It seems to me that philosophers who are interested in religion usually skip the question of what religion is. The tendency is to start with the concept of God and the attributes of divinity.
I think that’s an unfortunate place to start. I’d like to better understand what religion is and what people are doing when they practice religion.
The Martin Marty Center for the Public Understanding of Religion has a series of talks called “Why This Text Matters.” In each, a scholar talks about a book that has been a foundation for scholars studying religion.
I’m not sure that’s the best way of getting to a better idea of what religion is. But it is one way.
I started with Professor Richard Miller’s lecture on “Augustine’s Confessions.”
• Source: Professor Miller’s talk is here:
https://martycenter.org/series/why-this-text-matters/augustines-confessions-richard-miller
The Marty Center is part of the Divinity School at the University of Chicago. I’m glad some institution is concerned about the public understanding of religion.
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