Remarks on the study of religion (Lecture notes)

A curated set of practice flashcards covering core concepts from the lecture notes on the study of religion, including methodological stances, key theories about religion, and historical-contextual ideas discussed in the video.

Suspended judgment in religious studies

Engaging with a text or tradition without preconceived notions, avoiding claims that one religion is truer than another.

Religious studies as an interdisciplinary 'meta-discipline'

An approach that borrows from history, sociology, psychology, anthropology, and more, using multiple theories to understand religion.

Intellectually promiscuous

The ability to move across different disciplines and theories to study religion rather than sticking to one method.

Hard vs soft sciences in religious studies

Hard sciences study measurable, controllable phenomena (the easier tasks); soft sciences study living, conscious subjects and tackle harder, qualitative questions.

Descriptive analysis of God/divinity

Discussing how traditions understand God or divinity without asserting the truth or existence of these beings; focus is on human experience.

Revelation in religious studies

Regarded as a product of human labor and history; texts may be labeled revelation but are interpreted and produced by humans.

Anthropomorphism (projection theory)

The idea that gods are imagined with human qualities because people project themselves onto the divine.

Diffusion theory

The idea that religious ideas spread between cultures through migration, trade, war, and contact, leading to similarities across traditions.

Euhemerism

The view that gods originated from extraordinary humans who were later deified.

Cosmotheism

The belief that the entire cosmos is a form of divinity; all religious traditions are animated by a single divine source.

Henotheism

Revering one god while recognizing the existence or importance of other gods; often seen as a stage toward monotheism (e.g., in Judaism).

Axial Age

A period roughly 8th to 2nd/7th to 3rd century BCE marked by a shift in consciousness and the rise of systematized religious and philosophical traditions (Confucianism, Taoism, Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Israelite prophets, Greek philosophy).

Abrahamic monotheism differences

Judaism and Islam emphasize a singular, non-depicted God; Christianity embraces the Trinity and depictions of God, leading to different theological emphases.

Mystical approach to religion

A qualitative, experiential focus on the mysteries of religion (the ‘mysteries’) beyond purely social-scientific analysis; exemplified by figures like Plotinus and Pythagoras.

Religious texts as human products

Texts and beliefs are shaped by human labor, agency, and history; revelation is interpreted within human contexts.

Balancing sameness and difference in comparative religion

Avoid claiming all religions are identical or utterly different; emphasize similarities and differences and the nuanced relationships (e.g., closer among Abrahamic or Dharmic traditions).

Axis mundi

A symbolic center or world axis linking Earth and Heaven, used as a conceptual focal point in discussions of religious symbolism and the axial idea.

Axial Age time frame and examples

A period roughly 8th–2nd/7th–3rd century BCE with foundational developments across multiple regions (Confucianism, Taoism, Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Israelite prophets, Greek rationalism).

Peer review in religious studies

Scholarly evaluation by peers to ensure rigor and credibility, acknowledging subjectivity while improving methodological soundness.