The Learned Practice of Religion in the Modern University (Scientific Studies of Religion: Inquiry and Explanation)

"In these essays, Donald Wiebe unveils a significant problem in the academic study of religion in colleges and universities in North America and Europe - that studies almost always exhibit a religious bias. To explore this issue, Wiebe looks at the religious and moral agendas behind the study of religion, showing that the boundaries between the objective study of religion and religious education as a tool for bettering society have become blurred. As a result, he argues, religious studies departments have fostered an environment where religion has become a learned or scholarly practice, rather than the object of academic scrutiny. This book provides a critical history of the failure of 20th- and 21st-century scholars to follow through on the 19th-century ideal of an objective scientific study of religious thought and behaviour. Although emancipated from direct ecclesiastical control and, to some extent, from sectarian theologizing, Wiebe argues that research and scholarship in the academic department of religious studies has failed to break free from religious constraints. He shows that an objective scientific study of religious thought and practice is not only possible, but the only appropriate approach to the study of religious phenomena."--Bloomsbury Publishing. Title Page Copyright Page Contents Acknowledgments Abbreviations Introduction Part 1: Disenchantment with Science in the Academic Study of Religion Chapter 1: Including Religion in “Religious Studies” Encyclopedic treatment of the notion of religious studies “Religious studies” in Canada “Religious studies” in Great Britain “Religious studies” in the United States “Religious studies” globally “Religious studies”: A summary and proposal Chapter 2: Secular Theology Is Still Theology Chapter 3: Scientific Study of Religion and Its Cultured Despisers Chapter 4: Apologetic Modes of Theorizing Introduction Theory’s place in the study of religion The resurgence of religion Individual methodological appropriations of religious faith Institutional methodological appropriations of religious faith Conclusion Chapter 5: The Learned Practice of Religion in Canada Introduction Founding figures The founding vision of the CSSR Studies in religion/Sciences Religieuses The state-of-the-art-reviews There is more to this story . . . Conclusion Chapter 6: Affirming Religion in the History of Religious Studies Part 2: Evidencing the Rejection of the Modern Epistemic Tradition in the Study of Religion Chapter 7: Religion Thin and Thick Chapter 8: Incurably Religious: The AAR at Fifty-Five Introduction What the presidents said Analysis and comment Conclusion Chapter 9: American Influence on the Shape of Things to Come Introduction The modern study of religion Religious studies in America: A brief history Religious studies in America: The contemporary scene The shape of things to come Chapter 10: Religious Studies in North America during the Cold War The culture of the Cold War in North America The culture of the Cold War and the academic enterprise The academic study of religion and the Cold War Summary and conclusions Postscript Chapter 11: The Desire for Moral Validation Part 3: In Search of a Culture-Transcending Knowledge of Religions and Religion Chapter 12: Removing Religion from the Study of Religion: A Nineteenth-Century Innovation Chapter 13: Modernism and the Study of Religion Chapter 14: Rejecting a “Science-Lite” Study of Religion in the Modern University The old Methodenstreit and the emergence of a new cultural value The fragility of the scientific revolution The “Dogma” of the modern research university On not taking religion “Seriously”: The new Methodenstreit Religious studies today Conclusion: Need Religious Studies Remain “Conspicuously Unscientific”? “Religious studies”: The academic naturalization of a confessional enterprise On the study of religion as a purely scientific enterprise On keeping “religious studies” scientific Other obstacles to keeping “religious studies” scientific Epilogue: Tending to Werblowsky’s Concerns Notes Chapter 5 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 14 Conclusion References Index "In this book, Donald Wiebe unveils a significant problem in the academic study of religion: that colleges and universities in North America offer an almost exclusively theological account of religion. To explore this issue, Wiebe looks at the religious and moral agendas behind the study of religion, showing that the boundaries between the objective study of religion and religious education as a tool for bettering society have become blurred. As a result, he argues, religious studies departments have fostered an environment where religion has become a learned or scholarly practice, rather the object of academic scrutiny. This book provides a critical history of the failure of 20th and 21st century scholars to follow through on the 19th century ideal of an objective scientific study of religious thought and behaviour. Although emancipated from direct ecclesiastical control and, to some extent, from sectarian theologizing, Wiebe argues that research and scholarship in the academic department of religious studies has failed to break free from religious constraints. He shows that an objective scientific study of religious thought and practice is not only possible, but the only appropriate approach to the study of religious phenomena"-- Provided by publisher