Talking Tradition
Tradition - A Critical Primer - Steven Engler
Steven Engler [+]
Mount Royal University
Steven Engler is professor of Religious Studies at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Canada. He teaches a variety of courses and research popular Catholicism, Umbanda, Kardecist Spiritism and related spirit-incorporation religions in Brazil, as well as theories and methodology in the study of religions.
Description
This chapter will illustrate the bewildering range of uses of ‘tradition’ in the study of religion, using a selection of introductory textbooks. The goal is to show that clarity is needed and that various problematic assumptions are lurking.