Vocabulary for the Study of Religion
Get access
Subject: Religious Studies
Edited by: Robert A. Segal & Kocku von Stuckrad.
The Vocabulary for the Study of Religion offers a unique overview of critical terms in the study of religion(s). This first dictionary in English covers a broad spectrum of theoretical topics used in the academic study of religion, including those from adjacent disciplines such as sociology, anthropology, historiography, theology, philology, literary studies, psychology, philosophy, cultural studies, and political sciences.
Subscriptions: Brill.com
| Help us improve our service |
The Vocabulary for the Study of Religion offers a unique overview of critical terms in the study of religion(s). This first dictionary in English covers a broad spectrum of theoretical topics used in the academic study of religion, including those from adjacent disciplines such as sociology, anthropology, historiography, theology, philology, literary studies, psychology, philosophy, cultural studies, and political sciences.
Subscriptions: Brill.com
Sacred (the); Sacred and Profane
(4,322 words)
Abstract: The sacred can apply to gods, to places, to times, and to persons. It is one of several terms used to describe the object of worship in religion. Other terms are holy, divine, and gods. The…
Sacrifice
(3,789 words)
Abstract: The entry provides an overview of the study of sacrifice as a religious and cultural phenomenon. It offers examples of sacrificial rituals a discussion of definitions and characterizations…
Salvation
(3,466 words)
Abstract: “Salvation” is a concept drawn from Jewish and Christian Scripture which addresses the post-mortem fate of individuals and the transformation of the cosmos they inhabit. The relationship be…
Sanctuary / Shrine / Temple
(5,139 words)
Abstract: Since the earliest times, human beings have been constructing buildings and consecrated sites for the worship of deities and natural or supernatural powers. These serve a variety of purpose…
Savior
(2,307 words)
Abstract: This entry defines savior as a supernatural being who is believed to intervene on behalf of others to redeem them from an ill fate. Examples are given of six types: (1) those in "primitive"…
Scapegoat
(1,736 words)
Abstract: Though coined by the translator William Tyndale for his sixteenth-century translation of
Leviticus, the word “scapegoat” has since come to acquire a second, figurative meaning. The millennial history of …
Date:
2014-09-16
Schism / Schismogenesis
(2,359 words)
Abstract: The word “schism” derives from the Greek
skhisma, meaning division. Schismogenesis is a term used when discussing the origin or creation of a partition. Schism is not heresy. Schism involves the rej…
Date:
2014-09-16
Science
(3,375 words)
Abstract: The natural sciences in their diversity have a major impact on ideas and practices. Scientific theories are always provisional, but well-established theories are the most reliable forms of …
Scripture
(2,304 words)
Abstract: The generic term “scripture” is used today for any text(s) revered in a given religious tradition as uniquely sacred and authoritative. The scope of the concept in the Near Eastern and clas…
Sect / Sectarianism / Cult
(5,574 words)
Abstract: Growing out of the Protestant Reformation, religious diversity has continued to increase in almost every Western nation. This growing diversity has led scholars to seek a vocabulary that wo…
Secularization and De-secularization
(2,584 words)
Abstract: Secularization is the decrease of either religion or its influence in any sphere of human activity. The extent to which a decrease can and does take place, as well as whether the decrease i…
Secular religion
(2,362 words)
Abstract: In this entry I explore how the term the “secular” has come to be understood in the social sciences, religious studies, and philosophy. Following Talal Asad, Jürgen Habermas, and Charles Ta…
Date:
2014-09-16
Secular, Secularism
(2,017 words)
Abstract: The word “secular” means not connected with religious matters. “Secularization” is the development towards a secular culture. “Secularism” is the ideology that favors secularization. There…
Semiotics
(2,143 words)
Abstract: The semiotics of religion is a theoretical approach to the study of signs and processes of signification found in religious beliefs and practices. Semiotics allows for a theoretical grasp o…
Sexuality
(3,957 words)
Abstract: Sexuality should be understood in historical terms. In the modern period it has been an umbrella term used to refer to sexual feelings, nature and orientation, with the emphasis on question…
Date:
2014-09-16