The Pragmatics of Defining Religion: Contexts, Concepts and Contests (Studies in the History of Religions) (Studies in the History of Religions)

The Pragmatics of Defining Religion is a multidisciplinary volume on the problem of the definition of religion with chapters on the polemics of defining religion in modern contexts, the history of the concept of religion, the methodology of its definition; it includes several definition proposals. Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents Preface Notes on the contributors PART ONE INTRODUCTION In defence of pragmatism PART TWO MODERN CONTEXTS The politics of defining religion in secular society: From a taken-for-granted institution to a contested resource Religion as claim: Social and legal controversies Religion as memory: Reference to tradition and the constitution of a heritage of belief in modern societies Paradoxes: An essay on the object of the Psychology of Religion PART THREE CONCEPTUAL CHANGES 'Religio' and 'religion' in the 18th century: The contrasting views of Wolff and Edelmann Shifting cargoes: Ernst Troeltsch on the study of religion The sacred in the social sciences: On the definition of religion by the Année sociologique group Psychologists define religion: Patterns and prospects of a century-long quest PART FOUR METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES On defining religion To define or not to define: The problem of the definition of religion Intuiting religion: A case for preliminary definitions The third bank of the river: Play, methodological ludism and the definition of religion Defining 'religions' as the domain of study of the empirical sciences of religions PART FIVE DEFINITION PROPOSALS Defining religion in spite of history The definition of religion: Squaring the circle What is religion? On a semantic definition of religion Religion as the realization of faith: The conceptualization of religion in relational psychoanalysis PART SIX EPILOGUE Contexts, concepts & contests: Towards a pragmatics of defining 'religion' Index of names Index of subjects STUDIES IN THE HISTORY OF RELIGIONS NUMEN BOOK SERIES This volume promotes a pragmatic, anti-essentialist and anti-hegemonic approach to the problem of the definition of religion. It argues that definitions of religion are context-bound strategies for pursuing a variety of purposes, extra-academic as well as academic. Religions being immensely varied, complex and multi-functional phenomena, they need to be studied by several academic disciplines from many different perspectives. It is, therefore, legitimate and useful that many definitions of religions are developed. The volume has contributions from scholars in Philosophy of Religion, the Comparative Study of Religions, Anthropology of Religion, Sociology of Religion and Psychology of Religion. It has chapters on the polemics of defining religion in modern contexts, the history of the concept of religion, and the methodology of its definition; it includes several definition proposals. "This volume promotes a pragmatic, anti-essentialist and anti-hegemonic approach to the problem of the definition of religion. It argues that definitions of religion are context-bound strategies for pursuing a variety of purposes, extra-academic as well as academic. Religions being immensely varied, complex and multi-functional phenomena, they need to be studied by several academic disciplines from many different perspectives. It is, therefore, legitimate and useful that many definitions of religions are developed. The volume has contributions from scholars in Philosophy of Religion, the Comparative Study of Religions, Anthropology of Religion, Sociology of Religion and Psychology of Religion."--Jacket. Edited By Jan G. Platvoet And Arie L. Molendijk. Includes Bibliographical References And Indexes.