Mind the (Unbridgeable) Gaps

In this paper, I explore two of the most pernicious kinds of scientific distortions and misconceptions pertinent to the study of religion (i.e., pseudoscientific trends focused on allegedly paranormal/supernatural phenomena and discontinuity between human and non-human cognition), arguing that: a) t...

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Détails bibliographiques
Publié dans:Method & theory in the study of religion
Auteur principal: Ambasciano, Leonardo (Auteur)
Type de support: Électronique Article
Langue:Anglais
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Publié: Brill 2016
Dans: Method & theory in the study of religion
Année: 2016, Volume: 28, Numéro: 2, Pages: 141-225
Sujets non-standardisés:B Anthropocentrism cognitive science of religion evolution history of religions paranormal pseudoscience
Accès en ligne: Volltext (Verlag)
Description
Résumé:In this paper, I explore two of the most pernicious kinds of scientific distortions and misconceptions pertinent to the study of religion (i.e., pseudoscientific trends focused on allegedly paranormal/supernatural phenomena and discontinuity between human and non-human cognition), arguing that: a) the adherence to the prestigious reputation of Eliadean academic frameworks may still cause grave distortions in the comprehension of relevant scientific fields; b) a reliance on cognition alone does not guarantee ipso facto a more epistemically warranted study of religion; c) an evolutionary and cognitively continuist approach to the study of religion is, instead, the most promising and fundamental scholarly tool to bridge the gap between the humanities and the natural sciences, even though it remains a long-term goal; d) the obsolete language of “aboriginal cultures” as open-air museums for our past is rooted in the aforementioned misconceptions and, though basically flawed, is still very much alive.
ISSN:1570-0682
Contient:In: Method & theory in the study of religion
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1163/15700682-12341372