SYMPOSIUM: ENGAGING RELIGION Limits, Genealogies, and Openings Introductory Remarks on Engaging Religion

Abstract

This article, which introduces a special collection of articles, is intended to invite scholarly reflection on the study of religion in the present day. We believe that a meaningful conversation about what happens when we engage religion for scholarly purposes forces us to consider the ways in which the very category ‘religion’ shapes our research interests and scholarly communities. A focus on ‘engagements’ is furthermore useful as we seek an open conversation about what is lost and what can be found in the translations and transitions between analytical categories and empirical findings. We contend that much can be learned by exploring what, exactly, is engaging us—and how we engage—in the study of religion. It is therefore the aim of this article and those that follow to participate in joint interdisciplinary thinking about the means, ends, methods, and results of academic analyses that deal with religions and religiosity.