The Porcupine Tango: What Ethnography Can and Cannot Do for Theologians

Ethnography and theology are two contrasting life-activities, regulated by separate ideals. Like other sciences, ethnography is regulated by the ideal of ‘truth’. It gathers data about human communities, particularly their worldviews and their tacit social practices. New data correct old conclusions...

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Bibliographische Detailangaben
Veröffentlicht in:Ecclesial practices
1. VerfasserIn: Spickard, James (VerfasserIn)
Medienart: Elektronisch Aufsatz
Sprache:Englisch
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Veröffentlicht: Brill 2016
In: Ecclesial practices
RelBib Classification:AD Religionssoziologie; Religionspolitik
CF Christentum und Wissenschaft
FA Theologie
ZB Soziologie
weitere Schlagwörter:B Ethnography theology regulative ideals science
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Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:Ethnography and theology are two contrasting life-activities, regulated by separate ideals. Like other sciences, ethnography is regulated by the ideal of ‘truth’. It gathers data about human communities, particularly their worldviews and their tacit social practices. New data correct old conclusions, forcing ethnographers to discard the ideas with which they began their investigations. Following the regulative ideal helps them avoid placing their concerns about those of the people they study. Theologians (and others) can use ethnographic methods to gather data about congregational life, how people practice their religions, etc., but this practice itself is not ‘doing’ theology.
ISSN:2214-4471
Enthält:In: Ecclesial practices
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1163/22144471-00302003