What Happens When We Practice Religion?: Textures of Devotion in Everyday Life

Posted on August 4, 2020 by PLT Staff

What Happens When We Practice Religion?: Textures of Devotion in Everyday Life

From the publisher:

Religion is commonly viewed as something that people practice, whether in the presence of others or alone. But what do we mean exactly by “practice”? What approaches help to answer this question? What Happens When We Practice Religion? delves into the central concepts, arguments, and tools used to understand religion today.

Throughout the past few decades, the study of religion has shifted away from essentialist arguments that grandly purport to explain what religion is and why it exists. Instead, using methods from anthropology, psychology, religious studies, and sociology, scholars now focus on what people do and say: their daily religious habits, routines, improvisations, and adaptations. Robert Wuthnow shows how four intersecting areas of inquiry—situations, intentions, feelings, and bodies—shed important light on religious practice, and he explores such topics as the role of religious experiences in sacred spaces, gendered social relationships, educational settings, the arts, meditation, and ritual.

  • Publication Information
  • Author: Robert Wuthnow
  • Publication Type: Book
  • Publisher:Princeton University Press
  • Date of Publication:May 2020
  • Purchase: Buy this publication »