Publication details
Religion and Secularity: (Un)suitable Concepts for the Comparative Research?
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2014 |
| Type | Appeared in Conference without Proceedings |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Description | Usefulness of the analytical category of religion has long been debated in the field of religious studies. Primarily, the category is seen as a questionable one due its strong Western bias which makes it allegedly of only limited (or even no) use in the cross-cultural scientific research. Alongside, various defences of the category have been pronounced, downplaying the potential risks associated with using the category. Similar debates have recently accompanied employment of category of secularity in the comparative study across nations. In the same vein, Western roots, ideological bias and the colonial context have been aired as objections against the use of the category. In the first part of my paper, I will reflect briefly on the main arguments presented against and in support for employment of the two categories in scientific research. Then, I will elaborate more in detail on the thesis that it is not only possible, but also helpful to work with these concepts. The thrust of my argument will be that in the contemporary globalized world both these categories represent “social facts” in numerous societies, those beyond the Christian/Western cultural orbit including. The fact that contexts in which these concepts appear are different, as well as relations between them and local concepts, does not invalidate the argument. |