Prioritizing practice in the study of religion: normative and descriptive orientations
Calls to prioritize practice in the study of religion typically claim that attention to lived practices rather than merely to belief' is needed if a given religious tradition or instance of religiosity is to be understood. Within that broad ambit, certain empirical researchers, as well as some...
Main Author: | |
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Format: | Electronic Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
Journals Online & Print: | |
Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
Published: |
Taylor & Francis
[2018]
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In: |
International journal of philosophy and theology
Year: 2018, Volume: 79, Issue: 4, Pages: 437-450 |
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Religious philosophy
/ Methodology
/ Religious practice
/ Research
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RelBib Classification: | AB Philosophy of religion; criticism of religion; atheism AG Religious life; material religion |
Further subjects: | B
Lived Religion
B humane philosophy of religion B Pierre Hadot B Practice B John Cottingham |
Online Access: |
Presumably Free Access Volltext (Verlag) |
Summary: | Calls to prioritize practice in the study of religion typically claim that attention to lived practices rather than merely to belief' is needed if a given religious tradition or instance of religiosity is to be understood. Within that broad ambit, certain empirical researchers, as well as some Wittgenstein-influenced philosophers of religion, investigate the diversity of religious practices without passing judgement, whereas certain other philosophers foreground a narrower selection of examples while deploying moral criteria to distinguish acceptable from unacceptable religion. Characterizing this methodological divergence in terms of descriptive versus normative orientations, the present article argues that while attention to practice is indeed vital, the imposition of normative evaluation is liable to inhibit an appreciation of the radical plurality of religious phenomena. |
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ISSN: | 2169-2335 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: International journal of philosophy and theology
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Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/21692327.2017.1344135 |