comparison and careful evaluation throughout. Ideal for use as a supplementary text in introductory religion courses or as the central text in sociology of religion and courses centered on the explanation and interpretation of religion, Eight Theories of Religion, Second Edition, offers an illuminating treatment of this controversial and fascinating subject.


Darwinism as Religion

Darwinism as Religion

Author: Michael Ruse

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2017

Total Pages: 329

ISBN-13: 0190241020

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'Darwinism as Religion' argues that the theory of evolution given by Charles Darwin in the 19th-century has always functioned as much as a secular form of religion as anything purely scientific. Through the words of novelists and poets, Michael Ruse argues that Darwin took us from the secure world of Christian faith into a darker, less friendly world of chance and lack of meaning.


Book Synopsis Darwinism as Religion by : Michael Ruse

Download or read book Darwinism as Religion written by Michael Ruse and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2017 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'Darwinism as Religion' argues that the theory of evolution given by Charles Darwin in the 19th-century has always functioned as much as a secular form of religion as anything purely scientific. Through the words of novelists and poets, Michael Ruse argues that Darwin took us from the secure world of Christian faith into a darker, less friendly world of chance and lack of meaning.


Orientalism and Religion

Orientalism and Religion

Author: Richard King

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013-04-03

Total Pages: 300

ISBN-13: 1134632347

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Orientalism and Religion offers us a timely discussion of the implications of contemporary post-colonial theory for the study of religion. Richard King examines the way in which notions such as mysticism, religion, Hinduism and Buddhism are taken for granted. He shows us how religion needs to be reinterpreted along the lines of cultural studies. Drawing on a variety of post-structuralist and post-colonial thinkers, such as Foucault, Gadamer, Said, and Spivak, King provides us with a challenging series of reflections on the nature of Religious Studies and Indology.


Book Synopsis Orientalism and Religion by : Richard King

Download or read book Orientalism and Religion written by Richard King and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-04-03 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Orientalism and Religion offers us a timely discussion of the implications of contemporary post-colonial theory for the study of religion. Richard King examines the way in which notions such as mysticism, religion, Hinduism and Buddhism are taken for granted. He shows us how religion needs to be reinterpreted along the lines of cultural studies. Drawing on a variety of post-structuralist and post-colonial thinkers, such as Foucault, Gadamer, Said, and Spivak, King provides us with a challenging series of reflections on the nature of Religious Studies and Indology.


Critical Theory of Religion

Critical Theory of Religion

Author: Marsha Hewitt

Publisher: Fortress Press

Published: 1995-01-01

Total Pages: 256

ISBN-13: 9781451414035

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This volume brings together, in an exciting and original way, the major themes of critical social theory and feminist theology. Marsha Aileen Hewitt shows how critical themes emerge in the works of Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza, Mary Daly, and Rosemary Radford Ruether, and how their work provides a starting point for a feminist critical theory of religion.


Book Synopsis Critical Theory of Religion by : Marsha Hewitt

Download or read book Critical Theory of Religion written by Marsha Hewitt and published by Fortress Press. This book was released on 1995-01-01 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume brings together, in an exciting and original way, the major themes of critical social theory and feminist theology. Marsha Aileen Hewitt shows how critical themes emerge in the works of Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza, Mary Daly, and Rosemary Radford Ruether, and how their work provides a starting point for a feminist critical theory of religion.


Theories of Religion

Theories of Religion

Author: Seth Daniel Kunin

Publisher: Rutgers University Press

Published: 2006

Total Pages: 534

ISBN-13: 9780813539652

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This book provides a comprehensive selection of readings that relate to and explore the definition of religion. The texts come from a wide range of approaches, unified both by the questions they are addressing and their broadly social scientific perspective. The disciplines covered include anthropology, phenomenology, psychology and sociology. The editors have also included some key texts relating to the feminist approach to and critique of religion. The first section of the book includes some of the foundational texts, such as materials by Marx, Freud, and Durkheim. The remaining sections look at more recent discussions of the issues from the different disciplinary perspectives. Each reading is introduced by a biographical sketch of the author. The book also includes introductory discussions to each section that both raise the key issues developed in a particular discipline and address the disciplinary approaches from a more critical stance. Theories of Religion: A Reader is an invaluable critical resource, accessible to a broad audience as well as students of theology and religious studies.


Book Synopsis Theories of Religion by : Seth Daniel Kunin

Download or read book Theories of Religion written by Seth Daniel Kunin and published by Rutgers University Press. This book was released on 2006 with total page 534 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a comprehensive selection of readings that relate to and explore the definition of religion. The texts come from a wide range of approaches, unified both by the questions they are addressing and their broadly social scientific perspective. The disciplines covered include anthropology, phenomenology, psychology and sociology. The editors have also included some key texts relating to the feminist approach to and critique of religion. The first section of the book includes some of the foundational texts, such as materials by Marx, Freud, and Durkheim. The remaining sections look at more recent discussions of the issues from the different disciplinary perspectives. Each reading is introduced by a biographical sketch of the author. The book also includes introductory discussions to each section that both raise the key issues developed in a particular discipline and address the disciplinary approaches from a more critical stance. Theories of Religion: A Reader is an invaluable critical resource, accessible to a broad audience as well as students of theology and religious studies.


Religion as Critique

Religion as Critique

Author: Irfan Ahmad

Publisher: UNC Press Books

Published: 2017-11-20

Total Pages: 300

ISBN-13: 1469635100

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Irfan Ahmad makes the far-reaching argument that potent systems and modes for self-critique as well as critique of others are inherent in Islam--indeed, critique is integral to its fundamental tenets and practices. Challenging common views of Islam as hostile to critical thinking, Ahmad delineates thriving traditions of critique in Islamic culture, focusing in large part on South Asian traditions. Ahmad interrogates Greek and Enlightenment notions of reason and critique, and he notes how they are invoked in relation to "others," including Muslims. Drafting an alternative genealogy of critique in Islam, Ahmad reads religious teachings and texts, drawing on sources in Hindi, Urdu, Farsi, and English, and demonstrates how they serve as expressions of critique. Throughout, he depicts Islam as an agent, not an object, of critique. On a broader level, Ahmad expands the idea of critique itself. Drawing on his fieldwork among marketplace hawkers in Delhi and Aligarh, he construes critique anthropologically as a sociocultural activity in the everyday lives of ordinary Muslims, beyond the world of intellectuals. Religion as Critique allows space for new theoretical considerations of modernity and change, taking on such salient issues as nationhood, women's equality, the state, culture, democracy, and secularism.


Book Synopsis Religion as Critique by : Irfan Ahmad

Download or read book Religion as Critique written by Irfan Ahmad and published by UNC Press Books. This book was released on 2017-11-20 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Irfan Ahmad makes the far-reaching argument that potent systems and modes for self-critique as well as critique of others are inherent in Islam--indeed, critique is integral to its fundamental tenets and practices. Challenging common views of Islam as hostile to critical thinking, Ahmad delineates thriving traditions of critique in Islamic culture, focusing in large part on South Asian traditions. Ahmad interrogates Greek and Enlightenment notions of reason and critique, and he notes how they are invoked in relation to "others," including Muslims. Drafting an alternative genealogy of critique in Islam, Ahmad reads religious teachings and texts, drawing on sources in Hindi, Urdu, Farsi, and English, and demonstrates how they serve as expressions of critique. Throughout, he depicts Islam as an agent, not an object, of critique. On a broader level, Ahmad expands the idea of critique itself. Drawing on his fieldwork among marketplace hawkers in Delhi and Aligarh, he construes critique anthropologically as a sociocultural activity in the everyday lives of ordinary Muslims, beyond the world of intellectuals. Religion as Critique allows space for new theoretical considerations of modernity and change, taking on such salient issues as nationhood, women's equality, the state, culture, democracy, and secularism.


The Critique of Religion and Religion’s Critique

The Critique of Religion and Religion’s Critique

Author:

Publisher: BRILL

Published: 2020-04-14

Total Pages: 354

ISBN-13: 9004419047

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The Critique of Religion and Religion’s Critique: On Dialectical Religiology, is a book compiled in honour of Rudolf J. Siebert, Critical Theorist of Society and Religion. It is meant to both illuminate and interrogate his critical approach to the study of religion: Dialectical Religiology.


Book Synopsis The Critique of Religion and Religion’s Critique by :

Download or read book The Critique of Religion and Religion’s Critique written by and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2020-04-14 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Critique of Religion and Religion’s Critique: On Dialectical Religiology, is a book compiled in honour of Rudolf J. Siebert, Critical Theorist of Society and Religion. It is meant to both illuminate and interrogate his critical approach to the study of religion: Dialectical Religiology.