Preface to the 2nd Edition
A Word About the 3rd Edition
Acknowledgements
Introduction
What is the Study of Religion?
Example: ‘…, But Not Specially Defined’
Summary of Vocabulary and Scholars
Chapter 1
What’s in a Name?
Example: Fruit or Vegetable?
Summary of Vocabulary and Scholars
Chapter 2
The History of ‘Religion’
Example: ‘Religion’ on the Colonial Frontier
Summary of Vocabulary and Scholars
Chapter 3
The Essentials of Religion
Criticisms
Example: ‘He’s Your Father!’
Summary of Vocabulary and Scholars
Chapter 4
The Functions of Religion
Criticisms
Example: ‘People Started to Come to Her for Healing’
Summary of Vocabulary and Scholars
Chapter 5
The Resemblance Among Religions
Criticisms
Example: ‘Not an Easy Task’
Summary of Vocabulary and Scholars
Chapter 6
The Public Discourse on Religion
Example: Public Muslim Cemeteries in France
Summary of Vocabulary and Scholar
Chapter 7
The Insider/Outsider Problem
Example: Under the Academic Microscope
Summary of Vocabulary and Scholar
Chapter 8
Religion and Classification
Example: The World Religions Paradigm
Summary of Vocabulary and Scholar
Chapter 9
Identification Matters
Case Study 1: Good Religion and Bad Religion
Case Study 2: Religion and Gender
Case Study 3: Religion and Race
Case Study 4: Religion and Indigeneity
Summary of Vocabulary and Scholars
Afterword
The Necessary Lie: Duplicity in the Disciplines, by Jonathan Z. Smith
Honesty Is the Best Pedagogy, by K. Merinda Simmons
Glossary
Scholars
Bibliography
Resources
Index
Biography
Russell T. McCutcheon, a widely published scholar also producing a variety of resources for students, is University Research Professor and, for 18 years, was the Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Alabama, USA.
Praise for the Previous Edition:
"If you find yourself teaching a course on the study of religion or need to get a brief history and recent thinking on the subject, this expanded edition of Studying Religion has you in mind. This book is both practical and, as Lévi-Strauss might say, good to think with."
Suzanne Owen, Leeds Trinity University, UK
"Those who want to explore religion as part of culture should start here."
Matthew Recla, Boise State University, USA, Reading Religion
