Religious studies is the designation commonly used in the English-speaking world for a multi-disciplinary, secular study of religion that dates to the late 19th century in Europe (and the influential early work of such scholars as Friedrich Max Müller, in England, and Cornelius P. Tiele, in the Netherlands), but is practiced today by scholars worldwide. It is distinct from confessional theology in that it emphasizes human society and behavior rather than metaphysics. It draws upon multiple disciplines and their methodologies including the anthropology, sociology, psychology, philosophy, and history of religion. In its early years, it was known as Comparative Religion or the Science of Religion and, in the US, there are those who today also know the field as the History of Religion (associated with methodological traditions traced to the University of Chicago in general, and in particular Mircea Eliade, from the late 1950s through to the late 1980s). Known as Religionswissenschaft in Germany and Sciences de la religion in the French-speaking world, this academic field emphasizes the systematic, historically-based, and cross-cultural description, comparison, interpretation, and explanation of religious beliefs, behaviors, and institutions. Max Müller Friedrich Max Müller (December 6, 1823 – October 28, 1900), more commonly known as Max Müller, was a German Orientalist, one of the founders of Indian studies, who virtually created the discipline of comparative religion. ... Theology (Greek θεος, theos, God, + λογος, logos, word or reason) means reasoned discourse concerning religion, spirituality and God. ... Plato and Aristotle, by Raphael (Stanza della Segnatura, Rome). ... The anthropology of religion involves the study of religious institutions in relation to other social institutions, and the comparison of religious beliefs and practices across cultures. ... The sociology of religion is primarily the study of the practices, social structures, historical backgrounds, development, universal themes, and roles of religion in society. ... Psychology of religion is psychologys theory of religious experiences and beliefs. ... Philosophy of religion is the rational study of the meaning and justification of fundamental religious claims, particularly about the nature and existence of God (or gods, or the divine). ... The History of religions refers to the Religiongeschichteschule, a Nineteenth century German school of thought which was the first to systematically study religion as a socio-cultural phenomenon. ... Mircea Eliade Mircea Eliade (March 13, 1907 – April 22, 1986) was a Romanian historian, theorist of religion, and novelist notably in the fantasy and autobiographical genres. ...

Intellectual foundation and background

Before religious studies became a field in its own right (e.g., flourishing in the US as of the late-1960s), several key intellectual figures explored religion from a variety of perspectives. One of these figures was the famous pragmatist William James. His 1902 Gifford lectures and book The Varieties of Religious Experience examined religion from a psychological-philosophical perspective and is still influential today. His essay The Will to Believe defends the rationality of faith. To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... William James William James (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910) was a pioneering American psychologist and philosopher. ... 1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... The Gifford Lectures were established by the will of Adam Lord Gifford (d. ... The Varities of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature is a work by William James. ...

Max Weber studied religion from an economic perspective in The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, his most famous work. As a major figure in sociology, he has no doubt influenced later sociologists of religion. Emile Durkheim also holds continuing influence as one of the fathers of sociology. He explored Protestant and Catholic attitudes and doctrines regarding suicide in his work Suicide. In 1912 he published his most memorable work on religion, Elementary Forms of the Religious Life. Maximilian Weber (IPA: []) (April 21, 1864 – June 14, 1920) was a German political economist and sociologist who is considered one of the founders of the modern study of sociology and public administration. ... The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism is a book written by Max Weber, a German economist and sociologist in 1904 and 1905 that began as a series of essays. ... Social interactions of people and their consequences are the subject of sociology studies. ... David Émile Durkheim (April 15, 1858 - November 15, 1917) is known as the founder of modern sociology. ... Protestantism is one of three primary branches of Christianity. ... 1912 (MCMXII) was a leap year starting on Monday in the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Tuesday in the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

History of religious studies

Interest in the general study of religion dates back to at least Hecataeus of Miletus (ca. 550 BCE – ca. 476 BCE) and Herodotus (ca. 484 BCE – 425 BCE). Later, during the Middle Ages, Islamic scholars studied Persian, Jewish, Christian, and Indian belief and practice. The first history of religion was the Treatise on the Religious and Philosophical Sects (1127 CE), written by the Muslim scholar Muhammad al-Shahrastani. Peter the Venerable, also working in the twelfth century, studied Islam and made possible a Latin translation of the Qur'an. Notwithstanding the long interest in the study of religion, the academic discipline Religious Studies is relatively new. Dr. Chris Partridge notes that the "first professorships were established as recently as the final quarter of the nineteenth century."[1] In the nineteenth century, the study of religion was done through the eyes of science. Max Müller wrote in his Introduction to the Science of Religion (1873): "...the duty of those who have devoted their life to the study of the principal religions of the world in their original documents, and who value and reverence it in whatever form it may present itself, to take possession of this new territory in the name of true science." Hecataeus (c. ... The Latin word circa, literally meaning about, is often used to describe various dates (often birth and death dates) that are uncertain. ... The Common Era (CE or C.E.), sometimes known as the Current Era or Christian Era, is the period of measured time beginning with the year 1 (the traditional birthdate of Jesus) to the present. ... Bust of Herodotus at Naples Herodotus of Halicarnassus (Greek: , Herodotos) was a historian who lived in the 5th century BC (484 BC-ca. ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... For other uses, including people named Islam, see Islam (disambiguation). ... Zoroastrianism is the name of the religion and philosophy based on the teachings ascribed to the prophet Zoroaster (Zarathushtra, Zartosht). ... This article describes the Jewish religion; for a consideration of ethnic, historic, and cultural aspects of the Jewish identity refer to the article Jew. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on Jesus of Nazareth, and on his life and teachings as presented in the New Testament. ... Peter the Venerable (about 1092 - December 25, 1156 in Cluny), also known as Peter of Montboissier, was born to Raingarde in Auvergne. ... The Quran [1] (Arabic: , literally the recitation; also called The Noble Quran; also transliterated as Quran, Koran, and Al-Quran, Turkish Kuran), is the central religious text of Islam. ... Max Müller Friedrich Max Müller (December 6, 1823 – October 28, 1900), more commonly known as Max Müller, was a German philologist and Orientalist, one of the founders of Indian studies, who virtually created the discipline of comparative religion. ...

Partridge writes that "by the second half of the twentieth century the study of religion had emerged as a prominent and important field of academic enquiry." He cites the growing distrust of the empiricism of the nineteenth century and the growing interest in non-Christian religions and spirituality coupled with convergence of the work of social scientists and that of scholars of religion as factors involved in the rise of Religious Studies.

In the 1960s and 1970s, the term "religious studies" became common and interest in the field increased. New departments were founded and influential journals of religious studies were initiated (for example, Religious Studies and Religion). In the forward to Approaches to the Study of Religion, Ninian Smart wrote that "in the English-speaking world [religious studies] basically dates from the 1960s, although before then there were such fields as 'the comparative study of religion', the 'history of religion', the 'sociology of religion' and so on..." The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ... Professor Roderick Ninian Smart (1927–2001) was a writer and university educator. ...

In the 1980s, in both Britain and America, "the decrease in student applications and diminishing resources in the 1980s led to cut backs affecting religious studies departments." (Partridge) Later in the decade, religious studies began to pick up as a result of integrating religious studies with other disciplines and forming programs of study that mixed the discipline with more utilitarian study. The 1980s decade refers to the years from 1980 to 1989, inclusive, informally sometimes including the years 1979, 1990 and 1991. ... This article is about the country in North America. ...

Philosophy of religion uses philosophical tools to evaluate religious claims and doctrines. Western philosophy has traditionally been employed by English speaking scholars. (Some other cultures have their own philosophical traditions including Indian, Muslim, and Jewish.) Common issues considered by the (Western) philosophy of religion are the existence of God, belief and rationality, cosmology, and logical inferences of logical consistency from sacred texts. For other uses, including people named Islam, see Islam (disambiguation). ... This article describes the Jewish religion; for a consideration of ethnic, historic, and cultural aspects of the Jewish identity refer to the article Jew. ... God is the deity believed by monotheists to be the supreme reality. ... Religious cosmologies are ways of explaining the history and evolution of the universe based, at least in part, on the acceptance of principles that cannot be justified by accepted scientific arguments (those are otherwise generally considered via physical cosmology). ...

Although philosophy has long been used in evaluation of religious claims (i.e. Augustine and Pelagius's debate concerning original sin), the rise of scholasticism in the 11th century, which represented "the search for order in intellectual life" (Russell, 170), more fully integrated the Western philosophical tradition (with the introduction of translations of Aristotle) in religious study. For the first Archbishop of Canterbury, see Saint Augustine of Canterbury Aurelius Augustinus, Augustine of Hippo, or Saint Augustine (November 13, 354 – August 28, 430) was one of the most important figures in the development of Western Christianity. ... Pelagius (c. ... Scholasticism comes from the Latin word scholasticus, which means that [which] belongs to the school, and is the school of philosophy taught by the academics (or schoolmen) of medieval universities circa 1100–1500. ... As a means of recording the passage of time, the 11th century was that century which lasted from 1001 to 1100. ... Aristotle (Ancient Greek: , Aristotélēs) (384 BC – March 7, 322 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. ...

Western philosophy of religion is differentiated from the many Eastern philosophical traditions by generally being written from a third party perspective. The scholar need not be a believer. Theology stands in contrast to the philosophy of religion in that, generally, the scholar is first and foremost a believer employing both logic and scripture as evidence. At least one theologian has noted that one can study and analyze a symphony to understand it in great detail, but it is the listening that is of greatest significance. Theology (Greek θεος, theos, God, + λογος, logos, word or reason) means reasoned discourse concerning religion, spirituality and God. ...

There is some amount of overlap between subcategories of religious studies and the discipline itself. Religious studies seeks to study religious phenomena as a whole, rather than be limited to the approaches of its subcategories.

History of religion

The history of religions is not concerned with theological claims apart from their historical significance. Some topics of this discipline are the historicity of religious figures, events, and the evolution of doctrinal matters. The History of religions refers to the Religiongeschichteschule, a Nineteenth century German school of thought which was the first to systematically study religion as a socio-cultural phenomenon. ... Historicity refers to the historical authenticity of a person, event, or place. ...

Sociology of religion

Sociology of religion is concerned with the social aspects of religion, both in theory and in practice. Social structure, the relationship between individual practitioner and religious community, and the construction of meaning are a few of the concerns of the sociologist of religions. Emile Durkheim was the forefather of the sociological study of religion. In 1912 he stated in The Elementary Forms of Religious Life that religion cannot be separated from society, and vice-versa. The sociology of religion is primarily the study of the practices, social structures, historical backgrounds, development, universal themes, and roles of religion in society. ... David Émile Durkheim (April 15, 1858 - November 15, 1917) is known as the founder of modern sociology. ...

Psychology of religion

The psychology of religion is concerned with what psychological principles are operative in religious communities and practitioners. William James was one of the first academics to bridge the gap between the emerging science of psychology and the study of religion. A few issues of concern to the psychologist of religions are the psychological nature of religious conversion, the making of religious decisions, and the psychological factors in evaluating religious claims. Psychology of religion is psychologys theory of religious experiences and beliefs. ... William James William James (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910) was a pioneering American psychologist and philosopher. ... Psychology is an academic and applied field involving the study of the human mind, brain and behaviour. ... Religious conversion is the adoption of new religious beliefs that differ from the converts previous beliefs; in some cultures (e. ...

Anthropology of religion

The anthropology of religion is principally concerned with the cultural aspects of religion. Of primary concern to the anthropologist of religions are rituals, beliefs, religious art, and practices of piety. The anthropology of religion involves the study of religious institutions in relation to other social institutions, and the comparison of religious beliefs and practices across cultures. ...

Literary approaches

There are many approaches to the study of sacred texts. One of these approaches is to interpret the text as a literary object. Metaphor, thematic elements, and the nature and motivations of the characters are of interest in this approach. An example of this approach is God: A Biography, by Jack Miles. Jack Miles work has appeared in numerous national publications, including The Atlantic Monthly, The New York Times, The Boston Globe, The Washington Post, and The Los Angeles Times. ...

Scientific approaches

Recently there has been an interesting meeting between neurology and religion, especially Buddhism. Also of interest has been the temporal lobe, the "God center" of the brain. (Ramachandran, ch. 9) Neurology is a branch of medicine dealing with disorders of the nervous system. ... Buddhism (also known as Buddha Dharma, the teachings of the awakened one) is a religion, a practical philosophy, and arguably a psychology, focusing on the teachings of Gautama Buddha (Pali: Gotama Buddha), who lived on the Indian subcontinent most likely from the mid-6th to the early 5th century BCE...

Although not a widely accepted discipline within religious studies, neurological findings in regard to religious experience may very well become of more widespread interest to scholars of religion. Scientific investigators have used a SPECT scanner to analyze the brain activity of both Christian contemplatives and Buddhist meditators, finding them to be quite similar (Newberg, et. al.). SPECT (Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography) is a nuclear medicine tomographic imaging technique using gamma rays. ...

Fritjof Capra (The Tao of Physics) and others have noted parallels between Quantum Mechanics (particularly Bell's theorem) and various religious traditions, especially Vedanta. Philosopher Ken Wilber avers that modern physics neither proves nor even supports a mystical worldview. However he also states that the founders of relativity and quantum theory were nearly all mystics, who understood that science is no longer antithetical to such views. (Wilber, preface) Dr. Fritjof Capra – photo by Kate Mount Dr. ... The Tao of Physics (full title: The Tao of Physics: An Exploration of the Parallels Between Modern Physics and Eastern Mysticism) was a 1975 book by physicist Fritjof Capra, published by Shambhala Publications of Berkeley, California. ... For a non-technical introduction to the topic, please see Introduction to Quantum mechanics. ... Bells theorem is the most famous legacy of the late John Bell. ... Vedanta (Vedānta, वेदान्त, pronounced as ) means the anta or culmination or essence of the Vedas. ... Ken Wilber Kenneth Earl Wilber Jr. ...

Influential figures

• Emile Durkheim
• Max Weber
• Carl Jung
• E.B. Tylor
• James Frazer
• Sigmund Freud
• Victor Turner
• J.Z. Smith
• E.E. Evans-Pritchard
• Talal Asad
• Mircea Eliade
• Joseph Campbell
• Ninian Smart
• Peter L. Berger
• Diana L. Eck
• Alan Watts

David Émile Durkheim (April 15, 1858 - November 15, 1917) is known as the founder of modern sociology. ... Maximilian Weber (IPA: []) (April 21, 1864 – June 14, 1920) was a German political economist and sociologist who is considered one of the founders of the modern study of sociology and public administration. ... Carl Jungs autobiographical work Memories , Dreams and Reflections, Fontana edition Carl Gustav Jung (July 26, 1875 – June 6, 1961) (IPA:) was a Swiss psychiatrist and founder of analytical psychology. ... Sir James George Frazer (January 1, 1854, Glasgow, Scotland – May 7, 1941), was a Scottish social anthropologist influential in the early stages of the modern studies of mythology and comparative religion. ... Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud (IPA: []) (May 6, 1856 – September 23, 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of the psychoanalytic school of psychology. ... Victor W. Turner (May 28, 1920 - 1983) was a renowned anthropologist. ... Jonathan Zittell Smith, better known as Jonathan Z. Smith or simply J. Z. Smith, is a historian of religions. ... Edward Evan (E. E.) Evans-Pritchard (September 21, 1902 - September 11, 1973) was a British anthropologist instrumental in the development of social anthropology in that country. ... Mircea Eliade Mircea Eliade (March 13, 1907 – April 22, 1986) was a Romanian historian, theorist of religion, and novelist notably in the fantasy and autobiographical genres. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Professor Roderick Ninian Smart (1927–2001) was a writer and university educator. ... Peter Ludwig Berger (born March 17, 1929) is an American sociologist well known for his work The Social Construction of Reality: A Treatise in the Sociology of Knowledge (New York, 1966). ... Diana L. Eck is Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies at Harvard University and the Director of the Pluralism Project. ... From The Essential Alan Watts Alan Wilson Watts (January 6, 1915 – November 16, 1973) was a philosopher, writer, speaker, and expert in comparative religion. ...

Methodologies

A number of methodologies are used in Religious Studies. Methodologies are hermeneutics, or interpretive models, that provide a structure for the analysis of religious phenomena. Hermeneutics (Hermeneutic means interpretive), is a branch of philosophy concerned with human understanding and the interpretation of texts. ...

Phenomenology

Phenomenology is "arguably the most influential approach to the study of religion in the twentieth century." (Partridge) The term was first used by Pierre Daniel Chantepie de la Saussaye in his work Lehrbuch der Religiongeschichte (1887). Chantepie's phenomenology catalogued observable characteristics of religion much like a zoologist would categorize animals or an entomologist would categorize insects. Look up Phenomenology in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

In part due to Husserl's influence, "phenomenology" came to "refer to a method which is more complex and claims rather more for itself than did Chantepie’s mere cataloguing of facts." (Partridge) Husserl argued that the foundation of knowledge is consciousness. He recognized "how easy it is for prior beliefs and interpretations to unconsciously influence one’s thinking, Husserl’s phenomenological method sought to shelve all these presuppositions and interpretations." (Partridge) Husserl introduced the term "eidetic vision" to describe the ability to observe without "prior beliefs and interpretations" influencing understanding and perception. Edmund Husserl Edmund Gustav Albrecht Husserl (April 8, 1859 - April 26, 1938, Freiburg) was a German philosopher, known as the father of phenomenology. ... Consciousness is a quality of the mind generally regarded to comprise qualities such as subjectivity, self-awareness, sentience, sapience, and the ability to perceive the relationship between oneself and ones environment. ...

His other main conceptual contribution is the idea of the "epoch": setting aside metaphysical questions and observing phenomena in and of themselves. Husserl "sought to place philosophy on a descriptive and scientific basis." (Partridge)

Partridge examines the most systematic and thorough example of phenomenology, Gerardus van der Leeuw’s Religion in Essence and Manifestation (1933):

• Firstly, argues van der Leeuw, the student of religion needs to classify the religious phenomena into distinct categories: e.g. sacrifice, sacrament, sacred space, sacred time, sacred word, festivals, and myth.
• Secondly, scholars then need to interpolate the phenomena into the their own lives. That is to say, they need to empathetically (Einfuhlung) try and understand the religion from within....The life examined by the religious studies scholar, insists van der Leeuw, needs to "acquire its place in the life of the student himself who should understand it out of his inner self."
• Thirdly, van der Leeuw stresses perhaps the fundamental phenomenological principle, namely epoch, the suspension of value-judgements and the adoption of a neutral stance.
• Fourthly, scholars needs to clarify any apparent structural relationships and make sense of the information. In so doing, they move towards a holistic understanding of how the various aspects of a religion relate and function together.
• Fifthly, this leads naturally to a stage at which "all these activities, undertaken together and simultaneously, constitute genuine understanding [Verstehen]: the chaotic and obstinate 'reality' thus becomes a manifestation, a revelation" (eidetic vision).
• Sixthly, having thus attained this general grasp, there is a continual need to make sure that it tallies with the up-to-date research of other disciplines, such as archaeology, history, philology etc. For van der Leeuw, as for other phenomenologists, the continual checking of one’s results is crucial to the maintenance of scholarly objectivity. In order to avoid degeneration into fantasy, phenomenology must always feed on facts.
• Finally, having gone through the above six stages, the phenomenologist should be as close as anyone can be to an understanding of the 'meaning' of the religious phenomena studied and be in a position to relate his understanding to others.

Although phenomenology may seem naive, most phenomenologists are aware of the fact that understanding is asymptotic and there will never be complete and absolute understanding. By setting aside metaphysical issues (such as a Christian phenomenologist would do with monotheism/polytheism while studying Hinduism), phenomenologists keep religious studies separate from theology and (hopefully) decrease their bias and come away with a more accurate picture.

Seven generally agreed upon features of phenomenology are as follows:

• Phenomenologists tend to oppose the acceptance of unobservable matters and grand systems erected in speculative thinking;

• Phenomenologists tend to oppose naturalism (also called objectivism and positivism), which is the worldview growing from modern natural science and technology that has been spreading from Northern Europe since the Renaissance;

• Positively speaking, phenomenologists tend to justify cognition (and some also evaluation and action) with reference to what Edmund Husserl called Evidenz, which is awareness of a matter itself as disclosed in the most clear, distinct, and adequate way for something of its kind;

• Phenomenologists tend to believe that not only objects in the natural and cultural worlds, but also ideal objects, such as numbers, and even conscious life itself can be made evident and thus known;

• Phenomenologists tend to hold that inquiry ought to focus upon what might be called "encountering" as it is directed at objects and, correlatively, upon "objects as they are encountered" (this terminology is not widely shared, but the emphasis on a dual problematics and the reflective approach it requires is);

• Phenomenologists tend to recognize the role of description in universal, a priori, or "eidetic" terms as prior to explanation by means of causes, purposes, or grounds; and

• Phenomenologists tend to debate whether or not what Husserl calls the transcendental phenomenological epochê and reduction is useful or even possible.

source

For the more general philosophical movement of phenomenology, see http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/phenomenology/.

Functionalism

Functionalism, in regard to religious studies, is the analysis of religions and their various communities of adherents using the functions of particular religious phenomena to interpret the structure of religious communities and their beliefs. A major criticism of functionalism is that it lends itself to teleological explanations. An example of a functionalist approach is understanding the dietary restrictions contained in the Pentateuch as having the function of promoting health or providing social identity (i.e. a sense of belonging though common practice). Functionalism is a term with several senses: For functionalism in sociology, see Functionalism (sociology). ... Teleology (telos: end, purpose) is the philosophical study of design, purpose, directive principle, or finality in nature or human creations. ... Look up Pentateuch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

References

• Miles, Jack. God: A Biography. New York: Alfred Knopf, 1995 ISBN 0-679-41833-4. Vintage books ed. 1996 ISBN 0-679-74368-5
• Newberg, Andrew, Eugene D'Aquili and Vince Rause. Why God Won't Go Away: Brain Science and the Biology of Belief. New York: Ballantyne Books, 2001 ISBN 0-345-44033-1
• Ramachandran, V.S. Phantoms in the Brain.
• Russell, Jeffrey Burton. A History of Medieval Christianity: Prophecy and Order.
• Wilber, Ken, Quantum Questions: Mystical Writings of the World's Great Physicists. Boston: New Science Library, 1984, ISBN 0-394-72338-4

External links

• Academic Societies
  • AAR- American Academy of Religion.
  • EASR- European Association for the Study of Religions.
  • IAHR-International Association for the History of Religion.
  • The Council of Societies for the Study of Religion.
  • NAASR - North American Association for the Study of Religion.
• The Religious Research Association
• The Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (SSSR)
• The Institute for the Study of American Religion
• The International Society for the Sociology of Religion

• Online Works and Sources
  • Studying Religion: An Introduction
  • What is the Academic Study of Religion? A Student's Perspective.
  • The Will to Believe.
  • Buddhism's Other Option.
  • Dalai Lama enlists science in quest for 'a happy mind'.
  • God on the Brain - transcript.
  • Functionalism
    • Partridge, Chris. The Academic Study of Religion
• Critiques of Religious studies in the US
  • U.S. Hinduism Studies: A Question of Shoddy Scholarship
  • Biases in Hinduism studies

• Religious Studies as an academic discipline in UK schools
  • Schemes of work for QCA KS3 syllabus, GCSE and A levelen:Religious studies