Imagining the future study of religion and spirituality

Abstract

Having learned many useful lessons from the movement of deconstruction over the previous decades, it is high time for our discipline to move forward and begin reconstructing the study of religion as a whole on new and better foundations. If we want to have our voices heard and have an impact on the wider public debate instead of being marginalized and defunded as irrelevant, we need a positive and convincing, even inspiring new narrative about religion that demonstrates its great importance not just to societal but to general human concerns. The article outlines one possible direction for such a new narrative, focusing on the key terms 'experience,' 'consciousness,' 'imagination,' and 'spirituality.' Far from implying a new kind of religionism along the lines of the Eranos or Eliade schools, this means that we should move such topics out of the taboo sphere for secular scholars and reclaim them for critical non-religionist methods and approaches.

Understanding Factors to COVID-19 Vaccine Adoption in Gujarat, India

“…This section compares perceptions to COVID-19 vaccination of this research with studies from select countries: the USA, Germany, Canada, the UK, Australia, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Japan, and Thailand. These countries were selected because they: (a) collectively represent most continents; (b) have each administered, by 27 November 2021, at least one jab of the COVID-19 vaccine to 40% of the eligible population [ 48 ]; and (c) collectively represent most major religions (Christianity practiced in USA, Germany, Canada, UK, Australia, and Brazil, Islam in Saudi Arabia, Shintōism in Japan, Hinduism in India, and Buddhism in Thailand) [ 111 ], This diversity helped us examine the cross-cultural effect and its influence at the global level [ 112 , 113 , 114 ]. A comparison is represented in Table 2 .…”

Cientista da religião como consultor para desenvolvimento de jogos

“…No entanto, embora não seja incomum às maiores empresas de jogos hoje contratarem equipes de especialistas para montar o universo e a narrativa de seus produtos, o cientista da religião ainda está excluído, em grande medida, desses grupos. Como atesta Hanegraaff (2020) em seu artigo sobre o futuro da ciência da religião, ainda somos virtualmente desconhecidos para a maior parte da população fora das "torres de marfim" da universidade. Não somos socialmente legitimados como autoridades para falarmos sobre as religiões.…”

Introduction: Historians in the Study of Religion\s*

“…and constructive stories that can inspire people; (2) they should address important societal issues that resonate outside academia; and (3) we have to really "believe in them with hearts and souls." 41 To this list, I would add a fourth factor: the attention to method. Good narratives about the history of religion make understandable why we favour one interpretation over another, especially in a time when science communication is often focused on spectacular finds and controversy, resulting in over-excited claims (aimed at attention and fundraising) with little explanation of how scholars reached their conclusions.…”