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Religious Studies & Theology vocabulary · Study of Religion

Religious studies

Meaning in religious studies & theology, with examples

nounCore term

In religious studies & theology, religious studies means: An academic field that studies religions from the outside, using methods from history, sociology, anthropology, psychology and philosophy, without judging which beliefs are true.

In Turkish: din bilimleri, din araştırmaları

How it is used

The usual name of university departments and degrees in the UK and North America. It takes a singular verb (religious studies is...). Scholars in this field describe themselves as neutral or non-confessional, in contrast to confessional theology.

Example sentences

  1. Religious studies treats Hinduism, Islam and new movements with the same descriptive methods.

  2. He took a master's in religious studies before starting fieldwork in Indonesia.

Common collocations

  • department of religious studies
  • a degree in religious studies
  • theology and religious studies
  • religious studies scholar
  • theologyThe systematic study of God, the divine and religious belief, usually carried out from within a particular faith tradition and its sources.
  • comparative religionThe academic study of the similarities and differences between religions, such as their beliefs, rituals, scriptures and institutions.
  • sociology of religionThe branch of sociology that studies religion as a social phenomenon: how it shapes, and is shaped by, groups, institutions, power and social change.
  • phenomenology of religionAn approach to studying religion that describes religious phenomena as believers experience them, while setting aside the question of whether their claims are true.

More terms: Study of Religion

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