Religion for Realists: Why We All Need the Scientific Study of Religion

by Samuel L. Perry

More than half a century ago, sociologist J. Milton Yinger remarked about religion, "There are few major subjects about which men know so little, yet feel so certain." Samuel L. Perry says that Yinger had it right. Americans--and Westerners more generally--neglect the scientific study of religion, and we do so at our peril.

In Religion for Realists, Perry argues that we need the scientific study of religion--the rational, data-driven analysis of religious life-now more than ever. Contrary to the fears of many religious Americans, the scientific study of religion only threatens empirical falsehoods, promulgated often to the benefit of charlatans and demagogues. And contrary to the silent hopes of many secular academics, religion doesn't go away when you ignore it. Instead, interest groups fill the void to shape the public's understanding of religious sometimes well, usually poorly.

Perry makes the case that, as people in the West self-sort into partisan tribes, all of us--religious and irreligious alike--need the scientific study of religion. This book presents a practical roadmap for ensuring that its insights are widely available, accessible, and impactful.

Genres: Religion, Sociology

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2024

About the author

Samuel L. Perry is assistant professor of sociology and religious studies at the University of Oklahoma. His research explores the changing dynamics of religious and family life in the United States. He has published over 50 peer-reviewed journal articles and he is also the author of Growing God's Family: The Global Orphan Care Movement and the Limits of Evangelical Activism (2017). He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago.

Reviews

[Unsympathizer · Rating 3 out of 5]

In Samuel Perry's new book, he argues that most people in the West view religion incorrectly. We think religion is about theology, about a marketplace of ideas that rewards the best ideas and perhaps the more "correct" ideas. Yet Perry argues that religion is in fact more of a social phenomenon that is more about social groups, or political tribes, than it is about the substance of the beliefs. People do not form beliefs based on rational thinking but rather an affective understanding of who one's people are, and societal structures like the (de)coupling of church and state, as well as birth rates, can all affect the spread of religion. Perry gives the example of Islam in Western Europe, where it is growing simply because of immigration and birth rates rather than any sort of attempt to convert people rationally. Perry also spends a lot of time talking about Christianity in America, especially in the ways evangelicals have managed to defeat mainline Protestantism mostly due to birth rates and parallel networks. David Hollinger's book on American Christianity also touches on this.

Perry's big insight is that the Western view of religion is mostly an Anglo-Protestant view. As he is a sociologist and not a philosopher, he doesn't get into the nitty-gritty of this topic, especially regarding the way Protestantism shaped the metaphysical understanding of the western world by centering the self, rather than God, as the site of rational thought. While Perry mentions Joseph Henrich's concept of WEIRDness, Perry never discusses Henrich's claim that the Catholic church's ban on cousin marriage created a genetic effect that caused a breakdown in kinship structures among Western people that led to the creation of what he calls Anglo-Protestantism: that such an ideology comes down to genetics rather than rational attempts at conversion. Such a claim would bolster Perry's own claims about the tribal nature of religious belief, but the genetic element is probably too controversial to gain much traction in the secular academy.

Perry also ignores the fact that his emphasis on a scientific study of religion, which he argues for throughout the entire book, itself comes from an Anglo-Protestant way of thinking. Nietzsche, for one, argued that the faith in science is metaphysically similar to faith in Christianity or other religions. "Science is real" is still an appeal to an objective or empirical truth, and thus is arguably metaphysically no different from "God is real." And as thinkers like Charles Taylor and Tom Holland have pointed out, it was this post-Enlightenment emphasis on science within Protestant traditions that led to our "secular age" to begin with. Perhaps Perry does not take up these critiques because he is a sociologist and not a philosopher or theologian, but I was disappointed to not even see these critiques being mentioned. Perry also does not engage with postliberal forms of philosophy or theology, despite the obvious relevance his project has with dismantling the liberal (and thus secularized Protestant) view of the world, as thinkers like Leo Strauss and Carl Schmitt have already done.

Also, this book could have been a lot shorter, as Perry's central thesis can probably be summarized in just an essay. So some of the content ends up getting repeated and ends up sounding like filler. The last two chapters also aren't even about his central thesis but rather talks about the ways religious studies as a field is marginalized in academia, and about the ways religious studies is marginalized in contemporary society, and how to fix this issue. This subject alone could form a different book, but it appears that Perry doesn't have enough for just one book if he didn't address those subjects as well.

So while the first four chapters are really good in talking about the way that our understanding of religion is a WEIRD one that doesn't account for how religion actually works in real life, Perry misses a lot of material that would have further challenged our conceptions of religion, of the secular, and of the metaphysical.

[Jan Goericke · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not a religious person. A few years ago, reading E. Becker's "The Denial of Death" spurred my quest to answer an important (to me) question: Why do humans need religion? I read psychology books explaining coping mechanisms for dealing with existential anxiety. I read entry level neuroscience books to understand the origin of consciousness itself. I read theology and writings on religions (Buddhism, Judaism, Islam, etc.) which lead me to morals, ethics, and ultimately to having compassion and love for our fellow humans. I read philosophy which told me that the question of "a meaning of life" maybe the wrong way to looking at things. I read books about death telling stories of living a life without regrets.

Samuel Perry's "Religion for Realists" actually provided the missing puzzle piece in my quest! Religion is a human characteristics because it creates community, a tribe, belonging. The dogmas and rituals are interchangeable from an elaborate buffet of available religions and believe systems. Mystics is equally secondary. The most important aspect is the social benefit that belonging to a religious group provides to its members. And therefore and in spite of secular stereotypes is the scientific study of religion desirable.

A wonderful book! In some regards, I received some bonus advise from this book. It is worth to listen patiently to form an understanding of things that are not part of the fabric of my reality. In this listening, one will understand how amazing life itself is and how listening to other perspectives on our journeys can truly be an enrichment and joy. I therefore recommend this book!

[CB Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

Approachably written and persuasively argued, Religion for Realists models clear communication while arguing for its importance. Highly recommend for anyone interested in sociology or current events.

[Zachary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew that I would find this book interesting, and highly relevant to my own areas of research and curiosity. But I was not prepared for how quickly and thoroughly this book would matter to me. The way that Perry argues and the data he marshals to push on our standard preconceptions of American religion is incredible, and articulates so much of what I've felt and seen without knowing how to put into words. There's a lot of confirmation here, too, for the ways I've approached the research I've done on religious social media influencers, which at times has met with some resistance and skepticism as to the sincerity or seriousness of its applicability. I'm not saying I'm ahead of the curve or anything with what Perry is arguing here, but it was helpful to see some of the things he said in print, and to look to some of the studies he cites and examines. I'm already planning to use pieces of this book in class next semester, and I know it's going to make a significant impact for myself and my students.

[Michael Summers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perry makes a plea for scientific study of religion. His target audiences include conservative religious people who may scoff at the concept and secular people, including sociologists, who are skeptical about bias in research on religion done by scholars who are religious. His argument is very much worth reading and considering seriously.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A non-bullshit truthful take that does not hide the facts about religion, how they spread, and how the study of religion is frowned upon. It was really interesting to read.

[Luke Dishman · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a good book. Very relevant and necessary.