How to Define “Religion”?

I would define religion in a polythetic, Wittgensteinian, family-resemblance kind of way.  Let me unpack that a little… There are several ways to define things:  there’s the “essentialist” way that specifies the characteristics that are both necessary and sufficient.  For example, bachelors are unmarried men.  All unmarried men are bachelors, …

Book Recommendation – The Righteous Mind

I just  finished this excellent book. One of the best and most enlightening and relevant books I have ever read.  Highly recommended. Here’s an excerpt from the conclusion: “This book explained why people are divided by politics and religion. The answer is not, as Manichaeans would have it, because some …

“Which Islam?”

Islamophobia is widespread. Although other religions, eg, Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, have been feared, Islam in particular seems more extensively feared today, especially following 9/11, as evidenced in Google: “Islamophobia” returns 5,760,000 million results, >100 times more than “Christianophobia” (46,100), “Hinduphobia” (18,600), and even “Judeophobia” (58,400). Other religious and cultural traditions …