The Thing about Religion: An Introduction to the Material Study of Religions

by David Morgan

Common views of religion typically focus on the beliefs and meanings derived from revealed scriptures, ideas, and doctrines. David Morgan has led the way in radically broadening that framework to encompass the understanding that religions are fundamentally embodied, material forms of practice. This concise primer shows readers how to study what has come to be termed material religion--the ways religious meaning is enacted in the material world.

Material religion includes the things people wear, eat, sing, touch, look at, create, and avoid. It also encompasses the places where religion and the social realities of everyday life, including gender, class, and race, intersect in physical ways. This interdisciplinary approach brings religious studies into conversation with art history, anthropology, and other fields. In the book, Morgan lays out a range of theories, terms, and concepts and shows how they work together to center materiality in the study of religion. Integrating carefully curated visual evidence, Morgan then applies these ideas and methods to case studies across a variety of religious traditions, modeling step-by-step analysis and emphasizing the importance of historical context. The Thing about Religion will be an essential tool for experts and students alike.

Genres: Religion

268 pages, Paperback

First published April 12, 2021

About the author

David Morgan is Professor of Religious Studies at Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, with an additional appointment in Duke's Department of Art, Art History and Visual Studies. Morgan served as the Chair in the Department of Religious Studies in Trinity College of Duke University from 2013-2016

Reviews

[David McDonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

I walked past this book in a Byron Bay book store, I would have dismissed it until I saw the huge price tag, I wondered how this book could cost 2-3 times more than any other softcover book in the same store. I googled the author and read some reviewed and quickly justified the purchase price as this book was exactly the book I had been looking for. I was not disappointed.

Long has it been since religion has touched me in a meaningful way, this book changed that but for entirely irreligious reasons. This was my first study into material religion and I discovered much more than I thought I would. Religion makes much more sense when studied from this perspective.

[Elizabeth Englander]

A good introduction i guess but the case studies were kinda meh