Vocabulary for the Study of Religion
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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
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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
Death and Burial
(3,391 words)
Abstract: Death is one of the most profound experiences witnessed by humans and is central to many religions which believe that this life is only one stage in the human existence. Death rituals are a…
Deconstruction
(2,702 words)
Abstract: This article on deconstruction focuses on the philosophy of Jacques Derrida, though other authors are also noted. Derrida’s work on religion is tied to his views of the limits of experience…
Deconversion
(2,919 words)
Abstract: Researchers use “deconversion” and related terms for the process of leaving a community. That decision often involves intellectual doubts, emotional suffering, disagreements, and loss of so…
Date:
2014-09-16
Definitions of Religion
(2,515 words)
Abstract: There are many competing definitions, both of
a religion — a specialized human institution, proper to a given culture — and of
religion — a distinctive, yet very extensive, area of human activity. In evaluating d…
Date:
2014-09-16
Demography
(2,981 words)
Abstract: Demography focuses on how a population changes over time, for example, because of birth and death rates and movements (migration, urbanization, emigration, etc.), but also because of politi…
Demythologization
(1,466 words)
Abstract: Rudolf Bultmann’s project of demythologization sought to reject the long outmoded, pre-scientific worldview of the New Testament while retaining its real content, which is not an explanatio…
Deprivation
(2,463 words)
Abstract: Relating the standard sociological definition of deprivation — as “inequality of access to social goods” — to a multi-axial understanding of power, this entry makes the case for a
context-bound approach to examining the …
Deus otiosus
(1,272 words)
Abstract: The term
deus otiosus refers to the widespread, whether or not universal, belief that the creator God, upon finishing creation, withdrew permanently from the world into inactivity. The concept m…
Deviance
(1,964 words)
Abstract: The term “deviance” refers to characteristics, qualities, or behaviors of an individual or group that are considered to be different from the “normal.” The term can also be applied to beli…