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Things

Religion and the Question of Materiality [Paperback]

by Birgit Meyer

    • Author

      Birgit Meyer

    • Book Format

      Paperback

    • Publisher

      Fordham University Press

    • Published

      September 2012

      Read full description

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      Things

      Today's Price £25.50



      Product Description

      That relation has long been conceived in antagonistic terms, privileging spirit above matter, belief above ritual and objects, meaning above form, and "inward" contemplation above "outward" action. After all, wasn't the opposition between spirituality and materiality the defining characteristic of religion, understood as geared to a transcendental beyond that was immaterial by definition? Grounded in the rise of religion as a modern category, with Protestantism as its main exponent, this conceptualization devalues religious things as lacking serious empirical, let alone theoretical, interest. The resurgence of public religion in our time has exposed the limitations of this attitude.
      Taking materiality seriously, this volume uses as a starting point the insight that religion necessarily requires some kind of incarnation, through which the beyond to which it refers becomes accessible. Conjoining rather than separating spirit and matter, incarnation (whether understood as "the world becoming flesh" or in a broader sense) places at center stage the question of how the realm of the transcendental, spiritual, or invisible is rendered tangible in the world.
      How do things matter in religious discourse and practice? How are we to account for the value or devaluation, the appraisal or contestation, of things within particular religious perspectives? How are we to rematerialize our scholarly approaches to religion? These are the key questions addressed by this multidisciplinary volume. Focusing on different kinds of things that matter for religion, including sacred artifacts, images, bodily fluids, sites, and electronic media, it offers a wide-ranging set of multidisciplinary studies that combine detailed analysis and critical reflection.

      Specification

      • Author

        Birgit Meyer

      • Book Format

        Paperback

      • Publisher

        Fordham University Press

      • Published

        September 2012

      • Weight

        1010g

      • Page Count

        496

      • Dimensions

        183 x 232 x 28 mm

      • ISBN

        9780823239467

      • ISBN-10

        0823239462

      • Eden Code

        4026377

      More Information

      • Author/Creator: Birgit Meyer

      • ISBN: 9780823239467

      • Publisher: Fordham University Press

      • Release Date: September 2012

      • Weight: 1010g

      • Dimensions: 183 x 232 x 28 mm

      • Eden Code: 4026377


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