Rethinking Religion: A Concise Introduction
Introduction to the Book's Purpose and Structure
Author and Publication: Will Deming, Oxford University Press, 2005. This scholarly work provides a contemporary perspective on the academic study of religion.
Core Purpose: To demystify religion for a broader audience, particularly within Western analytical thought. This involves presenting religion as a legitimate object of neutral, empirical inquiry, moving beyond its common perception as a purely individual, insider, or devout domain where personal faith or spiritual experience is paramount. The book seeks to establish a framework for objective analysis.
Definition of Religion (used in this book): "Orientation to ultimate reality." This definition is carefully chosen to be neutral, descriptive, and inclusive, thereby facilitating empirical analysis without affirming or denying any religion's inherent truth claims. It deliberately moves past vague, culturally biased notions like "belief," "faith," or "tradition" that often fail to encompass the diversity of global religious phenomena.
Book Structure Overview: The book is divided into four main parts, each building upon the previous one to construct a comprehensive analytical framework:
Part One: Starting Points (Chapters 1-3): Establishes the fundamental analytical foundation for studying religion academically.
Chapter 1: Explores the compelling rationale and necessity for studying religion in the modern world.
Chapter 2: Develops and justifies the book's working definition of religion.
Chapter 3: Delves into the crucial and multifaceted role of symbols within religious contexts, explaining how they function as bridges to higher realities.
Part Two: Thirty Examples (Chapters 4-9): Applies the analytical models introduced in Part One through concrete examples drawn from six major religious traditions:
Hinduism
Buddhism
Judaism
Christianity
Islam
Primal religions (indigenous traditions).
Part Three: Complexities, Limits, Ethics (Chapters 10-13): Adds layers of sophistication and nuance to the analytical approach, addressing potential challenges and limitations.
Chapter 10: Examines the profound impact of historical change and evolution on religious traditions and practices.
Chapter 11: Discusses other analytical complications, such as the interplay between religion and culture, economics, or politics.
Chapter 12: Acknowledges the inherent limitations of an exclusively analytical approach to phenomena that often involve subjective experience and transcendent claims.
Chapter 13: Explores the critical ethical considerations involved in studying other people's religions, emphasizing respect and avoiding misrepresentation.
Part Four: Comparison and Evaluation (Chapters 14-16): Focuses on common Western fascinations and questions regarding religious truth and preference.
Chapter 14: Provides methodologies for effectively comparing two or more distinct religions.
Chapter 15: Tackles the complex philosophical and theological question of religion's validity or truth claims.
Chapter 16: Explores the possibilities and criteria for preferring one religion over another, acknowledging the subjective nature of such choices.
Additional Sections: The book includes a concise conclusion summarizing its arguments, a postscript specifically on Science and Religions for deeper exploration of their relationship, a comprehensive analytical glossary of key terms, suggestions for further reading to encourage continued study, and a detailed index of subjects for easy navigation.
Interspersed Materials: Throughout the text, photographs, illustrations, and carefully selected boxed quotations are strategically included. These materials serve multiple purposes: easing entry into potentially complex theoretical topics, offering vivid glimpses into everyday religious life and practices, and providing essential historical, cultural, or theological context to the discussions.
Author's Stance: The author explicitly states writing as a "botanist" rather than a "gardener." This analogy underscores the book's objective, descriptive aim: it describes "the way things… are and have been" in religious phenomena, rather than prescribing "the way they ought to be" or offering theological recommendations. This reinforces the neutral inquiry approach.
Chapter 1: Why Study Religion?
Global Pervasiveness: An estimated percent of the world's population identifies with a religious tradition. This staggering statistic underscores that religious concerns, values, and worldviews motivate the overwhelming majority of people on Earth, profoundly shaping their daily lives, societal structures, and political decisions.
Core Justification for Study: Religion is presented as a universal and enduring dimension of human experience across cultures and throughout history. Studying it offers invaluable insight into the hearts, minds, and activities of most of humanity. To neglect the study of religion is to willfully ignore a significant aspect of human civilization, akin to neglecting foreign languages, diverse cultures, foundational anthropology, complex sociology, crucial political science, and deep psychology.
Benefits for the Religious: For those who identify with a religious tradition, studying religion academically offers several advantages:
Fosters a deeper appreciation and understanding of their own tradition's history, theology, practices, and philosophical underpinnings.
Improves their ability to thoughtfully articulate their tradition to others, whether for personal edification, evangelism, or engaging in productive interfaith dialogue.
Benefits for All (Religious, Nonreligious, Detractors): The study of religion provides critical benefits regardless of one's personal stance:
Provides essential insight into effectively communicating with and understanding religious people in various contexts.
Enables a nuanced understanding of a complex human phenomenon, even if one's ultimate goal is to critique, challenge, or combat certain religious manifestations (e.g., studying AIDS to develop cures, or communism to understand its ideological appeal and impact).
Crucially, studying religion does not inherently equate to becoming religious, just as studying racism does not make one a racist. It is an academic exercise of understanding.
Religion's Influence in America (Examples): Religion exerts substantial influence across various sectors of American society:
Domestic Politics: Religious communities and values heavily influence debates on morally charged issues such as abortion access, LGBTQ+ rights, the death penalty, ethical considerations in gene research, anti-tax initiatives, the privatization of public services, arts funding, gun control legislation, and physician-assisted suicide. Powerful religious groups like the Moral Majority, Christian Coalition, and the Religious Right have historically played significant roles in the election campaigns and successes of presidents from Jimmy Carter to George W. Bush, often mobilizing large voter blocs and influencing policy platforms. The continued growth of "faith-based initiatives" further exemplifies the intricate collaboration between religious organizations and governmental social programs.
Popular Culture: Religious motifs and symbols often permeate popular culture, subtly shaping imagination. For instance, the popular Japanese "Pocket monsters" (Pokémon) franchise draws conceptual parallels to the indigenous Japanese Shinto kami – divine beings or spirits often associated with natural, unpopulated areas, thus introducing children to a culturally embedded religious concept.
Domestic Crises: Religious extremism can tragically trigger violence and social upheaval. Examples include bombings of women's clinics and murders of abortion doctors, religiously motivated acts of domestic terrorism, the tragic Waco siege involving the Branch Davidians (claiming over lives), and mass suicides such as Heaven's Gate ( lives in ) and Peoples' Temple ( deaths in ). Internationally, religiously framed acts of terrorism by groups like Al-Qaeda (e.g., the bombings in East Africa and the devastating September attacks) demonstrate the global reach and impact of religiously motivated violence.
International Relations (e.g., Middle East Peace): The religious dimensions are frequently overlooked in international diplomacy but are absolutely crucial for understanding conflicts, particularly in the Middle East:
Israeli Side: Many Israelis, and their conservative Christian and political supporters in America (e.g., Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, Billy Graham, Pat Robertson), hold a profound belief that God supernaturally gave the land of Israel to the Jewish people, rooted in biblical narratives. This theological conviction makes suggestions for a "land-for-peace" solution often perceived as a sin, threatening their covenantal relationship with God. Prime Minister Menachem Begin famously honored Jerry Falwell for his unwavering service to Israel in , highlighting the political significance of such religious alignment.
Palestinian Side: From a hardline Palestinian perspective, Judaism is often viewed as an outmoded, corrupt monotheism that has been superseded by Islam. This theological stance leads to a significant lack of sympathy for Israeli religious claims to the land and fuels resistance to the existence of a Jewish nation-state in territory historically considered part of the Islamic realm. Bernard Lewis succinctly stated: "For Muslims, no piece of land once added to the realm of Islam can ever be finally renounced." Militant groups such as Hamas, Hizbullah, Palestine Islamic Jihad, and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade frame their struggle as a "holy war" (jihad), considering their violent acts as profound expressions of religious devotion. Lamentably, religious people on both sides, driven by these deeply held beliefs, have repeatedly served as significant impediments to achieving lasting peace.
International Business: Understanding and respecting religious sensibilities is absolutely vital for effective marketing, sales, and management strategies in diverse global consumer populations, particularly in rapidly growing markets in Asia, Africa, and Central/South America. For instance, the Gujarat earthquake relief efforts in India were notoriously hampered by the rigidities of the Hindu caste system, which dictated who could receive aid from whom. Similarly, PT Ajinomoto faced a major crisis in Muslim-majority Indonesia when its pork-based MSG product was recalled due to religious dietary prohibitions. Corporations targeting Islamic markets must be intimately familiar with dress codes, strict prohibitions against alcohol, gambling, and pork, and cultural observances like daily prayers and Ramadan fasting. In India, McDonald's strategically offers no beef products due to the sacred status of cows for Hindus. The combined Muslim and Hindu populations constitute approximately one-third of the world's population, making religious literacy a commercial imperative.
Corporate Management: American executives operating abroad are significantly more effective if they possess the empathy and understanding to appreciate the religious and cultural outlook of their foreign counterparts. Popular Western management bestsellers (e.g., The One Minute Manager) often prove less applicable in cultures such as Japan, where deep-seated Confucian and Buddhist ideals profoundly influence corporate structure, hierarchy, and employee relations.
Reasons for Neglecting Religious Study in Western Society: Despite its global significance, academic study of religion has historically been neglected in Western contexts due to several factors:
Separation of Church and State: The foundational tradition of separating religious institutions from governmental civic life, enshrined in many Western constitutions, has often rendered public discussion and academic inquiry into religion suspect, fearing a breach of this principle.
Conflation of Study and Practice: A pervasive inability to distinguish between the academic study of religion (as a social, cultural, or historical phenomenon) and the personal practice of religion leads to concerns that public discourse or institutional study might inadvertently promote a particular religious position, thus risking the marginalization of non-adherents.
"My Religion Only" Perspective: Many individuals equate the broad concept of "religion" exclusively with "my religion" or "our religion," leading to a truncated appreciation of global religious diversity and making objective, comparative analysis seem intrusive or even offensive. As the saying goes, "To know only one of a species is to know none at all."
Secularization and Antagonism towards Science: Western society has undergone significant secularization, often resulting in a perception that religious thinking is intellectually inferior or inherently antithetical to the principles and methods of modern science. This antagonism makes the very idea of "analyzing religion" seem contradictory, leading to awkward nomenclature like "religious science" or "religiologist" and the frequent misinterpretation of "religionist" as a practitioner rather than an academic student.
Personalization of Religion: Religion is frequently considered a deeply private and personal matter, best confined to the home or individual conscience, rather than a subject for public or academic scrutiny.
Changes Over Recent Decades: Fortunately, recent decades have seen a noticeable shift. Major philanthropic organizations like the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Lilly Foundation have significantly increased funding for religious studies, and national media outlets have enhanced their public awareness and coverage of religious topics, leading to a more informed public discourse.
Continued Simplistic Media Coverage: Despite increased coverage, media representations often remain superficial and perpetuate stereotypes:
Frequently focuses on "human interest fillers," ceremonial pomp, and bland, uncontroversial pronouncements (e.g., the Dalai Lama's wardrobe choices, the Pope's general blessings), rather than substantive analysis of complex theological or sociological aspects.
Lacks the depth, analytical rigor, and specialized vocabulary routinely applied to financial news or music appreciation, despite the inherent complexity of religious terms, doctrines, and practices.
Actively promotes simplistic stereotypes of religious people: portraying them as either well-meaning (sincere, benign, if sometimes irrelevant), dishonest (evident in televangelist hoaxes or spectacle-driven worship), or profoundly dangerous (the stereotype of fundamentalists and fanatics).
These persistent stereotypes unfortunately obscure the distinct religious significance, complex motivations, and nuanced theological underpinnings behind many people's actions, making genuine understanding difficult.
Religious Use of Violence: It is crucial to recognize that religious use of violence is not merely an aberration but a constant, recurring feature throughout religious history and the modern world.
Historical examples abound, including the Christian Crusades and various Islamic "holy wars" (jihad), demonstrating a long lineage of religiously justified aggression.
Ongoing contemporary conflicts, such as those in Northern Ireland (between Catholics and Protestants), Israel/Palestine (between Jews and Muslims), and Sri Lanka (between Hindus and Buddhists), underscore the persistent role of religious identity and ideology in persistent ethno-religious strife.
The dramatic rise of militant fundamentalism globally—observable in the U.S., Japan, China, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Russia, Central Asian states, the Middle East, Ethiopia, Sudan, Egypt, North Africa, Nigeria, Somalia, Bosnia, and Kosovo—highlights the urgent need to understand its drivers.
Understanding its "distinctively religious features"—the theological justifications, eschatological hopes, communal identities, and sacred duties invoked by perpetrators—is crucial for effectively addressing challenges like religious terrorism. For example, following the Waco standoff with the Branch Davidians, the U.S. Justice and Treasury Departments consulted scholars of religion to better understand the group's religious reasoning and internal dynamics, indicating a belated recognition of this essential need. As Nasra Hassan observed about suicide bombers, they often appeared "deeply religious" and outwardly normal, yet were driven by profound religious conviction, highlighting the urgent necessity for deeper religious understanding beyond superficial appearances.
Chapter 2: What Is Religion?
Common, but Limiting, Student Definitions (First Category): Many initial attempts at defining religion are based on familiar cultural experiences but are ultimately too narrow for academic purposes:
"Belief in God" or "devotion to gods/divine beings." This focuses solely on theistic traditions.
"Time-honored tradition of norms/ethics." This emphasizes moral codes but neglects other aspects.
"Supplies comfort in crisis, important for mental health." This reduces religion to a psychological coping mechanism.
Critique: These definitions are inherently too narrow and culturally specific.
They risk misunderstanding one religion by imposing the framework of another. For instance, they might fail to grasp the nuances of non-theistic or polytheistic traditions.
They exclude significant religions or crucial aspects within them. For example, some forms of Hinduism and Buddhism view the worship of anthropomorphic gods as an inferior or misguided path to ultimate truth. Furthermore, religion encompasses a vast spectrum of human experiences (love, fear, wonder, surrender, humility, guilt) and activities (fasting, meditation, penance, pilgrimage, abstinence, almsgiving, sacrifice, ordination, theological speculation), not merely belief or devotion.
Common, but Problematic, Reductionist Definitions (Second Category): Many thinkers have attempted to reduce religion to "just" or "really" something else, dismissing its unique phenomenal status:
"Emotional crutch for the weak." (A psychological dismissive view)
"Arises from dreams and fear of ghosts." (Early anthropological theories)
"Pre-scientific explanation of the natural world" or a "mistaken understanding of historical events." (A positivist, often dismissive, view)
"Created by societies to enforce norms and values." (Sociological function without inherent truth)
"Opiate of the people" (Karl Marx): A tool used by ruling classes to subjugate the masses, pacifying them with promises of an afterlife instead of addressing earthly injustices.
"Creation of aliens with superior technology." (Pseudo-scientific theories)
"Stems from the human bicameral brain 'speaking' to itself" (Julian Jaynes): Suggests consciousness was once divided, leading to auditory hallucinations perceived as divine commands.
"Obsessive behavior from psychological disorders" (Sigmund Freud): Viewed religion as a collective neurosis, a projection of infantile longings for a father figure.
"Inevitable mental error," "disease of language" (Max Müller), or "virus of the brain" (Richard Dawkins): Positions religion as a cognitive malfunction or harmful meme.
Critique (Reductionism): While reductionism can sometimes be therapeutically useful (e.g., understanding an irrational fear as internalized trauma from childhood), it fundamentally fails to do justice to the complexity, depth, and unique qualities of its subject. For example, genuine romantic love can be reduced to hormonal imbalances and evolutionary drives, but this explanation misses the lived experience and cultural significance of love. The book argues that religion, too, should be critically examined and understood as a multifaceted "phenomenon" in its own right, not merely dissolved into other categories.
Criteria for an Adequate Definition: To serve as a useful foundation for academic study, a working definition of religion must adhere to specific principles:
It must not exclude any widely recognized religion or significant aspect within a religion, ensuring comprehensiveness.
It must not inadvertently promote the particular emphasis or bias of one religious tradition over others, thus maintaining neutrality.
It must not prematurely reduce religion to something else, respecting its distinct phenomenal existence and avoiding oversimplification before rigorous analysis.
The Book's Definition: "Religion is orientation to ultimate reality." This carefully chosen definition aims to meet the criteria previously outlined by being broadly inclusive and analytically neutral.
Ultimate Reality: Every religion, regardless of its specific tenets, posits the existence of a reality that is infinitely more important, foundational, and significant than anything else in human experience. This is often termed "sacred reality," "the sacred," "the holy," or by specific divine names. This ultimate reality stands in stark contrast to the "profane" world of daily, mundane existence, which is perceived as temporary, imperfect, or less real.
Significance: A core contention across all religions is that human life achieves its fullest potential, deepest meaning, and most authentic existence when it is properly oriented, aligned, and connected to this ultimate reality. This orientation provides purpose and value beyond transient worldly concerns.
Consequence: The profound importance attributed to this ultimate reality explains why religious people, across diverse traditions, are often willing to risk immense privation, endure torture, and even face death for their religious convictions. Their orientation provides a higher purpose that transcends physical suffering.
Choice: Given a choice between a life of hardship and suffering that is justified by ultimate meaning, and a secure, comfortable life that lacks such ultimate meaning, sincerely religious individuals will often prioritize the former, affirming the supreme value of their orientation.
"To the extent they are religious": This crucial phrase in the definition serves to isolate and identify distinctively religious behavior and motivation. It acknowledges that:
Not every action performed by religious people is necessarily oriented to ultimate reality. Individuals often participate in religious communities for a myriad of other reasons, including social connection, political influence, economic benefit, moral guidance, aesthetic pleasure, or cultural identity.
Activities are deemed "distinctively religious" and fall under the book's definition only when their primary intention and final reference point is an orientation to ultimate reality.
Distinguishing Religion from Kindred Activities: The definition helps differentiate religion from other deeply meaningful human endeavors:
Philosophy, Ethics, Romantic Love, Sports, Hobbies: These activities can certainly be pursued with an intense, almost "religious" dedication. However, they become truly religious according to this definition only if their final, ultimate reference point is something transcendent or ultimate. If the beloved, the winning team, or the philosophical truth itself becomes the absolute, supreme value beyond all else, then it takes on a religious character.
Spirituality: This term often refers to an orientation to a higher reality, but it is important to note that this reality is not necessarily ultimate. For instance, veneration of ancestral spirits might be a form of spirituality, but if those spirits are ultimately subservient to a higher, more foundational reality, then the orientation is not fully religious in the book's sense.
Magic: Magic involves the perceived manipulation or coercion of a higher reality (e.g., spirits, energies, forces) but critically, that reality is never ultimate. The goal of magic is typically to achieve specific, limited worldly outcomes (wealth, love, protection). Manipulation of ultimate reality is considered impossible within most religious frameworks, unless one seeks to become an intrinsic part of it (a goal often associated with mysticism, which is indeed a form of religion, distinct from magical practice).
Degrees of Orientation: The book acknowledges that religion may not be the single central interest in a person's life every single day, nor does it require constant, unceasing focus:
Ultimate value can be intellectually assigned and emotionally acknowledged without being the subject of constant, moment-by-moment attention (e.g., wartime patriotism might be all-consuming, while patriotism during peacetime is a background value).
Orientation occurs by degrees and is often restricted to certain times, places, or ritual contexts, even for individuals considered "very religious."
Children and newly initiated individuals may genuinely lack the full capacity for a singular, profound orientation to ultimate reality. Many individuals, even adult practitioners, are satisfied with limited degrees of religious engagement (e.g., Christians who attend church only on Christmas and Easter).
Because humans always live in and interact with profane reality, ultimate reality cannot fully encompass and exhaust every aspect of their lives. There is no such thing as a "purely religious person" (homo religiosus) who exists entirely detached from the mundane. Instead of simply asking if someone or something is religious, it is more nuanced and accurate to inquire to what extent a person or an ideology is oriented to ultimate reality.
"Virtuosos" of Religion (William James): To truly understand the essential nature and full potential of religion, one should observe its most dedicated and exemplary practitioners—the "virtuosos"—rather than focusing solely on amateurs, casual attendees, or mere bystanders. Analogously, one would seek to understand the art of opera by observing master performers, not merely casual audience members who may only attend sporadically.
The "Task" or "Business" of Religion: The core activity of religion is the orientation to ultimate reality. This task is made profoundly difficult by two primary factors:
Living in Profane Reality: Humans inherently exist within a "profane" reality, which, from a religious perspective, is often considered "less real" (in the sense of being evil, illusory, incomplete, corrupt, or temporary) compared to the ultimate reality. All human thoughts, actions, and intentions first naturally refer to and operate within this mundane profane reality, making the act of transcending it and orienting towards ultimate reality seem inherently challenging—like trying to perceive or move into a fourth dimension using only the tools and senses of a three-dimensional existence.
Buffer Zone/Higher-Order Realities: Most religions do not posit a direct, immediate conduit between profane existence and ultimate reality. Instead, they typically introduce intermediate, "higher-order" realities that act as a buffer zone between the human world and the sacred.
These higher-order realities are indeed "more real" or powerful than profane reality but are crucially not ultimate themselves; they are inferior to the final object of orientation. They exist on a spectrum between the mundane and the transcendent.
Examples of such entities, powers, or states can be good or evil: angels, demons, venerated ancestral spirits, demigods, the specific realms of heavens and hells, altered states of consciousness, concepts like karma, pervasive magical power (mana), or the state of sin. Negotiating with these entities (controlling, placating, befriending, or avoiding them) along with overcoming the inherent disadvantages of profane life, is often a prerequisite or a necessary part of the journey to gain access to ultimate reality.
Chapter 3: Religious Symbols
Function of Symbols: Religious people engage with both higher-order realities and, ultimately, ultimate reality primarily through symbols. These symbols act as crucial bridges or interfaces, connecting the mundane, profane world of human experience with these loftier, more profound spheres of existence.
Two Uses of the Word "Symbol": The term "symbol" can be understood in two distinct ways, but the book focuses on the second:
"Represents" / "Stands For" / "Signifies": This is the analytical, referential, or denotative use, where a symbol simply denotes or points to something else (e.g., the American flag stands for liberty, justice, and democracy). In this sense, understanding religious narratives as mere symbols would be akin to interpreting all literature as straightforward allegory, with symbols acting as simple placeholders for concepts.
"Orients" / "Enables Participation": This is the operative definition championed by the book. Here, symbols are not just passive representations but active, dynamic entities that connect people to their referents. They actively engage and inspire emotions, thoughts, and actions, often fostering a direct, participatory experience (e.g., the American flag evokes a deep emotional response, a "shiver up the spine," connecting one viscerally to a collective reality and ideal that lies "behind" or beyond the physical flag).
Examples of Symbols as Connectors:
A Buddha statue, in its religious context, does more than merely represent foundational Buddhist ideals; it actively orients Buddhists away from the perceived illusory nature of the mundane world and towards the liberating state of nirvana or enlightenment through contemplation and meditation.
The specific gestures, words, and charitable acts employed by evangelists function as powerful symbols that orient both themselves and their audience towards an immediate perception or experience of God, fostering connection and devotion.
What Constitutes a Religious Symbol: The remarkable inclusivity of religious symbolism means that virtually anything can be designated a religious symbol, provided it is imbued with sacred meaning by a community.
Examples abound: specific buildings (temples, cathedrals), artworks (icons, mandalas), movements (a Sufi dance), rituals (a baptism, a pilgrimage), natural elements (sacred plants or animals), venerated persons (saints, gurus), holy places (Jerusalem, Mecca), stories (parables, myths), abstract concepts (the Trinity), words (mantras, prayers), and sounds (chants, sacred music).
A temple is not merely a meeting place but a physical space designated for encountering God; shamans act as mediators between human and spirit worlds; acts of mercy are often seen as imitating divine compassion; a priest's benediction is believed to convey actual blessings from the divine.
Criterion for Symbol Appointment: The decisive factor for something becoming a religious symbol is its designation by a religious tradition as an appropriate and effective tool for orientation to ultimate reality. This appointment is rarely arbitrary but steeped in meaning and communal consensus.
Appropriateness Based on "Inner-Logic": A symbol's appropriateness is fundamentally determined by how well it fits into the larger, coherent system of meaning—the "inner-logic" or worldview—of a particular religion. This inner-logic dictates what makes sense within that tradition's understanding of reality.
Example 1: Ascent: If a religion conceives of ultimate reality (e.g., heaven, the dwelling place of sky gods) as existing "up there," then symbols and practices involving ascent become highly appropriate. This includes Moses's ascent of Mount Sinai to receive the commandments, or the ancient Mayans and Sumerians constructing towering pyramid-like temples and ziggurats to physically and spiritually approach their celestial deities.
Example 2: Magical Practices: If a religion's inner-logic posits that profane existence is significantly influenced or controlled by malevolent powers or spirits, then the incorporation of magic, exorcism, or protective rituals becomes a logically coherent and appropriate response. Examples include certain aspects of Tibetan Buddhism embracing indigenous magical practices to ward off or control local demons, or Christian exorcism rites used to expel perceived demonic influences.
Ineffectiveness Across Religions: Due to their deep embedment in specific inner-logics, symbols from one religion are often meaningless, ineffective, or even misunderstood when transplanted into another context with a different inner-logic.
Circumcision: For Jews, ritual male circumcision is a potent symbol of the covenant established between God and Abraham, signifying communal identity and sacred commitment. For most Christians, while it exists historically, it is largely viewed as a medical procedure without direct theological implications for salvation or covenant.
Zen Buddhist Tea Ceremony: Within Zen Buddhism, the elaborate tea ceremony is a profound meditative practice, a careful choreography designed to cultivate mindfulness, aesthetic appreciation, and ultimately, to facilitate a glimpse into Buddha-nature (the inherent enlightenment within all beings). Outside of Zen, it might be appreciated for its aesthetic beauty but remains merely a social opportunity lacking its profound theological implications.
Theoretical Basis for Analyzing Religions: The scientific, academic approach to analyzing religions primarily involves two interwoven steps: first, identifying the key symbols used by adherents, and second, understanding their underlying vision of ultimate reality. By observing how members of a tradition use specific symbols to orient themselves towards that ultimate reality, one can piece together the religion's unique "inner-logic."
Method of Analysis - Stage 1: Identify Symbols: This initial stage involves carefully ascertaining the full range of "tools" or practices that members of a religious tradition utilize for their orientation. Some symbols are readily apparent, while others require deeper observation:
Easily identifiable: These are actions or objects that explicitly stand out from ordinary, mundane behavior or appearance:
A Buddhist walking counterclockwise around a stupa or sacred building, an act of veneration.
A Jain teacher traveling naked, emphasizing detachment from material possessions and the physical world ("sky-clad").
A Jewish man wearing a kippah (hat), dark suit, and a wool prayer shawl (tallit) even in warm summer weather, symbolizing devotion, humility, and adherence to tradition.
Harder to spot (everyday objects/actions): Sometimes, seemingly ordinary objects or actions carry profound religious significance:
A Hindu engaging in the occupation of grocery store owner, while appearing mundane, might be understood as a form of dharma (righteous duty) or karma yoga, a way of orienting to ultimate reality through selfless service and ethical conduct.
The Amish adherence to a simple, agrarian life is not just a lifestyle choice but a deliberate orientation to achieve closeness to God through separation from worldly temptations and modern conveniences.
Showing respect, telling the truth, and helping neighbors are universal ethical behaviors that, within many religious frameworks, become distinct symbols of divine command, spiritual growth, or emulating the sacred.
Even harder (what people avoid): Paradoxically, what people deliberately do not do can also be highly symbolic, indicating what they believe separates them from ultimate reality or disrupts their orientation:
Not eating pork or certain roasted grains (e.g., in some Passover observances) symbolizes adherence to dietary laws rooted in sacred texts and traditions.
Not swearing or pronouncing God's name in vain reflects reverence for the divine.
Deliberately avoiding walking through a cemetery might be rooted in beliefs about ritual purity, ancestral spirits, or the sacredness of the deceased.
Method of Analysis - Stage 2: Puzzle Out the Rationale (Inner-Logic): Once symbols are identified, the next step is to understand why certain things are considered appropriate tools for orientation, thus uncovering the religion's inner-logic.
Food offerings to deities: If a tradition involves leaving food offerings, it suggests an inner-logic where the deities are perceived as having needs, being sustenance-dependent, or capable of receiving tangible gifts, implying a certain anthropomorphic or interactive relationship with the divine.
Cleansing rituals/purification: The presence of elaborate cleansing rituals indicates that ultimate reality is conceived as "pure" or untainted, necessitating ritual purification for human beings to safely or appropriately approach it, thus bridging a perceived gap between human impurity and divine purity.
Alternative Starting Point: Understanding Profane and Ultimate Reality: While starting with symbols is effective, one can also begin by exploring a religion's explicit or implicit understanding of profane and ultimate reality.
Although ultimate reality cannot be fully described or contained by human language, religions typically provide enough conceptual information (myths, doctrines, epithets) for adherents and scholars to achieve an initial orientation.
If God and angels are traditionally understood as dwelling "up there" (in heaven), then the inner-logic will likely dictate symbols and practices that facilitate human ascent (e.g., prayer raising the soul) or encourage deity descent (e.g., invocation rituals).
Understanding Shiva in devotional Hinduism as paradoxically both the ultimate ascetic and the ultimate erotic figure provides the crucial inner-logic that explains the coherent combination of sexual imagery with ascetic practices in certain Shaivite traditions; without this understanding, such combinations might appear illogical or contradictory.
Combined Approach: The most robust and accurate analysis often results from a combined, iterative approach, moving back and forth between the identification of symbols and the understanding of a religion's conception of profane/ultimate reality.
Metaphor of Construction Site: Imagine arriving at a construction site and seeing a broken wall and various tools. Observing the broken wall (the problem or goal, analogous to the vision of ultimate reality) leads one to hypothesize about the purpose of the tools (trowels, levels, plumb lines, analogous to symbols). Conversely, observing the tools might lead to theories about the ultimate goal (e.g., this set of tools suggests rebuilding, not demolition). The best approach is to continually go back and forth between studying the wall and examining the tools, and crucially, observing the workers (the adherents) in action to refine one's theories.
This iterative method helps analysts avoid misinterpretations (e.g., mistaking wall repair activities for foundation laying, or incorrectly including irrelevant tools in the analysis). It ensures a holistic and contextually sensitive understanding.
Moving to Practice: Part Two of the book will provide concrete examples where this analytical method (combining symbol identification with an understanding of ultimate reality) is applied to specific religious traditions, illustrating its practical utility.