Key Categories in the Study of Religion - Contexts and Critiques - Rebekka King

Key Categories in the Study of Religion - Contexts and Critiques - Rebekka King

20. Who’s Afraid of Class Analysis? Rethinking Identity and Class in the Study of Religion

Key Categories in the Study of Religion - Contexts and Critiques - Rebekka King

James Dennis LoRusso [+-]
Princeton University
James Dennis LoRusso is Associate Research Scholar for the Faith & Work Initiative in the Center for the Study of Religion at Princeton University. LoRusso is interested in Theories and Methods in the study of religion, the intersection of religion and business management thought and praxis, and the workplace as a site of production for the category of religion. He is the author of Spirituality, Corporate Culture, and American Business: The Neoliberal Ethic and The Spirit of Global Capital (Bloomsbury, 2017), which traces how “spiritual” discourses in business have have contributed to the establishment and continue to sustain neoliberal norms. In his current role, he is co-researcher for a mixed-methods study of corporate chaplaincy in US companies and is developing his next qualitative project, which will explore “faith-based” and interfaith employee networks in corporate America.

Description

While Suzanne Owen’s analysis of neopaganism in the UK is illuminating, this chapter argues that it should not be considered class analysis in any meaningful way. She applies Gramsci’s conceptions of hegemony and consent to explain the struggles of neopagan communities for state recognition in the UK. However, in repurposing these concepts, Owen fundamentally changes them by imposing them on a set of social relations—religious discrimination and marginalization—quite distinct from Gramsci’s critique of class exploitation. This response contends that scholars must attend to the distinctions between these categories and considers a more fully developed sense of class analysis.

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Citation

LoRusso, James Dennis. 20. Who’s Afraid of Class Analysis? Rethinking Identity and Class in the Study of Religion. Key Categories in the Study of Religion - Contexts and Critiques. Equinox eBooks Publishing, United Kingdom. p. 204-212 Jul 2022. ISBN 9781781799666. https://www.equinoxpub.com/home/view-chapter/?id=39453. Date accessed: 29 Mar 2024 doi: 10.1558/equinox.39453. Jul 2022

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