Beyond Religion and Belief

This book addresses, in a highly eloquent and original style, several topical issues facing researchers in the age of Anthropocene. Foremost, it is a critical engagement with the categories of religion and belief (and their inherent power issues) and offers a constructive (not only deconstructive as is so often the case in the discursive study of religion) take on the matter. The author critically discusses many classical theories of religion and formulates an amendment to functionalist approaches. The most important inspiration and resources are drawn from actor network theory and Bruno Latour as well as from Tim Fizgerald’s work. While the argument is strongly theoretical it also presents an interesting empirical case (the ethnography of the interaction in a modern dance improvisation group) with which it demonstrates its theoretical points. Furthermore, the book posits that the study of religion should focus on ‘matters of concern’ and on practical means of enduring and overcoming uncertainty and contingencies in everyday life. It engages with the emic-etic debates and the problems arising from (in)equalities between the researcher and the researched. It stresses the value of engagement with neighboring disciplines such as anthropology and indigenous studies, contributes to ritual studies and addresses relational, de-colonial and other ethical issues.