Reflections on Tradition and Inquiry in the Study of Religions

In recent years questions about the coherence of Religious Studies have been raised, responses to which have important implications within both the politics of institutions and broader cultural politics. As specializations deepen, some fragmentation in the field of Religious Studies is inevitable an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of the American Academy of Religion 2006-03, Vol.74 (1), p.47-58
Main Author: Flood, Gavin
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Buddhism
Christianity
Colleges & universities
Communities
General subjects. History of religions. Religious anthropology
History and sciences of religions
Islam
Reasoning
Reductionism
Religion
Religious studies
Studies in religion
Theology
Traditions
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Summary:In recent years questions about the coherence of Religious Studies have been raised, responses to which have important implications within both the politics of institutions and broader cultural politics. As specializations deepen, some fragmentation in the field of Religious Studies is inevitable and a welcome antidote to earlier universalising claims. But we need to overcome the inadequate choice of using either problematic general categories or a relativistic reversion to purely area-specific study which relegates the study of ‘religions’ to departments of anthropology, sociology, or other splintered fields, and excludes theologies of traditions from the secular academy. This paper argues for Religious Studies not only as the social scientific study of religion but as an arena that gives hospitality to traditions’ self-inquiry within a framework of rational discourse.
ISSN:0002-7189
1477-4585
DOI:10.1093/jaarel/lfj012