Relating Religion : Essays in the Study of Religion

Rating:
Summary: essential for anthropology and religious studies students
Review: Jonathan Z. Smith is the greatest and most interesting theorist of religion today. In this book Smith analyzes theories of his famous academic predecessors and voices his concerns with the issues in classification and nomology of religion. Smith is concerned with the ways in which folk psychology affects our perception of "religion" and "religious". He argues that the very concept of "religion" is a second-order term invented by post-Enlightenment scholars and therefore any attempts at defining "religion" should be abandoned.
Smith argues that historically widely accepted concepts of (for example) "magic" or Melanesian "mana" or even "canon" should be redefined by accurate historical and athropological work.

In the concluding essay "God save this honorable court" Smith shows that all legal definition of religious are circular ("religious organization is the organization engaged in religious activities") and the idea of religious tolerance is empty of content unless we provide the universal definition of religion. He provides and discusses real-life legal cases such as the one concerning the use of hallucinogen peyote by Native Americans.

This book will mostly benefit people interested in Religious Studies (particularly History of Religions) or Anthropology, but Smith's clear and lucid writing style, coupled with his playful humor and concern for broader issues can make his writing interesting for laity.